Last Week for the Vehicle-Free DWP Festival of Lights

This year, the DWP wisely extended the car-free portion of its annual Festival of Lights in Griffith Park through Dec. 7 — hopefully a prelude to an inevitable decision to keep the cars out all together.

Maria and Evan met up with his cousin this weekend to walk the route (I had to pass — I tore something in my foot during the Great Los Angeles Walk, and am currently limping), and all agree that it’s the way to go. It’s better exercise, you’re not breathing in car fumes, and you’re actually outside, experiencing the lights and the whole community vibe. (You don’t get any of that while in the car, waiting 3-plus hours to drive through what’s ultimately a pretty mediocre collection of lights.)

The cars return on Dec. 8, but you can still walk on the pathways after that. Parking for walkers can be found at the L.A. Zoo, or at the parking lots near the Merry-Go-Round. The route is a full mile (about 30 minutes).

The Festival of Lights continues until Dec. 30. Meanwhile, the DWP will hold a mini-fair on Dec. 5, 6 and 7, “featuring information on family activities, healthy nutrition, as well as some tasty treats.”

Yes, the Holidays are Fast Approaching

(Flickr pic by Geek_chic).

Another sure sign that the holidays are already upon us: While driving to a birthday party on Sunday in Griffith Park, we noticed that the DWP Light Festival’s display is already up and ready to be lit in a few weeks.

Of course, holiday decorations are already up at the stores. Could KOST-FM’s annual all-Christmas music, all-the-time format be close behind?

All Aboard The Griffith Park Express

Thankfully, all of the recent Griffith Park fires haven’t impacted the locale’s kid-friendly attractions (although this most recent one came close to Travel Town).

We frequently find ourselves at Travel Town, where a ride on the mini train around the attraction is standard. But to tell you the truth, the Griffith Park & Southern Railroad, located in the south part of the park (near the Los Feliz entrance) offers the better ride.

Both are operated by the same entity… but while the Travel Town locomotive just does a simple two loops around the attraction, the Griffith Park & Southern takes a more scenic track — going over a bridge, passing by two crossings, looping past the busy street and going by a few simply constructed town facades.

A few pics from our recent visit:

The Griffith Park train has been in operation for 50 years. It’s open at 10 a.m. virtually every day; tickets are $2.50 each (babies under 19 months are free).

Rate-A-Restaurant, #162 in a series

Restaurant: The Trails

Location: Fern Dell Drive, off Los Feliz Boulevard (Griffith Park)

Type of restaurant: Vegetarian plus Pie!

They stipulated: Cash only.

What we ordered: Avocado Sandwich for Mike ($6.25) and Goat Cheese Tomato Tart for Maria ($4.50)

High point: The black pepper on the Goat Cheese Tart (above) was simply good and elevated that dish to a new level. Never underestimate the power of freshly-cracked black pepper — I kept smacking my lips, enjoying that taste after we ate.

Low point: Although the Avocado Sandwich (below) was filling for Mike, I was still a bit hungry after devouring my tart. I should’ve had some pie.

Overall impression: Eating fresh fare at a picnic table at the base of various trails in Griffith Park — not bad. And on such a beautiful day, it made me thank my lucky stars I live in Los Angeles. You quickly unwind as soon as you sit down; they have some nice music playing unobtrusively in the background. I imagine this place being crowded and busy in the summer or on the weekends, but on a quiet weekday afternoon, I quickly forgot my endless to-do list and unread e-mails.

Chance we will go back: Yes, I foresee us coming back for pie.

For a complete list of our over 160 restaurant reviews, check out our companion Rate-A-Restaurant site.

License Plate of the Day: I Heart Griffith Park

Could it be? Was I driving behind Tom LaBonge the other day? Should I have pulled him over and demanded some nun-baked pumpkin bread (delicious, by the way)? I ask because LaBonge is one of Griffith Park’s biggest boosters, and was nearly reduced to tears when fire swept through the city landmark earlier this year.

Whoever owns this car hearts Griffith Park. To be fair, we do too.

Attention DWP: Ban Cars From the Holiday Light Festival. Now.

I know, I was just ranting the other day about how overrated the DWP Holiday Light Festival at Griffith Park is. But we went ahead and walked it on Friday evening, taking advantage of the ban on cars through Nov. 25. And I gotta say, it’s a 100% more pleasurable experience than driving it, or even walking the route while cars are driving through.

Not only is walking the light festival better exercise (not to mention a better environmental move), but it also gives you a chance to actually take in the lights without rushing through. (The canopy of lights at both ends is especially impressive while walking, vs. less spectacular when speeding under it.) Plus, there’s a real community vibe to walking the street with hundreds of other Angelenos — and that easily tops sitting in a car for two hours, stuck in the never-ending line of cars waiting to get in.

What’s more, Blogger Toddler and his cousin had a particularly great time, dancing to the holiday music and pointing at the lights. They wouldn’t have had that experience in the car.

Of course, that’s all now over, as cars are allowed back into the DWP Holiday Light Festival beginning tonight. But let’s hope the city realizes what a success the pedestrian-only light festival was, and moves to permanently ban cars next year.

More pics from Friday night:

Canopy of lights — much cooler when viewed on foot.

City Hall.

My favorite: LAX, and the Theme Building.

150 Years of William Mulholland. There it is. Take it.

Live shot on KABC.

Attention DWP: Ban Cars From the Holiday Light Festival. Now.

I know, I was just ranting the other day about how overrated the DWP Holiday Light Festival at Griffith Park is. But we went ahead and walked it on Friday evening, taking advantage of the ban on cars through Nov. 25. And I gotta say, it’s a 100% more pleasurable experience than driving it, or even walking the route while cars are driving through.

Not only is walking the light festival better exercise (not to mention a better environmental move), but it also gives you a chance to actually take in the lights without rushing through. (The canopy of lights at both ends is especially impressive while walking, vs. less spectacular when speeding under it.) Plus, there’s a real community vibe to walking the street with hundreds of other Angelenos — and that easily tops sitting in a car for two hours, stuck in the never-ending line of cars waiting to get in.

What’s more, Blogger Toddler and his cousin had a particularly great time, dancing to the holiday music and pointing at the lights. They wouldn’t have had that experience in the car.

Of course, that’s all now over, as cars are allowed back into the DWP Holiday Light Festival beginning tonight. But let’s hope the city realizes what a success the pedestrian-only light festival was, and moves to permanently ban cars next year.

More pics from Friday night:

Canopy of lights — much cooler when viewed on foot.

City Hall.

My favorite: LAX, and the Theme Building.

150 Years of William Mulholland. There it is. Take it.

Live shot on KABC.

Lights, On Your Feet

If you’ve ever braved the drive through the DWP’s Griffith Park Festival of Lights, you’ve probably vowed never to do it again. On most nights, the traffic stretches all the way down Los Feliz Blvd. and even onto the 5. Motorists spend hours creeping their way through Griffith Park — and let’s face it, the light show isn’t worth sitting two hours in the car.

That’s why we now prefer to walk the route (parking at the zoo), if we go at all. And why we earlier applauded proposals to shut down the route to cars entirely.

Unfortunately, according to the L.A. Times, the DWP wasn’t a fan of keeping the cars out. The paper notes the agency’s bizarre reasoning:

The residents want the entire event to be pedestrian-only. Festival-goers do have the option of walking now, but they have to share the road with idling cars. So the DWP studied the issue for months.

And the Hall of Fame sentence the report contained was what?

“Transportation officials did voice strong concerns that the walking-only event could generate more traffic and congestion, due to established car-driving patterns and the limited number of parking spaces that are available in the immediate festival area,” the DWP report stated.

Huh?
…
The DWP contends that the Los Angeles Zoo parking lot — adjacent to the festival route — and other places in the area have just 1,300 parking spaces, but 2,500 to 4,500 cars visit the festival each night.

That’s a recipe for a traffic jam, the DWP says.

There’s no way that traffic jam could be any worse than the mess that now transpires.

Oh well. The walking option still exists for anyone who doesn’t want to spend ALL EVENING in their car just to see a few flashing lights. (If you must insist on using your car, go early — right after dusk — on a Tuesday or Wednesday night.)

Also, in one concession to residents, the DWP will make the festival pedestrian-only on Nov. 21 through 25 — the first five nights.

Alexander, Ruler of the World, Keeper of Gaudy Apartment Buildings

I’ve been meaning to post this for several days, but Martini Revolution beat me to the punch. Oh well, it’s still worth another view.

Live from Van Ness and Melrose, I present… the beautifully gaudy “Alexander, Ruler of the World” apartment building. Crimson-colored, with gold swirls, the building seems like a throwback to L.A.’s golden age of over-the-top theme-inspired homes, apartments and restaurants.

It’s a bit louder than the “Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria” apartments on Hillhurst in Los Feliz, or the seven dwarves-style homes on Griffith Park, near Hyperion. But it’s definitely in the same realm. What are some of your favorite tacky L.A. residences (besides, of course, the infamous House of Davids, that is)?

The Los Feliz Exercising Mommys

I see them several times a week, as I cruise west down Los Feliz Blvd. on the way to work: Young mothers, decked out in sweat gear, exercising in Griffith Park (or on the pathway down the boulevard) while their kids sit in their strollers.

Who are these moms? Is this a clique of friends who all own racing strollers and have learned to exercise in unison? How do they plan out these workouts, which frequently utilize wooden fences, steps and other features along the pathway?

Typing “Los Feliz,” “moms” and “exercise” into Google, I think I may have found the answer: StollerStrides.

Apparently the group (which costs anywhere from $15 to $12.50 to less per class, depending on how much you prepay) meets at the bear statue near one of the Griffith Park entrances at 9;30 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

This could very well be them. The time fits with when I pass by that part of Griffith Park… and that hefty price would explain why the women who participate appear very upper class. Have any of you taken this class, or at the very least have seen the Exercising Mommys of Los Feliz?