<p>Its LA so if you can think of something to do, you'll find it somewhere</p>
<p>It seems like alot of people just hang out in Westwood since its like 3 steps from the campus and it has dinner, movies, shopping, etc. People also take Big Blue to Santa Monica. I think those are pretty much the two biggest option, assuming that you dont have a car.</p>
<p>for 24/7 eating, there's tommy's (lot of locations) and oki-dog on fairfax a few blocks north of melrose, roscoe's house of chicken and waffles on 1514 n. gower, lot of other places that i can't think of.</p>
<p>other malls not mentioned...del amo fashion center, south bay galleria, fox hills mall, baldwin hills crenshaw shopping center, santa monica place, and since i know some of you are geeks...there is fry's electronics. </p>
<p>for the off the beaten path shopping or dining...try main street in santa monica, montana av in santa monica, larchmont av in los angeles, and the fairfax district (melrose, beverly, 3rd st, fairfax, and la brea - shopping and dining on those streets in the general area).</p>
<p>there's a lot of different cultural areas in los angeles city/county also.</p>
<p>oooh, can't forget seasonal events. plenty of those like nisei week or halloween in hollywood. </p>
<p>there's always the LA Weekly if you're looking for something to do. ask some real locals from la, south la, the valley, the eastside, south bay, the beach cities, or pasadena...they can tell ya what really happens in their respective communities.</p>
<p>as for stars, ucla seems like a good place to meet them. while there are famous people in the upscale clubs on sunset, good luck on getting in. :)</p>
<p>swimming in the LA river ;)</p>
<p>Two quick comments... For food Tommies is awesome, and if you're not from the West coast, you've got to get out and try In and Out!</p>
<p>Also Swimming in the LA river generally means you got a bit too close when it was raining and thought "gee whiz that water does not look like it's flowing that fast, I wonder what'll happen if I jump in." Then on News at 11 you become the entertainment as the rest of LA watches your swift water rescue. :)</p>
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[quote]
Also Swimming in the LA river generally means you got a bit too close when it was raining and thought "gee whiz that water does not look like it's flowing that fast, I wonder what'll happen if I jump in." Then on News at 11 you become the entertainment as the rest of LA watches your swift water rescue.
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<p>lol! ain't that the truth :)</p>
<p>Question to those of you who feel LA is superficial (full of characatures):</p>
<p>I'm really not in to a lot of pop culture stuff, I get annoyed when people talk about celebrities, I'm broke (can't afford to shop or dine at many of the places in Westwood...) Can I find my niche at UCLA?</p>
<p>there are lot of places in LA where you can find your niche although some of those are places were most CCers wouldnt be for fear of their life ie South Central has some great restaurants like Ramona's</p>
<p>I have to say though, the superficiality is facinating isn't it? LA is every bit as fascinating of a city as the Berkeley/SF area, just in a very different way.</p>
<p>I live in the outskirts of LA, and I've only been there a few times. I don't know how far Downtown LA is from UCLA, but in the Downtown area, there's Chinatown, k-town, j-town, olvera street, etc. I find those places fascinating because you get a sense of the diversity and culture within LA, not just the glitz and glam etc. Also, if you're into the cheap flee market/vintage shopping, those "towns" have a ton of cool knick knacks and cultural foods. =)</p>
<p>so if you dont have a car, the main two options would have to be a) westwood and b) the big blue bus, right?</p>
<p>are there any clubs that are (somewhat) close to campus?</p>
<p>What are some popular Asian clubs around here?</p>
<p>theres that place in k-town..le prive</p>
<p>anyway, i have to agree that the grove is awesome (farmers market and the b&n kicks butt!)...and beverly center is crappy.
theres always the humongous santa anita mall(they have a merry-go-round in there if youre into that stuff haha)</p>
<p>i love going to little tokyo to eat and of course the korean eateries in ktown.</p>
<p>the pier is always fun and theres a ton of stuff going on campus all the time i heard.</p>
<p>Kids- if you see celebrities and want to seem like a normal LA resident and not a complete tourist, play. it. cool. </p>
<p>I've seen sooooooooooo many people freak out over walking past someone even mildly famous in westwood or in restaurants or whatever. </p>
<p>And it is embarassing. Like, for them. </p>
<p>Save yourselves. </p>
<p>/And as far as the Tommy's thing- MAKE SURE IT SAYS ORIGINAL TOMMY's. If not, or if it employs any other creative ways to spell Tommy, it is a knockoff and nowhere as good as the real thing.</p>
<p>
There's tons of Asian clubs at UCLA. You'll never run out of clubs to join. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>no one mentioned the hollywood bowl! i work there and i'm going to be a freshman at ucla. there are so many good shows coming up (tom petty and the heartbreakers, the who (2 nights), def leppard/journey, Massive Attack & TV on the radio, 80's night, Roger Waters performing the Dark Side of the Moon). If you have some $$, i would definatley check out the show line up for the next 2 months at <a href="http://www.hollywoodbowl.com%5B/url%5D">www.hollywoodbowl.com</a>. If you havn't been there, you need to go. you're in la now!</p>
<p>Asian clubs... Miyagi's haha</p>
<p>freebird, which indian singer did you see? I'm indian as well. looking forward to all the indian restaurants in town woop!</p>
<p>generally though, I'm not fond of celebrities. American culture is obsessed with celebrity and it disgusts me. I was in LA last summer and a middle-aged woman with those bags that are dumb and wrap around your waist haha with a visor (i.e tourist) was taking pictures like crazy of some rolls royce. not a celebrity sighting, but just something to illustrate the obsession I'm talking about.</p>
<p>Fanny pack???</p>
<p>Someone else told me about Miyagi's.
Isn't that a bar / restaurant?
And is it on Sunset Blvd.?</p>
<p>yea mediocre japanese food on sunset turns into club around 10pm</p>