Landing in LA I really only had 24 hours to kill, so I made the most of it and stayed in Santa Monica.
Santa Monica pier smells like popcorn and fairy floss. And it has rides and the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company restaurant. What more could one want! But there is a darker side to LA….. Paying $50 for the privilege of sleeping on the top bunk in an dorm room with 7 other people. And in the morning, I got to wash my own breakfast dishes.
I miss Asia.
Sonia flew in early Thursday morning, so we visited Santa Monica Pier and walked to Venice Beach. Venice Beach was….interesting and full of hippies. Old hippies smoked dope and painted fluorescent pictures and sold them on the promenade. Young hippies smoked dope and did tricks with hoola hoops for money. One guy would even let you kick him in the nuts for $10. Bizarre.
(Running Baywatch style)
After a lovely lunch at Manhattan Beach with Sonia’s friends, we decided we were adventurous enough to catch public transport home. Armed with written directions from the man at the deli, we boarded the bus. Confident in our abilities, the bus driver dropped us at the train station with strict instructions. Easy.
Getting off the train we headed for our next train only to find that that train wasn’t running. Looking lost and extremely jet lagged we were adopted by a train employee on her way home. We headed back to the bus, then she changed her mind so we headed back to the train. Changed her mind again, and headed back to the bus. This happened twice more before we actually boarded a train.
We got off our second train (heading the way we had just come from) and actually boarded a bus. 10 mins later we discovered that clearly white women from Australia do not usually take public transport. It was then that the hilarity began.
A mentally ill man got on the bus and began ranting….
You don’t know god. Read the bible.
Look at yourself. Read the bible.
I am god. Read the bible.
I created god. Read the bible.
This 15 minute monologue also included references to Mt Vesuvius, why women can’t rule the world (because they wear pant suits) and that Jesus didn’t really know what he was doing because he was only 33.
He then ended with….
‘I don’t need these glasses. I though I was Ray Charles butu I’m not. I’m god.’ He proceeded to throw his glasses in the bin and get off the bus.
Bizarre.
We got off our second train (heading the way we had just come from) and actually boarded a bus. 10 mins later we discovered that clearly white women from Australia do not usually take public transport. It was then that the hilarity began.
A mentally ill man got on the bus and began ranting….
You don’t know god. Read the bible.
Look at yourself. Read the bible.
I am god. Read the bible.
I created god. Read the bible.
This 15 minute monologue also included references to Mt Vesuvius, why women can’t rule the world (because they wear pant suits) and that Jesus didn’t really know what he was doing because he was only 33.
He then ended with….
‘I don’t need these glasses. I though I was Ray Charles butu I’m not. I’m god.’ He proceeded to throw his glasses in the bin and get off the bus.
Bizarre.
(So over being on the bus)
Our final bus was no better. A strange man was waving his hands in he air, clearly thinking he was some kind of reiki master. It was all lovely and tranquil until the Reiki Master flipped the middle finger to the overly loud university students on the bus.
Oh LA.
