This summer, arts and entertainment-wise, I saw and experienced more in Washington, D.C. in five weeks than I have in the two whole years I’ve been at UCLA.
One eventful day, I went to the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Archives, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, and the Sculpture Garden at the National Gallery of Art, spending sufficient time at each stop to leisurely peruse the rooms of art and artifacts.
This adventurousness could be attributed to the fact that I had the time and also the mode of transportation (Bless the Metro.) while taking a journalism class in the capital. But I think the reason behind my gung-ho attitude boils down to just that: adventurousness.
By embracing the role of a tourist, my classmates and I saw almost everything ““ from the National Museum of American History to an amateur stand-up comedy show where we made up half the audience and were not necessarily laughing with the brave souls on stage (more at them).
Between watching nighttime movie screenings in front of the Capitol building where hundreds gathered and laid blankets on the grass for these summertime “Screen on the Greens” events, and shopping at the impressive span of shops in Georgetown, I began to wonder: Why is Los Angeles so boring?
After reflecting on the question, I realized it was not Los Angeles that was boring but me. I was failing to embrace the surplus of museums, restaurants, concerts and cultural sites that we have at our fingertips as UCLA students. Had I entered my first quarter at UCLA as if on vacation, ready and willing to step out of the comfort zone UCLA and Westwood provide, I would surely have surprised myself at how much there is to see and do in Los Angeles.
Washington, D.C. may be more tourist-friendly than Los Angeles, since walking is always an option and it has a more accessible and navigable transportation system ““ though it is far from easily traversed. I got lost while on a run around the Washington Monument, and took the Metro in the wrong direction while on a search to find the National Museum of the American Indian.
The difference between Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. was not that Washington, D.C. was more exciting a city but that I was more willing to explore it while there.
In Washington, D.C., my classmates and I had the spirit of a tourist, a quality I wish I possessed more of in my native Los Angeles. It was that “let’s go” attitude that inspired us to make the 30-minute walk to the Potomac River to go kayaking, or the less leisurely four-hour bus ride to New York, only to drive all the way back to Washington, D.C. that night after seeing the must-see spots.
Exploring Washington, D.C. sparked my newly founded end-of-summer resolution: to be a tourist in Los Angeles.
After a week or so back at school, I’ve already been pleasantly surprised by my discoveries. I had no idea how nearby the beach was to campus ““ a 15 minute drive without traffic! I also thought Los Angeles was Mexican-food deprived before venturing past Wilshire and discovering Poquito Mas.
While it took a few quarters at school for me to feel that UCLA was home, after a week or so in Washington, D.C., I felt comfortable and a lot like a local. I think this quick adjustment in Washington, D.C. was a direct result of my somewhat unconscious effort to familiarize myself with the surrounding area.
After my first week in Washington, D.C., I already had a favorite sandwich place, a shortcut back to my apartment complex from the gym, and a friend in the grocery store cashier. By the end of the five weeks, I knew the Metro system like the back of my hand and the times and days of a handful of open markets. I cannot say I feel the same closeness with Los Angeles, which is sad considering I live here for nine months of the year.
The moral of the story: Be a tourist in Los Angeles. If you don’t have a car, do what any good tourist would do ““ find a way. Ride a bike to the yoga studio just past Wilshire. Invest in a bus pass and take the “Hippodrome” art tour downtown (free shuttle and entertainment included). Buy a guidebook on hiking trails in Los Angeles, and discover that we still do have some nature preserved for our viewing pleasure.
With the spirit of a tourist, venture outside of Westwood. Los Angeles will feel less like a daunting city and a lot more like home.