Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
These observations are very much those of a tourist, so they will be colored as such. No hating, just perceptions and personal opinion here.
Cultural and arts amenities - both seemed interesting, with way more hispanic influences in LA
Cultural diversity - both are very diverse, but to me, it seemed the SF bay area had more European immigrants or visitors and beyond that it was way more asians of different stripes. LA was no slouch, but maybe I didn't see as many areas.
Political diversity - lol, I've heard of crazy right-wing idiot talk show hosts living in the metro area of both, and combine that with the left wing leaning aggregate in both cities, I'd say a tie. However, I have noticed that SF makes national news a lot more often with random motions like banning happy meal toys and pets, you know, the type of stuff that makes the rest of the nation go "Oh there goes SF again, with their nutty gestapo / left wing / big government moves again"
Transportation system (roads, rail, ferries, etc.) - dunno. All I know is that I drove everywhere in LA and it seemed they'd rather you drive in LA. SF had a very good bus system. Can't talk about the quality of it much ... all the buses I rode on were poor to marginal in timeliness and cleanliness and modernity compared to Seattle's.
Geographic diversity - I think there's tremendous in both.
Climatic diversity - ditto
Sports teams - LOL. I'm not a fan of any sports teams in the area. I grew up in Chicago and live in Seattle, so I'm a fan of those teams.
Higher educational opportunities - I always heard San Louis Obispo is a great place to go to college. I can't comment about this nor do I care ... Aerospace engineering is what I learned at Purdue, and everyone who rivaled us were out east. Maybe UC-Berkeley.
Family friendliess - I like more spread out areas, so I think some areas of LA are much more family friendly. East bay in SF maybe.
"Dynamic" environment (entrepreneurial, social, cultural, etc.) - both
Natural beauty - both have charms but the redwoods really stand out and I prefer forests (naturally, Pacific NW is abundant with those)
Beach quality - never spent time on the beaches there
Road rage - can't comment.
Friendliness of people - SF folks don't look you in the eye, like a bunch of robots.
What a life and variation of opinions this thread has gathered. Wow! Thanks to everybody for their valuable contributions, keep them coming.
Honestly, I'm moving to the Bay Area and would at some point like to give SoCal a try. I've visited both as a tourist and developed by preconceived notions of each area as a result of visiting (and dealing with many of each metropolitan area's citizens in customer service), but notions can always be broken. The best test is to actually experience it full-time, a huge reason I'm moving.
My responses below in bold.
Quote:
Originally Posted by EclecticEars
To clarify: Los Angeles: developed areas within Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties
Bay Area: San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Solano, Napa, and Santa Cruz Counties
Based on your experiences, interactions and perceptions, please state your pick(s) for the following (and, if you're at liberty, state why):
Cultural and arts amenities For easier accessibility via monetary and transport means, San Francisco Bay Area (SFBA). For the overall broad array of visual and performing arts, then obviously Los Angeles.
Cultural diversity Los Angeles, by a longshot. Although it is a bit more segregated than SFBA, it's still nothing like a Midwestern or Southern city in terms of segregation.
Political diversity Los Angeles without contest
Transportation system (roads, rail, ferries, etc.) SFBA, although 30/10 will likely put L.A. on top in a few years
Geographic diversity Just comparing metro areas, this goes to L.A.
Climatic diversity L.A. The inland East Bay areas just don't get as hot as the Mojave Desert areas starting in San Bernardino County.
Sports teams In the grand scheme of things, tied. Considering hometown support and current successes, probably SFBA. Considering overall legacies (such as UCLA winning 11 NCAA basketball championships and a storied NFL history), L.A.
Higher educational opportunities Tied
Family friendliess Slight edge to SFBA; some of CA's best public school systems are in the Peninsula and South Bay areas. Don't discount L.A. with South Orange and Ventura Counties.
"Dynamic" environment (entrepreneurial, social, cultural, etc.) Tied. Entrepreneurial, innovative and intellectual goes to SFBA, but social, cultural (and, for that matter, also entrepreneurial) goes to L.A.
Natural beauty Tied. I love the green hills around Marin and the East Bay, but the Santa Monica and San Gabriel mountain ranges in L.A. also have their own sort of semi-arid, open sky beauty.
Beach quality Tied. Sand quality and coastal scenery goes to SFBA. Beach activity, enjoyment and weather, definitely L.A.
Road rage Probably tied. I've read many CA posters here on C-D remark on L.A.'s terrible road rage. I've seen the stories on TV and watched the high speed chases. Honestly, drivers actually seemed more impatient in SFBA than L.A. Some of L.A.'s domestic in-migration over the years has come from Texas, Oklahoma and other Southern states; those drivers are traditionally faster and more "skilled" but aren't as angry as drivers in Chicago, DC, NYC, etc. On the other hand, some of SFBA's domestic in-migration has come from the Midwest and Northeast; the Midwest has generally slower and more methodical drivers but the MW and NE also suffers from more horn-blowing, which I experienced more of in SFBA.
Friendliness of people L.A., strictly based on personal experience. That's not to say that SFBA is rude or mean, it just doesn't "feel" like a place where you can as easily start a conversation w/ a stranger as you can in L.A. I'm sure I will meet a lot of great people in SFBA, however, and the ones I've talked to on the phone and by e-mail at my new employer have been wonderful so far; hope it stays that way. This is in no way to offend the SFBA boosters and I think I'll like the area, I'm just calling it as I see it.
General happiness Probably SFBA
YOUR personal preference--and why! Based on my limited experience, L.A. However, life is about experiences. Who knows, maybe I'll live in both and end up liking SFBA and not L.A., or I'll like or dislike both. Only time will tell.
All told, I think my ideal job and lifestyle would be one where I can move freely between small apartments in LA and SF, or divided it by periods of three months or so.
All told, I think my ieal job and lifestyle would be one where I can move freely between small apartments in LA and SF, or divided it by periods of three months or so.
Ha! Same here.
That's the way I'm trying to arrange things for myself down the road. I love both and want to live in both, and don't want to have to sacrifice either one completely in the long term.
That's the way I'm trying to arrange things for myself down the road. I love both and want to live in both, and don't want to have to sacrifice either one completely in the long term.
Yeah, I'm currently entertaining an offer in Beverly Hills that, all told, is pretty much better than what I've got up here, which already affords me a decent, stable lifestyle. Being faced with a decision like this really does make me realize how much I do love both cities.
My friends up here start putting in effort to make everything here seem that much more awesome to keep me here... then, two friends from LA come up to visit separately to try to convince me to move back down with their feminine wiles... I think about the good times and the bad times in both cities... I make up my mind to move back down South, then I have an awesome weekend up here and change my mind.
There are certainly worse conundrums to be faced with.
One way or the other, I'd like to go back to school at either UCLA or USC in another year or two, so I'll most likely be back down there before too long, anyways.
Yeah, I'm currently entertaining an offer in Beverly Hills that, all told, is pretty much better than what I've got up here, which already affords me a decent, stable lifestyle. Being faced with a decision like this really does make me realize how much I do love both cities.
My friends up here start putting in effort to make everything here seem that much more awesome to keep me here... then, two friends from LA come up to visit separately to try to convince me to move back down with their feminine wiles... I think about the good times and the bad times in both cities... I make up my mind to move back down South, then I have an awesome weekend up here and change my mind.
There are certainly worse conundrums to be faced with.
One way or the other, I'd like to go back to school at either UCLA or USC in another year or two, so I'll most likely be back down there before too long, anyways.
Yeah I don't think you can really go wrong with either one, but if you have been accepted into either of those schools then I think that'll make the decision much easier.
Yeah, I'm currently entertaining an offer in Beverly Hills that, all told, is pretty much better than what I've got up here, which already affords me a decent, stable lifestyle. Being faced with a decision like this really does make me realize how much I do love both cities.
My friends up here start putting in effort to make everything here seem that much more awesome to keep me here... then, two friends from LA come up to visit separately to try to convince me to move back down with their feminine wiles... I think about the good times and the bad times in both cities... I make up my mind to move back down South, then I have an awesome weekend up here and change my mind.
There are certainly worse conundrums to be faced with.
One way or the other, I'd like to go back to school at either UCLA or USC in another year or two, so I'll most likely be back down there before too long, anyways.
Funny, I'm in the opposite position of you. I went to Berkeley undergrad, and am in the process now of studying for the LSAT to try to get back into Berkeley law, and if possible, maybe even Stanford law if I get in I'm also planning to apply to UCLA and USC (and 3 out of state schools), but I really feel sort of sick of LA right now, given all the weird things going on in my life.
Lately, especially during the long hot summer days, I've really been missing the Bay Area, but I'm also be willing to try out Chicago and maybe NYC again. I already have a really good group of friends up there, and if I ever feel a bit homesick, I can always just catch a cheap Southwest flight or a 5-6 hour drive back down here.
My plan is to eventually have properties in both the Bay Area (preferably the South Bay) and LA area so I have an excuse to go to both areas when I need to.
What a life and variation of opinions this thread has gathered. Wow! Thanks to everybody for their valuable contributions, keep them coming.
Honestly, I'm moving to the Bay Area and would at some point like to give SoCal a try. I've visited both as a tourist and developed by preconceived notions of each area as a result of visiting (and dealing with many of each metropolitan area's citizens in customer service), but notions can always be broken. The best test is to actually experience it full-time, a huge reason I'm moving.
My responses below in bold.
Really great thread idea! Too bad it sort of devolved into a pissing match over things that really don't have as much bearing on the real world than people put on this site. However, I do feel that there is ONE thing that are factually incorrect in what you said.
Quote:
Sports teams In the grand scheme of things, tied. Considering hometown support and current successes, probably SFBA. Considering overall legacies (such as UCLA winning 11 NCAA basketball championships and a storied NFL history), L.A.
Despite the fact that pre-1994 there were 2 NFL teams in LA, LA only had 1 championship (Los Angeles Raiders, 1983). The Rams were never that good here, and the Raiders, while better, seemed to flounder a bit after a while. The Bay Area, in the meantime, had the SF 49ers (who can forget Joe Montana?) win 5 championships and the Raiders won 2 of their 3 while they played in Oakland. Frankly, LA isn't just much of a football city.
However, when it comes to college football, no question that USC is untouchable.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
