Back home in Norong on the farm by myself. Seems a little surreal looking through my photos of LA. 2 completely different experiences. Life is interesting to say the least.

There are a couple of dudes in the photos below with one being pretty obvious. The other, for you movie buffs out there is Johnie's Cafe. In the movie The Big Leblowski the scene with the Dude and Walter discussing Bunny's toe is filmed here. Below is some information about Johnie's from wikipedia.

Johnie's Coffee Shop is a former coffeeshop and well known example of Googie architecture located on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard andFairfax Avenue in Los Angeles, California.[1] Architects Louis Armet and Eldon Davis of Armet and Davis designed the building, contributing to their reputation as the premier designers of Space Age or Googie coffee shops including the landmark Pann's coffee shop in Ladera Heights,Norms Restaurant on La Cienega Boulevard, and several Bob's Big Boy restaurants.[1] Johnie's opened in 1955 as Romeo's Times Square. Romeo's was in business a few years, becoming Ram's in the early '60s, and Johnie's not long after

The restaurant is perhaps best known as the setting for the opening of the 1988 cult film Miracle Mile, in which a patron learns that a nuclear war is about to begin. The restaurant has also appeared in a 1999 Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers music video, "Swingin'", and a 2003 Reba McEntire music video, "Somebody"[2], and is seen in several movies, including Volcano, starring Tommy Lee Jones,The Big Lebowski, starring Jeff Bridges and John Goodman,[1] and American History X, starring Edward Norton.

Here are a few more photos from our visit in Los Angeles. Click on the images for and explanation of the shot 

Over here in Los Angeles I've been trying to tell Barry, aka Silver Streak, the reason he is being dropped on the hills is due to the fact he is a vegetarian and does not get enough protein. But he does eat fish so I'm not sure if you can be a vegetarian and eat fish. Does this make you  a fishetarian or is there another word for this dietary conundrum? Anyway below is his response!!!!   

After cycling in the Canyons in the morning we had lunch at a local Haiwiian style cafe then drove over to Century city shopping centre and then had a look along Melrose Avenue. 

I really have Margaret and Barry to thank for my latest photography here in LA. Most of my photography has been landscapes, sports and many other various things. Margaret has a special interest in street photography and this has rubbed off on Barry. Through his not so gentle persuasion it now seems like the obvious style to experiment with whilst here in LA. This being the second post of the day due to the drizzle outside which now appears to be clearing I'm adding some of the more interesting signs I have seen here.

I've continued the B&W street photography theme for today's post. For me it's a new experience and certainly outside my comfort zone. The upside is there is heaps of material and you could go out and shoot hundreds of photos every day. It's drizzling rain outside this morning so it's a good chance to edit some photos.

Today's theme is a little different. After some inspiration from a video of a street photographer  that Margaret,Barry's wife, sent us I realised how much I like B&W photography.Also photographs that include people.
Below are a small sample with hope fully more to come. Click on the images for a bigger size and caption.

Yesterday we rode Mt Baldy which was included in stage 7 of this year's Tour of California. It's about 1 hours drive from where we are staying and rated as a HC category climb. One of the things about LA, that is not so great is the smog,there is heaps of it and the geological and climatic conditions don't help, so driving out to our start point we were peering through this veil of pollution trying to catch a glimpse of the mountain that would be todays challenge.
Parking our Dodge Grand Caravan around 11 am in a supermarket car park which would be our starting point it was time to find a cafe for some fuel and some coffee. The temperature had risen sharply from when we had left our motel and my estimation would be around 30 degrees. When on the bikes it was clear that we were climbing right from the first pedal stroke albeit very gradually. My heart rate was unusually high and I stopped and fiddled with the heart strap to make sure it was fitted correctly. No problems with the strap so I don't know if it was nerves or being a little tired from all our activities but my heart rate was 10-20 bpm higher than normal.
At that point I was wondering if it was wise to continue but I felt ok and if I didn't have the heart rate monitor I would have been none the wiser so I decided there was no turning back now. The first few km's were a gradual climb hovering between 4-6 percent before it kicked up to around 10 % for what seemed like forever. When finally pulling into Mt Baldy village to get some more water I was glad for a rest in the shade as my cycling computer was telling me it was 38 degrees.

Here we chatted to some locals who were riding a different route to us and were about to descend back down the mountain. After our conversation with them we knew the real challenge was about to start as they had been there before and they reckoned some of the pros were pleading people to push them up the steepest parts during the T.O.C. I was struggling a little with the heat and an elevated heart rate but after a 15 min rest was ready to go again. 
The first couple of km's after the village were pretty easy and the road surface for the whole ride was pretty good. Hitting the steeper gradient again the speed slowed and the cadence got lower and heart rate rose to very high numbers. The road through the first switchback  rose sharply and it was an effort just to keep the bike moving let alone at any speed. This was the theme for the next 6 km or so, switchbacks with a real steep kick out of them then at least 10 % gradient between each one. All this with the temperature still at 38 degrees so it was bloody hot. The last few hundred metres felt like an eternity and I managed to hit 98% of max heart rate and was completely exhausted for a couple of minutes before even contemplating where I was. Then it was a case of riding through 5 more switchbacks through the car park until the road stopped and we could go no further,this last few hundred metres were not steep and the hard work was over.

Photos taken it was time for the fun. Descending back down the mountain at speeds up to 70 kmh on good roads was a real buzz. Time for some recovery fuel and what better thing than the biggest milkshake we could get our hands on. 

Today we didn't ride our bikes after 3 days riding in a row and I must admit to being relieved to have a day off as my legs are sore. More so than usual it seems. I'm a little out of condition after being so busy before we left home, that and the fact that the weather was so cold, rides were few and far between.

We have heaps to do and yesterday we started by having breakfast at an old fashioned diner. Pancakes which were great but the coffee was not my preference. Barry had some work to do so I wandered around an industrial area with my camera. After he was done there we visited the Getty Villa which for me was a little bit too perfect,all new and shiny. Then we pointed our Dodge Grand Caravan up Sunset Boulevard in the direction of Hollywood. 

Visited a huge music store called Amoeba and then got a glimpse of the famous "Hollywood" sign, stuffed ourselves with Mexican food, I had a Margarita to wash down my chicken Enchiladas. Getting to bed before 1 am is proving to be a challenge as there is just so much to do in the short time we have in LA.
Below are a few pics of todays adventure.