My east coast family had no problem getting up early in the morning. My dad was up, had made up his bed, gotten us breakfast from downstairs (another Residence Inn perk - complimentary continental breakfast buffet), and walked the the Queen Mary and back before I had even gotten out of bed.

On an incredibly warm Friday, I decided it would be a great time for me to explore one of Los Angeles's famous beaches.  After doing a bit of internet searching, I was eager to check out the colorful Venice Beach.

Venice Beach is considered a global tourist destination and has been labeled "a cultural hub known for its eccentricities."  The beach receives millions of visitors a year.

Before going, I tried my best to locate parking.  However, everything I found online was very vague.  The price listed on the Venice Beach website was Winter $4.00 to $9.00; Summer $5.00 to $15.00.  Umm.... that's a huge range!  I found an address for a parking lot, but that turned out to be a garage a ways from the beach, so I kept driving until I found myself on a one-way street.  I was really confused and didn't know how to turn around, so I parked at the first place available, which of course was priced at the highest end of the parking fee spectrum.  $15.00 valet parking in a secure lot for the day.  Sure... why not?

As soon as I left the valet lot, I walked right by a larger public parking area which was listed at $9.00.  Of course, this would happen to me.  Oh, well... at least the valet lot felt really safe.

The beach was a short walk away, but the width of it was huge.  Walking from the boardwalk up to the water was quite a hike.  But it was so large that even though it was well-populated, everyone could really spread out.