Why do people love South OC but hate Irvine? (Mission Viejo: homes, landscaping)

[MrJester]

People bash Irvine as boring, but then they go on to rave about how great South OC is. I'm not sure how Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, RSM, and Also Viejo, etc. Are any more exciting or interesting than Irvine.

[CA4Now]

Do they bash Irvine, though? Most people refer to the great schools and beautiful landscaping there.

[roadwarrior101]

The beach cities of South OC are absolutely gorgeous. Many of the homes are palatial with amazing ocean views and the towns have cute boutique shops/restaurants up and down the PCH. It is really the only thing that I find unique about OC (as an outsider) other than maybe Disneyland.

Irvine, on the other hand, is your typical upscale suburban town that grew into a large, neverending metropolitan area. Other than the weather (which is unique to SoCal), it could be part of any other sunbelt community. Nothing is wrong with it and the university is good, but it doesn't have that aura you think of say, Laguna Beach.

[usklx]

What works for some may not work for you. Everyone is at different stages in their life, a 25 year old may hate Irvine but a 35 year old with a growing family that wants safety and good schools may find Irvine to be a great fit.

[Vic Romano]

Originally Posted by MrJester

People bash Irvine as boring, but then they go on to rave about how great South OC is. I'm not sure how Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, RSM, and Also Viejo, etc. Are any more exciting or interesting than Irvine.

Never heard of this. References please. You always refer to these "people" that we never hear about.

Your posts about "people bashing Irvine" remind me of the self-flagellation rituals performed by Persians...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatbir

[MrJester]

Originally Posted by Beartown

When people talk about South OC being better than Irvine they are primarily talking about San Clemente, Laguna Beach, and Dana Point. RSM gets bashed on harder than Irvine for being boring. But Irvine is not just boring in the sense of things to do, but the look and the culture. If these cities were burger shops, Irvine would be a national chain burger restaurant ran by a board of directors and San Clemente would be the mom and pop burger joint that’s been around since the 50s. Irvine just feels like it has no “soul” (and I think RSM is much worse). The people seem much more boring too. South OC beach towns have lots of dads who still surf, have tattoos and drink IPAs. Irvine dads tend work in tech or finance and play golf. And very few of those people are from Irvine, they moved there within the past 10-20 years because of the great schools, jobs, good amenities, blah blah. The people in South OC tend to have more roots there.

So new is boring, and basically every new suburban city in the nation is boring, including Plano/Frisco, Mission Viejo, etc, right?

I know Frisco and Plano have some small old towns but basically the entire city was built fairly recently, like Irvine.

[MrJester]

Originally Posted by roadwarrior101

The beach cities of South OC are absolutely gorgeous. Many of the homes are palatial with amazing ocean views and the towns have cute boutique shops/restaurants up and down the PCH. It is really the only thing that I find unique about OC (as an outsider) other than maybe Disneyland.

Irvine, on the other hand, is your typical upscale suburban town that grew into a large, neverending metropolitan area. Other than the weather (which is unique to SoCal), it could be part of any other sunbelt community. Nothing is wrong with it and the university is good, but it doesn't have that aura you think of say, Laguna Beach.

Laguna Beach is basically Santa Fe, NM on the Coast. Incredibly artsy city, so I'll give you that. However, can you honestly say Mission Viejo or Also Viejo is more exciting than Irvine?

[MrJester]

Originally Posted by CA4Now

Do they bash Irvine, though? Most people refer to the great schools and beautiful landscaping there.

Yes, but I've hear ridiculous claims about Irvine, too. People have said that Irvine has hardly any sidewalks, is conservative, is mostly white, has no diversity, etc. None of this is true. It is more conservative than the Bay Area, but that's not saying much.

[Vic Romano]

Originally Posted by MrJester

Yes, but I've hear ridiculous claims about Irvine, too. People have said that Irvine has hardly any sidewalks, is conservative, is mostly white, has no diversity, etc. None of this is true. It is more conservative than the Bay Area, but that's not saying much.

So then why does it bother you so much? Why does this thread exist?

[roadwarrior101]

Originally Posted by MrJester

Laguna Beach is basically Santa Fe, NM on the Coast. Incredibly artsy city, so I'll give you that. However, can you honestly say Mission Viejo or Also Viejo is more exciting than Irvine?

No. Other than Laguna, Newport and a few other coastal communities, OC all looks/feels the same to me. Very monotonous.