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November 18, 2007
What ELSE Travel Writers are Saying About Us
Last night I was casually checking out what various travel websites had to say about the neighborhoods of Los Angeles. Most of the summaries in Frommers sounded like this:
Silver Lake, a residential neighborhood just north of Downtown and adjacent to Los Feliz (home to the Los Angeles Zoo and Griffith Park), just to the west, has arty areas with unique cafes, theaters, graffiti, and art galleries -- all in equally plentiful proportions. The local music scene has been burgeoning of late.
OK, maybe this summary is a little out-of-date for the published date of 2006, but it's just fine. Then I hit this summary, and it blew my mind:
East and South Central L.A., just east and south of Downtown, are home to the city's large barrios. This is where the 1992 L.A. riots were centered. It was here, at Florence and Normandie avenues, that a news station's reporter, hovering above in a helicopter, videotaped Reginald Denny being pulled from the cab of his truck and beaten. These neighborhoods are, without question, quite unique, though they contain few tourist sites (the Watts Towers being a notable exception). This can be a rough part of town, so avoid looking like a tourist if you decide to visit, particularly at night.
What What WHAAAAT? East LA and South Central are home to the city's large barrios? Are Boyle Heights and Baldwin Hills barrios?
With all of the museums, parks, murals, restaurants, music, entertainment, architecture and rich history these huge chunks of LA have to offer, the focus is on Reginald Denny? And why would you even lump together two such geographically disparate areas? I understand categories like "The Beaches" or "The Westside." But what could the "unique" areas of East LA and South LA possibly have in common? Oh, right, they are "The Barrios." But that's alright. You should expect this kind of thing from backwards little out-of-touch websites like last year's FROMMERS.
(Photo of house in South LA where Tom Bradley lived for the first few years that he was mayor of the city by Elise Thompson for LAist)
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[ report this ]
besides the strip of most tourists visit from downtown to santa monica.. most of Los Angeles IS a barrio..i dont see your point
and when is the last time you were standing on the corner of florence / normandie...
no? didnt think so
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btw, i ask that question in a general sense, not at the writer of this story..
i havent been on that corner either
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I actually just drove by Florence and Normandie two weeks ago to visit a friend. Last week I was in MacArthur Park eating tamales, then Redondo Beach for dinner, then in Echo Park watching bands. This week I was on the Sunset strip watching more bands, then Hollywood and Los Feliz. Oh, and I was just on the cover of the Watts Times marching for the Jena 6.
I spend a lot of time in a lot of parts of this town. Check out my blogs. That's why I know that South LA and East LA neighborhoods are not all poor barrios. These neighborhoods have much more to offer than just being remembered as the site of a hate crime.
If you click on the word "Frommers" in the post and read the article, it is not a guide to tourist traps from the Chinese Theater to the Santa Monica Pier. It is a summary of neighborhoods in Los Angeles.
I think it is insulting to lump together East LA and South LA under the banner of "This is where NOT to go. These places have nothing to offer, and if you go there you will end up like Reginald Denny because there are angry people there who want to hurt you."
For example, this summary is true of both neighborhoods. See the difference:
(Silverlake) Leimert Park has arty areas with unique cafes, theaters, graffiti, and art galleries -- all in equally plentiful proportions. The local music scene has been burgeoning of late.
I think they deserve better.
That is my point.
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I think its pretty spot on. These are ugly,boring, brutish,dirty neighborhoods that most real angelenos avoid. Most of LA is a barrio except for a few areas that are nice but very expensive.
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Today is Sunday. At 4pm they start the drum circle in Leimert Park. Please, please, please go there. It is a professional drum circle and the music is beautiful. Please go. Just once. Say hello to people. Eat at Phillip's. Try a bean pie. Let the neighborhood surprise you. Smile.
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being that Frommers is a tourist website, this really isn't out of line. i really doubt that the out-of-towners would appreciate being recommended to visit boyle heights. it's one thing if you live in la and are generally familiar with the area, but i know when i'm on vacation anywhere, i don't really want to be sent to the crappiest part of town. and yes, boyle heights is the crappiest part of town, no matter how you slice it. actually, make that macarthur park, minus langers.
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I see your point, Futureperfect, but these are huge areas that are not all barrios and could be aforded just a tad bit more respect. Hollywood is one of the scummiest neighborhoods in LA and I never see warnings to be careful. A traveler should be careful everywhere in LA. There are pockets of criminal activity everywhere.
Compare the above entry to Yahoo Travel's entry:
South Central and Compton: Although the South Central neighborhood of Crenshaw gained worldwide publicity as the center of the infamous 1992 riots, this area remains one of the city's best-kept secrets. Home to a great number of African-Americans, South Central communities such as Crenshaw and Leimert Park offer wonderful shopping, dining, recreation and live music clubs. It has also long been a place of culture and diversity, as evidenced by the African American Cultural Center and the Museum In Black.