Secret Walks #1: Downtown L.A. History Walk, 2.75 miles

Our urban hiking adventures continue with the first entry in Charles Fleming's Secret Walks book. Barbara and I decided to do the walks in this book in order, and what a way to begin—we were more tourists than hikers on this trek along some of L.A.'s most iconic landmarks. We went tourist from the start, taking the Metro Red Line to Union Station and strolled out over marble floors under painted ceilings, past brass fittings and leather seats and outside to Olvera Street. Created in 1928, Olvera Street is a tribute to L.A.'s Mexican roots and contains the city's oldest house built in 1818. (for reference, L.A. officially joined the US in 1848.) More history across L.A. Plaza Park to Pico House, a former luxury hotel built in 1869 by Pio Pico, the last Mexican gov of SoCal. From there, it was on to the Civic Center complex of buildings including Police Plaza and our magnificent City Hall built in 1928. That's me standing in the "picture door" framed for the perfect City Hall photo op from the Music Center Arts Plaza. On to the $200 million dollar Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, then back to Olvera Street for a Marachi-serenaded burrito lunch at La Golondrina in the Pelanconi House, L.A.'s first brick edifice, built in 1850. Taco Bell, eat your heart out. This is the Real L.A.