Did Anyone Else Notice?

Right under our noses and with no fanfare, justification, or marketing spin, something in Long Beach has changed.  A quick check at LBTrainsit's website leaves no clues as to how long this change has been in place, and the observant indivudual in me sure hopes it's only about a week, or so, old.

As can be found HERE, the Passport bus system in Long Beach has drastically changed.  There used to be an A,B,C, and D bus that connected downtown to some of the more frequented destinations in Long Beach like Belmont Shore, Alamitos Bay Marina, Long Beach State, the Los Altos neighborhood, Retro Row, and various other stops in between.

However, now only the "C" route, the one which serves the downtown core and tourist destinations (free of charge), is now the only remaining route and maintains the legacy name.  But yes, this route is still free, and is a great way to shuttle between Long Beach's most popular destinations in the downtown and waterfront areas.  Both the Aqualink and Aquabus are still mainstays, but run only during the peak months, from Memorial Day through Sept 30.  Those lines will be back up in May 2013.

Costa Rica Day 8: Beach Day!

This was our last full day in Manuel Antonio, and in Costa Rica, so we took the opportunity to let ourselves relax with a full day at the beach.

We headed down to the main public beach early, and got the perfectly placed umbrella and chairs that the locals peddle for $15.  Of course, then they want you to buy drinks and food and pretty much anything else you can think of from them.  But since this was our last day, that played right into our plans!  Though we did turn down the Tico with the kayaks and jet skis, we still enjoyed some margaritas, cuba libres, and of course, Imperials with our almuerzos tipicos.

After a morning and early afternoon in the sun (with plenty of sun-block, of course), we headed for the beachside alley of bodegas with all kinds of local-made crafts, jewelry, and souvenirs.  It's amazing how fast you make friends even when you buy little nick-knacks and chat up the local merchants; the Ticos we ran into on our trip were some genuinely friendly people.

Since it was our last day, we took advantage of Happy Hour at La Esquina de la Playa and stayed until sunset. Oddly enough, this was the most crowded place we visited on our entire trip.  It was also the only place I've ever seen a 12 year old smoke, with her family, and nobody think anything of it.

We took the bus back up the hill, which was $500 colones ($1) for the two of us.  Since the sun had just set, the bus was full with people heading home from the beach, tourists and locals alike.  The bus dropped us off at the beginning of our road, right at Cafe Milagro.

A quick 1km walk back to the hotel, and we had walked into the VIP reception at La Mansion.  It was a wine and appetizer social on the top deck at LMI, and we got a few minutes to speak with the head of guest relations, who also sent a follow up email on our stay a few days later.  If I haven't stressed it enough already, the hospitality in Costa Rica was absolutely amazing.

After the reception we adjourned to our room and soaked in as much of Costa Rica as we could, just watching and listening to the serene jungle from our deck.

Expo II Breaks Ground

This morning I watched the story on KTLA like a little kid.  Finally, they were breaking ground on the second phase of the Expo line, which will extend from Culver City to Santa Monica.  Obviously, there is still some opposition by the NIMBY crowd in Cheviot Hills, arguing there will be heavier traffic in the neighborhood, and this could delay the scheduled 2015 opening, but you've got to be excited by progress, right!?!



Then I heard something troubling-- that the Expo Line phase 1 would not open until the beginning of next year! Now, I know there have been plenty of bumps in the road that have caused delays, but I had to check this one out.  As it turns out, there are two pieces of the phase 1 project, and the first piece will open late this year (as we had previously been informed), and the final portion including a bridge over Jefferson will be opening in the beginning of 2012.  Mystery solved.

If you'd like to read the entire LA Times article on the subject, you can find that HERE.

And here's their map of the project....

Learning from Carmageddon; Preparing for Round 2

If nothing else, the recent Carmageddon incident in Los Angeles has taught us that we don't need to be completely car dependent at all times.  While the message from the local government and media was to simply stay off the roads and away from the area, it appears that message can be improved looking forward to next year's Carmageddon Reprise.  Why not a message of, "Explore your neighborhood on foot," or try to showcase the improvements that have been made to public transit?  The opening of the Expo Line next year will be a perfect opportunity to market the light rail and push for its re-expansion, bringing LA back into the efficient metro transit days of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Too many local business establishments were deserted on the weekend of July 15-17, and I'm a huge proponent of not letting that happen next time.  As I plan to discuss in a few following posts (and with some video clips, if I can hunt them down on cnbc), it is going to take a convenient alternative staring us in the face in order for the US, and California in particular, to drop the habit of hopping in the car to go anywhere. So keep the feed rolling, and prepare for some discussion on modern re-urbanization!

A Test of Greater LA Mass Transit

The latest string of posts related to my upcoming bachelor party in Las Vegas has been a little Christopher-centric and a bit self-serving.  If you've ever had a face-to-face conversation with me, you know that I'm reaching my limit of personal sharing, so I'll direct the conversation the way I usually do: analytical.  That way, perhaps some information of value to someone else spews out onto the page!

So I leave from Bob Hope Airport at 10:55am on Thursday morning in order to ensure that I arrive in Vegas as soon as it's acceptable to drink (12:01pm).  I'll be gone for five days, so I'd really prefer not to spend $40 on parking my car just 7 miles from my own garage.  I've heard that in most big cities, people use....get this....public transit to get to and from the airport! (no way!)  Time to put LA to the test!

A quick review of the Metrolink website and the Glendale Beeline website, and I've got a gameplan situated.  Did you know there's a Union Station to Bob Hope Airport Metrolink line?  I didn't either.  LA is horrible at marketing its mass transit, in part because it is so fragmented.  Anyway, if I walk out my front door and 3 blocks west to Brand, I should supposedly be able to catch the Beeline at 9:30, be at the Glendale Transit Center at 9:51, on the Metrolink at 10:00, and at Bob Hope Airport at 10:11, ready to walk into the terminal and board.  If this works, it will be the first time I've been able to identify mass transit as a convenient transportation alternative around town.  Heck, the travel times aren't even a deterrant in this case!


P.S. - Upon return from Vegas, I'm going to be adventuring/exploring LA via mass transit and reporting back.  Traffic in LA is a bear, and traveling by trains is fun and efficient, so stay tuned to hear about how you might be able to take advantage of LA's evolving transit system as well!