An Adventuresome Morning in Koreatown

LAST Friday was the last day of my internship, and of course my luck, happened to be during Easter break. So instead of the typical hour commute to go fifteen miles, I had to make sure I left at least two hours early from my hometown of Irvine. Taking Mike the Poet’s advice on always leaving early, giving time for the unavoidable traffic, I even left a little earlier than the two hours and got a caffeine boost at Starbucks. Ready to blast my music and forget that the cars were only going about five miles an hour. Instead, in what seemed like a blink of the eye and an unending smooth flow of the 405 freeway, I realized I was already at my destination. “How did this happen?”

Confused and having no idea what to do, I decide to venture around this area that I have called my home away from home every Friday and see what makes it tick. Greeted by the many minority groups that are hustling and bustling through the streets, always surrounded by friends or family members, the people of Koreatown are always on a mission. Filling the buses to a brim and maneuvering their bicycles around homeless people’s carts. As I

drive through Vermont Street, I am increasingly amazed at the amount of graffiti that lines the building walls. The bright colors from these murals only seem to add to the vitality of the area.

As I get closer to Wilshire, the environment changes a little. Not as many people are lining the streets, as the amount of cars that are struggling to pass each other. Each heading towards what seems like a meeting that will change the world. I am surprised by the enormous parks and fading green infrastructure that are after almost every signal. The buildings on this street act as a blatant symbol of the mix of old and new time periods.

Realizing it is almost time to start my last day, I become one of the scurrying cars that is in a hurry to reach my destination.

--Jessica Fernandez