in the land of sunshine and cars

 I am originally from LA and I've made no secret of the fact that I love my city. It ain't everyones cup of tea for sure, but it is mine...except for the cars.

If you've got a long commute...you probably hate LA Monday-Friday. It can be tough to navigate your way through a city with so many other folks trying to do the same thing. For all the people who've told me how much they dislike the place...so many more just keep moving there. LA is not kind to everybody, but it was very kind to me.

In the spirit of that kindness, I thought I'd share something of a shortcut with all those Angelenos somewhat familiar with the area extending from the westside to Sherman Oaks. A route I must have traveled a million times. I lived in Westwood my mom lives in the Valley. The 405 was like a lifeline, and now that I hear it will be shut down this weekend, I can't help but think....UHOH. That freeway is an unpredictable one. 2:00 AM on a Sunday=traffic, 8PM on a Saturday=traffic...holidays, high holy days, you just never know when there will be traffic for no apparent reason.

So here you go...this isn't really a shortcut cuz it takes as long as the Pass sometimes, but I've rarely seen cars on it. Who knows...it might be very popular now, but it's worth a shot if you're trying to get from the westside and you are a bit familiar with the area.

I call it the Bel Air back way: Hang a right off Sepulveda ( I can't remember the street) but it might be Moraga. I've also called it the street with the two gas stations. The road to the right will split...go up and to the left. You are basically headed toward Bellagio which will take you to Roscomare. Left on Roscomare and proceed over the hill or toward Mulholland. Once you get to Mulholland you can take a variety of ways over. I always preferred Woodcliff, but you can do the more popular Bev Glen as well. Woodcliff takes you to Valley Vista which runs just south of Ventura. There you go.

You can see this route if you go to google maps and zoom in on the Westwood area. It's twisty but pretty. I'm sure a million other people probably know this route...but it can't hurt right? Good luck Los Angeles...my thoughts are with you this weekend.