Taking the train in L.A.

I have to take back part of what I said the day before: You can do quite a bit by public transport (metro) in L.A. It's not well-known yet by tourists, but doable, and it's getting extended and improved constantly. Pic directly below shows one of the stations.

We practiced public transportation yesterday, bought a $ 3,50 day ticket (!), and, first took the train up to Union Station (photo) and Olvera Street - the "birthplace of L.A." and a Mexican marketplace (pics far below). We have arrived to or left L.A. at Union Station by train a couple of times before, and, still love the old 1939 Mission-style building!

 

Union Station

Olvera Street (Mexican neighborhood).

We walked from there to Little Tokyo (great Ramen and bakeries!) and, on to Chinatown, then through the Civic Center District to the Walt Disney Concert Hall and Broad Museum. Both are examples of fantastic modern architecture, first by Richard Gehry, second by Diller Scofidio + Renfro. 

 Chinatown and Civic Center below:

Disney Concert Hall by Frank Gehry:

Broad Museum and Contemporary Arts Museum:

One highlight of the day afterwards, and, a "first" for us, was Angels Flight, a historic (1901) narrow gauge funicular railway in the Bunker Hill District of downtown. Two cars by name "Olivet" and "Sinai" are covering a distance of 300 ft/90 m, paralleled by a stairway for people who originally couldn't afford the fare. A mystery by Michael Connelly plays here.

 

In Historic Downtown, at the foot of the steps, we visited the Grand Central Market - more of an international food hall nowadays than a Mexican market, as it was originally. Got us a lunch of great donuts at "Donut Man" before we proceeded to The Last Bookshop (further below) for more intellectual nutrition. Love this bookstore, for its prices, its variety, its decoration and atmosphere! Note the Karl May book on the photo, please - for our American friends: This was a famous German author who influenced the love of Germans for the Wild West, cowboys and indians severely!

In the late afternoon, we took the metro again - running above ground on this line and passing several neighborhoods, and, the University of Southern California (USC) - on its way to Santa Monica. It took us about 40 min. to get there, but considering how much time we could have spent behind the  wheel, it was not bad at all. The famous Pier in Santa Monica - finishing point of Rte. 66 originally - was packed, and, it was windy and cold. 

 

We checked out a brewery in Santa Monica, but didn't like their beer/food menus and their prices and took the train back into town to get back to "HiDef Brewing", where a dog show took place and where we met with the "real Los Angelinos", Mexicans and Blacks. All in all, it's been a productive and interesting day, full of new experiences and pictures. Metro works okay, and, it's a good opportunity to get away from traffic for a while and to indulge in "Real L.A.".