Summers Family Travels Again :)

19 January

On our way back from Vegas I gave the kids the special task of coming up with their top three things that they wanted to do with their 2 free days in LA. One of Isabelle's requests was to go back to Disney (Joshua concurred) - while we did consider it briefly, fortunately there were no available tickets. Phew! Joshua wanted to do a tour of the homes of Hollywood Stars and go to the Automotive Museum.

So we headed towards the Automotive Museum. On the way we checked out some of the notable landmarks nearby. First stop included the Original LA Farmers Markets - I think there was one stall that may have had fresh fruit and veg, a couple that did meet products, otherwise most stalls were produce made by local's e.g., pizza, doughnuts, pastries and even the option to sample 30 different pickles. While, with thanks to Joshua, I have learnt to enjoy a good pickle on a burger, neither Joshua or I were ready to head to taste testing and sampling of pickles. We managed to pick out some nice pizza slices for lunch - these were possibly the best pizza we had tasted since arriving here. It had a beautiful crunchy base. Steve and I have both come to the conclusion that there is something delish and simple about a good pepperoni pizza.

On route to the Automobile Museum, we found a couple of famous public artworks at the LACMA, including the Urban Light and Levitating Mass.

While you are able to walk through and under this art work, you are not allowed
to sit on the cement walls that run along the side - we know this because Steve and I,
who were perched on it towards the end of the walkway while waiting for the kids,
were asked to not sit on the art. Possibly 5 minutes before, I had made a comment
about whether the walls were considered part of the art and if we were being
inappropriate by sitting on the wall. Apparently I was right. I don't agree or disagree with
the request, especially as it is not my art work, but I do think it opens the discussion
about the ability to interact with the art -especially when it is in such a public place
(and considering the very un-delicate piece of cement I was sitting on. Steve was very
miffed by the request).

I don't think I was able to do this art work justice, and I wonder if it is more effective at night?

I was a little surprised by Joshua's request to see the Petersen Automotive Museum, which is possibly why I didn't mind accommodating this particular request. I was possibly even more surprised by how much I enjoyed it. The building itself is a piece of artwork.

I think Joshua may have taken a photo of each of the cars in the collection. Here is a sample of some of the standouts.

Although the bottom floor was said to have had a focus on the future of cars
and electric cars, I would suggest that it was sponsored by Tesla. With the
exception of a note about a collaboration between Toyota and Tesla, everything
was otherwise Tesla on this floor.

Its a shame Joshua didnt get a side profile of this car as it was beautiful.

Joshua and I had a fun little game going trying to find the fasted car - this car,
made in post war Japan from fibre glass and three wheels, was not one of them.

On the top floor there is an entire section dedicated to vehicle that featured
in moves. A lot of the cars were concept pieces. I'm not sure what car this is now,
or from which movie it was from, but this was the one car that I felt the need to
sample on the road. Not sure what it was, but the interior and exterior just looked
graceful.