Before traveling back to sunny and warm Florida I had the opportunity to venture up to Big Bear with friends from work. My roommate had planned for months in advanced to find a place that would fit our large group. We stayed at Jeffries Pines, a collection of 5 cabins that fit our group of 20 perfectly. The cabins were delicately decorated and had a very homey feel. With plenty of food and firewood to keep us fed and warm the weekend known as “THE GETAWAY” was underway.

Being a native Floridian it was a pleasure to see snow falling from the sky, partake in impromptu snowball fights, and take a sled down the hill across the street from our cabin. Everyone had a great time and was reluctant to leave. Luckily, the snow made our escape from Big Bear slow as we had to chain up our tires on the way down the mountain. More photos are located over on flickr.

Grand Sequoia National Forest is located about 2 and 1/2 hours North of Los Angeles. Marked with giant Sequoia trees, grand vistas, hot springs, and lots of snow, Grand Sequoia is a very unique mountain area.

Time over the weekend was spent unwinding on the back patio taking in the view. As well as inching up the snowy mountain roads to gain a glimpse of these sleeping giants. I would suggest spending a weekend or maybe even a week at the park to really take it all in. I was there for 3 days and only saw a fraction of the park grounds.

Everyone that our group met, ran into, or trespassed was very friendly. Would be lucky to have neighbors like the ones we had in Grand Sequoia in Los Angeles. I look forward to spending more time in our Nations Parks and Forests.

Today marked the second of what looks like will surely be a tradition in Los Angeles, CicLaVia.

CicLaVia is a free for all on the streets of Downtown Los Angeles for Bikers, Boarders, Bladers, and bi-pedalers. About 7 miles of the city’s busiest roads are closed down for 5 hours allowing open access for pedestrians. Matched with beautiful sunny Spring weather, CicLaVia is a must.

This time I decided to ditch the wheels and take a leisurely stroll downtown headed East from Koreatown. On the course of the journey I passed many historical landmarks and areas I had yet to experience. MacArthur park was busy with live music, demonstrations, and food trucks. Participants grabbed a bite of food and took a rest along the lake and fountain.

Onward downtown the floods of bicyclers continued to flow as the 3 P.M. event closing time approached. I am surprised I didn’t see more costumes or outright outrageous attire. I caught an Elmo bike, stilted bikes, and many variations of wheeled vehicles. I was kind of shocked by the small amount of riders actually wearing helmets. Hopefully next time there will be a helmet drive. Got to protect your brains people!

At first I was very skeptical at how this event would turn out or if I really wanted to participate. A bunch of people with their old pillows encrusted in druel in Pershing Square. I figured it would probably be best to stay as far away from this one as possible. But as the day grew closer, I kept catching wind of people participating. Day of I had free tickets to a Dodger game vs the San Francisco Giants. Obviously some free baseball on opening weekend would be a big draw.
However, bus detours on Sunset left me kind of “stranded.” After seeing a few people on the metro in their fighting gear and with their pillows I felt like it was necessary to head downtown and see what this was all about. I didn’t want to bring out one of my very few personal pillows to bop on top of heads of strangers. Luckily, Macy’s had a sale going on a very fine assortment of Ralph Lauren Medium pillows. $7.99 later I was equipped for what would surely be a battle for the record books.

People gathered from all around. All different walks of life from all corners of LA County and probably beyond. Dinosaurs, Aliens, roided up pillowmen were all in attendance. After a few brief rules from a megaphone noting that the fountain was off limits we were off! The intensity continued for hours as participants pounded each other with a wide assortment of micro fiber and feather pillows. By the end, Pershing square was covered in feathers. I saw feathers floating around as far as Broadway. Note to self for next time, bring a dust mask.

There seemed to be an unspoken rule of excluding those with cameras from the fight but a few DSLRs definitely walked away with some bruises.

Every year performers and a large procession overtake the streets of Chinatown. This year was no exception as the sidewalks of Broadway were lined up with spectators early Saturday afternoon. The constant sound of poppers and fireworks only amplified the excitement in the air and played the soundtrack for the day. Mayor Vilagrosa lead the parade wishing everyone “Kung Hei Fat Choy!” which is Cantonese for Happy New Year! Combined with a large selection of vendors, food trucks, and The LA Craft Experience happening simultaneously, Chinatown was swamped with people.

The Geffen Contemporary at The Museum of Contemporary Art sits behind The Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo.  Today I was able to experience  SUPRASENSORIAL: EXPERIMENTS IN LIGHT, COLOR, AND SPACE. The exhibit space was filled with fantastic shapes and pieces bathed in color and light. Everyone seemed to enjoy the exhibit space as they made their way through Carlos Cruz-Diez’s Cromosaturación.
Admission to the museum is $10 for adults and $5 for students.

Tickets are good for both MOCA’s downtown locations.

AmeriCorps provided some free tickets to check out The Los Angeles Kings play against The San Jose Sharks. It was a pretty dramatic game. The Kings tied it up in the third period and it went to a shootout.  Jarret Stoll scored the only goal of the shootout and The Staples Center erupted in excitement. It was nice to meet some other Americorp members who serve with Peace First.

Hollenbeck park is located on the corner of Saint Louis and Fourth Street in Boyle Heights. This park has been around since 1892. I had no idea of it at the time, but I had a feeling that the place has been around for awhile. There are lots of nice hills to post up on and a wide range of exercise equipment. I’m talking squats, quads, shoulders, and back, this place has it all. I’ve never seen park equipment like the ones at Hollenbeck park.