Sunset Boulevard is a wildly colorful passageway connecting the aroma of frying fish from Malibu’s Gladstone’s to the ethnic hub of Chinatown. One stretch in particular of this infamous boulevard stands alone a hotbed of technicolor haunts.
The creative spirit is vibrant and twists its quirkily seductive lips into an inviting smile in the alternative enclave of Echo Park Los Angeles. One of the oldest neighborhoods in LA this area has long been an inner-sanctum of experimentalists.
Echo Park was the set of the comedic shorts of Charlie Chaplin Laurel and Hardy and the Three Stooges. It provided the backdrop to Michael Jackson’s music video “Thriller” and was home to prolific independent artists Frank Zappa and Edward Middleton Manigault.
Currently a diversified hub spanning the spectrum of LA dreamers and ethnic communities Echo Park is without a doubt a retreat from the mainstream blasé. Weave your way through the hipsters and the homeless to get the inspirational juices flowing.
Your first stop should be the Time Travel Mart which will thrill you with most any oddity you can imagine from “fresh dinosaur eggs” to hand-cranked music boxes in a tub labeled “Victorian iPods.” The unique shop helps support 826LA a non-profit organization “dedicated to supporting students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills and to helping teachers inspire their students to write.”
Next tear down your writer’s block at Stories a delightful coffee shop and new-and-used bookstore that hosts book readings from up-and-coming authors and serves up a mean turkey pesto sandwich. With full belly and freshly scribbled poem in tow saunter over to Origami Vinyl for fantastic music finds.
The vinyl record shop and record label hosts live performances up to four nights a week with events kicking off at 7 p.m. Ask the friendly staff for music advice and you’ll get expert recommendations.
In addition to what I list here make sure you get a full-bodied taste of the walking-friendly area of central Echo Park as you unearth the hidden gems tucked away. The hotchpotch of rainbow paint splattered all over Echo Park is an accurate sampling of the spectrum of people in this world.
Escape from the everyday grab your friend with those trendy shants and take a jaunt to the freeing burrow of Echo Park Los Angeles.