Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Follow Me To Work - LA

Last August, while I was in New York, this post invited you to discover my itinerary to work. I'm in Los Angeles now and last week, I worked in Hollywood. Of course, in LA it's all about driving. Follow me!
When I get off the freeway, I love glimpsing at Dorca's - this tailor used the outside walls of her shop as an advertising billboard, with figures in a compellingly naive style. The other wall is all in Spanish, and prominently offers quiceañera gowns, to be worn to girls' lavish 15th birthday parties.

Los Angeles is a super multicultural city. After passing by the Latino tailor place, I stop at Sunset and La Brea for a Middle Eastern treat - Mashti Malone's ice creams in flavors such as rose water, saffron and (my favorite) orange blossom with pistachios, are irresistible.

A few blocks down, when I drive past the crazy Chinese theater, I know I almost reached my destination. While the tailor place and the ice-cream parlor are the real thing, the Chinese theater is gloriously fake, a crazy take on an imaginary Oriental style.

And for a good laugh on the way, there's always the "Let,s Relax" sign put up by someone who is obviously very confused about spelling and punctuation - who doesn't love a great typo?

At my desk - out of my Sesame Street tote come stumbling out a notepad I adorned with Ingres's superb portrait of Madame d'Haussonville, sharp pencils and, of course, an apple.

23 comments:

Joyce said...

Once you get past the traffic you have a wonderful view on your way to work. Enjoy! xo

simon said...

very good! I did some pics of my 80k trip to work some time back.. on my cannondale bike

BTW I agree 100% with your comment about facebook on Susans blog. It feels "liberating" when you close your account imo! I certainly felt great!

Denise | Chez Danisse said...

What a good day. I'd love to try saffron ice cream.

Mary-Laure said...

SIMON - 80k trip to work???? That's even worse than an LA commute!
Re Facebook - oh yeah!

gracia said...

Hope S gets to relax soon. I like a good typo too.

carina said...

Love the typo! I collect them:-D

Sammi said...

Mary Laure- it looks awesome. I can't believe it was August you were in NYC

Emily said...

It's lovely to get a glimpse into your daily life - thanks! Mine is far less photogenic I'm afraid, especially the building where I work which is really ugly. I saw an exhibition of Ingres' portraits a while back - what a genius!

Mary-Laure said...

GRACIA - Your comment made me laugh out loud. Yes, S really needs to relax.

VANESSA - with your great eye, I am sure you can spot some treasures on your way to work. It's all about keeping your eyes open.

Marci said...

Encantada de seguirte!
No sé que me gusta más, si la bolsa de Barrio Sésamo o el bloc de Ingres...

Pooch Purple Reign said...

sweet sesame street tote! great ice cream flavs. im going to try to make some of my own. should be fun
~laura

Mary-Laure said...

POOCH - oh, keep me posted on the ice cream experiments! I've never made any but would love to try.

Giulia said...

I enjoyed my journey! So colorful. I love the ice cream flavors, too. We have some places here that do the same. I love typos & also "collect" them...Also funny or just "off" signs. My friends & family took to taking snaps when they saw them. I'll have to find them. One of my favorites (that I took) is "Used books. Non-existent books."

Struck me as hilarious. Possibly I laugh too easily.

xo

Anonymous said...

My darling friend, How affectionately you glorify my hometown. Love ya' Spangler

Mary-Laure said...

GIULIA - oh you MUST share you collection of typos!
I love your "non-existent books" sign. Seriously, that is one place I'd like to check out; it sounds very Alice In Wonderland, no?
By the way, I bet Giulia Gattina's typing and spelling skills are flawless.

Anonymous said...

excellent,Bravo

Robin said...

I love seeing LA through your eyes!
And that ice cream......yum!!!

Hugs,

♥ Robin ♥

Mary-Laure said...

ROBIN - I think LA is a misunderstood city, especially by the people up there in San Francisco :)
That's why I enjoy blogging about it and explaining how great it is.

natsumi said...

Lovely photos!!! I have been to LA for a couple of times. When everytime I go there, I always think that I should get US driver license... I won't be able to survive without it if I live there...haha..

Giulia said...

About Giulia Gattina's typing & proof-reading skills. Probably they would be excellent, but I'll never know. She hides her thumbs to get out of any & all work. So she's not going to let anyone know she reads English (or anything else).

About the non-existent books...yes, it is very Alice. And perfect for this town, too. Off to Rally for Sanity and/or Fear. And many laughs I imagine. DC is a mass of more visitors than usual with about 4 big events on this weekend. The mixing & mingling is amusing, too.

xoxo

Gabbi said...

A lovely post Mary-Laure! ♡ And that Apple looks yummy...

Crafty Green Poet said...

lovely selection of images, I really like Dorcas!

Julie@beingRUBY said...

Hi Mary-Laure
I've just realised I don't know what you do for work.. but I always enjoy following you on the trip...

thanks for yet another enjoyable post!! ciao xxx Julie