Sunday, December 09, 2007

Sub-prising!

We did something on Saturday that people in LA just don't do: we rode the subway! Odder still, we did it as part of an art tour. Who knew??

The line is surprising in so many ways. First of all, it's very clean! It's also quite convenient, as the public transportation systems are in many parts of the world. And, shockingly enough, the line is on the honor system, so although there are ticket machines and you are expected to use them, there are no turnstiles and no one really checks. We've heard that an impressive 95% of riders actually pay for their tickets. That makes me feel good about people and their character.

Finally, the artwork. The line is full of it. Each station was designed by a different artist and to reflect the individual characteristics of the surrounding stop. Hollywood and Vine was our favorite with 19,000 film canisters lining the ceiling, among other things.

And why we were there? We were celebrating a friend's birthday. Island Boy had a ball. He was fascinated by the entire thing and even had a "chat" with another baby on the tour. He did great until we reached Union Station (Union Station, by the way, is grand and beautiful!) and the end of the line, appropriately enough.

So why doesn't anyone in LA ride the subway? That's just how we are.

3 comments:

Chairman Mom said...

LOL! No subways for Angelenos, eh? That's just how you guys roll!

I can't talk; I've been on the MetroLink train twice, and both times were just to amuse my daughter.

:)

Stacey

Kim said...

I didn't even know LA had a subway!

Judy said...

glad to see you guys rode the subway and got to ride the red line cars that my company designed. :)
LA not only has a subway, it has many light rail lines that runs above ground.