Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2008
Griffith Park, Los Angeles
Miles from the lavish decorations and window displays on Rodeo Drive, another dazzling jamboree of lights is put on each year by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, along the one-mile stretch of Crystal Springs Drive that winds through L.A.'s Griffith Park north of Hollywood. Each year more than 500,000 visitors come to admire the Holiday Light Festival, with displays of ranging size and intricacy, from palm trees and dinosaurs to exploding volcanoes and surfers riding a wave. The route, which visitors enter through a tunnel of lights, is open to pedestrians only until Dec. 8, when car traffic will also be allowed; a free shuttle will also run weekdays from Dec. 12 to 20 and weekends through Dec. 30. Admission is free.