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| "The" General Hospital |
I had an epiphany last week. I realized that with my focus on global destinations for “Racing Around the World”, I had completely overlooked getting to know my own city of Los Angeles!
So, with time before my next assignment and a Prius that gets 35-45 miles per gallon, I set out on a mission to discover LA and the people who live here.
Remember that cabbie show - “Taxi Cab Confessions”? It unveiled what we already knew, that people talk more freely to someone they most likely will never see again.
I wasn’t looking for dirt, I just wanted to see who really lives here in LA and what they had to say. My career as a television host and reporter, as well as my freelance work as a print journalist, had given me access to many people. But undoubtedly the cameras and microphones had intruded on our conversations.
I didn’t have the time or inclination to become a taxi driver, but I could sign up to drive for Lyft. Like Uber, Lyft is a ride-sharing service that summons a car directly to the location of the customer. And no money ever changes hands. Customers simply download the app, summon the ride and pay for it via an attached credit card.
My path to “owner, operator, tourist in my own city” required a vehicle inspection, background check, and a meet and greet with a Lyft manager. My Prius and I passed all of the above and we were in business!
I washed the car, mounted my iPhone on the dashboard and set out to find my city.
Lyft Report - Day 1
“What had I done?? Oh my God! This is akin to legal hitchhiking”.
This was just some of my internal dialogue as I clicked the Lyft driver app to “On”.
Fortunately, I didn’t have time to freak myself out completely because within moments I heard a “ring, ring” and a woman named Kate* popped up on my smartphone.
I was relived to see that a photo of the customer appears during my 15 seconds I get to decide if I want to pick them up or not. Likewise, the customer can see a pic of the driver, and a rating from one to five stars.
I accepted the drive and headed a few blocks down to Kate’s apartment. As I pulled up she was waiting by the street. She opened the door, introduced herself, and hopped in.
“Bloomingdales please,” she said in a British accent.
“Hallelujah”, I uttered to myself. “My first passenger is not an ax-murderer.”
Kate was a tall, attractive professional woman with a teenage son and bills to pay. She had just moved to town and her car hadn’t arrived yet from New York. She needed a Lyft to work.
As we chatted we realized that we were practically neighbors and had much in common. So, we agreed to have a cocktail on the weekend at my favorite restaurant down the street.
My second passenger needed a Lyft to work at USC County Hospital. I picked Franny up in downtown LA. and as we weaved our way through traffic to Boyle Heights I learned that she “wanted to get out of here” and move back to the Northwest.
I couldn’t relate. Even though I had lived in the Los Angeles area off and on for over 20 years, I was so excited to see what hidden gems I could find! And, as it turned out, Franny showed me a big one.
“That’s the old General Hospital,” she said, as we pulled into the USC Complex. I glanced up and saw the most massive 1920’s era building I had ever seen, aside from the post office in downtown Chicago. And I recognized it instantly!
General Hospital was featured in the open of the longest running soap opera in production. The show started in 1963 and began with a shot of this iconic building. But the history went much deeper into Hollywood. Marilyn Monroe was born there on June 1st, 1926 and the hospital was also featured in the movies City of Angels and Dr. Kildare.
General Hospital was replaced by a new facility in 2008 when it no longer met earthquake and fire safety codes specific to a hospital. Today it is open to the public and houses a few nonprofits. It is also known to be haunted!!
