Next, we headed to Santa Monica, a city that truly embodies the California vibe. The most famous spot here is the Santa Monica Pier. The pier features a historic amusement park with a merry-go-round, roller coaster, and the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium.
By the way, the Santa Monica Pier is also famous as the end point of Route 66 and often appears in movies. It’s featured in Tom Hanks’ “Forrest Gump” and Will Smith’s “Hancock,” though I’ve seen both movies and can’t quite remember the scenes with the pier (lol).
The coastal road leading to Santa Monica Pier was beautiful, with kids running around and people lying down listening to their favorite music, creating a relaxed and peaceful atmosphere. I imagine it would be even cooler and less crowded if you came early in the morning.
My eldest daughter lay down with her arms and legs spread out, clearly delighted. She’s usually very shy and would never lie down like that in Japan, but under the open California sky, her heart was completely open the whole time. (By the way, she kept saying she didn’t want to go back to Japan and preferred America lol.)
After leaving Santa Monica, we headed to the Griffith Observatory. This spot is famous in Los Angeles and appeared in the Jim Carrey movie “Yes Man.” Since sunset times in San Francisco and Los Angeles are later than in Japan, it was still bright at 8 pm, and we hoped to catch the sunset at the observatory. Along the way, we also caught a glimpse of the famous “HOLLYWOOD” sign.
We were driving smoothly, but as we got closer to the observatory, traffic became extremely congested, and due to road closures, we had to make a U-turn. We finally arrived at the lookout around 9 pm, by which time it was completely dark.
Though we missed the sunset, we were very satisfied with the beautiful night view. When I visited New York, I saw the city lights from the top of the Empire State Building, and this view was just as stunning. They say the air is clearer and the view even more beautiful in winter.
But I couldn’t help but think, “If the night view is so beautiful… that must mean a lot of people are working late into the night…” I hope workstyle reforms progress, but if everyone leaves early and the office lights go off, the night view won’t be as beautiful. Still, overworking isn’t good either… it left me with mixed feelings (-_-).
That was our Los Angeles sightseeing. Though it was a short two-day trip, we had a great time. By the way, we saw far more Porsches in Los Angeles than in San Francisco, including many 911s, Boxsters, and even the latest Porsche models.
Traveling in Japan is fun, but it was also enjoyable to experience a completely different culture and way of life overseas. I used to love traveling abroad when I was a student, but after becoming a working adult and having children, I stopped going altogether.
But life is short, so this California trip reminded me again that I want to create a lifestyle and work style that allow me the freedom and flexibility to travel abroad whenever I want.
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