Our first flight from Orlando to LA went smoothly. Once we landed and grabbed our luggage, my friend, Chris Peters, picked us up from LAX to give us a tour of the beautiful city he calls home. LA is exactly what I expected so I guess the movies portray it pretty accurately. The streets are narrow and everyone drives a little crazier than in Orlando. The mountains are gorgeous and I would see them in almost every direction. There is a very diverse mix of people in LA and almost all of them dress straight out of Express, Anthropologie, and whatever other “hip” store you can think of. Super short dresses and boots seem to be the craze right now, and considering they have lovely 60 degree weather, it works out pretty well. The short dresses and strong wind isn’t the safest combination though if you’re trying to stay covered up! Chris took us up into the mountains, where we arrived at the Griffith Observatory. The scenery was incredible and we had the perfect view of the infamous Hollywood sign. I tried to capture the scene with a ridiculous amount of pictures, but I doubt that they will do the moment justice. The Observatory itself was also very interesting, with dozens of astronomy exhibits. My favorite part was going up onto the roof and looking out over the entire city of LA. Words can’t describe. Next, we stopped by the Paramount Studio, where Chris works on the movie set “Animal Set.” (I still think it’s crazy that I know someone who works for a movie company!!). We weren’t able to get a tour, but I still got a picture of the Paramount water tower! Next, we went to Chris’ favorite restaurant, Tender Greens – all organic food, very LA-ish decorations, and absolutely delicious! I ordered backyard-marinated steak, lemon chicken soup flavored with thyme, and melt-in-your-mouth gold mashed potatoes. After devouring our meals, we walked downtown and enjoyed Barnes and Nobles, as well as an exceptional music store called “Amoeba.” Talk about a music-lover’s paradise! Vinyl records from every artist imaginable were sold there, and the entire two story building was filled head-to-toe with records, CD’s, posters, etc. I was tempted by a John Mayer original, but I resisted! The last stop of the day was our drive to Santa Monica Pier. We made our way through the shopping center and down the busy main street, passing street musicians and dancing monkeys. The pier itself was packed with people, but it just added to the festivity! There is a carnival situated on the pier, with a giant Ferris wheel among other rides. The sugary smell of cotton candy tickles my nose, and the air is filled with children screaming from the old rollercoaster as it goes out over the ocean. The view from the pier was beautiful; we watched the waves crash onto the sandy beach, and at the same time we were able to see the towering cliffs in the distance. We finished out our day at In ‘n Out Burgers, which was a new treat for me. Although fast food, the burgers were very high quality and absolutely amazing! They toast your buns and use a thousand-island type sauce on top. REALLY good! Chris pointed out the bottom of our cups while we were there: they had Scripture verses in tiny font written on each one! Apparently the company is a Christian organization, so that was a pretty neat discovery. After dinner, Chris drove us back to the airport to check in. L.A. was definitely an experience and I would highly recommend spending at least a day there! Huge thanks to Chris Peters for the great tour and taking time out of his day to spend with us. It was great seeing you!