This place is just ...

Dear fellow Steemians!

This place is just ... unreal.

Venice Beach, Muscle Beach, palm trees, shirtless, promandade, movies, pier, canals, skateboard, hipster, gangster and Menottis - that are my first thoughts, when Venice comes to my mind. Actually it's just one of many neighborhoods within Los Angeles.

Let's start with our visit in 2016. During our honeymoon we stopped in LA at the end of our trip. I guess everybody that visits LA, must stop in Venice.

One of my favorite photographers is Paul Ripke, who currently lives in LA. He shoots incredible photographs, whether it's sports photography, landscape or people. He did a whole series about LA, including the beaches. It's definitely worth checking out his page! I don't know why I added this paragraph but anyways ...

Our first AirBnB apartment was located in the Laurel Canyon neighborhood. The house represented the typical LA house in my opinion or let's say how I would describe it. The second apartment was in Santa Monica and was a good bang for your buck.

I did some research on Wikipedia to get some information about the history. Venice was founded back in 1905 by Abbot Kinney. He studied in Paris, Heidelberg and Zürich. A tour to Italy also brought him to Venice! I guess this was his inspiration for creating his own Venice at home in California.

Venice by America opened in July 1905 with miles of canals and the mile-long beach which was the main tourist attraction. More tourists arrived weekend after weekend and with the growing number the entertainment business grew: Venice Miniature Railway, Aquarium, Virginia Reel, Whip, Racing Derby, and other rides and game booths.
Over the next 20 years a lot of things changed. The amusement business grew, Kinney, who governed Venice, died in 1920 and in 1926 Venice was incorporated by Los Angeles.

Between 1925 and 1950 Venice's public image changed. Oil was found and the area was covered with oil wells in no time. It was a short boom with a great impact. The new nickname was Slum by the sea. A lot of European settlers chose the area because of the low rents. The once attractive tourist destination got rivaled by Disneyland and did not win this battle!

The two main Gangs were founded: Venice Shoreline Crips and the Latino Venice 13 (V-13). They dominated the area and found a brutal war over drugs in the '90s. At the beginning of the new millennium the violence decreased, but the gangs remained active.

In 2008 the population was 40,885 and is expected to grow.

Did you know that Venice Beach will host Skateboarding and 3x3 basketball during the 2028 Summer Olympics?

Venice Beach is one of the main tourist attractions of LA. Of course we visited twice during our stay, enjoyed a fabulous coffee at Menotti's, watched the skateboarders perform, smelled some weed, saw low flying police helicopters, observed funny street artists and much more. I guess every visit is one of a kind and you will discover many new things every time you stop by.

Some things to do in Venice:

1. Explore the Venice Canals
2. Go and check out the Fishing Pier
3. Grab a drink at the High Rooftop Lounge (Hotel Erwin)
4. Muscle Beach ??
5. Visit the TOMS Flagship store

Because of the unique and special vibe, Venice Beach represented to me, I did choose this psychedelic color theme for my images. I hope you enjoyed them! Any suggestions for our next Venice visit? Thanks for reading!

Sources:
Welikela
Wikipedia
Wikipedia Abbot Kinney
Menotti's

!steemitworldmap 33.987215 lat -118.474136 long Venice Beach D3SCR

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Enjoy life, have fun and take more beautiful photos!
Sebastian

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