One of the cool things about living in L.A. is the cultural diversity and fusion. I know that's a bit cliche, but I do really mean it. When I moved into Pittsburgh for college I thought I had learned about cultural diversity because I finally met some black people. Six years later I came out here and realized that I didn't know the first thing about real diversity.
Now, I'm not one of those people who values diversity primarily because I think that the full spectrum of humankind is embodied by a multiplicity of voices that can come together to share common and distinct experiences in a humanistic way.
No, mostly I'm just interested in the funky-ass shit that happens when cultures come together.
So far in and aroud Koreatown, three things really take the cake:

1. Two weekends ago, Tim, Dana, and I went to a food festival in the Byzantine-Latino Quarter. No, this is not a particularly convoluted Latino Quarter; it is a neighborhood where a Greek population and a Latino population have come to live side-by-side over the years. It's the first such festival I've been to where spanakopita and margaritas have gotten equal billing.
   
2. Driving around about two weeks ago, we drove past a church with two signs. One read, "Hungarian Reformed Church". The bottom sign presumably said the same thing, except in Korean. How that all came together has to be an interesting story, but I couldn't even guess what it is.
   
3. At the nearest main intersection to me, Beverly and Western, there's a drugstore whose business is clearly primarily Korean. But at some point they added a sign in English as well. The store is called "Ethical Drugs". I'm not sure exactly what they're trying to get across there, but it's just not working.