Sightseeing

My parents and brother wanted to see some of the well-known sights while they were here. On the Saturday after Thanksgiving we first went to Venice. This is where my mom's parents met and lived for a year and a half. My grandfather was in the Navy at the time. He met my grand mother at the Aragon Ballroom in Venice. The ballroom was torn down in the 60's, but I was able to read about it on-line. Originally there were 2 Aragon's. One in Venice and the other in Chicago. The one in Chicago still exsists. These ballrooms played host to all the big name bands in the 40s and 50s. Laurence Welk's band signed on for a 6 week run at the Venice location in the 40's. That 6-week run turned into a 10 year stay! This launched his television career. His band was playing the night my grandparents met. We don't think the apartment complex my grandparents lived in exsists anymore either. My mom was happy just to see the area.

After leaving Venice we drove to Beverly Hills. I took some pictures on Rodeo Drive. The upscale shopping area was much smaller than I had imagined.



Next we drove through Hollywood. My mom and brother wanted to get a picture of the Hollywood sign. We didn't want to get out of our van, so we were never able to stop long enough to get a good picture. Hollywood is a symbol of the movie industry, but not a nice city. I was glad to leave the area. Thankfully my children were talking amongst themselves and not paying attention to the businesses and signs we were passing.

Our final stop was Dodger Stadium. My dad has been a Dodger's fan for as long as I can remember. We thought we would only be able to see the outside of the stadium. Instead we were able to go into the upper deck and see the field. Hopefully my dad will be able to attend some games when he comes back in the spring.