FrogBlog | Translating Los Angeles

Back in the days Silver Lake was a desirable location for film studios. We are talking 1910s to 1930s here and the area where Silver Lake is situated today was – well, let’s say rural. Plenty of space, plenty of sun – ideal for building studios and filming. From roughly the 1920s on it also became quite the place to live, because the city encouraged developers to build there. The lovely hills and the Silver Lake reservoir as a focal point served as an additional lure. With the terrain being as hilly as it is, a lot of houses were reached by staircases being built in lieu of “proper” streets and they are still there today.

The most famous one is this one:

Yes, everybody has seen it – that is where “The Music Box” with Stan and Ollie was filmed.

Many of the staircases are beautifully kept, with tiny gardens planted left and right, and nearly all of them are cool and shady.

The reward after climbing up – and up – and up a bit more – is an amazing view over a green and hilly neighborhood so very much unlike the stereotypical idea many out-of-towners have of the city.

But psssst, we better not tell them, or we will have hordes of tourists trampling up and down the staircases. Or maybe not – the staircases of Silver Lake might be a tad too quiet and serene for them.

I used to not mind flying. In fact I clocked up many a mile, both on business and private travel. Of course that was in the good old days prior to excessive “security measures.” Even though I am all for security – well, who isn’t, we all want to arrive safely at our destination – some of the measures border on the ridiculous in my opinion. Hence, if possible, I avoid flying. Especially from and to major airports. I am not a glutton for cruel and unnecessary torture in the form of demeaning demands one has to oblige and an endless waste of time.

Which does not mean that I am no longer interested in aviation. In fact, Southern California and aviation go hand in hand. Aviation was one of the growth factors, an industry which drew people from all over the US to come here and find work. On average I would assume that those folks had more luck than those who came here to seek their luck in that other huge industry, the movie business. But that is another story altogether.

Anyway, aviation. Airports. Naw, not LAX. The only nice thing I have to say about that location is that one finds the Encounter-Restaurant there. I mean the very first airport with a paved runway west of the Rocky Mountains. That would be Grand Central Airport in Glendale. Although the runway existed since 1923, the actual terminal was not finished until 1928, when the airport was officially opened. It operated until 1959 and was then closed, as the runway was too short for jet planes. As a funny aside, the site, where LAX opened in 1946 for commercial air travel, was called Mines Field. And yes, I can just image what a smooth ride landing and taking off from a runway must have been with a name like that.

So Grand Central Airport closed down. The terminal is still standing, although it is crumbling a bit around the edges. The details of the tower are quite, quite beautiful.

No, in comparison LAX does not quite cut it. No winged creatures to be found there, decorating the tower.

11 AM. 99°F (36°C). Heatwave.

Option # 1: Shutter up the house, crank up the A/C, swear at the weather.

Option # 2: Wander down to Home, sit beside the water fountain in the shade, watch the fish swimming around, have a delicious cool drink and enjoy the summer.

Guess what I did?

One of the nearest getaways for Angelenos for a few days of peace and quiet is Catalina Island.

Surprisingly enough most Angelenos I know have never been there. They know about it, they always wanted to go there, but never got around to it. Might it be because Catalina is too easy to reach? After all, it takes only 45 minutes to drive to San Pedro (provided the hellhole on the 110, aka Downtown does not live up to its name) plus a bit more than one hour on a ferry or 15 minutes in a helicopter to get there. One can not milk that for stories of woe and strife getting to the desired destination. Unless the hellhole lives up to its name, which it does – occasionally – oh, the stories I could tell.

But I digress. Catalina Island is a small paradise some 20 miles off the coast, the largest of the Channel Islands. It is a rarity insofar as about 90 % of the island are a vast nature preserve, given over to flora and fauna. The Santa Catalina Island Conservancy does a good job here, a very, very good job. Thank you!

The best time to go and visit the island is outside of the main holiday season – until the beginning of May and after the end of September the crowds of visitors are comparatively small. During this off season even on a weekend one has the feeling to be far away from the pressures and demands of life on the mainland.

This is not a one-off moment:

It is a normal evening scene in Avalon (not during peak season, I have to admit).

Makes bracing the hellhole worthwhile, doesn’t it?

Sometimes a detail sums up the whole.

(Top of the Observatory in Griffith Park)