If someone went to Hollywood as a tourist or on vacation, what kinds of places might they go to, or what would people suggest to them that they should do? In one of my stories, my MC goes there as a tourist (kind of...) but I've never been there and Google isn't helping me much with this. I know this goes against "write what you know," but I'm intentionally writing about stuff I wouldn't normally to break out of my comfort zone. Most of the story happens at a fictional water park but I want him to do some classic tourist stuff before the rest of the plot kicks in. Anyway...any suggestions for what a person might do in Hollywood as a tourist? I hope this question doesn't make me sound super lame. Thanks!
Hollywood Boulevard, of course. The Walk of Fame. The Chinese theater. There's a shopping area on around Hollywood and Highland that is popular. The Hollywood sign. Maybe catch a show at the Hollywood Bowl. Maybe a studio tour. If you're in to iconic architecture, check out the old Capitol Records building.
Our Regional Office is in Van Nuys. The really awesome thing is that we're located near the major bus line so you can go anywhere. After work I've been to Lake Balboa, Hollywood, Redondo Beach, etc. Lake Balboa has a golf course and there is a really nice park out there. Also that's where the city's water treatment plant is. It may sound weird, but that is actually a tourist destination. Everyone tries to fly in Sunday early enough to go to tea at the water treatment plant! They offer traditional Japanese tea and the ceremony take quite a while. Redondo Beach, great little tourist place--dinner on the pier watching the sun set. All day passes are good for trains, busses, and subway, no transfers to track, just go anywhere all day. Watching the people is more interesting than the tourist attractions anyway. You could literally sit next to Tinkerbelle or a banana on their way home from work. During the day there are always proselytizers at Hollywood station. It's dueling church groups passing out tracks and trying to win souls, but they high-tail it out of there as soon as the sun goes down. (All white folk of course.) After dark the locals come out. Guys hustling cell hone covers, bottles of water, snacks, etc. They're on the corners and openly hustle sales on the busses. I prefer Hollywood after dark, once all the tourist are gone, because it seems more real. Hope this helps.