2012 Vacation: My Outlook of Los Angeles on the Way to Universal Studios

     Driving into Orange, CA, on Interstate 8 things appeared clean and well kept. We exited on Katella Avenue and found our way to the Hilton Hotel on State College Blvd. I am starting the recollection of the trip between the beach visit and Universal Studios on the fourth day. Disneyland filled our first three days and we still did not get to see the whole thing. Leaving Huntington Beach we drove onto Interstate 5 heading north towards Los Angeles. 

     Things were fine until you are about 10 miles out of L.A. then you start to notice the pavement is severely damaged. Is this from earthquakes? The green signs indicating which exits are coming up and the different lanes an individual needs to move his or her car into to be ready to exit the current freeway are becoming dirty. Black soot covers the white reflective letters and darkens the green here and there on these signs. With the deteriorated pavement and the dirty signs it feels like you are driving into a city that has suffered the demolition of war. I do not know if it was just this freeway or if they are all like this when closing in on L.A. but it wasn’t a good way to see the city. You know that saying about first impressions? The vegetation around many different areas was poorly kept inhabited by large dead weeds overgrown with new green weeds and grass sporadically sprouting up here and there. This alone was disgusting. Before driving into the war zone the smog surrounding the city could be seen in all its glory like a fire was burning around the entire city. Smoke filled air made the view a haze of filthy skyscrapers and trees. I never heard many people talking about this picture forming in my head in songs. It’s always about how great it is and blah blah, yada yada…. It is not the view they are talking about! The feel was of desolation and leaving your vehicle meant you would be ravaged by zombies.

     Californians or should I generalize and just say most people living in larger cities think that anyone from another state cannot drive properly. No matter who you talk to it is the same. Tucson not being included in the larger of the large cities is still pretty big, but I am talking about: New York, Detroit, Los Angeles, and the like. These oversized cities claim their way of life to be an accelerated existence that we from smaller cities cannot keep up with. Well decelerating from 70 M.P.H. (miles per hour) to 15 m.p.h. on a freeway proved that wrong as my van breached the inner streets of L.A. while driving slowly in back to back traffic. It only lasted 30 minutes and then things picked up. “Only” was a funny word like it didn’t matter, but 30 minutes of constant break and go driving at a slow pace will drive you insane. L.A. you can keep that bit of “fast paced” life. At least the view could be better, but at the slow pace it was amplified because it gave you a chance to look around. If you don’t want others to view your city as dirty then fix the freeway situation so the cars are always traveling fast and cannot study this substandard view. I know this will probably piss some people off but, it is said that the truth hurts. We didn’t step out into the air while going through, but I can imagine the smell of burning tar filling the air. This I assumed because of the black soot all over the place. Another feeling was that my feet would stick to the ground like in a movie theater everywhere I walk. 

     What exactly are tax dollars in such a large state spent on? Not improving the freeways I can attest to that. The only other comment I have is about the on/off ramp situation. This is largely due to unfamiliarity of the roads I was traveling but it seemed that there was an inordinate amount of 360 degree turnarounds to get onto the freeway. Isn’t it easier and more efficient to create straight access ramps that lead in the direction of travel? Turning north to get onto a freeway and head south has always boggled my mind. I know it exists in other areas even Tucson, Arizona and I chalk it up to poor planning. Sorry one more thing. I witnessed what Ron White mentions in one of his stand up acts. Two different speed limits on the same road do not make sense. Please, go pull your head out of your butt people! Traffic should travel at the same speed on the same road for easily seen reasons of traffic impediment. The more traffic is interrupted the more accidents will occur.