PROGRAM REGISTRATION: After you get your room assignment, come over to the Road Scholar table to register with the program staff and pick up your arrival packet which we'll review during our orientation session before dinner.

ORIENTATION: Begins before dinner. We'll have an overview of the program ahead and review the up-to-date schedule, responsibilities, safety guidelines, emergency procedures and other administrative issues as well as answer your questions. Please be aware that local circumstances may require adjusting program elements. In the event of changes, we will notify you as quickly as possible. We appreciate your understanding.

Dinner: Dinner

Menus are contracted for the program and are designed to offer balanced, healthy meals for the participants.

Evening: CROSSING POINTS: Participants introduce themselves to the rest of the group.

Enjoy the remainder of the evening getting to know your fellow participants and discovering what you share beyond a love of lifelong learning .

Lodging: The L.A. Downtown Hotel

Meals Included: Dinner

Los Angeles is a one-of-a-kind destination encompassing an array of unique and exciting regions---each one culturally distinct. With so much to see and do, we'll explore a different region each day to help us experience the city to the fullest.

FIELD TRIP: After class, ride the user-friendly DASH shuttle to the first destination to begin an all day exploration of downtown with John Daugherty, our guide. John has lived in LA for over 50 years, is passionate about the city and eager to share some of his favorite areas with us. From the first settlement at El Pueblo Historical Monument to today's modern urban center with its world-class institutions, we'll see how the downtown area has evolved.

During the day, we'll continue riding the DASH through some of downtown's diverse 'districts' such as the Fashion District, Financial District and Little Tokyo, each with its own personality, economics and history. In the Historic Core, we'll visit the 1893 Bradbury Building, the oldest commercial office structure remaining in downtown LA and a popular film location, and view the facades of Vaudeville-era movie houses on Broadway.

In the Bunker Hill District, we'll drive by the Music Center and stop at the Walt Disney Concert Hall gardens and Grand Ave lobby. In the Civic Center, we'll find Spanish architect Jose Rafael Moneo's Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, where we'll visit the sanctuary and mausoleum and view John Nava's tapestries. We'll also make a stop to admire the architectural features of Union Station. Constructed in 1939, it was the last of the nation's great train stations to be built.

Lunch: Lunch at Philippe's

Enjoy one of Los Angeles's original cuisines--the French-dipped sandwich at this historic restaurant.

Afternoon: After the bus trip with John, spend your free time riding the user-friendly DASH shuttles in downtown LA to new points of interest or re-visit a stop made during the day. A DASH shuttle stop is conveniently located near the hotel.

Dinner: Dinner on your own

Lodging: The L.A. Downtown Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch

Oil magnate J. Paul Getty used some of his vast wealth to amass an incredible art and antiquities collection, first displayed in his ranch house on a bluff overlooking the Pacific. In the early 70s, he had a Romanesque villa constructed next to his house to be a permanent museum for his collection. The Malibu Villa, modeled after the partially excavated Villa dei Papiri in Italy, became the home of the J. Paul Getty Museum in 1974.

In 1997 the Getty Villa was closed and the collection was relocated to the new hill-top Getty Center in Brentwood (Los Angeles). After a nine-year, $275 million renovation and expansion, the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Villa re-opened as a home to the Museum's Antiquities Collection. The Greek, Roman and Etruscan antiquities are arranged by themes including Gods and Goddesses, Dionysos and the Theater, and Stories of the Trojan War, housed within Roman-inspired architecture and surrounded by Roman-style gardens.

For your self-exploration, pick up a copy of 'Today at the Getty Villa', which lists the day's programs, in the Entry Pavilion. Enhance your gallery experience with a Getty Guide audio player, available for $5 at the Pick-Up Desk on Floor 1 of the Museum. The player features commentary from curators and conservators on over 150 works from the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Villa.

Further south along the PCH, we reach Santa Monica's downtown and Palisades Park.

Lunch: Lunch on your own at Santa Monica Place

Dinner: Dinner at hotel

Evening: OPTIONAL EVENING ACTIVITY

Refer to the Free-Time section for information about the Handel and Haydn Society concert at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Please arrange for your own tickets and transportation. OPTIONAL PERFORMANCE

Artists:

Handel and Haydn Society

Harry Christophers, conductor

Rob Murray, (Jephtha) tenor

Catherine Wyn-Rogers, (Storgè) mezzo-soprano

Joélle Harvey, (Iphis) soprano

William Purefoy, (Hamor) countertenor

Program: Handel: Jephtha (complete oratorio)

About This Program:

Premiered in 1752, Jephtha was Handel’s last oratorio. Internationally recognized as a leader in the use of period instruments and performing style, the Handel and Haydn Society actually gave the American premiere of Jephtha, in 1850.

Lodging: The L.A. Downtown Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner

FIELD TRIP: After class, start an all-day adventure to Hollywood with John Daugherty, our guide, by riding the Metro Red Line, part of the public rail transportation system, as a group. Discover many artworks at each station, which are part of the Metro Art program in which commissioned artists create unique works reflective of their transit site.

At the Hollywood & Vine Station, view the 1930 Pantages Theater, a historical landmark and art deco masterpiece, and the Capitol Record Tower. Get your first glimpse of the Hollywood Walk of Fame and the famous Hollywood sign.

We'll continue on to Hollywood & Highland, the complex that houses the Dolby Theater, site of the Academy Awards. Look for the Walk of Fame around Grauman's Chinese Theater, famous for its foot and hand prints of the stars.

Lunch: Lunch at Hollywood restaurant.

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: Griffith Observatory Griffith Observatory is an icon of Los Angeles, a national leader in public astronomy, a beloved civic gathering place, and one of southern California's most popular attractions. The Observatory is located on the southern slope of Mount Hollywood in Griffith Park, just above the Los Feliz neighborhood. It is 1,134 feet above sea level and is visible from many parts of the Los Angeles basin. Built in the early 1930s as a gift from silver mine magnate Griffith J. Griffith, the facility opened in 1935. The surrounding park was also given to the city of Los Angeles by Griffith. Enjoy the exhibits, grounds and a spectacular 360 degree view of Los Angeles.

Dinner: Dinner at Los Angeles restaurant

Lodging: The L.A. Downtown Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Step back into a legendary time on a guided walk of Sony Pictures Studios. Located on one of the world's most famous studio lots, our 2 hour guided walk gives you a rare glimpse of old Hollywood's glory days and an insider's view of a state-of-the-art motion picture studio.

Lunch: Lunch at Farmer's Market

Afternoon: FIELD TRIP: On Wilshire Drive, at Museum Row, visit the Rancho La Brea Tar Pits in the heart of Los Angeles, located at the Page Museum. Rancho La Brea is one of the world’s most famous fossil localities. Learn about Los Angeles as it was between 10,000 and 40,000 years ago, during the last Ice Age. Life-size replicas of several extinct mammals are featured outside the Museum.

Next we'll segue from mammoths to mansions as we travel through Beverly Hills and view view the world of fashion on Rodeo Drive. We'll make a stop in this 5-square-mile enclave known for its glamorous lifestyle before traveling back to the hotel.

Dinner: Dinner at local restaurant.

Evening: PERFORMANCE: 8:00PM Walt Disney Concert Hall

Artists:

Los Angeles Philharmonic

Gustavo Dudamel, conductor

Lang Lang, piano

Program:

Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1

Nielsen: Symphony No. 4, "The Inextinguishable"

Lodging: The L.A. Downtown Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

HOTEL CHECK OUT: This concludes the program. We hope you have enjoyed our Los Angeles Signature City program and will join us for other rewarding adventures in the future. Best wishes for all your journeys!

Meals Included: Breakfast