This is the City...Los Angeles, California.

Left my beach front spot last Friday and headed toward the city.  First made a couple of stops in Inglewood including the iconic Randy’s Donuts.  LA loves donuts and nothing says it better than a building with a giant donut on top!

Mmmm...Donuts!

Inglewood City Hall exterior filming location of the television shows "Quincy" and "Wonder Woman"

I must digress for a moment, Los Angeles must have the worst drivers of any city in the United States.  They all drive like rejects from a stunt driving school.  Way too fast and very distracted, talking and texting on every device conceivable.  They’re involved in accidents everywhere regardless of circumstances.  Driving a vintage motorhome on the area’s freeways and avoiding these maniacs at every turn can be nerve wracking.  I managed to avoid involvement in their mayhem until today that is.  After getting a donut and coffee at Randy’s and taking some photos I was walking back to the Cortez when CRASH!!   I ran to the front of my rig to see it now had a 2014 Ford Explorer hood ornament!  My instantaneous presence prevented this wayward motorist from retreating.  Made an amiable information exchange but my souvenir of this visit included a dent, bent bumper and broken grille.  The unique Cortez grille will present the greatest challenge to repair or replace.  Fortunately no one was hurt, the motorhome was still drivable and he had insurance.

Ouch!!

Managed to shrug the incident off and continue my excursion into Los Angeles proper.  First challenge was to find parking.  Even the short Cortez was too big for the downtown parking lots.  Got chased out of the Union Station lot by a very excitable attendant.  After cruising around for about twenty minutes I found on street parking with a four hour limit nearby in Chinatown. 

Nothing says LA more than its iconic and historic city hall

View from City Hall's observation deck

The now closed LAPD headquarters Parker Center, where does Sgt. Friday work now?

Visited the landmark City Hall’s 27^th floor observation deck.  True to LA I had to use the rear entrance because Disney was on location at the main entrance filming.  Visited several other landmark buildings then on to Olvera Street and Chinatown.  Had a French dip sandwich dinner at Philippe’s, the disputed birthplace of the sandwich.  Then onto Union Station for a lively and entertaining slide show by showman, tour guide, food crafter and author Charles Phoenix celebrating classic and kitschy Americana with downtown Los Angeles as a theme park. A great program in another iconic location sponsored by the MTA.  After the program it was back to Philippe’s for desert before heading out and starting the northward trek home.

I get hungry just seeing this sign