We partnered with Oslo-based photographer and videographer Herman Berger for an action-packed jaunt through the greater Los Angeles area. Having honed his travel instinct all over Europe as a competitive Alpine skier in his teens, Berger was eager to drink in the landmarks with an artist’s eye for detail.
The windblown sands of ancient Lake Cahuilla make this landscape absolutely otherworldly, and that’s before you experience the total silence and solitude. The more I looked, though, the more it felt weirdly familiar. Turns out Hollywood blockbusters like Star Wars, The Scorpion King, and Lawrence of Arabia have been set in these dunes for decades! They’re steeped in adventure.
LA from Above: The terrain is a trip, but the city is seductive—especially when the SWIMS team takes you on a helicopter tour. We boarded our private chopper in Burbank and headed west over the sprawling San Fernando Valley to the legendary Malibu coastline. Unreal! From there, we hugged the coast, passing Santa Monica and Venice Beach, before heading inland to gawk at the celebrity homes dotting Beverly Hills and Bel Air. Just as I finished daydreaming, we touched down in style on a rooftop in downtown LA. City lights, breathtaking heights: this I could get used to.
Time to Head Home Our time in LA was far too short, but we covered quite a bit of ground (and sky). It’s a place of unforgettable vistas, captivating characters, and tireless creativity. My kind of town. In the immortal words of Schwarzenegger, “I’ll be back!”
