United States

Los Angeles 

Wetlands

Bianca Oblivion

Growing up Mexican in LA, musician and DJ, Bianca Oblivion, was exposed to all types of cultures across the sprawling city. LA can be a trick city to navigate with its sheer size and the amount to do. Bianca shares with us a few of the places that she grew up with in her little corner of LA.

This is a family-owned business that has been around since the 70s, one of the first (if not the first?) Indian grocery stores in Los Angeles. It began as a small storefront between a casket and hardware store, and eventually took over both to become a full restaurant and grocery. When I was in high school, one of the aunties would sell samosas at the register and I’d always buy one while I waited for the bus. Aside from having delicious vegetarian Indian food, they have every Indian spice you could think of and all kinds of imported items.

This market has gone by many names, and through many renovations. It’s our neighborhood market, just a few blocks from my house. It’s got all your Mexican/Latin groceries & meats plus some middle eastern specialty goods. It once had a joyeria where you could buy customized gold chains and rings, but that was replaced by a bakery and tortilleria. While I’m sad to see the gold go, their pan dulce and tortillas are pretty bomb.

Tucked away in a strip mall next to a laundromat is the most colorful ice cream shop you’ve seen thus far. They have a huge selection of tropical flavored sorbets, ice creams, and paletas (Mexican popsicles), as well as juices and smoothies. They even have a tamarind and “smoked milk” flavor.

Before Google, Belkin, and all the other “Silicon Beach” companies landed, along with luxury condos, there was a wide expanse of wetlands in West LA, just a few miles from LAX and Playa Del Rey beaches. While much of it has been paved with condos, there are still a few small trails alongside shallow ponds with cranes, ducks, and frogs. You can take a walk through and feel like you’ve escaped the sprawling metropolis and returned to an era of pre-developed LA.

This is a huge park that straddles Culver City and Baldwin Hills that has peaceful trails, ponds, and playground/grass areas for family gatherings. There is a Japanese Garden hidden away there and scenic overlook with a perfect view of the city. I’ve gone on many hikes and attended kid birthdays with my family here.

This is a Persian/Danish pizza and gyro spot offering a “pizza sandwich” that combines two...and it’s delicious. With its original location in Copenhagen, they somehow found their way to a small corner in Culver City to open up their second location. It also happens to be down the block from the palatial King Fahad Mosque, and you’ll often see crowds of people come in after prayer.

The swap meet of all swap meets with the iconic green paint and orange/red lettering (not West LA but not that far off). All the gold, kicks, knock offs, and airbrushed shirts you could ask for. One jewelry stand in particular sells gold nameplate rings--I’ve gotten “Bianca” and “Oblivion,” one for each hand.

Black-owned and operated health food store and Caribbean/soul restaurant in the View Park-Windsor Hills area (this neighborhood also has some of the most beautiful classic LA Spanish/Mediterranean style homes). They have delicious Jamaican patties, smoothies, fried chicken and cornbread, and on Sundays they have a live jazz band play on the patio for weekend brunch.

One of my favorite breakfast spots with the tastiest honey-infused pancakes, as its name would suggest. Alongside your standard egg, potato, and meat selections, they have a full selection of Salvadoran dishes, including pupusas, pastelitos, sopas, chorizo and more. It’s another family owned business, and I once got into a conversation about music with one of the brothers, who played us some reggaeton tracks he had rapped on.

Ballona Wetlands

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