Since I have family in Los Angeles and have visited frequently, I was in some ways prepared for the traffic situation. Despite my initial cringe at taking an hour to get home from an eight mile drive, I actually don't mind the traffic situation. At least, it doesn't get under my skin since I was expecting it. It's when traffic is at a complete standstill that it becomes trying, but I try to use that time to either look around or just enjoy some alone time, so I think it works out in the end. I think I'm a better driver here than I was back home. What I mean by that is I try and focus only on the road. I don't call people when driving (I think it's actually illegal here to not use a hands-free device while driving, and, according to my dad, the Bluetooth mic in my car is crap, so that eliminates that option), and I don't try and fiddle around with anything while moving. There's plenty to look at when driving anyway; most notably the advertisements and billboards. They are HUGE. Some areas (like Beverly and Holmby Hills) have absolutely no ads or billboards to be seen. Then there are places like WeHo where ads are plastered on what seems to be every available space. I wonder how much revenue a building can make by renting out the side of the building to a massive ad. It is pretty prime real estate for advertising.
I like the ads here for the most part. While I won't disagree there are probably too many, I'm glad I have something to notice when driving, and some are actually quite nifty. There were two billboards for the upcoming Clooney and Bullock film split across the street and the billboards were supposed to be one large image separated by the road. I wanted to take a picture, but when I finally got to a light, I couldn't get a great image of it. I've been a fan of the Kick-Ass 2 billboards. The majority of them have just been the faces of the main cast in their superhero masks, but there have been a few graffiti style ones where it looks like the faces have been spray painted. What has been particularly neat is seeing these massive things go up. I've been trying to figure out how they're put up on these huge spaces, but I can't exactly stop my car and watch in the middle of rush hour. I've been seeing a HBO ad go up over a few days and it's done in segments, but if it's put up in squares or rolled down in long sheets, I have no idea.
One of the things I've been trying to do is learn some alternative routes to and from campus and to other places we frequent like Target and the grocery store. For the first two weeks, I only took Sunset Blvd. to and from school. There are long stretches once I hit Holmby Hills (past Beverly Hills) where traffic is moving at about 45 mph (which I have come to appreciate as fast). But once I get to WeHo (a fun little nickname for West Hollywood), traffic is stop and go at a peak of maybe 15 mph. I kept thinking there has to be a better way! However, the Google Maps app isn't really the best for deviating away from the three prescribed routes it offers--Sunset Blvd being one of them. If you make a wrong turn or choose to make a different turn, the app simply reroutes you back to the original path. Not the greatest when trying to figure out what roads lead where and with the least amount of traffic. I asked one of the ladies in my cohort what routes she took to campus (she lives in roughly the same area as we do); I tried those routes a few times and it was significantly faster, but I wanted more than just two known routes to take. What happens if there's a wreck or a terrible traffic jam!?
Then I was made aware of the Waze app. Cameron and I went to a birthday party for the daughter of friends of friends from Nashville last weekend, and were able to meet some people who live in the area. My friend, Kayla, put us in contact with one another when she learned that we were both going to be in the UCLA vicinity. The couple's neighbors told us about Waze when we mentioned how it was difficult learning side streets. What a fantastic app. It's similar to Google Maps, but it uses user data to help calculate the shortest route times and constantly updates the route based on your turns. I've used it a handful of times and it definitely has helped make my commute faster. I left at about 4:30pm last Friday and managed to get home in about 40 minutes! While there are some bugs with the app-- it's told me to take a left at a right turn only stop sign and has led me to side streets where it's nearly impossible to turn left or drive straight across a busy street with no light-- it has been quite helpful in learning alternate routes.
Cameron's commute is generally much faster, even in rush hour traffic. On a motorcycle, it is permissible to drive in between traffic on the white lines and a lot of motorcyclists (even scooters!) do this. The first few times it startled both of us since it's illegal in North Carolina. The story goes that police motorcycles would overheat in standstill traffic, so the law was implemented to avoid it and it hasn't changed since. However, when traffic is completely stopped, it's not like the cars are able to move, so I assume it's relatively safe. With that ability, a drive that would take me about an hour to an hour and half takes Cameron 30 minutes on his motorcycle.
We have both, I think, become more defensive drivers here, too. Many people don't know the general rules of driving (one guy just rolled through a stop sign without even looking to see if anyone was coming). Many people, especially on the freeways, tend to merge quickly and in tight spaces. We've had to be aware of our surroundings since people like to brake quickly here too (every single time there's a curve...) People also seem to be quick about laying on their horns too, especially in city traffic when they think you aren't paying attention. Half the time I can't even tell who they're honking at.
Even though I'm driving less and technically going longer on full tanks, I know and immensely dislike that I'm getting worse gas mileage (darn city mileage!). But, it's been a week since I filled up and I've only used about a quarter tank. Gas prices here fluctuate depending on the area, too. I've seen gas prices from $3.89/87 grade to $4.19/87 grade. I can usually find gas for 91 grade at about $4.15 ($4.09 has been the cheapest). They don't have 93 grade, which is what I'm used to, and so that was a strange first fill-up.
I've noticed that due to driving here, I've been more inclined to walk places, even if it's a little more than a mile (parking in LA is no joke), and I'm less willing to go shopping (unless it's for food) since it means dealing with driving and parking (needless to say, my bank account is happier about that). I've even considered looking into public transit for going to campus. I have too many reservations, but the appeal of being able to read on the bus is very alluring. We'll see how the year goes- I'm trying to mentally prepare for the rain in the winter (Winter is coming!). Sorry, couldn't resist.
Here's a picture of Gambit for the road :]
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