Explore LA

What matters to you? Talk to LAist in your neighborhood

We’re meeting community members in person across SoCal. Tell us what’s on your mind, share a story, or just say hello.

People wearing LAist t-shirts and other items engage with a group of people right outside a burger restaurant. They sit and stand around a table with a black tablecloth that reads “LAist. 89.3 FM. LAist.com.”

This former 99 Cents Only store has been reimagined as an art exhibit — this week only. See inside

From shopping carts suspended upside down to art in every nook and cranny, this is not the same 99 Cents Only store you used to buy your cleaning supplies at.

Listen 0:44

The aisle of a store covered in many kinds of visual art.

Tiny centuries-old trees? The Huntington gears up for its annual Bonsai Celebration

The weekend event will include expert demonstrations and a bonsai marketplace.

Two bonsai trees sit on pedestals in front of a wooden fence.

How you can skate on the same Lakewood rink that Alysa Liu used to train for her Olympic gold

Alysa Liu’s path to Olympic gold included training at The Rinks-Lakewood ICE — and you can skate there, too.

Meet Pepe the Parrot of Hermon. Your friendly neighborhood bird

How a colorful parrot captured the hearts of a northeast Los Angeles neighborhood.

Man with medium-tone skin wearing blue shirt and black cap with neon yellow backpack has green parrot perched on shoulder, standing in parking lot

Meet the guy on a mission to bring the marimba to the masses. The what?

Southern California Marimba puts on salons where you can hear the couch-sized instrument in all its glory.

Listen 3:34

Ariel Campos plays a vibraphone with a bass bow. He sports a black t-shirt and glasses. There is a multimedia art projection behind him.

Community, play, nostalgia. East LA Film Shop is more than just a film lab

Owners Frank Ledezma and Jennyfer Gramajo have landed their pandemic-era pivot and are bringing folks together over the shared love of film photography.

Listen 2:00

The interior of what appears to be a small shop focused on photography. In the foreground, there is a low black table with several large prints stacked on it; the top print features a portrait of a person wearing dark outerwear. The prints are protected by clear plastic sleeves.

27th Street Bakery was founded during Central Avenue’s heyday and is still standing 70 years later

Today, the bakery is considered the largest manufacturer of sweet potato pies on the West Coast, according to the bakery’s website.

a women in a large restaurant kitchen pulls a tray of pies from an oven

Studio Ghibli returns to the Academy Museum with the new Ponyo exhibition. We sent a superfan

The exhibition includes rare items donated by the famed Japanese animation studio on display in North America for the first time, according to the museum.