Well, if you want to eat at the library's cafe or buy something from their bookstore, then yes, it costs money. But everything else is free! Oh, the ride there isn't necessarily free either. If you are driving your car you'll spend money in gas and parking. And if you take the Metro it'll cost you $1.50 every time you get on.
Brian and I decided it would be fun to take the Metro. We hadn't ridden it yet since we've been in Los Angeles, but we figured it was high time to experience it. Once school starts I'll be riding on it pretty often, so I figured I better get used to it. I had never been on a subway train before, so it was a lot of fun for me. Luckily I had Brian with me to help navigate the routes. He was in New York City for a bit and rode the subway all the time, so he was much savvier than I.
The Soto Station is just two blocks down the street from the Antonio Hotel where we are living which is very convenient. We took the Gold Line from there to Union Station, and then hopped onto the Red Line to Pershing Square. When it comes time for me to go to school, I'll just have to stay on the Red Line until the North Hollywood stop. Not too difficult. But this time we got off at Pershing Square and walked a couple of blocks to the Los Angeles Public Library.
The library is a really beautiful old building, built back in the 1920s. The architecture has a lot of Egyptian influence which was popular at the time. For example the steps leading up to the library are inscribed with hieroglyphs and there's a pyramid at the very top of the roof. So just walking around outside the library is fun enough, simply admiring the architecture. We walked along the path around the grounds alongside park benches and trees, soaking in the sun before we ventured inside.
Once inside we browsed the store, explored the many floors of books, and even checked some out. Well, not without encountering a few obstacles. We were confused with the shelving system at first and then I almost didn't get a library card because the guy who helped me was a bit crazy.
"You want to check this out?" he asked.
"Yes," I repeated. "I want to check this out but I don't have a library card yet so I'll need to get one."
"And you've been waiting in that long line? I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but you have to fill out a form first and..."
"Are you sure?" I interrupted, "because he looks like he's getting one just down there." I indicated Brian who was being helped by another worker further down the counter.
"Who's getting one?"
"Brian. My partner. He doesn't have a card either but it looks like he's getting one. If you can't do it I guess I can go to another guy..."
"Wait! I can do it for you here. You're just supposed to fill out a form first... I don't even know how he's doing it over there. Should I even believe you?" he asked incredulously.
"I'm not lying! It looks like he's just typing stuff into the computer..."
"What's he typing?"
"I don't know! I don't work here. His address and stuff probably."
Luckily Brian was finished so he came over to my line and soon we got it all straightened out. I am now a proud owner of a library card! Oh, and a metro card! Saturday was quite a monumental day, wasn't it?
1 comment:
i didn't even know la had a subway system? is it underground?
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