Transit Oriented Weekend: What’s Hot and How to Get There

Image courtesy of The Watson Twins.

Welcome to a new month folks. April is here which means spring is in the air which means the animal kingdom is all about gettin’ some. What that has to do with Transit Oriented Weekends, I dunno, but The Watson Twins (pictured above), who will be performing at First Fridays this weekend, are looking awfully cute if you ask me.

If you have an event that you think should be included in next week’s T.O.W., email us at metrorider@elhay.net.

Tonight

• WHAT’S HOT: First Fridays
  WHERE: Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, West Adams District
  WHEN: 5:30pm - 10:00pm
  WHY: How apropos for spring time, this month’s topic is “Love and Feeling in the Age of Mammals”. One hallmark of mammals is the evolution of a highly developed brain capable of orchestrating amazingly complex behaviors. What our minds do so effortlessly - the ability to nurture and love, the ability to learn, to make decisions and to solve problems, the ability to communicate through verbal and non-verbal languages, the ability to form deep social networks, the ability to be consciously aware of the world - arises from our highly developed brains. This theme will be explored in depth with six of the most eminent scholars, writers, and speakers on the brains and minds of mammals, including humans. Discussion followed by performances by The Watson Twins and Castledoor with DJ set by Small Town Talk.
  HOW MUCH: Adults $9, Students (w/ ID) $6.50, Members FREE
  HOW TO GET THERE: Transit Map of 900 Exposition Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90007. You can also check the Metro Trip Planner for the best route from your location.
• WHAT’S HOT: Autechre at the Echoplex
  WHERE: The Echoplex, Echo Park
  WHEN: 9:00pm
  WHY: According to The Village Voice: “It would be deathlessly simplistic to say that Autechre make dance music, like saying that Vivendi sells compact discs. While it’s true that the English duo’s sound is coincidentally rhythmic, it’d be more appropriate to hail them as the true Sound of the City. Just as 1995’s Tri Repetae perfectly and pristinely captured the paranoid spirit of rapidly gentrifying urban areas—the soundtrack of homeless people pushed east, sodium streetlights casting an aura over rain-slick streets, and a deserted series of districts devoted part-time to factory-made toys, candy, and machine parts—their ninth and latest album, Quaristice, finely etches a glass metropolis with acid both nitric and hallucinogenic.”
  HOW MUCH: $22/ 18+
  HOW TO GET THERE: Transit Map of 1154 Glendale Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026. You can also check the Metro Trip Planner for the best route from your location.

Saturday

• WHAT’S HOT: 7th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival
  WHERE: Little Tokyo, Downtown
  WHEN: 10:30am - 6:30pm (also on Sunday until 5:00pm)
  WHY: MAIN STAGE – Japanese Dancing, Taiko, Kimono Fashion Show (Sat), Runway Fashion Show {Sun), Teacher’s Making a Difference Awards; Senator Daniel Inouye Cherry Blossom Leadership Awards; George Kiriyama Educational Excellence Awards and live stage performances. KIDS ACTIVITY AREA - cultural crafts, storytelling and games; MARTIAL ARTS ARENA - non-stop martial arts performances and demonstrations; HAWAIIAN VILLAGE - Hula and variety of live Hawaiian stage entertainment, crafters and vendors; CULTURAL
  PAVILION - photo exhibit of WWII Internment Camps, Kimekomi Dolls, Japanese American National Museum, Nisei Stamp Campaign, Sashiko and Shibori Exhibits to name a few; ONDO DANCING IN THE STREETS; CRAFTS, CORPORATE & COMMERCIAL VENDORS and the Cherry Blossom FOOD COURT and the PLAZA STAGE in the Japanese Village Plaza with more performances and featuring Art Nakane, the One-Man-Band.
  HOW MUCH: FREE
  HOW TO GET THERE: Mega props to the Cherry Blossom Festival for supporting Metro. They’ve provided some Metro directions on their website, and as incentive, if you bring your Metro ticket to the information booth you will receive a free poster of your choice. Here’s a Transit Map of the Little Tokyo District. You can also check the Metro Trip Planner for the best route from your location.
• WHAT’S HOT: Groove Armada at City Hall
  WHERE: City Hall, Downtown
  WHEN: 6:00pm - 11:00pm
  WHY: Groove Armanda are back from the late 90’s and holding a DJ set in front of Downtown LA’s iconic City Hall.
  HOW MUCH: $36.50 from Ticketmaster
  HOW TO GET THERE: Transit Map of 200 N Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90012. You can also check the Metro Trip Planner for the best route from your location.

Sunday

• WHAT’S HOT: Brewery Art Walk
  WHERE: The Brewery Art Colony, Lincoln Heights
  WHEN: 11:00am - 6:00pm (also on Saturday)
  WHY: The Brewery Art Walk is a twice annual open studio weekend at the worlds largest art colony. Each artwalk, over 100 resident artists participate. During this event, you will have the opportunity to see new works, discover new favorites, speak with the artists and purchase artworks directly from the artists at studio prices.
  HOW MUCH: FREE
  HOW TO GET THERE: Transit Map of 2100 N Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90031. You can also check the Metro Trip Planner for the best route from your location.