Walked through Hollywood, through the rich suburbs of picture-perfect America
Walk of Fame- Walking on the stars (and "stars")
Chinese Theatre
People dressed in superhero costumes
Uber! From hostel to hotel
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A lot of the world's rich and famous have homes near Hollywood. Today most of them are in fenced off neighbourhoods with security to keep us poor plebiscites out. Yet I like imagine some of them live in the streets just off western Sunset Boulevard. These streets are as if set up by Hollywood to provide a background as perfect, pristine, "normal" America. Smaller quaint wooden houses, veranda with rocking chair, occasional little white picket fence, mown lawn, flowers out in bloom. A picturesque quiet suburb.
And the hustle and bustle of Hollywood Boulevard just a block away.
The Walk of Fame stretches out through the tourist areas and beyond towards the less popular eastern end. Each celebrity is marked by a 2 foot square paving slab adorned with a pink star, a brass marked of what they did (film, music, tv, etc.) and their name. Some are individuals, some bands, some are even fictitious, such as The Simpsons. There were quite a few I recognised from the last 70 years of Western culture. There were also a number of modern one day that must have never reached me because I have no idea who they are. And there were even a few I have to ask "What are you doing here???"- I guess they'll have been popular choices at the time, but might need to do more to not get replaced in the future. It's interesting to note that there's no positioning system. All celebrities from different media are mixed and how successful one is doesn't define position either. Thus there are some truelly amazing people ar the furthest reaches of the walk. Even down into the less touristy, dare I say dodgey, areas of the street. I imagine this does to some extent help spread tourists hunting for particular stars out- they have to get out of the main areas, taking them away from the most popular areas and spreading their spending out down the street.
You know you've made it if you have a paving slab in the courtyard of the Chinese Theatre though. Here, over 70 years ago, a group of what are now the classic stars of film, pressed their hand and shoe prints into wet cement, along with a message and signature. Around these classics more modern popular stars have been added. No doubt some, such as the Twilight and Hunger Games actors', who presently sit in pride of place, front and centre, will one day be replaced. Others might simply be moved as they become classics, like Harry Potter.
Today this cinema, and the one across the road, are used for the greatest world premieres of the latest Hollywood movie. On the day after this one they would be the premier for Disney's new Jungle Book.
Outside the theatre there are numerous locals dressed in various costumes. Most are terrible and shop bought outfits- there were about 7 Spidermen (3 were having a heated argument at one point, we nearly had a Spider-Man vs Spider-Man vs Spider-Man video!), 2 Transformers' Bumblebees, 2 Minions, and a few Batmen. One of these was actually really good. The guy had made his own suit to look like the armour from the new Batman vs Superman movie. The reason for them all being there is to have pictures taken with the tourists who then tip them a few dollars.
The Hollywood Boulevard, given that it's a serious tourist destination, is something of a let down. You get all the stuff you want to be there in the markings of celebrities from past through to present. Yet the streets are dirty- ground in oily dirt alongside chewing gum and cigarette stubs. There are a few good gift stores and places to get a snack but most are dilapidated with not a few places having closed completely. It's sad really. Everywhere else I've ever been the city would be doing something to make this a place tourists wanted to be. Draw them in and draw them back. Make it a place you want to stay for longer than a few pictures with George Cloonies hand prints and Spider-Man. It would seem a worth while investment for the city. More tourists, more money, more jobs. But this is America so to some extent that's the job for individuals and businesses to organise, not the representatives of the public at large. Still it's a place every tourist is going to go to no matter what, I guess.
Back at the hostel I'd left my bags in the storage room. I'd be spending tonight at a hotel where my new tour group would be meeting in the morning. Having my backpack and travel bag, plus the sleeping bag and roll mat for the camping we'd be doing I wasn't keep to try out the public buses. LA has an extensive network of the world's newest version of taxis though, Uber. With an app on ones phone a ride can be organised in someone's car, possibly sharing with people going in the same direction, for around 1/3 of the cost of a taxi. Yep, taxi companies hate it. But the Americans, such as those I'd spent yesterday with, love it. When in Rome and all that. (Even though we now have it in the UK).
Thus I found myself in a small SUV with a skateboarder and an Indian driver. All payments are done via the app, without even the need to tip, which is a big deal in the USA. (Tipping is like the service charge one might pay in a European restaurant but it's pseudovoluntary- which can make people's real wage unpredictable. Some say it means you get better service, but only if you can or want to afford bribing people to love you. I'm not being thoroughly fair to the whole system, but it doesn't seem consistently fair to me. )
I was booked into a shared twin room, but no one else was. So I got a whole room to myself!
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