One of my favorite spots to hang out in the USC area is L.A. Live! L.A. Live is about a 10 minute drive down Figueroa Street…I have friends who have even walked there. I’ve heard that one can also take the metro down there, but I haven’t tried it yet.
L.A. Live has a lot of cool stuff:
1. The Staples Center: A large venue for sports, music, and other events. Lakers home games, Clippers home games, L.A. Kings home games (my favorite Stanley Cup Champs!), and tons of awesome concerts! Just to name a few artists who I know have played there in the last few years, Maroon 5, Muse, Usher, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Paul McCartney, and more. In addition to the Staples Center, there a couple of smaller music venues that also have big artists from time to time.
2. Restaurants: There are also some pretty good restaurants at L.A. Live. Last week, my roommate and I saw USC football center Khaled Holmes at the Yard House….we couldn’t resist getting a picture with him! There’s also ESPN Zone, a fun place to go have dinner while watching various sports games being shown.
3. A movie theater! This is the movie theater I always go to with my friends. They have a pretty good movie selection, comfortable seats, etc. Whenever it’s opening weekend for big movies (Harry Potter movies, Hunger Games, Twilight, etc.) we always preorder tickets to see the show at the L.A. Live theater at midnight!
4. Random/Seasonal stuff: They have a lot of interesting stuff at L.A. Live throughout the year too. For example, every December they put up a huge light up Christmas tree that changes colors. They also put an ice skating rink out. It’s definitely a cool place to go feel the holiday spirit! In addition to seasonal activities, they also have random events: concerts put on by radio stations, movie premieres, wrestling matches, etc. It’s really cool to be so close to so much going on!
One of my favorite things about L.A. Live is that it’s always packed with USC students and alums! Especially after home football games! L.A. Live is a great place to go hang out if you want to get off campus. Plus, it never really gets old. There’s always something interesting happening.
