As I was saying about the Getty, we focused on the photography exhibit which chronicles the evolution of photography (as in from the late 19th century) to the likes of Diane Arbus and Henri Cartier-Bresson. I'd like to look up that Frederic Sommer guy. He was active in the 1920s or 30s and he took pictures of chicken heads fresh from decapitation and feet detached from its leg by an accident.

Afternoon, it was all driving, driving, driving, courtesy of the really-patient Berto. First was Venice Beach which, for reasons that will be obvious in the succeeding posts, deserves a blog post in itself. Then it was all the nooks and crannies of the place - Melrose, Rodeo, etc. And yes, kiddies, I succumed to one touristy attraction - Mann's Chinese Theater and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. For my sister, I took a picture of the hand and shoe print of Jimmy Stewart. I contented myself with Gene Kelly and the sidewalk star of Greta Garbo and I forget which one. Which means that I got to see Sunset Blvd which, like Times Square in New York has been cleaned up of the hookers and sex shops and tattoo shops. There are some that are still there but with all those mega Disney stores and the Kodak Theater, they're bound to wither and die in due time. Earlier that day, we just missed artista-ogling at the premiere of Shrek 2. Oh well.

Late evening, late dinner at Mel's diner which used to be a drive-in diner. I assume that by drive-in diner, you eat in your cars and the waitresses go to you in roller skates. At least that's what I remember in pictures. The parking guy charged us for $ 2.50 for ONE HOUR OF PARKING. Crazy. We had no choice. Finding parking in LA is as difficult as finding..oh, never mind. I cringe to realize I just sounded like a La Sallite and his or her excuse for being late in class. OH, I'M SORRY. La Sallian pala.

We couldn't get hold of Bobby so we decide to stay at a motel/inn. Contented ourselves with lying on our beds and watching SNL. Hilarious skit: two of their mainstays as Rummy and Dubya, set to the Friends finale in which Ross and Rachel finally get together. Rummy is the Rachel character and Dubya Ross. For those who are aware of this twist in the Friends finale, Rummy, after being let go by Dubya over the Iraq prisoners abuse scandal, returns to Dubya and realize they can't be apart and then they kiss. Really hard. The guy playing Rummy was already laughing.

Woke up Sunday morning realizing I didn't brush my teeth because no one brought toothpaste. Candy and Berto had to hit the road ASAP because they have to return the rental car by 12 noon. (Note: Vegas is five hours away from where we were.) I have to admit I felt a bit sad as we were hitting the freeway. Not just that I won't be seeing Candy (and our other friends for that matter) for yet another long stretch of time but that, corny as it may sound, I miss home, my family and my friends. Which is why I'm very happy that the Colantas in Long Beach were my last stop.

Part 2 is about the Colanta Mother's Day lunch and the crazy Colanta cousins. Somehow the words brujas and malditas pop in my head right now when I think of them. But really, they're wonderful.

That for another post.