Venice was laid out in the marshlands of Ballona Creek in 1905 by developer Abbot Kinney as a romantic twenty-mile network of canals, lined by sham palazzos and waterfront homes. The original plan to create a west coast art-and-culture zone failed, followed by a more successful turn as an amusement park; however, the coming of the automobile finished it off altogether. Most of the canals were filled in, and the area fell into disrepair, being taken over by oil wells. Orson Welles's film Touch of Evil starred the then-derelict Venice as a seedy Mexican border town. Kinney was, however, ahead of his time. A fair bit of the original plan survives, and the pseudo-European atmosphere has made Venice one of the coast's trendier spots. Chic cafés and restaurants abound near the beach, an alternative art scene centers on the Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center , 681 Venice Blvd ( ), and the easy, laid-back vibe attracts countless slackers and slummers.

The town's main artery, Windward Avenue , runs from the beach into what was the Grand Circle of the canal system. Its original Romanesque arcade , around the intersection with Pacific Avenue, is alive with health-food shops, secondhand record stores and roller-skate rental stands, although less and less of the arcade remains with each passing year. Nearby, the few remaining canals display renovated white bridges and pedestrian-friendly footpaths, along with a bevy of the latest neo-modern and postmodern housing designs. A one-way street, Dell Avenue , enters the area from its intersection at Washington Boulevard, and is the best way to take a closer look at the canals.

Southerly Venice Beach itself is the reason most people come here. Nowhere else does LA parade itself quite so openly as along the wide pathway of Venice Boardwalk , ever packed with jugglers, fire-eaters, roller-skating guitar players and people-watchers, though increasingly on the verge of gentrifying into a corporate-sanitized shopping district. South of Windward is Muscle Beach , a legendary outdoor weightlifting center where serious-looking hunks of muscle pump some serious iron, and high-flying gymnasts swing on the adjacent rings and bars. Outlets along Washington Street near the pier - such as Spokes 'n' Stuff (tel 310/395-4748) - rent out bikes for $5-7 per hour or $12-20 per day.

At night Venice Beach is alive with street gangs and drug dealers. Walking on the beach after dark is illegal, and you should be very cautious in the vicinity.

Venice

• Venice

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