Editor's note: We will be off Monday, Jan. 1. Enjoy your New Year's Day, and see you Tuesday.
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It's Saturday, Dec. 30. Here's what you need to know to start your weekend:
How to explore L.A. in 2024
What makes L.A., L.A.? It's not just the geography, though dry, temperate weather across mountains, valleys and beaches does help.
It's people, and the communities, neighborhoods and cities we've built.
My colleagues fanned out across the area to put together neighborhood guides that highlight L.A. through the people and places that bring it to life.
It's just in time for New Year's. If you hope to do more in 2024, get out more, explore more and leave your comfort zone, these guides are a good first step. In each one, we celebrate the restaurants, shops, theaters, outdoor spaces and landmarks that make each neighborhood a unique L.A. treasure.
Because L.A. is more than just Hollywood Boulevard and Venice Beach. For example…
Eat your way through Koreatown
You can eat one of the most unusual Korean barbecue dishes (beef intestine or gopchang) alongside K-pop stars and celebrities at restaurants such as Ahgassi Gopchang.
Or explore food gems of the neighborhood that span other cultures like the Oaxacan restaurant Guelaguetza on Olympic Boulevard, and the array of shops and restaurants that make up 3rd Street's Little Bangladesh.
Our guide has even more.
Explore the great outdoors in Culver City
Just south of the 10 Freeway from Koreatown is Culver City, a.k.a. "The Heart of Screenland."
While my colleague Jessica Roy connects the dots between Culver City and Hollywood ("Gone With the Wind," "Citizen Kane" and "The Wizard of Oz" were filmed here), my admiration for the city has less to do with cinema and more to do with nature.
One of my favorite L.A. hiking trails, Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook, is in Culver City. Sweeping views of Los Angeles and the Pacific Ocean inspire me to return to the trail over and over again. It never gets old.
Go museum hopping in Fairfax
You've probably visited Fairfax staples like the Grove or Canter's Deli, but just didn't realize what neighborhood you were in because Fairfax and the larger Mid-Wilshire area are so close. Whether you can identify the area or not, it is packed with landmarks, history, entertainment, art and cuisine that tourists and locals alike will enjoy.
You can spend a day on Museum Row alone learning how some of your favorite films were made at the Academy Museum; connecting with cultures from ancient times at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; or exploring plants and animals from the last 50,000 years like saber-toothed cats at La Brea Tar Pits.
But that's not all! See the guides we have so far below:
Tell us what you love about your L.A. neighborhood
L.A. gets a bad rep (it's expensive, and hard to get around), but most of us wouldn't live anywhere else.
What do you love about your L.A. neighborhood? We want to know. It can be a city or neighborhood we've already published a guide to, or one we haven't made our way to yet.
We may feature your responses in an upcoming story — or even ask you to play tour guide for a day.
In the meantime, happy new year! See you in 2024.
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School on Wheels To learn how you can contribute to these worthy organizations, see their advertorials and ads in the L.A. Times 2023 Giving Back Magazine.
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Column One
Column One is The Times' home for narrative and longform journalism. Here's a great piece from this week:
(MOHAMMED ZAANOUN / Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
In war-stricken Gaza, hunger is a constant companion. The great majority of fatalities from the war between Israel and Hamas has been the result of Israeli bombardment, officials say. But hunger's grip is tightening by the day.
More great reads
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For your weekend
Going out
Staying in
L.A. Affairs
Get wrapped up in tantalizing stories about dating, relationships and marriage.
(Illustration by Katie Smith / For The Times)
He was into guns, snakes and control. Could this Hollywood romance last? John and I fought more than we didn't. His poetry turned into rants, and sharing a bedroom with a snake stopped being sexy.
Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team
Elvia Limón, multiplatform editor
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
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