Los Angeles is chock full o’ goodness. I had been previously exposed to bits and pieces of positive LA character and experiences, however, on this trip, the city has offered up to us all neat and pretty and on a silver platter, a couple of the best days ever. Most of the credit and thanks for this go to a certain Mister Mikey Walley who did a fantastic job of showing us around his adopted home town.

Wednesday morning. We had arrived the previous evening. We’re at the City College Cafe in the Bicycle District weazing the wi-fi and computing on the interwebs when lo and behold, in walks Mikey Wally. The man. The myth. The legend. Jo and I had met Mikey on the 42ride which, crazy as it seems, ended a month ago. It was great to see the trademark grin on this impossibly pumped person. He just happened to be at Orange 20 bikes across the street from the cafe and noticed two identical Soma Sagas parked next to each other (they are quite eye catching). It had to be us.

“What are you up to today?” We asked. “Nothin’” He responded. I knew at this moment it was going to be a good day. It was. The following events proceeded like dominoes, set up by the hands of unseen beings at just the right places, falling at just the right times.

Here’s the rundown: ice cream at Scoops; back to the Aglago house (where we’re staying) to hang with Ashira for a bit; try to find an open bike shop; fail (every bike shop in the world seems to be closed right now for the Interbike convention in Las Vegas; in Echo Park we purchase and consume a four dollar bag of spiced fruit-cart deliciousness (except the mystery fruit that tasted rather poo like); downtown to check out Mikey’s sweet new pad in the Million Dollar Hotel; sneak attack swim at the Standard Hotel (it is friggin’ hot in LA right now); cup cake perfection and free coffee at The Lark where we ran into Kyle from Orange 20 bikes who seemed to be in town just long enough to walk his dog between his getting back from the Cycle Messenger World Championships in Japan and leaving for Interbike in Las Vegas. Kyle tells us about free pizza with beer purchase over in Los Feliz; we go to Los Feliz for beer and pizza; ride up to the Griffith Park Observatory as the sun is going down; look at all the greater LA area twinkling lights below; think about the vastness of humanity and the world; think about wasted resources and pollution; think about fish tacos; awesome descent in the dark back down from the observatory to eat fish tacos; take part in the philanthropic burrito by bike distribution that is the Burrito Project (every week for the past four years these guys have made and distributed burritos by bicycle to LA’s hungry); after-burrito beer at Club 170 downtown; and finally, Dada (Mikey’s feminine side and all around awesome person) drove us out to a wicked dubstep concert which firmly placed the icing on the cake that was a perfect LA day.

Thanks LA, and thanks Mikey Wally! Especially thanks to Mikey for the much needed water filter and stove!

We’ll miss you both.

Bryan and Jo

P.S. – Daggering!

P.P.S. – This is the third time I’m writing this. Damn you Wordpress for iPhone! (right arm extended up with fist clenched).