First Time to the West Coast

Leaving Los Angeles, another stunning view.

I went on a business trip recently to Reno, NV. While I was out that way I decided to make a quick trip to Los Angeles, CA and see the West Coast for the first time.

It was a fun trip and I took a lot of pictures. Unfortunately it rained most of the time I was in LA and the pictures I took didn’t turn out as well as I’d hoped. I do however have some pretty fantastic pictures from my trip that I wanted to share.

Me at North Lake Tahoe in Nevada.
Me at North Lake Tahoe in Nevada.
Room 1191 view from the Grand Sierra Hotel & Resort.
Room 1191 view from the Grand Sierra Hotel & Resort.

This was a pretty interesting view with the clouds and the mountains surrounding everything. There was basically a 360 degree view of these mountains.

The Casino in the Grand Sierra Hotel. It went on and on and...
The Casino in the Grand Sierra Hotel. It went on and on and…
I only gambled $20, but left with 39 extra bucks!
I only gambled $20, but left with 39 extra bucks!

I’m not really into gambling, but I had to give it a shot since I was there. I played Black Jack with $20 with $5 minimum bets and walked away with $59. Naturally I had to keep a few chips as souvenirs.

Oh how I love this view...
Oh how I love this view…
Coming in for a landing in Los Angeles, CA at LAX.
Coming in for a landing in Los Angeles, CA at LAX.

I thought this view was pretty amazing the way everything is so flat and all of a sudden these huge mountains just jet up, lol.

Hotel view in Los Angeles. It was cheap. That is all.
Hotel view in Los Angeles. It was cheap. That is all.
Hollywood Park Casino
Hollywood Park Casino
Hollywood Park...interesting place.
Hollywood Park…interesting place.
Why don't the cabs just do this in Raleigh instead of calling?
Why don’t the cabs just do this in Raleigh instead of calling?

I had to take a picture of this. Don’t you dare laugh at my phone. 😛 I don’t understand why cabs back home try to call to let you know they are on their way rather than just automating a simple text like this.

View from 189 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90036 (The Grove La)
View from 189 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90036 (The Grove La)

While I was in LA, I managed to meetup with a friend of mine and went to see a band that he knew. The area where they played was very festive and neat, but you’d never know that you were in the city until you saw the view above.

Overall it was a really fun trip. I’ve been all up and down the East Coast, but this was a first for me. Previously I’d only ever been as far west as Kentucky. Eventually, though, I had to return home…

Leaving Los Angeles, another stunning view.
Leaving Los Angeles, another stunning view.

It’s funny when you’re leaving LAX to go back to the East Coast, because you flight in the wrong direction out over the Pacific for a solid 5-10 minutes before turning around back over land.

The ocean from this altitude was amazing. The waves that you see in the bottom right corner of the image above appeared to be as motionless then as they are in the picture. It was like the ocean had suddenly frozen solid. Crazy cool.

Not exactly sure where this was, but it looked cool.
Not exactly sure where this was, but it looked cool.

One thing that I couldn’t get used to was just how brown everything was. I’m used to the green mountains of Western North Carolina, but it’s always interesting to see how different each new place can be.

Finally a view that wasn't completely foreign to me.
Finally a view that wasn’t completely foreign to me.

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