#13: Pink's Famous Chili Dogs

They might call their chili dogs famous, but I'm pretty sure Pink's is most well known for the RIDICULOUSLY long lines that always wrap around the building. I drive past Pink's everyday on my way home from work and have always been curious what all the fuss is about. Plus, the place is an institution, easily the most well-known hot dog stand in the whole city, and has been around since 1939. But I have been putting off going because I really hate waiting in lines, even if it is for potentially the best hot dog experience of my life (and we all know how much I love hot dogs).

It was a lovely warm day in Los Angeles (the 3rd week of January of course) when my boyfriend Ronny and I decided to check out Pink's. We initially went around 2pm on Saturday, and there were at least 100 people in line. Ronny was hungry (and he gets pretty grumpy when he's hungry) and there was no way we were going to wait that long for lunch. It wasn't until the next day, Sunday, that we passed by that part of town again, this time around 9pm. Lo and behold, there were only about 10 people in line!

We hopped in line and had a great time reading all the different "specials"... I seriously considered the "Ozzy Dog" which was a spicy polish dog with nacho cheese, grilled onion, guacamole and tomatoes. Even with the 10 people in line, it still took almost half an hour for us to order... which was a little annoying. But I guess since they custom- make each hot dog to your specifications, it just takes a long time. My arteries protested the Ozzy Dog, so I settled on a plain spicy polish dog with ketchup. And boy, was it SPICY!! I actually had to trade Ronny for his grilled mushrooms and swiss dog (he was just thrilled about that, let me tell ya). He also got a chili dog with kraut, which didn't sound appealing to me at all, but he vouches for its awesomeness.

Overall... Pink's was underwhelming. Good hot dogs for sure, but I feel SO SORRY for those tourists that hear from everywhere that these are the best hot dogs in the world and are worth wasting an afternoon waiting for. Kind of like when I was in Philadelphia and we waited in line for a Philly Cheesesteak, only to leave the line and go to a less well-known place and have a just-as-good cheesesteak for half the cost and no wait!

The most valuable take-away from Pink's is that I can now say I've gone there. That's really it (and I think I got a little heartburn too).

This really only shows about a quarter of the whole line... ridiculous

#24: The San Diego Wild Animal Park

Yeah yeah, I know... San Diego is *not* LA. But it's close enough. As my good friend Nicole says, San Diego is Los Angeles' "younger, hotter sister" and I don't really disagree. I LOVE San Diego and two of my very best friends live there, so luckily I get to visit often.

Every year, two of my best friends Carolyn and Betsy and I plan a "girls weekend." Carolyn lives in the Bay Area, and Betsy lives in San Diego, and this year it was Betsy's turn to host us over MLK weekend. When Bets asked us if we had any requests for our fun-filled weekend, I immediately requested to go to the San Diego Wild Animal Park. I went there once when I was a kid, but all I remember was learning the word "wildebeast" that day, and that I was wearing an awesome safari hat... a picture of which my dad still has on his desk to this day.

The night before our Safari adventure (as the park is now technically called "The San Diego Safari Park") the girls and I went out drinking and rode a mechanical bull... so it goes without saying that we didn't even wake up till 11, and didn't make it to the park till almost 1:00pm. But no matter... we still got to see the lions (lazing on top of an abandoned jeep), a cheetah up close and personal, lots of monkeys and gorillas, rhinos, giraffes, and elephants! The elephants were especially awesome because there was a little tiny baby 3-week old elephant, that was pretty much the most adorable thing ever... second only to the cuteness of a baby panda.

We had also made an appointment to try out the "Flightline"... which is a 3,000 foot-long zip line that starts high up on a ridge above the park and sails over the animal habitats. It was installed to educate people about the California Condor conservation efforts (which the SD Zoo is a huge part of), and gives adventurous souls the chance to "fly like a condor".... yeah right, it was downright terrifying!! Carolyn, the classic wuss if we've ever known one, was totally fine, where I was shaking in my boots. I stand by my story that Carolyn's crush on our adorable college student "flight instructor" masked her instinctual reaction to realize the zip line could end in certain death... followed by getting eaten by a lion.

I was really, really nervous as we were on the ledge about the push off for the zip line, but as soon as they pushed us off... it was beyond exhilarating!! It was towards the end of the day, which is feeding time, so we sailed over the giraffes as they were eating their tall trees, and saw some more elephants. It was awesome and I HIGHLY recommend it!!

Overall the San Diego Wild Animal Park was just as awesome as I remembered it. Lots of walking and exercise, great weather (which almost goes without saying in San Diego) awesome animals, and a new life-long experience in the Flightline! And of course, our day was topped of by THE most beautiful sunset!

Giraffes at feeding time

The ADORABLE baby elephant

About to go down the 3,000-foot Flightline!

The LA List

Here is the list in its entirety. As I complete tasks I will link to their pages. Here goes!

1. See a Dodgers game from behind home plate
2. Visit the LA Zoo
3. Hike to the Hollywood sign
4. Go to the Queen Mary in Long Beach
5. See a UCLA vs USC football game
6. Go to a Lakers game
7. Order a cupcake from the Sprinkles Cupcakes ATM
8. Visit the Getty Villa in Malibu
9. Do the Art Walk in Downtown
10. Go to the LA Flower Mart
11. Go to the Playboy Mansion
12. Visit the Watts Towers
13. Eat at Pink's Famous Chili Dogs
14. Explore the Griffith Observatory
15. Drink at the Standard Hotel Pool Bar
16. Santa Anita Park horse races
17. See a movie at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery
18. Go to the New Years Day Rose Float Parade in Pasadena
19. Go to a Price is Right taping
20. Go to Chinatown
21. Drag Queen Bingo at Hamburger Mary's
22. Horseback riding on the Hollywood Ridge
23. Eat at Philippe's French Dip in Downtown
24. Visit the San Diego Wild Animal Park
25. Eat at every restaurant on Restaurant Row (from Wilshire to San Vicente)
26. Drive all of Mulholland Drive
27. Visit the Huntington Gardens
28. See a burlesque show on the Sunset Strip
29. Go to Catalina Island
30. Eat in Thai Town
31. See a movie at the El Capitan Theatre
32. See the LA Philharmonic play at the Disney Concert Hall
33. Go to the LA Natural History Museum
34. See a show at the Upright Citizens Brigade and Groundlings
35. See a show at the Magic Castle
36. Hike in Runyon Canyon
37. Eat at the Grilled Cheese Truck
38. Visit the Hollywood Museum at the Max Factor Building
39. Take an aerobics class from Richard Simmons at Slimmons
40. Go to an LA Kings Hockey Game
41. Bike ride along the South Bay Bike Trail 
42. Visit the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve / The Flower Fields
43. The Grammy Museum
44. Visit Joshua Tree National Park
45. The Rose Bowl Flea Market
Bonus: The Elizabeth Taylor Jewelry Collection

New Years Resolution

Yes, I know it's a bit past New Year's now, but I only just came up with the bright idea to blog about my 2011 New Years Resolution. So bear with me.

When I was younger I loved making New Years Resolutions. But they would always be something lofty and abstract, like "strive to be the best person possible" or "be kind every day." Um, shouldn't those be daily goals anyway, not just something for the sake of the New Year? So last year I decided that from now on, my resolutions are going to be actionable goals, something that I couldn't do/ wasn't doing in January, and something I could do/ was doing by December.

Just in case you're curious, 2010's goal was to learn every country in the world. I literally tested myself every week on the countries of different continents. I'm sure it set off many NERD ALERTS amongst my friends, but I am very proud of myself that I can now point out even the most obscure countries on the map.

In December, I had been thinking frequently about certain things I had wanted to do around Los Angeles but just had never gotten around to doing. And I asked myself, I drive by Pink's Famous Chili Dogs every day... I've always wanted to try one, why haven't I? Over and over again... different restaurants I'd always wanted to try, shows I'd wanted to see, touristy sight-seeing things I had yet to take advantage of... and it hit me. WHAT AM I WAITING FOR?! I have already been very vocal about the fact that I don't plan on spending the rest of my life in Los Angeles, and the last thing I want to do is move away and regret not doing any of the amazing LA-specific things that were on my mental list.

So I sat down and wrote out all the things I could think of. I asked my friends for more suggestions, checked out a few of those "100 Things to do in LA" blogs, and my final list came to 40. I figured that was ambitious enough.

It totals to about 3- 4 different activities a month. I know it will be a challenge, but my excitement to experience everything on my list makes it all worth it. I can't wait to share each of these experiences with you!

XOXO,
Susan