San Pedro - Not So Scary

Ports O' Call Village - seafood, taffy & galleries

Any town that's emblazoned across T-shirts of guys with their pants hanging below their butts, or on a hat that's turned sideways, is not a town I'd like to live in. And in L.A., that town is San Pedro. Why does the name of this city adorn fools who shift around with that uneven gangster slouch? And with only one free hand, as the other hand must hold up their pants...though they're wearing belts.

The town has been described as "proudly blue collar," and while I have Long Beach friends who say the city is rife with wealthy longshoremen (it's a port town), others say it's a gang-ridden ghetto. Aside from an excursion to see the haunted house of San Pedro, we decided to take a day trip to check it out. Parts of the city were, um, proudly blue collar, but it's rich with history and endless public exhibits:

The Korean Friendship Bell overlooks the sea

Cabrillo Marine Aquarium

nasty, blind deep-sea fish

moon jellies - my favorite

fresh-caught seafood in Ports O'Call Village

The Fort MacArthur Museum - roaming the old miltary base

Red Car Trolley circa 1920's - $1 for the whole day!

San Pedro Maritime Museum

The largest, busiest port in the United States  - if it was made in Asia, it's sent here first!

The Haunted House of San Pedro

I wish to report that a friend and I did a drive-by of the infamous haunted house in San Pedro - the Jackie Hernandez house. Urban legend has it that an ashen-faced corpse of a man with a red flannel shirt tormented the resident. Documentary footage showed an orange-reddish substance oozing from the walls, and tests returned claiming it was blood plasma high in copper.

Like any supposedly haunted house, I am never scared of the ghosts, but the fed-up residents who have to deal with weirdos like me. Some say the house was on 355 11th St., but that ended up being a well-preserved Victorian, and didn't match the documentary footage. Like many Californians who think anything built before the 80's is "old," I think residents tagged it as the Hernandez home because Victorians have the generic haunted sheen from horror flicks.

Others said the house is on the 500 block, so we cruised the second alleged address, 591 11th St. After the infamous Manson murders, Sharon Tate's abode was torn down and given an all-new address. That seemed to be the case in San Pedro as well. The house numbered 591 was missing and the facade standing where it should be looked brand new. Did I mention the shirtless chubby guy grilling in the backyard? Yea, that killed it for us.

My friend and I took a picture of both facades. Discuss.