I would wait until April, as the second floor remodel will be completed and one can visit much more…read moreHistory of the Port of LA, San Pedro etc. Had a great time seeing the exhibit s available but, also planning on revisiting after the big reopening in April.

Very nice little maritime museum in what was once the ferry terminal. Terrific models, flags,…read moreposters, and a recreation of the flying bridge of the USS Los Angeles. Well, worth taking the time to visit..

I live in Long Beach California. World War 2 battle ship in my backyard…read more I highly recommend this Naval Battle ship tour. You can spend literally hours on the ship. Plenty of knowledgeable to soak up. God Bless the US Navy!! I recommend.

Went on a Saturday with a friend whose father was a mariner. The ship has a colorful and diverse…read morehistory. Hosting Presidents, involved in conflicts spanning decades, numerous upgrades and refits. For a military history nerd like myself the experience was unforgettable. We did the self guided tour and spent time absorbing the videos and explanations posted throughout. The volunteers were more than happy to answer questions and provide additional information. Seeing how the 16 inch guns operated especially sustaining the rate of fire they did was unbelievable. I came away with a new level of respect for those sailors. There is a lot of history here and is worth taking the time to learn and share it.

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium…read more This is a review for my experience at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. PARKING $9 for the whole day I enjoyed going to the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. Words to describe the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium: Family friendly, Interactive, Educational, Fun, Immersive, Calming, Peaceful, Mesmerizing, Budget friendly=FREE, It has several exhibits to explore, focusing on the ocean and sea life. Some of my favorite exhibits were: TOUCH POOL: The pool is home to sea stars, sea urchins, and sea slugs. It is spacious for exploring. It was neat feeling the different textures of the animals. Some were slimy, prickly, squishy, and smooth. MARINE MAMMALS: I enjoyed learning about the whales. There are life size structures and displays of interesting facts that you can read. A cool fact I learned: Did you know whale milk is 53% fat?!!! Human and cow milk is only 4%! Wow! PUPPET SHOW/FILMS AUDITORIUM: The puppet show was so cute! They were singing about different marine animals with tunes from pop hits! It was very entertaining! SPOT SPOTTY THE OCTOPUS: If you find Spotty, the plush octopus, in the aquarium, snap a photo of him, and show it to the front desk. You'll be awarded with a prize! :) *After the aquarium, you can detour to the beach/playground which are across the way! I recommended bringing a picnic basket and blanket, so you can enjoy the sun, water, and sand. I highly recommend visiting the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium. It is a great trip for everyone in the family! I learned so many unique facts! The staff were so friendly and helpful as well. If you want to SHELLebrate how MERmazing ocean life is, I suggest you SEAS the day at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium.

Revisit? Yes, such a great experience with a toddler…read more We had a fun visit at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium this weekend. We'd never been, and it is definitely a gem that we'll return to. There are lots of tanks with interesting local sea life: eels, abalone, anemones, sharks, jellyfish, sea horses, an octopus, and much more. There is a lab set up with little kids in mind. My kid loved standing on a step stool and looking at all the specimens under a magnifying glass. There's a reading corner with picture books and a felt animal wall and puzzles. There are exhibits that teach interesting facts about sea birds, whales, etc. And of course, probably the best part, a large touch tank with lots of opportunity for everyone to have a turn even on a busy Saturday. We also thought the puppet show was cute (Cake By The Ocean parody lol). It's wonderful to have an affordable educational experience available like this. No entrance fee, just a suggested donation. You have to pay for parking, but it's not too pricey. It's easy to find a spot. I liked the selection at the gift shop. We brought home a cute fridge magnet and a squishy octopus toy. Less crowded than Long Beach Aquarium and a better size to navigate with a toddler. Even if you don't have kids, this would be a fun place to spend an afternoon!

Rich history, here, walk around a beautiful ocean view all kinds of cool old military equipment…read more There's even a military dog cemetery vibrationally there is a spiritual vibe here when it's quiet, you could almost hear the sounds. Of the troops sometimes you hear things here great birdwatching and please be mindful don't play music or speakerphone. You can hear everything from far away here that's why there's the Korean Bell nearby enjoy a beautiful quiet walk in a serene surrounding dog friendly.

I often hike at Joan Flores Park it is such a privilege to see the exterior of Fort MacArthur…read moreMuseum. I have been hiking here since the late 90's from time to time. You just may get lucky and find someone working on the property. On my last visit to Joan Flores Park, I tried finding out information on when the museum would reopen and ran into a sign. Durning the pandemic, I was lucky to have run into an employee who gave us tons of interesting information.

Closed! The Hollywood museum is open. This location is…read moreclosed because the city will not pay for security guard. Call or email your council member to complain. So many wonderful treasures of LA history and it's closed to the public.

This museum is a little hidden gem in the heart of San Pedro Little Italy…read more It is located on a corner of the City Hall Building for Council District # 15 and it is only open on Fridays and Saturdays, but well worth a visit, especially if you have children. I truly enjoyed the tour with the very knowledgeable Chief Gordon (Gordie): he explained in detail the story of the most particular artifacts and you can detect from his words how passionate he is about his job. One of the pieces I loved the most was a poignant painting in which all the faces of the firefighters who lost their lives on 9/11 were depicted. It was such a touching tribute! The Museum also has some historic engines and uniforms, as well as some firetrucks. If you are in the area, please stop for a visit and leave a small donation. It is a small thank you for the volunteers who work hard to preserve the local history.

There's all these cute little things hidden throughout the city. Well not quite hidden but a nice…read moresurprise to see. It's located inside the park right in the middle. Just along the pathway and right across from the playground. It's open to the public during certain hours. From the look of it first hand you wouldn't think that it's a lighthouse. Just a nice Victorian style home with the cute wooden picket fence around. There's a parking lot to the side of the property which leads you to the gift shop and restrooms. One end has a cute little garden area where it's a butterfly sanctuary. I didn't go inside the gift shop which I did notices that they offer tours of the property. I can't review the tour as I didn't experience it but the property from the outside was beautiful. You could walk along and check out the front and back of the property and garden. It's a cute place which I think they also host different events throughout the year. I could be wrong but it looked like they were having something for Easter later. It's a beautiful landmark with its nice architecture but to think that it was a lighthouse, I would have never guessed. If you get a chance to stop by the park, it's worth checking out even a wander around if you didn't do the tour.

The lighthouse is open Tues-Sunday and gives free tours on the hour at 1,2,3 pm which are about 45…read moreminutes. The tour is the only way to see the house and go up to the light. There are a couple of windy staircases which I thought was fun but spooked some people on my tour. It was so interesting to see the inside the house and learn about the lightkeepers' family history. It's an old Victorian house/lighthouse. If you don't go on the tour you can still tour the grounds. Parking is difficult on the weekends because it's next to a park but there was some spots in the neighborhood. The Korean Friendship bell is close by.

My family had an amazing time with the model trains. All of the club members were kind and eager to…read moreshow my family all about the trains and scenes within the train landscapes they have created. The alien abduction railroad scene was the best! We will be back!

We visited this model train club and found the experience to be excellent. The train track set up…read morewith the model town scenes were so creative and well done. The members were friendly and welcoming. They answered our many questions and treated our grand kids nicely. It was interesting to hear about how they created the many buildings and we enjoyed so many of the humorous touches. Well worth a visit for sure. No charge to visit but of course donations are accepted.

An awesome and huge antique store down in San Pedro. It is a giant warehouse filled with many…read moredifferent vendors all specializing in an oddities and retro themed items. There is also another side of the building that is more mainstream, but this area is definitely the most eclectic and interesting. Parking is extremely easy and plentiful right out front and it's free to enter. All the vendors we encountered were very polite and there are all different sorts of items for all different sorts of prices. It's a really fun place to spend some time and would especially be a great place to go if you're looking for a unique and interesting item.

If you're hunting for a funky, artsy vibe where you can lose track of time wandering around, hit up…read morethis hidden gem. Tucked inside a couple of old shipping warehouses is a killer collection of eclectic shops that feels like stepping into a creative time capsule. Vintage VHS tapes? Classic movie posters? They've got you. Throw in art dealers, mineral shops, local jams and honey, and you've got a perfect mix of weird, wonderful, and wonderfully local. You'll drift from one quirky little shop to the next, completely entertained--and yeah, your wallet might end up a little lighter by the time you leave. Totally worth it. Go explore.

On Juneteenth I attended a celebration at the Korean Bell of Friendship to celebrate freedom by…read morehelping ring the bell. It was a wonderful day, and one I recommend for others to attend, not only to feel the vibrations of the bell when it is hit with a large hanging tree trunk, but also to celebrate the liberation that was given to a criminally oppressed people. And to also understand that liberation, although won at battles, still has not full embraced and enveloped all. So that bell has not fully been rung, and thus we must continue, until we hear the greatest knell in history the one that indicates that all humans have an unfettered chance to reach their best future with confidence. The celebration was sponsored by local political players. Suitably, there were a lot of speeches. But I never hate a speech just because its long. I genuinely hear speeches because they might contain words that move me into action or new perspective, and thus I always try to hear them to understand their value. One of the most memorable speeches of the day, was a person who explained that freedom and liberty has not reached all modern day people (duh!) because freedom, true freedom, means that all have a fair and equitable chance to attain economic prosperity. And from my limited perspective, what she said made sense, a whole lot of it. A person might have the freedom to wear what they chose, to eat what they crave, to dance in their style and funk, to offer their devotion to their deity. However, if all these freedoms do not include a chance to build wealth, without external interruption that is driven by who a person is, then freedom is superficial. Yes, money is the root of all evil, but money is also the foundation for legacy, protection and choice, and, well, freedom. And thus, she reminded all present that we must continue to fight against injustice and thus the bell rang and made each of us an instrument of peace. Beyond speeches from political leaders there was also songs performed by vocalists- a mother and daughter. A lot was happening fast, and sometimes the sound system gave up, so I am afraid I did not get their names. But I do remember them singing a song, right before the bell rung that had the following lyrics: "What would you do, if you had nothing to fight for and nothing to die for?" What would a person do in a world marked by substantial peace? Would we be happy or would we miss the fight? Meaning is the gift of the battle the persistence needed to continue even when all seems at rest? Injustice has created warriors that understand that a white flag will never be planted. The day was meant to celebrate freedom and deliver of message of positive togetherness as the moment celebrated Juneteenth using Korean spirt. But the speeches brought the seemingly opposing concepts together using the thread of a universal recognition that freedom is a wonderful thing. This link was greatly conveyed but fell short in the Mexican sweetbreads that had small Juneteeth flags planted on them. I know I am being petty because Mexican bread can be used to celebrate Juneteenth, for sure I get that. But I would have rather had celebratory bites from the Black/African American community. I know I am being petty, but, hey, that is my freedom. That choice seemed more convenient rather than being connected to the greater purpose of freedom. The last activity of the celebration was ringing the actual bell. Like 7 people, grabbed the wooden log. And we gently slammed it into the bell. The bell rung with vibrations that my skin could feel. We could slightly hug the bell to have ur bodies feel the vibrations. And the experience was memorable. I do not know how many people have the opportunity to hug a bell as it sends off vibration after being hit. But if you have the opportunity seize it, I think you will be a better person for it, or at least, know what ringing feels like on the skin not just the ear drums. As I walked back to the car, I enjoyed the blue views and ocean breeze. I also saw a kite flying high. Yes, it had a string to it, but it was flying free.

Why does it take years and moving away to actual experience places that's been there for a while. A…read morenice sunny afternoon driving around and seeing what's there to offer. Plus it's been decades since I was last around this area. There's so many stops along the way during our drive which this was the first along the path. It's a nice decent size park that it part of. A good amount of parking in the lot next to the basketball courts. Right along the bell is a massive grassy knoll where people were enjoying picnics and laying out. Of course today was beautiful but it was quite windy. Didn't help that the park was little higher than the rest so it made the wind a bit more aggressive. The focal point, the massive bell. With a walkway that leads you to the prize possession. Right in the middle looking out to the Pacific Ocean, she sits there on full display. The bright beautiful color of the details painted was a sight to see. Stairs leading up to the bell where you could walk around. It is roped off. Regardless whatever side you're looking at, it's was quite amazing. Something like this on a hill that's part of the city. If you walk down the grassy knoll, the view of the pacific ocean and cliffs were spectacular. Having a seat and just taking it all in was nice. It was windy so it did get cold but on a nice sunny and clear day, you could see miles and miles of the coastline and tide pools. These little hidden spots in the city are cute when you find them. There's also a little playground around the corner from the bell by the exit and entrance.

I didn't know the history involved in this memorial, so it was nice to show my kids. It's very…read moresmall, but I'm glad it's there. I kept driving and ended up in the parking lot of a federal prison. Did a u-turn.

The Japanese Fishermans Memorial,located on Terminal Island,Los Angeles,California,is a scenic…read moreportside memorial dedicated to The Japanese fishing village and the community that lived and worked there and made it their "furasato"-or "Home Sweet Home".These were the first Japanese families forcibly relocated after the bombing of Pearl Harbor,Hawaii.A few years later these same Japanese individuals and families were given $25.00 and a bus ticket back to furasato only to find their village had been bulldozed and leveled to nothing. . . . . #japanesefishermansmemorial #japan #fishing #losangeleshistory #ilovefishing #japanesefisherman #ilovelosangeles #californiadreaming #californiadreamin #sculptures #hawaii #issei #nisei #sansei #pearlharbor #terminalislandersclub #issei #nisei #sensai #furasato #internment #terminalislandtreasures #terminalisland #southseasideavenue