beach — Blog — Another Pointe

When I was 14 I went to Los Angeles, California for the first time. I was there for a summer intensive with the prestigious ballet figure Marat Daukayev. I went to all the main tourist attractions plus I experienced what it was like to "live" in LA for a little over a month.

A couple of weeks ago I decided to spend a long weekend in LA with one of my best friends from (ballet) school. We had not seen each other in a while, California was the perfect excuse to meet up with.

I remembered the city pretty well but it was completely different discovering it now compared to when I was 14. This might sound kind of funny but LA reminded me a little of Acapulco. There was a golden age around 1950´s where Acapulco became a very popular spot among millionaires and Hollywood stars. The fame plus fashion and architecture during those years still prevails in Acapulco now a days. This might be the reason why LA streets reminded me of this Mexican city.

I did almost everything in my to do list, plus some other awesome things that were not written down in my black moleskine. Here are my "Top things to do in LA" :

Santa Monica

It is a city west to downtown LA (around half an hour driving) where you can spend all day shopping or relaxing at the beach. In my opinion, doing both is the best combination.

Brew HaHa

This was an amazing experience. Brew HaHa! consists of a comedy show/ drinking game. It is a very relaxed show at a backyard where you can sit and have a lot of fun. Once the show ends you can stay and enjoy the party! I had never been to a stand up comedy show. My friend´s brother is very involved in the comedy business so he suggested we should go. I am so glad we did, now that I have "discovered" comedy I cannot wait to find another great show like this. They have a Brew HaHa at least once a month. Look them up on facebook if you are planning on visiting LA.

Zinqué

It is a very cool restaurant in Melrose Ave. A great place for a drink or a nice dinner. You should totally get the Le Bowl which has brown rice, avocado, arugula, chicken, parmigiano reggiano and some other veggies. Great, now I am craving it...

LACMA

Somehow I had never visited Los Angeles County Museum of Art before. I started following their Snapchat stories (@lacma) and fell in love with this museum. Through their stories they combine art, sarcasm and jokes. At the museum you can find works starting from ancient times up to the present.

Have a nice week!

-Greta

Photos by Michelle Katcher and Greta Elizondo.

The last few weeks where a little frenetic, tiring, and stressful. Every day is usually like this when you are a dancer since it is such a demanding profession. After five weeks of dancing Swan Lake at the Chapultepec forest, the season ended with an unexpected rainstorm leaving the dancers unable to say good-bye to the stage until next year.

When a season is over there is a physical and phsycological release. This is the time to rest your body and mind in order to focus again in whatever is next. Sometimes this process can be difficult to achieve because we only have a couple of days to recover. Luckily this year we had some extra days off and could take a little vacation.

The destination was Acapulco, city in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast. It has a great national and international tourism tradition since the 1950´s. The truth is I did take advantage on relaxing and clearing my mind.

Dancing at the beach still counts as resting...right?

I got the chance to see the most beautiful sunset I have ever experienced. The sun looked pink almost fuchsia, even though it lasted a few minutes this was what I enjoyed the most on this trip. Nature can be so wonderful.

I feel guilty for not getting to know the city better but I guess I will have to come back. Until later Acapulco!

-Greta

Photos by Alexander Mitiaev and Greta Elizondo

Rediscovering Los Angeles

Acapulco Express