What makes LA different from everywhere else in California? (Los Angeles: how much, homes)

[california_guy110]

I'm from California and have lived in a number of different places but never in the LA area. The perception is that there is something in LA that isn't anywhere else and I think this is accurate, I'd be interested to hear from other people who have lived other places in the state and lived in LA. I'm wondering about things other than the weather as there are other areas of SoCal that have the same weather. Is it just the entertainment industry and everything this brings to it or are there other things?

[fairweathergolfer]

I think this is a great question, especially as LA gets such a bad rap from people who do not live here. I remember when I was living in San Diego getting ready to move to LA and someone from SD spat, "I just want to shower immediately when I get back from LA." Of course I was thinking, "I just want to kill myself from boredom from the lack of exciting conversations and dead energy in San Diego." (No offense San Diego! I love SD. It is stunning and lovely. It was just not stimulating enough for me.)

Los Angeles simply speaking has it all. If you are wealthy or have a nice income it is paradise--anything and everything is available and there is no judgment about it. Period. People aspire here . . . to everything. There is no shame at wanting it all and going for it. It is one reason many people move here. Top universities (plural!), variety of educational institutions, extreme multiculturalism, extreme wealth, variety of health and lifestyle choices and services, variety of churches, artists, ways of working, incredible opportunity. Variety of faiths. Amazing, distinct (many world renown) neighborhoods, parks, museums, locations that have deep history that rest not only in the cells of the city, but in the bones of the larger U.S. culture.

Los Angeles is the second largest city in the U.S. It is the epicenter of film, specific arts and does define fashion and trends. It is the land of opportunity and the land of the unrestrained. There are many seekers and spiritual people here who want desperatly to make an impact, while others aspire to mass attention and money. There are the very talented, the very famous, the very narcisistic, the very ambitious, and those that just enjoy all the city has to offer and go about their business content with the smaller achievements of the day. It is a beautiful and exciting place with many micro climates and many sub cultures. It is vibrant. It is Los Angeles. Love it or hate it Los Angeles never strays far from the nation's mind or from its conversations, whether it be a movie they go to see, a television program they watch, or a book they pick up. Angelenos impact the world and that will never change.

The city vibrates with this knowledge of itself as do her residents--past, present, and future, pushing always forward.

[TheRealAngelion]

^ That pretty much sums it up very well. And, it's all so true. I am another person bored with San Diego (although it's a beautiful place) who will be making my way back to LA before the end of the year. Yippie!

[suncat]

Great post, Fair Weather Golfer. You've made me homesick.

[california_guy110]

I agree about San Diego being boring, I lived there for a year and was constantly bored, the city is unbelievably dead in the winter when there are no tourists around, before I moved there I didn't realize how much of a suburbia it was and that it really is just a far outlying suburb of LA from what I can tell, the fact that it is merging with Mexico makes it somewhat uncomfortable for non-Mexicans living there, its to be expected, though, and most of the immigrants seem like decent hard-working people but I just got the feeling that San Diego is a suburban paradise for people who want a really laid back lifestyle and is mainly a tourist destination for people from around the country who want to avoid LA but still see California.

Well, I'm planning to move somewhere in the LA area or at least check it out more as I think it has more of what I am looking for.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by california_guy110

I agree about San Diego being boring, I lived there for a year and was constantly bored, the city is unbelievably dead in the winter when there are no tourists around...

I would have thought the opposite - people from the Midwest and east coast visiting for the 70 degree January weather.

[california_guy110]

It doesn't seem that way, its kind of cold in the winter sometimes and the beaches seem really dead, it can get pretty windy at the beaches so its not really a pleasant place to hang out during the winter on some days, I think these people go to more tropical destinations like Mexico or the Caribbean during the winter.

[UB50]

fairweathergolfer,

I totally agree with your post -- but it is almost the opposite of what you would have posted a year ago. Why the change? Did you go out and explore other areas?

[jksouthbay88]

Like some of you said SD is boring.Way to many tourist and some of the areas are too great.It feels like San Diego "shuts down"around 830PM.Not many people out after that.

[LaoTzuMindFu]

FairweatherGolfer pretty much summed it all up in one post. I dont think there is anywhere else in the US (except for NY) that is as diverse as LA. I am half white, half black, my wife is Russian from Moscow, our best friends are Filipino, Jewish, Persian and Egyptian, all of our kids are best friends and have known each other since they were babies.

I was born here and plan on raising my family here and being buried here. I LOVE LA. There is no place like it anywhere else.