"The new Rome" a Los Angeles Travel Page by HarmoniousBotch

LA is the capital of western civilization; it is the new Rome. And, as it was said that 'All roads lead to Rome', so now all roads lead to LA ( ok, so they encounter a little traffic on the way in )

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"That f****** place should be wiped off the face of the earth." -David Bowie, 1980

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As the poet/songwriter Henry Rollins said:

At night LA glitters like a woman
Who got punched in the mouth
And told to get her ho ass back to work..

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L.A. is the new Rome, the new capital of the world. All things are possible here, the best and the worst. And like Bella Roma, she must be seized, and her virtues taken. This requires boldness, courage, insight, and most of all, money. ( A good surfboard helps too - but that's another story )

It is a city of unparalleled opportunity. ( Where else can a poor little black boy like Micheal Jackson grow up to be a rich ugly white woman? )

Money makes more of a difference here than anyplace else.

Being poor in L.A. is worse than being poor almost anyplace else in America. The crime is appalling in the bad neighborhoods - and the poor can't afford to move. There are parts of south central L.A. where the cops don't go in without three cruisers, and they don't fly choppers over at night because of the near certainty of taking small arms fire.

Being rich in L.A. is better than being rich almost anyplace else. Anything can be had here.

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TRANSPORTATION:
You will find that things are farther apart here. You can't get around on a bicycle as easily. You will find that you just can't live a comfortable lifestyle without a car.
Public transportation here is used by students, the poor, the blind, recent immigrants, and drunks. It is not middle-class transportation as in many east coast cities.
Here, even the eco-freaks drive their Volvos to the Earth Day celebrations in the park.
If you are over 25 and you don't have a car, people will think that there is something wrong with you. ( and there probably is )

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DRIVING IN LA:
Keep in mind that driving in LA is like being in the French Foreign Legion: one must be ready for anything. But the survival rate is much higher - as long as you stay out of the bad neighborhoods.

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DOWNTOWN LA:
LA is a sprawl city. It is not like New York or Chicago where downtown is the center of things.
Don't even think of lodging downtown unless you need to use the public transportation to get around - even then at least go for northern downtown near Union Station.
Don't bother visiting downtown at all unless you want to see a Laker's game or something at the Disney Concert Hall. Olivera street is a tourist trap.
The interesting stuff is in the surrounding areas like Hollywood or the neighboring cities like Pasadena, Anaheim, and Santa Monica.