LA Day

With just two days left in Southern California, Joe and I decided to go into LA on Friday and check out some sights.

The Bat Cave - Griffith Park

The first stop was Griffith Park, where we tried to find the cave that was used as the 'Bat Cave' in the classic Batman TV series. According to the directions we found online, it was supposed to be an easy 1/4 mile hike. We must have gone the wrong way, because it was nowhere near easy, and we gave up after about a mile and a half.

I definitely wore the wrong shoes for a 1.5 mile hike uphill (especially the day after Disneyland) and had sweat dripping down my body. I wasn't a very happy camper. Joe enjoyed the hike much more than I did. He had better shoes. And is in better shape. And is less of a complainer ;)

The Museum of Death 

For those of you who know me, you probably know that I have a bit of a morbid side. I LOVE horror movies, and even wrote my college thesis on slasher films. So when I found a museum called The Museum of Death on Yelp, I knew we'd make time to check it out.

I was very impressed by this museum, it's entirely dedicated to death with different themed rooms throughout. NOT for the faint of heart, those who can stomach it will see exhibits on things like serial killer letters and artwork, crime scene photos, famous Hollywood deaths, notorious California murders (Black Dahlia, Manson family, etc.), funerals, executions, mortuary services (there's even a video on how to embalm a body), etc. According to the owners, they have had people pass out from some of the images.

While such a museum could easily be exploitative and vulgar, the owners have reverence for the subject. They use the museum as a way to teach the public about something that will happen to all of us, but is taboo to talk about. When we were leaving, one of the owners told us she was glad we enjoyed the museum and to, "go out there and do a lot of living!"

That struck me as such a beautiful thing to say.

Though death is a certainty, it shouldn't keep us from living. Instead, we should live as much as possible (by enjoying life, by doing good works, etc.) to show appreciation for such a wonderful gift.

**LONG Side Note** 

That wasn't my only "a-ha" moment.

Joe had to take anatomy as a pre-req for dental school, and in the class they had to dissect a human cadaver. I was really upset by this - I kept thinking about the person he was dissecting. Wondering whether it was a male or female, young or old, what the cause of death was, if he/she suffered before death, how the family feels about the body being used for an anatomy class, etc. I actually had a hard time looking at Joe after he came back from lab, feeling that he was fundamentally changed for having come so close to death. I made him shower as soon as he got home, and at the end of the semester made him get rid of the clothes and shoes he wore in lab.

I'm a very emotional person, so Joe wasn't surprised by this extreme emotional response. Unfortunately, it ended up impacting Joe. He started to struggle with those same questions when he was in lab, my little voice in his head distracting him from the educational and scientific task at hand.

He found a quote that really helped him get through it: "You don't have a soul. You are a Soul. You have a body." I never fully got this until the museum yesterday. When I forced myself to confront death so closely with this museum, those words finally made sense.

**End of LONG Side Note**

Unfortunately, photos aren't allowed inside the museum, but I got some a few outside: 

La Brea Tar Pits

Ever since I saw them featured in My Girl 2, I have wanted to visit the La Brea Tar Pits.

And I finally got to :)

First, we checked out the museum where there were several skeletons of animals that got caught in the tar pits. Interesting fact: none of these are articulated skeletons. So while all the bones used are from the same kind of animal, the bones that make up the skeletons are not necessarily from the same individual.

Now, let's get up close and personal with a mammoth:

The pictures above are from a Columbian Mammoth - the most common mammoth in North America during the Ice Age. This mammoth was about 12 feet tall and weighed 15,000 pounds!

The above picture is of American Mastodons - a mamma and her 6-year-old. Mastodons are distinguished from mammoths because they are smaller and they have different teeth.

The two photos above are from the Dire Wolf exhibit. Dire Wolves are the most common animal found in the pits. The museum had a display of 404 Dire Wolf skulls - which is just a fraction of the 1600 wolves found in the pits. It's thought that when another animal was caught in the tar, the wolves would come to feed and would get caught as well.

Joe wants me to remind everyone that toothbrushes are a handy tool ;)

After we explored the museum, we went on a tour of the grounds and got to see the actual pits. Below is one of the excavation sites:

We both learned a ton of cool information on the tour. Here are some fun facts:

1.) There are no dinosaur bones in the La Brea Tar Pits because the area was under water during the time of the dinosaurs. For this reason, all of the fossils found are from Ice Age animals.

2.) Contrary to popular belief, the Tar Pits didn't entrap every animal that came across them. In fact, based on the number of fossils found, scientists believe there was only an average of one "entrapment event" every TEN YEARS. Unless an animal was injured or old, it had a pretty good shot of getting itself out of the tar.

3.) When it is cold, the tar is hard enough to walk across without sinking. Scientists think that's the reason why scientists they haven't found many nocturnal animal bones (aside from Dire Wolves).

4.) Only one human body has ever been found in the Tar Pits. It's from a 11,000-year-old woman. However, they are almost certain that the woman died elsewhere and was buried in the tar because domesticated dog bones and ceremonial beads were found next to her body.

Pink's Hotdogs

At this point, we were starving. So we wrapped up our day with a visit to the famous Pink's Hotdogs. Joe and I both got a nacho cheese chili dog. SO DELICIOUS :) The dogs were super juicy and flavorful. We hear they have a Pink's in Vegas too. We'll probably visit that location as well ;)

Although the day started out disappointing (no Bat Cave), it definitely turned around. We wish we had more time down here to visit more famous spots, but tomorrow morning we leave for Vegas!

Speaking of, time to pack :)

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