On 28th March, I woke up at 4am and prepared myself for an 11 hour flight to Los Angeles, California. As tired as we were, there was an overwhelming amount of excitement spread around the coach en route to Heathrow airport.
Fast forward eleven hours and we were in LAX… for another three hours! Passport control was the most tedious part of the trip as we queued, line after line, waiting to get into the country. After this, our Los Angeles adventure had begun. As this was my first time in America, everything I saw seemed so interesting and iconic, like the yellow school buses on the freeway or the amazingly wide roads and masses of traffic. We made our way to our hostel in a coach which basically became our home on wheels for the next 7 days as this was our means of travel with our beloved driver, Alberto.
When we got to the hostel in Santa Monica, our rooms were sorted; the teachers then took us down to Third Street Promenade which was our local area for restaurants and shops. We were allowed to explore the area for the evening; as typical tourists, a group of us went to Jonny Rokits, a classic American diner.
The next day was when we had a true LA experience.
We started the day with a guided tour of Paramount Studios in the beaming sun, which was amazing and so surreal. Two guides showed us around the film sets and took us to the prop stage where I tried on the original Pink Ladies jacket and saw many props from incredible films. We were allowed on the set of Dr Phil, a typical American TV show. Next, we went to the Farmers Market where we could enjoy many different cuisines - our group played safe and ate Chinese/Italian. Madame Tussauds was the next stop, where we first saw Hollywood Boulevard. Madame Tussauds was as close as we’d get to Zac Efron or Johnny Depp. Seeing and standing on Hollywood Boulevard was an interesting experience, the hustle, bustle and lively atmosphere was like nothing I’ve ever encountered. It was just as tacky as I expected, but I suppose that’s a part of the Hollywood charm. Last stop of the day, the Griffith Observatory, which might actually be one of my favourite visits because it was so beautiful. Days before leaving home, I watched ‘Rebel Without a Cause’, set at the Observatory. Actually seeing the view and the specific spots where certain events happened was truly surreal, despite its touristic nature.
The following day, we made our way to Hollywood again for a ‘heart of Hollywood tour’. During the tour we learnt about the iconography and history behind the Roosevelt hotel, Capitol Records and the iconic Chinese Theatre. We later had a tour of the Dolby Theatre, where the Oscars is held.
So now, I can say that I’ve been on the stage of the Oscars, which is pretty cool.
After spending the day in Hollywood, everyone’s feet were sore, so we hopped on the coach and drove to Venice Beach. Now, Venice was certainly an interesting and very strange experience. As our group walked towards the promenade, we noticed that some odd people were around. We were given a few hours in the evening to go and explore Venice. Everything about Venice had a very edgy aesthetic, the people, the graffiti, the skate park. Everything. I think it was important to see this slightly different side of Los Angeles, especially after being in Hollywood for the day, seeing the glitz and glam everywhere.
Another busy day ahead, we were off to Warner Bros. This tour was definitely my favourite as I saw the sets for many of my favourite shows. Even standing in some of my favourite characters’ houses was surreal, not to mention sitting in Central Perk! We later drove to Rodeo Drive, which for some was a dream come true, and for others, a slightly depressing experience. This was due to the abundance of wealth scattered around the area, which of course has motivated us all to go back to Rodeo Drive later in life.
On Easter Sunday, we spent the day in Santa Monica, which was really nice because we got to know the area we were staying in slightly better. I like how the teachers gave us freedom to do what we like in the area, from morning till evening. I spent time on the beach, on the pier and Third Street promenade, as well as going back to the hostel to relax for a little while. A large group of us went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner and then went down to the pier to experience it at night. I was brave and went on a high swinging ride after dinner, probably not the best idea.
Monday started and so did the journey to Universal. This was the day that most of us were really excited for.
It was a beautiful day, rides and attractions everywhere; we knew we were going to have a fantastic time.
The rides were great… if the lines didn’t exist. We queued for two and a half hours to get onto the Jurassic park ride, which, in all honesty was quite disappointing, although the drop was fun.
Reluctantly, we all woke up for our last few hours in Los Angeles. We visited Sony Pictures Studios and Hollywood again to grab last minute gifts for friends and family. And finally, it was time to leave; we sat in LAX waiting for our flight to bring us back to England.
I was honestly sad to leave because I had such a great time, with great people whilst experiencing the American Dream.
I will almost certainly be returning to LA, I loved everything about it and absorbed the good and bad of their culture. If you’d like to know more about the trip, I made a video of my time there and would appreciate a watch. Finally, I’d like to say a huge thank you to the teachers who organised and came on the trip; they made sure the trip went as smoothly as it did every day.
My Los Angeles film:
By Jodie Chanda
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