With all of the green lawns, paved streets and endless strip malls that cover the city of Los Angeles, sometimes we forget that LA is actually a desert. And, like most deserts, LA can have incredibly high temperatures that reach way above the 100 degree mark. Cases of sunstroke and heatstroke are not uncommon, and not just amongst the elderly population. When temperatures rise above normal, try to make your way West if at all possible for one of the smartest, cool things to do in LA. When the afternoon boils, maybe it’s time to take in a museum. LA happens to have some of the best in the country. Since the average temperatures along the coast can be 10-20 degrees cooler, you’ll be glad you did.
If you try to avoid large crowds at all cost, you may be faced with the unsettling paradox of living in a city like Los Angeles, which by most standards is considered a crowded urban sprawl. A good way to avoid big crowds: think like the crowd in order to do the opposite. For example, if most people are of the mindset that heading to the Santa Monica Pier on a Saturday is at the top of their ‘cool things to do in LA’ list, I’ll make time to go on a Monday, in December, at 8AM, and enjoy the silence.
There are plenty of other hip spots to hit in Los Angeles. Pay a visit to the Big Lebowski mansion, otherwise known as the Greystone mansion in real life. The cult classic Coen Brothers movie was filmed there, as well as Spiderman, The Social Network, Ghostbusters and There Will Be Blood. The mansion was built in 1928 by oil tycoon Edward L. Doheny as his home digs. It made the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The City of Beverly Hills purchased the property in 1965 and opened the 18.3 acre site as a public park in 1971. The lush gardens are free and open to the public. The interior is open to small private group tours.
We’re always asked, what’s going on in Los Angeles… any upcoming events in Los Angeles that’ll be one of the things to do in LA that don’t suck? I guess we’re asked because in many ways, we’ve become the go to reference for last minute events and festivals in our amazing region.
For example, on January 10th (2018) you can see Trea Crowder (American Political Comedian) and “Friends” (Corey Ryan Forrester and Drew Morgan) at 7pm at Largo! If comedy is not your thing, take in “Aladdin” at Hollywood Pantages Theatre.
What’s some cool ways to kick some time around in Los Angeles? Pay a visit to the real Big Lebowski, the millionaire Jeffrey Lebowski. Actually, it’s really owned by oil tycoon Ed Doheny, but the 18-acre estate served as the outdoor filming location in the film the Big Lebowski. There are public garden tours available. You can also pay a visit to a haunted Zoo. The LA Zoo has been abandoned for years, but the cages and holding pens are eerily intact. Or you can check out an 1800s era castle, built by Charles Lummis walked from Cincinnati to LA after dropping out of Harvard in 1881.