The Twilight Dance Series at the Santa Monica Pier is the most fun you will ever have ignoring a band. This is not to say that the bands aren’t worth your attention (track down Kokono #1, a Congolose dance-trance outfit that rocked the stage earlier this month.) But they’re up on the pier, and the real action is down in the sand…

As the sun sinks, the beach becomes checkerboarded with picnic blankets as revelers stake their claims. Sangria gets sipped from plastic cups; tendrils of sweet smoke drift past, hinting that your neighbors may be engaging in the deplorable practice of smoking marijuana; laughter flows. Unlike the Hollywood Bowl, where the sound-system overpowers conversation and the rows of seats provide a semblance of privacy, the Twilight series seems almost designed to help you meet the people around you. Pretty soon, you’re surrounded by no-longer-strangers and doing the merrily unsteady barefoot-in-the-sand dance.

This Thursday, they’ll be featuring Kailash Kher, an Indian pop-folk singer who fills stadiums back on his native subcontinent despite vaguely resembling the little brother in Spy Kids. It’s spacey, kick-off-your-shoes music, a nice fit for a setting lit by the lights of a ferris wheel. Get there early, the beach fills up quick.

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WHAT: Weekly concert series on the beach
WHEN: Thursday evenings, 7 pm
WHERE: The Santa Monica Pier
$$$: Free

Recently, some altruistic genius sat down and thought to himself: “What are the things that Angelenos love above all else? What common ground do we share in this sprawling multicultural metropolis of ours?”

Hmmm. Hauling ass in our cars around Dash buses that are going 11 mph and taking up two lanes? Sure, we all dig that.  Burning shit down whenever the Lakers win/lose? That’s something we can get behind. Rooting for each other’s failure? Yes, but mostly in Hollywood. Bitching about the lack of carpool lanes on the 405 like a fat guy who thinks that buying bigger pants is the answer? Hallelujah, we are one. But those are all surface traits. If you really want to dig deep into what unspoken bonds unite as brothers and sisters in the City of Angels… then I have four words for you.

Outdoor movies. Food trucks.

And starting this weekend, the good people at the Outdoor Cinema Foodfest will bring those two timeless LA infatuations together. All summer long, they’ll be screening classics like The Big Lebowski, The Breakfast Club, Pulp Fiction, and The Princess Bride (as well as The Hangover, for anyone who wants to get their drink mickey’d by that movie’s legions of backwards-white-baseball-cap-wearing fans), all while serving victuals from such mobile luminaries as The Grilled Cheese Truck, Canter’s, The South Philly Experience, and Nom Nom’s.

This Saturday they’ll be showing Swingers, one of the all-time great love letters to this town, that rare movie about a flash-in-the-pan subculture that still remains funny, poignant, and truthful for years (sixteen years, oh my God) after its release. Insert “you’re so money” joke here.

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WHAT: Outdoor movies + food trucks
WHEN: Saturdays, all summer, doors open at 6:30
WHERE: Grand Hope Park
$$$: $8

“The difference between being ‘naked’ and being ‘nekkid’ is, that when you are naked, you have no clothes on. However, when you are nekkid, you have no clothes on and you are up to something.” — Tom Robbins, “Skinny Legs and All”

This Saturday, happening in 70 cities and 20 countries across the globe, is World Naked Bike Ride day — a world-wide celebration of all things bicycle and body-image. Anyone with a bike and a willingness to go balls-out (or, y’know, whatever-out) is welcome to join. And as part of my quest to make the unsuspecting civilians of Los Angeles see things they can’t unsee, I too will be participating. Ladies, please, CALM YOURSELVES.

Is nudity mandatory? Not at all — this thing is “bare as you dare.” (Although for anyone who’s seen me with my shirt off, it’ll be more like “bear as you dare”– zing!) Everyone’s going to meet in Echo Park at 1:30 PM for a body-decorating party, with the ride leaving at 4 PM sharp. It’ll be a medium-paced 13-mile loop around the East Side, ending in a barbecue/after-party at a to-be-disclosed location. (Please say “Pat Robertson’s house”, please say “Pat Robertson’s house.”) RSVP on Facebook to get ride directions and info.

We’re gonna get a medal for this one, kids.

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WHAT: World Naked Bike Ride Day
WHEN: Saturday, June 12th, pre-ride at 1:30, ride at 4
WHERE: Echo Park (rsvp for details)
$$$: Free

Two years ago, a gang of spirited young hooligans armed with MP3 players invaded Mann’s Chinese Theater to hold a very public dance-party. The invasion started quietly, done in plain sight, everyone simply mingling and pretending to examine celebrity handprints outside… until 10:07 PM, when everyone busted out earphones like gunslingers in a Robert Rodriguez movie and danced their ass off to whatever was on their Ipod — a silent, joyous collision between flash-mob and discotheque. There was also a conga-line at one point.

Tourists were mystified. Employees were stymied. Security was unable to stop laughing, even as they escorted us out. Undeterred, the party continued, West Side Story-style, down to Hollywood and Highland, where street performers, celebrity impersonators, and random passerby joined in on the festivities. (A guest appearance was made by several stone-faced, video-camera-brandishing members of the LAPD.) Footage of all this epic-ness is available right here.

Anyway — this year, rather than hold our party at some Hollywood tourist trap, we’re instead going for a prized LA institution, something this city holds near and dear, a place where regular folks go to peacefully shop, dine and take trolley-rides. That’s right, kids: we’re gonna storm The Grove.

Meet-up point is in front of Pacific 14 Movie Theater, by the fountains. Get there by 10 PM. Come ready to boogie in public (do what you need to do here, guys.) Mingle, act normal, do not attract attention from civilians. Headphones go in at exactly 10:07 PM, and then we dance like lunatics until security shows us out, at which point we respectfully go find a new “dance floor” elsewhere and repeat.  Afterparty at The Kibitz Room bar at Canter’s.

RSVP on Facebook here.

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WHAT: Mobile Dance-Club Party
WHEN: Friday, June 18th — dancing starts at 10:07 PM, sharp
WHERE: The Grove, in front of movie theater
$$$: Free

People talk about Runyon Canyon as being an “escape from the city.” Nonsense, I tell you — Runyon is basically a Crunch’s gym with sunlight. I see more Blackberry users there than at Insert Upscale-Beverly-Hills-Restaurant-That-I-Don’t-Go-To Here. If you want a real escape from the city, listen close…

Hidden directly off Los Feliz Blvd, right around the corner where it turns into Western, there’s a hidden woodland oasis that looks like something straight out of J.R.R. Tolkien’s subconscious. I’m talking about a place called Ferndell Park — which, you notice, even has a vaguely Middle Earth-y sounding name. You turn in near the sculpture of the dancing bear, and from here, you follow a densely shaded path, ensconced in California sycamores, winding up along gently trickling streams, past wooden guide-barriers and under stone bridges. The sound of the distant traffic fades out, and is replaced by that of birds, running water, and even — that rarest of LA commodities — silence. And yet you are still only a short walk from snacks.

For short men with hairy feet, i.e. me, this place is a dream come true.

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WHAT: hidden LOTR-esque mini-hike
WHEN: good all year round
WHERE: Ferndell Park
$$$: Free

The Shangri La Hotel in Santa Monica has been keeping secrets from us. For years, its hidden rooftop bar, Suite 700, was only open to guests; this was, of course, back at a time when people had “money” to do things like “stay in hotels” and “not eat sandwiches made of actual sand.” (Apparently, the place had an outdoor group shower going on for a while, a prospect which made me wonder if Joe Francis had secretly incorporated the hotel into his empire of douchery.)  No matter — as of this week, Suite 700 has thrown open its doors to the unwashed masses.

The inside is nothing special — obscured color-lights, “Miami Vice” bad-guy furnishings, half-decade old Justin Timberlake songs pumping on the stereo, short-backed chairs that make you so uncomfortable they could have been designed by Andy Kaufman, a halfway decent dirty martini – but the outside deck is the joint’s saving grace.

Go at sunset and you get a gorgeous view of the coast, with Ocean Ave traffic slowly melting into the ant-like procession up the PCH.  Go after dark and watch the neon-flashing rungs of the Santa Monica Ferris Wheel glow like a distant dance-party.  The wood-burning fire pit will send you home smelling like a campfire, lending the whole experience an “Entourage meets Boy Scout Camp” kind of feel.  (Now there is a show I would watch, mainly to confirm certain suspicions I have about men in their 30’s who still live together.)

Suite 700: more fun than watching The 700 Club while high.

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WHAT: Rooftop bar in Santa Monica
WHEN: 5 – Midnight, 7 days a week (later on weekends)
WHERE: Shangri La Hotel
$$$: Between $8 and $10 a drink

Along one of LA’s ugliest streets — a soul-deadening stretch of Jefferson Blvd that runs through the industrial sector of Culver City, past tinny warehouses and the graffiti-strewn cement banks of Ballona Creek — lies one of the city’s best views.  Not on the street, mind you, but above it, in the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook. From atop that unassuming hill, surrounded by fields of yellow flowers and winding garden paths, you can see from Catalina to Compton, from downtown to the Hollywood sign, from Century City to the Inland Empire, and everything in between.

As for how you get up to there, you have two choices — 1: automobile/bike, or 2: PAIN. And by that I mean, a set of steps that are like the brutish, inked-up, just-got-out-of-jail cousin to the Silverlake Stairs — haphazard slabs of stone, spaced unevenly in a dizzying line straight up the face of the mountain. They’re an infernal test of a workout (you know you’re in for a treat when the Yelp reviews say things like “Do not climb these stairs without first downloading ‘Ms. New Bootie’ by Bubba Sparxxx onto your Ipod; thinking of how nice this is going to make your ass look is the only thing that will prevent your imminent collapse.”) But that ordeal only makes the breath-stealing sights up top so much more rewarding.

You’ll notice the overlook doesn’t offer the same pastoral view of the city you’d get from, say, Paseo Miramar. Instead, it serves up a warts-and-all portrait of everything gorgeous and awful about our city — gleaming sun-bright towers and anonymous urban sprawl, nightmarishly teeming freeways and rolling green hills, blue ocean and beige smog, industrial and residential, rich and poor, the effing terrible and the ineffable.

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WHAT: Urban hike with an amazing view
WHEN: Good all year round
WHERE: West Jefferson Blvd, Culver City
$$$: Free

One of the hallmarks of a great LA restaurant is that they have hours designed to piss you off.  For example, at some point in time, Bay City Deli reached into a hat and picked out “Mondays” as the day they were going to close for unnamed reasons. Yuca’s on Hillhurst has no actual hours of operation and exists in a state of utter anarchy. Langer’s opens at 8 AM (for all those craving deli-meats and coleslaw for breakfast) and closes at 4 PM (because, well, fuck you.) It’s bad enough to make bankers look at these guys and be like “Damn, when do you actually work?”

But all these places have one thing in common: a transcendent culinary experience — and in that proud tradition comes Cliff’s Edge. This hidden Silverlake gem proves once and for all that joints like The Varnish and The Roger Room don’t have the game locked when it comes to “awesome places with no signs.” You’ll drive by three times before you see it — a nondescript tea-green bunker on the corner of Sunset and Griffith Park. You enter a tall wrought-iron door in the back of the parking lot and immediately find yourself on an idyllic, multi-tiered wooden deck built into the face of a cliff (hence the moniker) and surrounded by mini-forests of bamboo.

As for the brunch menu: the eggs benedict is divine, the pumpkin ravioli perfectly spiced, and the spicy ahi tuna tartare — chopped with fresh mango and served atop a bed of seaweed salad — engages every type of taste-bud on your tongue at once in perfect harmony. But the guilty secret of Cliff’s Edge is definitely the fries with the gorgonzola dipping sauce — pungent, creamy, and vaguely redolent of red onion amidst tiny hunks of green-veined goodness. You’ll sit back and sip a blueberry Stoli Italian soda, and watch sunlight dance amidst the leaves, and slowly forget that any other outdoor restaurant ever existed in this city.

But ah, here’s the rub: it’s only open during the day on weekends. I ask you — what kind of cruel, sick, depraved joke is that? You’ve got this restaurant that is second to none when it comes to blissful al fresco-ness, and yet only has daylight hours twice a week? ARE YOU PEOPLE OUT OF YOUR MINDS? VAMPIRES SEE MORE SUN THAN THAT! Ok, fine, if Saturdays and Sundays are all we’re getting, that’s all we’re getting.  We’ll manage.

Somehow.

Pass the sauce.

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WHAT: Unparalleled outdoor brunch
WHEN: Only on weekends from 11-3 (because God hates us)
WHERE: Cliff’s Edge
$$$: $10-$15 a plate

You haven’t really lived until you’ve gone flying down Wilshire Blvd on a bicycle at 10 o’clock at night surrounded by a speeding mob of 300 hundred other cyclists — and this Friday, you have the opportunity to do just that. Critical Mass is world-wide celebration of bike culture, happening once a month in different cities all around the globe, wherein hordes of pedal-enthusiasts take to the night-time streets and let their freak flags fly. The event’s moniker comes from a phenomenon in which traffic is compelled to a stand-still once a high enough number of bikes take over the road. (This doesn’t, however, give you license to be a dick to passing motorists and/or the cops — this means you, idiot from last month who wowed the world with his creativity by yelling “I smell bacon” at the LAPD.  Guys like you make me wish Daryl Gates was still alive.)

The ride starts at 7:30 PM sharp, at the Western/Wilshire metro station. Bring your wheels, helmet, an extra tube, water, and learn the call-outs.  And most importantly, bring front and rear lights — crucial for obvious safety reasons, as well as being part of the magical visual effect you get when you crest a hill and look down upon a moving river of blinking red luminescence. For the three hours of contained anarchy that go along with CM taking to the streets, there’s no better way to spend a Friday night.

For more information, check out their Facebook page.

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WHAT: Crazy night-time bike ride
WHEN: Friday April 30th — meet up at 6:30, ride at :730
WHERE: Wilshire/Western metro station
$$$: Free

If you know me at all, you know music is a big part of my life…as well as cupcakes.  Soooo give me a day to celebrate both (see this week’s Soundboard) while contributing to a good cause?  Done and done.

After a morning fulfilling your deepest music fantasies (well…as far as limited vinyl finds go anyway), pop on by Morel’s French Steakhouse & Bistro at The Grove for the National Food Bloggers Bake Sale and share some of your good fortune.  With over 40 local LA bakers and bloggers (you probably already follow, Twitter-style) donating their time and tasty treats, your day will nearly triple with sugary goodness.

Amongst the decadent deliciousness will be: Blondie brownies with butterscotch and chocolate chips from event hostess, Gaby of What’s Gaby Cooking, Deadly Chocolate Almond Toffee from La Fuji Mama, Espresso Black and Tan Cookies (a SoCal twist on the NYC fav) from Daydreamer Deserts, and some yummy surprise cupcakes (finally!) from I Heart Cuppy Cakes.

Not to mention the fact that this is part of the first annual food blogger’s charity fundraiser.  All proceeds made from cities across the U.S. on Saturday, April 17th (that’s TODAY, folks!) 10:30am-1:30pm will be donated toward Share Our Strength’s effort to end childhood hunger in America.  Should you not be able to tear yourself away from the record store ruckus (a bit of a quandary, I know), feel free to shoot over a charitable donation through their website between bands.

Music, cupcakes and good deeds?  My oh my, it IS a beautiful day.

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WHAT: National Food Bloggers Bake Sale
WHEN: THIS Saturday, April 17th 10:30am-1:30pm
WHERE: Morel’s French Steakhouse & Bistro at The Grove
$$$: FREE until you spot the goodies

This week’s Bored & Thirsty is a different sort of animal than you’re likely used to. Week

after week, we see bars and clubs across this great city of ours, and really, there’s only so many variations on that theme. Sure, there are some great variations – Footsies, Jumbo’s, El Cid  - but let’s not forget about some of the other ways to get your drink on.

Among them, one of my all-time favorite drinking engagements: the time honored tradition of getting housed at a Dodger’s game. Now I’m not a sportshead (Hoorah for points, I guess!), but this is something different. Situated near Mt. Washington on the east side of town, Dodger Stadium is like our city’s Mt. Olympus. On a good night you can see a 360 degree panorama, and there’s something spectacularly captivating about walking into the bright-white lights of a stadium at dusk, drink in hand, about to get down with doing the wave with tens of thousands of your like-minded Los Angelenos.

The drinks are standard, and pricey as hell. Beer (only) on draft or in a can (promptly poured in a plastic cup) run from $8 all the way up to $13 (YIKES, you guys – let’s cool it with the ridiculous prices, k?), and admission is $12 for the shittiest seats, so you’ll  have to save a little for a night of sporting, but let’s me tell you: it’s freaking worth it. Because nothing says summer like peanuts and beer. And yelling “Charge!” everytime something important happens (like I said, I’m a total sports nut).

Here’s a little tip: you’re not allowed to bring your own booze to tailgate. No tailgating! Or rather, DON’T GET CAUGHT TAILGATING – DOUBLE WINK!

It’s all about singing the Star Spangled Banner, it’s about garlic fries (the perfect compliment to getting wasted, I assure you), it’s about being bright outside until 9 p.m. It’s about participating in Los Angeles, not just being a resident. This is like an annual initiation, and you’re not officially enjoying summer until you go and quench your boredom and thirst.

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WHAT: Baseball and brews.

WHEN: Throughout the summer!
WHERE: Dodger Stadium
$$: $12 entry, $10 beers… dare I suggest: pregame.

Have you always wanted to be famous, but know you don’t have what it takes to become a star (i.e. a sex tape where Ray-J pees on you?) Fear not — because on April 24th, we’re all getting famous. No, this does not involve guns, put those down. STOP THAT.

Full disclosure: I’m one of the guys throwing this event. Now here’s how it works: we meet at noon in front of the WME building, where we run a winding, three-mile obstacle course through Beverly Hills. Hidden throughout the course will be packs of photographers. Your goal is to make it to the finish line without them getting a picture of your full face.

Scattered along the way will be hidden caches of “identity concealers”, i.e. low-brimmed hats and those sunglasses that put a black bar over your eyes. (We were going to offer ski masks, and then remembered ski masks + sprinting through Beverly Hills in broad daylight = “Officer, these cuffs are too tight.”)

Got a camera and the ability to be sneaky? We want you. Got a pair of running shoes and a well-developed flight sensibility? We want you. (Costumes are also encouraged.) The race starts at noon, but paparazzi are required to show up at 11 AM so we can get you vultures in your respective hiding places.

Afterward, in a stirring tribute to something that would totally happen in real life, the celebrities and the paparazzi will meet up for a beer at the Writer’s Bar in the L’Ermitage Hotel.

Be sure to RSVP for the event on Facebook.

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WHAT: Celebrities Vs. Paparazzi footrace
WHEN: April 24th, noon-1 PM (Paparazzi to meet at 11 AM)
WHERE: Starting at the WME building
$$$: Free

“There’s something wrong with my ass — I need to shake it.”  This was the bound-for-immortality quote my friend delivered to me as we headed out to a Shade party last summer. And if there is ever a better reason to shake your ass in a grassy park on a Saturday afternoon, I have yet to find it.

The brainchild of LA-based DJ’s DivaDanielle and Porter Tinsley, Shade is a once-a-month “day party”, kicking off this Saturday from noon til sunset  in Woodley Park. It’s the kind of place where you’ll find yourself drinking strange libations with friendly strangers on picnic blankets in the afternoon sun; where you can go ballistic with squirt-guns during impromptu water-fights; where you can try your hand at hula-hooping or spinning poi (being met with, if you’re anything like me, hilariously mixed results); where you’ll watch silk-rope acrobats slowly gyrate in the trees, like an NSFW Disney cartoon; where DJ’s you’d normally have to venture out deep into clubland (or into Burning Man) to find, are happily spinning funky house and ghetto-tech to their hearts’ content. It’s one of those things that reminds out-of-towners why they moved to LA, and reminds locals why they love it here (and for me, why I ever got into event-blogging in the first place.) It’s a secret too good to keep.

Summer’s here. Stop dilly-dallying. Go shake it.

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WHAT: Daytime dance party in the park
WHEN: Once a month, Saturdays from noon til sunset
WHERE: Woodley Park
$$$: Free

Songkran, Thailand’s New Year, falls on Easter this year. If you aren’t busy filling your baskets with colorful Easter eggs, you should try to get over to Thai Town to partake in this awesome day. How cool is it that they celebrate a new year by attacking everyone with water? Water guns, water balloons, buckets of water, hoses, water, water, water. The tradition actually began quite differently. Water was poured on Buddhas to create a sort of holy water, which was then poured on the shoulders of family members to bring good fortune. Like most traditions do, it has since evolved…. into a super awesome, massive water fight! But remember, this is Thai Town, not Thailand. The water fighting won’t be as awesome as Bangkok, but that shouldn’t discourage you from helping spread the love…. and water. Whatever the case, the festival will shut down a big chunk of Hollywood Blvd. to offer food stalls, live music, dance, arts and crafts, muay Thai demos, a beauty contest, parade, and Singha beer garden. Did I mention free admittance? Take the Metro Red Line to the Hollywood Blvd./Western Ave. station to avoid the endless search for parking.
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WHAT: Thai New Year Festival
WHEN: Sunday, April 4th @ 8am-8pm
WHERE: On Hollywood between Western and Normandie
$$$: Free

I don’t know about you, but spring is my favorite time of year.  Never-mind the fact it means my birthday is right around the corner and… it sets my mind in a constant state of cupcake-dreaming bliss—springtime means the air is clean, the weather is warmer, and brightly colored petals are blooming all around, including the much-awaited cherry blossom trees.  Finally getting the credit they deserve, LA is celebrating these Japanese beauties April 10^th-11^th in the Little Tokyo Arts District with the annual Cherry Blossom Festival.

Dance the day away with some traditional Odori dancing in the street (San Pedro St., to be exact), challenge someone to a strategic-frenzy game of GO, and perfect your horse stance watching the live presentations in the Martial Arts Arena.   New for this year is the J-Pop Stage, featuring anime-pop music & a lolita fashion show, a showing (4 times daily) of the film-festival favorite: Only The Brave, and (an obviously needed addition), a beer & sake garden.  Food-wise, expect a large assortment of Hawaiian favorites (smoothies, please!), as well as yummy sushi and noodle selections from Japan Bistro.

This is also the perfect time to reacquaint yourself with the (too-often forgotten) Japanese American National Museum and the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, which are literally right next door.

Whatever brings you out, this vastly cultural, FREE event definitely tops the list in terms of entertainment-value.  Engaging over 45,000 guests last year, there are bound to be a few recreational activities to keep you busy and out of mischief.  Well…busy, at least.  I’ll leave the mischief-decision up to you.

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WHAT: Cherry Blossom Festival
WHEN: Saturday, April 10th: 10:30am-6:30pm & Sunday, April 11th: 10:30am-5pm
WHERE: Little Tokyo Arts District (1st & Alameda downtown)
$$$: FREE!

Let’s pretend it’s a Sunday morning.  The weather is beautiful, the skies are bright, your hangover has started to dissipate, the half-dressed stranger has been kicked out of your house, and by God, it’s time to carpe the damn diem.  My advice: first carpe your bike (or rent one), and then head down to The Strand.

A stretch of winding concrete path spanning 30 miles south from Will Rogers State Beach, The Strand offers a perfect way to take in the case of Multiple Personality Disorder from which our coast suffers so gloriously.

I started at the Redondo Pier and headed north, pedaling past the frat-tastic beach parties of Hermosa, cruising by a beached ship that street-artists had turned into a mural, watching surfers ride the (possibly radioactive) waves beyond the power plants, floated through the laconic East-Coast-fishing-village vibes of Manhattan, gliding under howling jetliners and through the boombox soul music and mouth-watering barbecue smoke of Dockweiler, zipping alongside sailboats in Marina Del Rey, dodging meth-heads and performance artists (po-tay-to, po-tah-to?) in Venice, stopping to play Tarzan on the swing-rings in Santa Monica, before finally heading up through the windswept sands adjacent to the PCH, where the trail died out.

Turning around to ride home in the afternoon sun, ocean air whistling past, I found myself mentally stealing (and slightly misappropriating) a line Edward Norton said in Keeping The Faith: “Anyone who doesn’t live here must, on some level, be kidding themselves.”

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WHAT: Bike path along every beach in LA
WHEN: Good all year round
WHERE: Starts in Redondo, ends at Will Rogers State Beach
$$$: Free

Another year, another pillow fight day. Across the globe, cities are hosting massive fights and LA is no exception. With almost 4,000 attending on the Facebook event page, this should be the biggest one yet! Saturday, April 3rd, bring your pillow to Pershing Square by 3pm and prepare to fight! Invite everyone you know to make this year bigger and better than ever. Note: if you’re allergic to down– you may have some issues. There will be feathers everywhere, people dressed in ridiculous outfits, cameras to avoid, and possibly cops laughing in the distance (at least they have in the past). We will be there, so see you next Saturday! (If you are in a different city next weekend, no worries— dozens of cities are participating!!!)
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WHAT: World Pillow Fight Day
WHEN: Saturday, April 3rd @ 3pm-4pm
WHERE: Pershing Square
$$$: Just bring a pillow [and maybe some goggles]

Ok, so — who wants to spend an entire day walking up and down an endless series of concrete stairs?

You do, if you want to see multiple sides of this crazy, beautiful, depraved city all at once.  Back before cars became the primary mode of transportation in LA (like way back in the day), residents of Silverlake/Echo Park had to access their homes via a series of staircases built directly into the hillsides. Because they didn’t have roads, or cars to drive on the roads, which didn’t exist. Shit was rough then, son.

Luckily for us, the past’s necessity has become the present’s excellent-way-to-kill-a-Sunday — part urban adventure, part scavenger hunt. Here’s the map.

You start just off of Sunset Blvd, by one of those Mexican polka-nightclubs that you secretly have always wanted to go into, and head up the Music Box Stairs, made famous for Laurel and Hardy’s inability to get a piano down them.

From here, you spill down across the Junction, and up into the hills where the houses become smaller, hobbit-like, obscured by vines and greenery.  You tramp up along Griffith Park and resist the urge to go into Hard Times Pizza. (Or you don’t; I’m not judging.)  You pass a glass-walled stilt-house where someone told you Scarlett Johansson lives. You wait for Scarlett Johansson to come out. She doesn’t. You ramble onward, along the reservoir and past hidden parks. You dodge crack vials on the steps leading down to a gypsy-camp ensconced off Glendale. You take in views of the city that look like something Terrance Mallick might shoot. You get lost a lot, and feel a strange sense of accomplishment every time you track down an elusive set of steps. “I’m never using a stairmaster again,” you think to yourself.

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WHAT: Urban adventuring in Silverlake
WHEN: Good all year round
WHERE: Start on Vendome St, just south of Sunset
$$$: Free

A couple miles north of Sunset Blvd in the Palisades lies Paseo Miramar, a five-mile hike that gives you some of the most gobsmacking views of the Pacific Ocean you’ll ever witness.

But first, you must pay a price.

I’m not going to lie to you: the first two miles of this thing — a steep, winding, seemingly endless incline up the canyon, with each corner promising relief that never comes — are going to kick you in the face.  They are going to kick the faces of your friends, your pets, your distant family members, and your unborn children.  Add a ponytail to them and they’d be Steven Segal in Out For Justice. Your suffering is going to be legendary.

But then, after about 45 minutes, something magical happens: your body accepts its fate. And before you know it, the incline levels out, and you’re slaloming down through green tree-tunnels and past wetlands and up through fields of high, honey-colored grass. Finally, you hit the top and there’s a wooden bench waiting for you. You flop down and drink in the views of the rolling Palisades, the muted sprawl of the city, the toy-sized Santa Monica Ferris Wheel in the distance, and that sheet of blue rippling from the crescent edges of the continent.  It’s all yours.

Masochism: it has its upsides.

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WHAT: Hike in the Palisades
WHEN: Good all year round
WHERE: Trail starts at the top of Paseo Miramar Rd
$$$: Free

Check out this unique idea to reinvent city streets through out LA on Sunday mornings: CicLAvia, a group that has previously done this same project in Colombia, successfully if I may add, wants to close down at least three major streets from East LA to West LA on various Sundays this summer and turn them into urban parks. To even attempt to accomplish this plan, they need your vote here. The idea is that they will block off the streets from car traffic from 10am-1pm, only allowing pedestrians, cyclists, families, skateboarders, and anyone else who you would find at a park to enjoy beautiful Sundays mornings outside and in a safe enclosure. They aim to provide this service in areas where parks are extremely lacking, the population is extremely dense, and is near public transportation to allow all to attend. Whether it works or not, it’s a nice idea and feel free to decide for yourself if it deserves your vote! They are currently ranked 53rd and need to be in the top 10 ideas to win the grant.
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WHAT: CicLAvia’s 7-mile Streets to Parks Project
WHEN: Voting ends March 31st
WHERE: Click here to vote!
$$$: Free