Hollywood Forever Cemetery (and the Johnny Ramone Tribute)

A cemetery is not a place you typically associate with having a good time. The word cemetery carries it own weight in meaning. Hollywood Forever Cemetery (HFC) in Hollywood, California is one of the most fascinating cemeteries in the world (according to Thrillist). Aside from being the resting grounds for famous and not-so-famous souls alike, this place also hosts numerous events ranging from movie nights to concerts and even festivals. At the simplest level it is a cemetery. On a more complex level it is a platform for a bit of entertainment and rock-'n'-roll, as was the case for me on Sunday, August 11, 2019.

HFC is situated on Santa Monica Blvd., which is one of the busiest streets surrounding the Hollywood area. Getting to the cemetery is not for the faint of heart if you don't plan accordingly. Your LA traffic skills will be put to the test in trying to get to this place. If you are savvy you will get there early and maybe find street parking. I would also recommend using a ride share service. Many will drive there shortly before they open and encounter the chaotic queue lane that forms to turn into the on-site parking that wont let you enter until its "time." It will make you feel as though you are one step closer to being in the ground. First you need to pass through the gorgeous entrance gate that makes you feel like you’re in the 1950's. The snake-like queue to get in passes fairly quickly.

Then as you enter, you pass through a large number of tombstones. Finally after a 10 to 15 minute walk you get to the back of the cemetery and suddenly you forget where you are. There is a vast area of grass and walls and typically a concert set up. HFC has many events throughout the year. Some of the events I have been to include concerts and the Day of the Dead celebration. The concerts are fun and relaxed. However, I did once lose the sole to a boot and in order to be able to walk again, had to improvise with a roll of tape (RIP boot-- no pun intended). The celebration held here for the Day of the Dead is nice, but overflowing with so many people that it almost feels overwhelming. I do recall being run over by a stroller or two. It can take up to an hour to get a drink from the bar, the restrooms feel far and you’re constantly bumping into people. Normally this is not an issue and I don’t encounter such a chaotic. The events are usually held in the back left corner of the cemetery. I was lucky enough to be granted access to this event that was held on a Sunday (big thank you for the invitation). This special event had its very own VIP section (maybe someday I will make it in there) to one side where you could stare at celebrities and unique people with bad ass outfits. Fred Armisen (Saturday Night Live and Portlandia) was just chilling at a table right in front of me for a good while. 

Fred Armisen seen in flannel a the table.

There were also other big celebrities such as the lovely and warm Linda Ramone (who organizes the event for her beloved Johnny Ramone) and the quiet but super friendly John Frusciante from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I bet it can be a bit mind blowing to see that many celebrities in one place. Like a rock-'n'-roll watering hole. I’m no stranger to seeing celebrities in LA, but that was still pretty bad ass. There were VIP kids running around unmoved by their parents success and status, super stylish couples dressed in authentic 1960's outfits, a woman sporting the biggest hair spikes I have ever seen, and a guy sporting a Ramones hairstyle. 

Many of the celebrities roaming around such as the director and main actor of the movie The Warriors came to say hello to all the fans and take pictures and sign autographs. It was super cool. Everyone seem to be in a good mood on this Sunday evening. There was Johnny Ramone artwork all over that corner of the cemetery. There were posters and statues (including the iconic bronze Johnny Ramone statue that permanently resides in HFC) to help you remember and celebrate Johnny's life. Following a special performance, we were able to watch the movie The Warriors, that was projected onto a wall in the cemetery. Overall it was a super chill Sunday evening with a bit of pizzazz.

The lovely Linda Ramone projected onto a wall with her fabulous rainbow cape

If you have not gone to HFC I would highly recommend it. I would not only recommend that you go to the actual cemetery, but also to a day they are hosting an event. Plus wouldn’t you like to tell your friends that you went to a concert at a cemetery? How many of your friends can say that? The only thing I am not a huge fan of is the more massive events that they have that draw out thousands of people, only because it is chaotic from beginning to end. 

As the sun sets and you make your way away from the venue and pass by the mausoleums again, and those resting souls, you start to get that creepy feeling that surfaced when you first arrived. Somehow it turns back into a cemetery that for a while during the event, that feeling erased and it was as if you were somewhere else completely. It's as if that place didn't exist and you woke up from some sort of oddly beautiful dream.

Interview with a traveler: Sonya Castellanos

“Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.” – Anthony Bourdain

Traveling isn't always champagne and selfies at the airport. Sometimes it is stressful, sometimes it is hard, and sometimes you get disappointed. That is why it is good to know the good and the bad whenever you are going somewhere. I am very fortunate to have many friends who love to travel. The good thing about sharing your experiences with others is that you get to learn new things and be prepared. If you have never traveled or not traveled much it can be useful and help you prepare. I sat down with my dear friend Sonya, to share some of her many stories, tips and tricks of the many places she has been to. She is one of the people whose traveling makes me green with envy (but in a good way!). Let's dive in...

[a couple of glasses of red wine later]

Rx: Can you share a list of all the different countries you have traveled to, so I can get an idea of how much globe you have covered. 

SC: Surprisingly it hasn't been a lot. I started in my 20's and went back to the same countries: Mexico, Canada, Costa Rica, Croatia, France, Greece, Italy, Panama, Thailand, United Kingdom, Aruba, St.Maarten, and a lot within the U.S. For me, traveling means going on an adventure. It means going somewhere I haven't been before. It required effort to get there like taking a plane or train. Unlike my past trips, my travels in the next couple of years will be within the U.S. I have hobbies that give me opportunities to travel like: scuba diving, hiking, etc. Right now, I want to go to places like Idaho and Utah. I like to camp also, but with a purpose. I need to be out in the dirt with a purpose, whether it be to go hiking, white water rafting, etc.

Rx: Give me a run down of your first travel experience, and tell me how that went. Tell me what you learned, and what lessons you took away from that.

SC: OK, so I am Mexican-American, and when I turned 15, my mom asked me if I wanted to have a "quinciañera" (Mexican celebration) or a vacation. We didn't have a lot, and so I wanted to travel. We went to Hawaii. That was my first big long trip. Went to 3 islands. I remember vividly because it was one of the biggest trips I had and I went with family. I have a big gap with my brother who is 6 years older. He was daring and loved to snorkel and boogie board. I went with him the first time I snorkeled. Ever since I was 15, I would see the divers, and say "I want to do that." This trip was an adventure I had not experienced before. We stayed in nice hotels and just doing fun stuff. I was exposed to a very different culture. I learned there was so much to see and experience. I was so young and I knew I wanted to continue to travel. 
I guess the travel bug bit me. It helped a lot that my moms best friend was a travel agent. So she began her travels way before that. She started seeing the world. It was difficult at the beginning for my brother and I to travel since she had to get consent from my dad. Otherwise, we probably would have traveled younger. We ended up taking 3 or 4 hawaii trips from the age of 15-17 because she didn't need consent as it was within the U.S. Otherwise, I would have probably gone more.  

Rx: Do you have a favorite place to go to in LA?

SC: I love going to Grand Park because I feel like it is the heart of L.A. I work for city of L.A and it is close to my office and home. They have music events called Sunday Sessions there and we dance barefoot. I love taking off my shoes and being a hippie. The park brought back house music. It is an open environment for all ages, nationalities, orientations, dogs, etc. It's very "picnic style." People don't know this, but if u go to city hall, it's open to public. They have something called the Tom Bradley Tower that gives you a 360 degree view of the city.

Rx: Harry F. wanted to know, "How do you pick your next destination?"

SC: There's usually a specific activity I want to do in that location when I pick. I want to hike in Machu Picchu and I have been training for a 8 months. I want to go to Argentina because I love malbec wine so I want to go to Mendoza for the wine, specifically. I also love my music. I go where  the music goes and have been to lots of music festivals like Playa Del Carmen and Costa Rica for BPM. 

Rx: Now, I think you travel a lot (in a good way!). In terms of financial aspect of traveling, can you share tips on how to afford to travel? This is a big question because I know many people who don't travel because they think they can't afford it. Personally for you, would you say it helps to have a good job, a flexible job, to save up, or is it OK to charge and pay later, or something else? I personally am not a fan of the charge and pay later. I get satisfaction from coming back from my trip debt-free.

SC: I think you need to have of good job. LA is expensive and you need to have your needs met first and foremost. I have been trying to promote up at work. I went to a seminar that asked: "why do you want to promote up?" I will take more and more work and promote up as long as they allow me to explore. I have 17 more years until I retire. However, I am also frugal with my money. I meal prep and  I take lunch to work. I would rather spend it fine dining on vacation. I also request my vacations about a year in advance and have to plan it out. It gives me time to save and make a budget. What's f****d up is, if u charge it, when you come back you have to pay for something that already happened and you can't even plan on the next trip. 

Rx: Traveling is wonderful and you learn a lot along the way, but have you had any negative experiences traveling? Any scary moments?  Has terrorism impacted your traveling?

SC: Yes, there's always a fear of the unknown. I feel excitement and fear together. I don't get excited until I'm on the plane. Right now a lot of people say "don't go to the Dominican Republic." But hey, if something happens to me, it is what is. I am doing what I love. 4 years ago, I went to Thailand and I was at a yoga retreat. A terrorist bomb went off and we thought it was an earthquake. I saw people fleeing and screaming. It's scary. In the next 2 years there were lots of deaths from similar incidents. Also, on a trip to the BPM music festival, there was a mass shooting at a nightclub. There were many lives lost. Nowhere is unsafe. The U.S is unsafe. You can go to the movies and get shot. And what am I going to do, stay home for a fear of getting shot? No, I won't stop traveling for fear. I am always cautious. I live in a bad part of LA. When the London terrorist attack was happening, I still went to London. Of course I will still be cautious and aware of my surroundings, but I won't stop living my life.

Rx: Would you say there are countries that are better to travel when you are single, in a relationship, or with a group of friends? 

SC: Bikrum Yoga Retreats is doing a retreat in Ibiza. I love yoga, but I don't want to go there and do yoga. I think you can do anything anywhere. I have done solo trips and dont think it matters as long as you are open to new experiences, meeting people and socializing. There are a lot of girls that won't even go dinner alone. I think maybe Paris and Florence would be more special with someone. I have some places saved up for that. Aside from that, I think you can go anywhere. 

Rx: Traveling alone, traveling with one person or traveling with a group of friends. How do you feel about that, what do you prefer? What are the pros and cons of each?

SC: It all depends on the activity. I love music festivals. I love going with a large group of people. I love getting and Airbnb and sharing a space with friends you don't normally get to spend time with.  I think I prefer an intimate group when you are exploring a new country and do a lot of sightseeing because it's hard to meet everyone's expectations. Going with one or two people is ideal. Time is money,  and you spend a lot of time planning so I am pretty selfish and picky with who I travel with. 

Rx: What about selecting the people to travel with, how does that matter and how does one know? The reason I ask is because when I first wanted to travel I realized that many people say they want to go somewhere and end up changing their mind or "flaking."

SC: I am very selective, time is precious. You want your friends to carry you on your trip (not literally). Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. What you don't bring to the table, I will complement. You don't want needy people that won't bring anything. For me, it's also people who I have fun with. No drama. There's always going to be people upset. You want a positive attitude to bring out the best of you. You learn this through time. You are spending time and money, but time is more valuable when you travel. 

Rx: Now in terms of extravagant traveling versus general traveling and backpacking what are your thoughts. Have you done it all, do you stick to something in particular? Does it depend where you go?

SC: I have done them both. I have experienced it all. I have done hostels with no hot water. I have traveled with my yoga friend and since she is a hotel connoisseur, we stayed in the finest hotels. In my 30s I am all about splurging. I am at a point where I value the experience. I want to splurge on the activities, and they cost money. Scuba diving is obviously one of them. I love Airbnb because you get value for your money. Although it depends on what the goal is for the trip.  If im sightseeing a lot, I will get a hostel. If I am chilling, I want to stay in a nicer place. I am a diverse traveler. I can camp in 120 degree heat, and to very nice yoga retreats in Thailand. 

Rx: When you are on vacation, do you ever drive in that country, prefer public transportation or use private chauffeurs? 

SC: First of all I don't drive. I Uber or walk. I do public transport. I prefer to gain experience. Be a traveler, not a tourist.

Rx: Can you share the trips you have lined up or plan on taking?

SC: I told myself I wasn't traveling soon, but I am going to South America and am finally going to Peru. I will be hiking Machu Picchu. Then I will be heading to Chile and finally Buenos Aires. I am also going to a music festival in New York City. Later, I am heading out to Costa Rica for BPM.  

Rx: Why do you like to travel? And what would you say to someone who doesn't travel to encourage them to do so? 

SC: I think when you step outside of your comfort zone, there is a sense of growth. I get fearful and anxious. But I try to convert that into excitement. I think it helps you grow as a person. It helps you overcome uncomfortableness of the new and unfamiliar. Then, you feel accomplished and empowered. I guess I would say we are here for a short amount of time. We are so small and there is just so much to see! 

Rx: Are there any final thoughts you would like to say or share regarding traveling in general or anything that we might not have talked about?

SC: I still have so much more to cover that my scuba hobby has taught me. When you go down under, it's like another world down there. I have seen and experienced life on the ground level in these countries, but now I want to explore underwater in places like: the Philippines, Galapagos, Honduras, and Australia. I think that the more I see and experience, I realize there is even more to see and experience.

I would love to thank Sonya for sharing her stories and her tips. Click here for her Instagram account. Hopefully you were able to take something away from this and it inspires you to take a trip. Life is too short and the world is too interesting to spend it at all in one place.

Los Angeles: A Snapshot

Upon researching for topics for my blog, I read an advice column that said "start small and talk about what you know. Talk about your hometown." Well, Los Angeles is one of the biggest and most well-known cities in the globe. It was a bit intimidating to tackle that task. But hey, I was born here so I think I can do it a small justice in my own way.

Home of the Dodgers, ever-growing Latino communities, gangsta rap, Hollywood, city most known for food trucks in the country, and longtime sunny weather. Los Angels is a place millions of people visit every year (yes, I looked it up). I have lived here 99% of my entire life and I can definitely say this place is a monster of a city with many intricate and complex sides to it. There is so much to cover for one post. I guess I have to start somewhere. I don't claim to know everything nor will I talk about everything. For someone who is visiting this lovely city for a short time, I can assure you that the amount of time will most likely not be enough to scratch the surface. My fiance didn't grow up in this country and he knows way more things about Los Angeles than I do. That happens a lot. People who grew up here don't always go to the beach as much as someone who is visiting. I hear: the "what? you never go to the beach? I would be here every day"-speech a lot.

LA (because its not common for people to call it "Los Angeles"), as a child, was a place where I: a) lived b) went to school and c) had fun theme parks my family took me to from time to time. You don't think much of it as a kid. As you get older you realize how much people would give an arm and a leg to come here. As years went by it became the place where most of my favorite bands (in the early 00's) came to perform. Now as an adult, it is a whale of a place with too many cars and oh so many food places to try, venues, events, and other things that I can never seem to catch up with (no matter how many vacation days I take). This city is not quiet. It is impossible to get bored here. It is difficult to save money here because I feel there is always an event or concert I want to go to (damn you concert ticket processing fees). 

Gentrification and the cost of living is skyrocketing, even in areas that people are hesitant to live in. Many people are moving away and it makes me wonder how that will make the flavor of LA change. I have met people who move to this city from out of state and are shocked that it is not entirely what they had pictured in their minds. This is the place showbiz-hungry people and immigrant families come to make it big. There are so many hungry, hungry hippos with the same dreams. Competition is tough. We have about 4 million people living in this city alone. That's a lot of traffic and a lot dreams. Tip for the tourist: don't even think about trying to get to Santa Monica beach with your family from downtown LA at 5:00pm on a weekday. It is no surprise to me when I have heard that people's dreams become deflated as soon as they land in LAX and walk out a couple of miles to the outskirts of Inglewood (via Century Blvd). Let's just say its not Beverly Hills. I grew up in this area (with planes swooshing over my house like a baby mobile) and on my drive to work everyday I would see ladies of the night outside of hotels at 6:00am smoking cigarettes, rubbing elbows with Swedish backpackers who are attempting to read their maps to get to Hollywood. That was always the strangest sight to see. But many people when they travel (if they're on a budget) aim for the least expensive places: near the airport. I know this because I have done it when I travel to places unknown and paid dearly.

LA is beautiful  and grimy at the same time. To me, it is broken down in the following zones. You have the lower income cities where many of the base families live (and the last of the affordable housing exists). Then you have the places where the "middle class" live (e.g. Culver City, Brentwood). You have the rich and famous (Beverly Hills, Bel Air). You have beach towns (Long Beach, Santa Monica, Manhattan Beach). Finally you have the trendy and hip areas (Silver Lake, downtown LA, etc). With the way things are going in Los Angeles, only the wealthy will survive. I met a person at work with a family income of $100,000 who said they were barely able to pay their mortgage and survive. Well, damn.

Food. This is a big one where I will tread lightly. I do not consider myself a foodie by any means. I have friends that eat out almost every day (shout out to Louie T.). I wish I could, too. I don't eat out a lot although there are an infinite amount of good and curious places to eat. If you want to eat food from a particular country, I'm pretty sure LA has either a restaurant, hole in the wall, street vendor, or truck for it. Food trucks are a staple of this city. I heard a joke once on a TV show that said that restaurants don't exist here, and we all live off of food trucks for all 3 meals. Aside from that, you can also find a good "street dog" (hot dog, usually wrapped in bacon) anywhere you go after most events. Ahhhh, the smell of the "street dog" at 2:00 am is incomparable. Depending on the level of inebriation at this point, the sharp and instant whiff of the "street dog" cart will either feel like heaven on earth, or make you want to find the nearest restroom and purge all of your sins for that night.

This is a small general glimpse of what LA is from my eyes, but there will probably be many more related posts later. There are just so many areas to cover!
 If you have ideas on what specific things you want me to cover (tips, places to visit, etc, let me know in a comment below!).

Nighttime snapshot of DTLA March 2019