Sunny Venice! Two days into my LA trip, I took a quick stop down Venice Beach (aka "Muscle Beach") for an afternoon stroll. It has a quite different vibe from Laguna. Rather than a calming, relaxing aura, Venice Beach gives off a very hyped, and a 'let's-have-fun-in-the-sun' kind of feeling.
If you were wondering why it was nicknamed "Muscle Beach," it's because it's a place filled with sports and athletics. For instance, a bunch of guys were lifting weights inside this concrete building that had a lot of body building equipment, something I found very interesting. There was a basketball court, gym rings for those who do gymnastics, and a small skatepark. You could also rent segways and bikes, which were very useful for roaming around the boardwalk. There was a couple of volleyball and tennis courts, and of course, surf shacks to rent surfboards. I didn't really take pictures in any of those places because it was pretty crowded compared to the rest of the beach, and it would just be super awkward to take pictures of random, shirtless guys (which were a treat for the eyes. To be honest, I didn't mind at all. hehe...)
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Struggling to find parking (yet again). |
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| Luckily, we found a parking space that was cheaper than all the other ones that we found. I think we paid around $10-15 compared to the more expensive parking spaces that charged around $30. It was also closer to the beach, which was a plus! |
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| It was super warm that day. The water was just perfect for swimming-- not too cold, not too hot. Some were tanning, some were swimming, and some people were actually parasailing. I wanted to go surfing, but the waves weren't really that big. |
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| WEED! Haha! My mom kept complaining about the smell of marijuana covering a span of the whole beach. But what can you do? It's a part of the West Coast culture! |
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| At one point, a huge circle formed on the boardwalk. Drumming and heavy bass music started playing and I got so curious as to why there was such a huge crowd. So I went to go see what was happening, and sure enough, there was a B-Boy showdown going on! |
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| The boardwalk was lined with numerous stores fit for everybody's interests. Several were souvenir shops and restaurants. |
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Notice how there's a sign saying "No Photos." I wasn't really looking before I took this picture. Whoops! |
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[Cutie at eleven o'clock] #stalkerstatus |
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| You meet all kinds of people in Venice. Most of them are either hippies or extreme workout junkies (or both). Mostly, it's crowded with plenty of tourists. |
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| This skater boy's cute dog knew how to skateboard! Apparently, the duo were already celebrities at the beach and a lot of people knew them. |
In the middle is the signature Venice Beach landmark. You'll see it as soon as you enter and leave the beach.
Venice is definitely a place for the active and those who are interested in eclectic variety. Though it was super crowded and the environment wasn't really the cleanest, it was fun to see different kinds of people and a variety of activities that took place at the beach. The stores and the shirtless guys were definitely my favorite part. Haha!
--xx, C
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