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Just wondering, do any specific parts of Southern California seem similar to Honolulu? Are there any "Hawaii Local" communities in LA or San Diego? Any places to eat good plate lunches?
By the way, has anyone ever noticed that the Ward center area looks very California?
Just wondering, do any specific parts of Southern California seem similar to Honolulu? Are there any "Hawaii Local" communities in LA or San Diego? Any places to eat good plate lunches?
By the way, has anyone ever noticed that the Ward center area looks very California?
Mahalo
There are L&L Hawaiian Barbeques throughout California and Nevada.
Just wondering, do any specific parts of Southern California seem similar to Honolulu? Are there any "Hawaii Local" communities in LA or San Diego? Any places to eat good plate lunches?
By the way, has anyone ever noticed that the Ward center area looks very California?
Mahalo
In the L.A. area, there are plenty of folks from Hawaiʻi that live in Gardena, Torrance, and Carson. In the San Diego area, most of the folks from Hawaiʻi gravitate towards Mira Mesa, Claremont Mesa, Mission Valley, and El Cajon. Sadly, few folks from Hawaiʻi live in the beach towns and cities of Los Angeles County and San Diego County.
When I lived in San Diego, life seemed very similar to Oahu and Hawaii in general. People are friendly, there is a surf culture and they even host an annual Pacific Island Cultural Festival at various locations. One year, I attended the festival at SDSU campus and two other years at Pacific Beach. The festival is generally one weekend long and the entertainment is phenomenal (e.g. hula, tahitian, maori, phillipino, and samoan dancing). They also sell lunch plates (Islander food), jewelry, and clothing. I lived in Spring Valley and El Cajon (East side San Diego) but do not remember any specific "Hawaii Local" communities while I was there. There is an L&L Hawaiian Barbecue in Pacific Beach and I heard Chula Vista now (not 100% sure on Chula Vista) but you will have better luck in finding their specific locations online. If you are not close to an L&L, China Buffets and Sushi Restaraunts serve delicious food at a friendly price!
As mentioned Mission Bay looks a lot like Hawaii: Kukui grass, palm trees, beach. They have the Pacific Islander music festival there every year (I think) and it features some of the best contemporary Hawaiian musicians.
Someone mentioned L&L. Yes, they have those all over here (SoCal), but it doesn't taste as good as it did back in the Islands, at least to me.
Waves seem to break differently here. In Hawaii beaches they seemed to mostly break left to right or right to left, plus they are glassier. Here most beaches have waves that break mostly all at once, and the waves are smaller. Also, the water is cooler here and there is kelp, and dolphins swim up to you.
I don't see any similarities between Southern California and Hawaii. Southern California is predominantly Mexican in architecture and culture. There are few palm trees and it is rare to see a flowered shirt on anyone. San Diego is "beach town" as opposed to "tropical" in Honolulu.
The majority of Southern California isn't even beach related. The little towns on the coast in the L.A. area seem nothing like Hawaii, except they are also expensive.
The big marinas with all the sailboats moored look a lot alike in both locations. But even the beaches don't look the same.
Southern California is much drier and cooler, and the ocean is cool as well. Not clear water either. But beautiful still, and palm trees, though not as much as Hawaii. But Oceanside has a large community of Asians and Pacific Islanders. Also that relaxed, surfer feel to it.
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