Pacific Palisades

Pacific Palisades is a wealthy coastal town in between Santa Monica and Malibu that has many fancy houses and is also home to the Self-Realization Fellowship's Lake Shrine. The Self Realization Fellowship was founded in 1920 by new-age/meditation/spirituality guru Paramahansa Yogananda (1893-1952) and the grounds of the Lake Shrine have been open to the public since 1950. The gardens smell heavily of incense and include meditation areas, peaceful grottos, a pretty lake, and monuments honoring Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam.


Paramahansa Yogananda designed the Golden Lotus Archway for the Lake Shrine in 1950:

When Paramahansa Yogananda acquired the area around the lake, there was a reproduction of a 16th century Dutch windmill on the grounds. Yogananda converted the windmill into a chapel and it now serves as a silent meditation area that is open to the public.

Around the grounds, there are religious statutes set in lush gardens:


In the nearby residential area of Castellemmare, there are beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean to the West and Topanga State Park to the East. People from the East Coast - please take note that this is what California looks like in the middle of winter:

This glamorous modern house with ocean views on Posetano Road was built by architect Pierre Koenig (1925-2004) in 1963. Koenig is famous for these classic L.A. glass box and exposed steel residences and his houses often appear in movies.

There are many sleek, modern homes up on Revello Drive, including this shoe-box like house that is supported off of the ground by pillars:


Public and private stairways going up and down the hill:
A beautiful tree at the top of the hill:

To the beach!


This walk around Castellammare is Walk 1 in my favorite book "Walking L.A." by Erin Mahoney Harris.


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