Adventures in L.A. :: Santa Monica Pier and Promenade

I have a brilliant idea! We’ve said here at EnterTheShell.com that this whole project is not only about music, but life as well. Therefore, some blogs will be written focusing on the lives of your bloggers instead of the music. Well, since we are based and live in the beautiful city of Los Angeles, it’s easy to take advantage of the greatness that is the City of Angels. That being said, my best friend Michael (who you’ve met on a couple of drinkcasts … click here and here to meet him!) and I have decided to embark on a challenge of the ages! Though we live in this great city, we have decided to hit up as many of the landmarks that outsiders think of when they think of Los Angeles. Even if we may have been there before, our goal is to appreciate them in their glory and to approach them as tourists. Our list of places goes everywhere from Dodger Stadium to Rodeo Drive, from the Griffith Observatory to the Walt Disney Concert Hall, from China Town to Tommy’s Burgers and Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles! It’s going to be a great journey indeed and every second Saturday of the month, you will read of a new adventure! First stop: The Santa Monica Pier and Promenade.

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010. I had just given Izzy (you remember her from our very first drivecast) a good scrub down and vacuum. That, coupled with the fact that I just acquired a new face on my stereo that allows me to plug in my iPod gave me the sudden urge to drive. Not just down the street, but somewhere far-ish. So I called up Michael and told him we were going on an adventure. We decided to start on our list of L.A. landmarks and Santa Monica was decided upon. We live about 40 minutes away so believe you me some great tunes were heard, especially with his eclectic taste ruling the stereo. I shall include the playlist at the end of this blog, as I’ll do for every adventure so that even though this is a “life” blog, you’ll have the music to go along just like we did! Anyway, it was an absolutely beautiful day for an adventure and we were on our way.

The drive was full of sites and the little traffic jam allowed us to really appreciate the sites. So there, Angelinos! Take those hours you spend in traffic and really appreciate L.A. in the light that say, (500) Days of Summer shows you! After some great (and may I say talented) picture-taking-while-driving …

… we parked and since we could only pay for half an hour at a time, we decided to walk along Ocean Ave. and enjoy the beautiful view to kill time since we didn’t have time to walk down to the pier and didn’t want to waste our 75 cents.

After that, we hopped back into Izzy and found this SWEET parking structure that gives you unlimited parking for $6 after 4pm as long as you’re out by midnight. That’s a pretty sweet deal if you ask me, and no one was even taking advantage of it! We parked and walked around the promenade until we found a pizza spot to settle down at for dinner. You can never go wrong with pizza and beer and Johnnie’s NY Pizzeria provided just that! The atmosphere was a little too stuffy for a pizza/beer place if you ask me, but hey they had a football game on so that’s alright with me. The food was alright and for a filling meal (without overdoing it) the price was good. Bread, a 6-slice Medium and two beers came out to about $22.

After dinner we walked back to the pier but this time walked a bit through the promenade to see the sights and sounds. For a Sunday afternoon/evening, it was packed! This place is a bustling hot spot for people of all ages where you can find ice cream parlors, cafes, restaurants and shops among other things, including great scenery, especially at sunset.

By the time we got to the pier it was dark but we were still able to enjoy the sights and sounds of the pier. Unfortunately, we didn’t get on any of the rides (they had everything from a carousel to a ferris wheel) but there were some touristy shops, a trapeze school and street performers (including a break-dancing troupe) to enjoy.

Overall, the Santa Monica Promenade and Pier is a great place to spend time with your closest peeps, whether you’re interested in just walking around and enjoying a festive atmosphere, great eateries or a carnival-like setting. Michael and I thoroughly enjoyed our day, which was made perfect by that beautiful Southern California weather!

If you are at all interested in knowing what Michael and I listened to on the way to and from the Santa Monica Pier and Promenade, keep reading! Thanks to Michael’s great, eclectic taste, that boy is a killer maker of playlists! Here it is:

1. “Tranny Chaser” by Rupaul, off of Champion
2. “The Creator” by Santogold, off of Santogold
3. “No Soul” by Say Anything, featuring Anna Waronker and DJ Swamp, off of In Defense of the Genre
4. “She’s My Man” by Scissor Sister, off of Ta-Dah
5. “The Underdog” by Spoon, off of Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
6. “Last Nite” by the Strokes, off of Is This It?
7. “Chicago” by Sufjan Stevens, off of Sufjan Stevens Invites You To: Come On Feel The Illinoise!
8. “Cigaro” by System of a Down, off of Mezmerize
9. “Give It To Me” by Timbaland, featuring Nelly Furtado and Justin Timberlake, off of Timbaland Presents: Shock Value
10. “Surf Wax America” by Weezer, off of Weezer (The Blue Album)
11. “Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes, off of Elephant
12. “Hand in My Pocket” by Alanis Morissette, off of Jagged Little Pill
13. “Tears Dry On Their Own” by Amy Winehouse, off of Back to Black
14. “A Certain Romance” by Arctic Monkeys, off of Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not
15. “Daniel” by Bat for Lashes, off of Two Suns
16. “Girl” by Beck, off of Guero
17. “Again & Again” by the Bird and the Bee, off of The Bird and the Bee
18. “This Modern Love” by Bloc Party, off of Silent Alarm
19. “1, 2 Step” by Ciara, featuring Missy Elliott, off of Goodies
20. “The Scientist” by Coldplay, off of A Rush of Blood to the Head
21. “American Boy” by Estelle, featuring Kanye West, off of Shine
22. “Between Two Lungs” by Florence + the Machine, off of Lungs
23. “Michael” by Franz Ferdinand, off of Franz Ferdinand
24. “Oh My God” by Ida Maria, off of Fortress ‘Round My Heart

For more pictures of Sara and Michael’s adventure, click the pic below!