L.A.: Chinatown - Mandarin Chateau Restaurant

Mandarin Chateau, 970 N Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90012

In Chinatown I had dinner in the Mandarin Chateau restaurant. The decor is sparely, but the service and the food very good! The portions are so huge, that you can order for two and eat for four.

spicy soup with chicken, tofu, mushrooms

Crispy duck with rice and steamed gai lan (chinese brocoli)
with oyster sauce.

L.A.: Fashion District - Santee Alley

Santee Alley is located downtown Los Angeles and one of the most popular shopping places in the L.A. Fashion District.

Here you will find everything: clothes, fancy shoes, electronic stuff, knockoffs, toys, accessories, gifts, etc. and so inexpensive! If you want to haggle, you have a big advantage if you speak spanish!

This area must be very crowded in the weekend, the tuesday afternoon was really quiet. 

L.A.: Beverly Center: Grand Lux Cafe & Pinkberry

Beverly Center: One of the premier fashion destination in Southern California, is a big shopping mall with famous designer boutiques and normal shops for smaller budgets.

Inside the Beverly Center is the Grand Lux Café where I had dinner.

Cocktail: Raspberry Cosmopolitan

Appetizer to share:

Asian Nachos 
Crispy Fried Wontons Covered with Chicken in a Sweet-Hot Peanut Sauce. Topped with Wasabi Cream and Melted Cheese

So good!!! I will keep this snack in mind for my future bar 

Main dish: Small salad
Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Salad 
Organic Greens, Fresh Roasted Beets, Goat Cheese and Toasted Nuts Tossed with a Hazelnut-Citrus Dressing

Dessert at Pinkberry: Frozen chocolate yogurt with strawberry and crisps. So delicious!!!

L.A.: Hollywood & Walk of Fame

Walk of Fame??! Today, there was absolutely nothing famous or glamorous in this area!

Only tourists taking photos (like me), souvenir shops with thousands of oscar trophies and stuff that nobody really needs, sordid tattoo & smoke shops, many poor and homeless persons, fast food restaurants, guys selling their Cds, agencies offering to participate in hollywood tours, people pretending to be stars, etc. 

I encountered for example Charlie Chaplin, Catwoman, a Chippendale guy, Darth Vador & R2D2, Woody from Toy Story, Elmo, Jack Sparrow, Zorro, Minnie and Donald, etc. Sorry for them, but their make-up is sometimes so bad, that I understand why nobody wanted to take a picture with them today. But it seems that this business works quite good, because there are so many of these weird creatures everywhere.

I´m very disappointed by this place. I prefer to keep only the glamorous tv pictures in my mind. If you want to see a famous place of film and award history, I recommend Cannes in South France. This city always spreads a chic atmosphere full of glamour! Even without special events. 

 

Grauman´s Chines Theatre

Chippendale & Elmo

My favorite action heroes Bruce and Harrison

Donald & Minnie

Kodak theatre

 

Hollywood sign on the hills

OMG! Darth Vador shows his face!!!

An empty star? Maybe for me??! ;-)

L.A.: Venice Canals

Venice Canals

Oh my god, this area is so idyllic, colorful and gorgeous!

You hear birds singing and ducks quaking, you can smell different fragrances of flowers mixed with a flavor of sweet almonds and aromatic BBQs.

The pure summer feeling!