Whenever you mention California, the next thing most people think of is Hollywood. And when you think of Hollywood, you always picture in your mind the big Hollywood sign right on top of the hills. This is rightfully so since the Hollywood Sign right on top of the Hollywood Hills has been a popular icon of the pop culture since it existed. Whenever a movie cuts into a scene where they are in Hollywood, the Hollywood Sign always finds itself at least a couple of seconds on screen.
Going to California, especially Los Angeles, every person should look for a couple hours of free time to visit a place where they can get a good view of the famous Hollywood Sign. Some people goes to the extreme of hiking up the Hollywood Hills itself to touch the letters of the famous sign. But for regular people like us who is contented to be able to just say that we have seen the actual Hollywood Sign, even from a distance, the Griffith Observatory is a pretty good choice.
Like the Hollywood Sign, Griffith Observatory is a very popular landmark itself. It is not just seen in movies like Terminator and Transformers, but also been featured in episodes of popular TV shows like MacGyver, Alias, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Other than being able to see the Hollywood Sign clearly and admiring the architecture itself, Griffith observatory also features interesting exhibits like an active Tesla Coil that they turn on, and some laser projection of a simulated night sky.