Santa Monica Pier: Watch your step

Day 123

What to do, what to do. We've got two more days i LA and we have universal studios on our list of things to hit up. We opted to see Santa Monica today while it was still supposed to be partly sunny. The drive up was more of the same. Crazy ass drivers in LA all contending for a space in line 20 ft ahead of the others. Parking was the same. You've got to pay to play in this city. Pony up the credit card and check into a meter. The three block walk from Shirley to the pier was more of the same. Homeless people littered along the street, park benches, and walkway into the pier. I know I've been passing judgement a lot on this trip but it needs to be said. The west coast continues to inundate us with dirty streets and beggars.
Ironically I just went to lookup some stats for the carousel below and news for Santa Monica came up. In the last three days there was one reported stabbing during broad daylight right outside the pier. There was also another instance of multiple gunshots between some party busses where one woman was killed and two people are still in the hospital, and that was last night. Santa Monica ranks in the top 25 most deadly suburbs in America. Chew on that.

The carousel above and the wooden house around it were built in 1916. It has been meticulously maintained and still gives out rides to passengers willing to step back in time.

The view from the end of the pier is a pleasant one and remains one of the iconic figures that adorns the seaside. There are 6 amusement parks that are built on either piers or boardwalks in the state of California alone. With an hour wasted we decide to hit up the streets. 

By streets I mean bike path. Welcome to muscle beach. Home to people sleeping next to their bikes and trash bags, not much else. The rest of this place was empty. 

Back up on the sidewalk and it's time to head for home. Our two hours of parking is almost up at the meter, and we don't see the need to be here any longer. We came, we saw, we conquered... now we are going to leave before we end up with a staff infection.