Misconceptions Cleared

Whenever people ask me if I have seen LA I often said no. But my understanding of LA used to differ form what I now understand of it. Three years ago, I envisioned LA as the center of Americas film and music industry. A vibrant city with a raging nigh life and five star restaurants, where the high society enjoys the so-called ‘fab-life’(MTV Cribs) A place where famous movie stars loitered on streets, mostly accompanied by a crew of stalking paparazzi.
My imagination of LA fit the accurate description of Sun Set Boulevard. All I knew about LA was form the television shows and movies. I then realized that I was thinking of Downtown LA and as an outsider to the area I was unaware of the existence of other parts of LA. But Intro to American Cultures broadened my prospective on the city and got me thinking of the city form various different angels. For example, studying about LA form a geographical, cultural, racial and economic prospective.
I like the fact that we had to participate in an LA activity. Its only when you interact with the real world and have mindful discussions and then refer to academic texts to back up your arguments that you know you realize how much you have learnt in class. I only realized this when I was speaking to a friend from Pasadena about the FHA housing reading that I realized how much I knew and how much he didn’t know about his home town.
Overall I would say the class was really interesting. From the music at the beginning of the class, to the Youtube clips made the class even more entertaining. Some of the discussions were really interesting, especially the ones about culture and music. What I will take away form this class is a greater understanding of the area around me. As this is my first American Studies class, I think I have learnt a great deal about America and its past. Hopefully many of my naïve misconceptions have been cleared. Now my answer has changed to yes I have been to LA, but I am still looking forward to visit Sun Set Boulevard and drum on the streets sometime this year.