What do you like about LA (Los Angeles, San Diego: home, neighborhoods, theater)

[Gentoo]

No this is not another bashing LA thread. I think there are enough of those.

When talking about LA, it's easy to talk about what we don't like and I've been guilty of it myself. Granted LA has it's issues but it also has it's positives. For me they are:

1. People. I have also liked people from LA, don't know why. Perhaps it could be because unlike the other big west coast cities, LA doesn't seem as smug to me. Perhaps it is and every is just nice to me from there but I find it nice either way.

2. Very close proximity to lots of different environments. While other areas in SoCal boast about how close they are to the deserts, mountains and beaches, LA perhaps has them closer and with mountains rising to over 10,000 feet, it adds to the topography.

3. Never a time when there's nothing to do or no place to go.

4. Diversity, one of the most diverse places anywhere.

5.I'm a bit of a foodie and you can always find the best places to eat. To this day, the best Burger I've ever had was in Azuza (ok San Gabriel Valley but it counts ).

Those are my top five.

[West of Encino]

I like that it's close by the Pacific and it's in the West.

[ZenMaster2008]

What was the burger place in Azusa?
(The Habit wins best burger for me)

And I love the options this area offers from entertainment to climate to topography to people.

[Californiaguy2007]

Here are a few things I like about L.A

1) The Diversity/Variety of Things to See and Do for all ages.

2) The Microclimates.

3) The Diversity of People and Culture.

4) Close proximity to places like Mexico,Vegas,San Francisco,Palm Spring,San Diego,etc.

5) Laid Back Atmosphere for such a large city.

[Gentoo]

Originally Posted by ZenMaster2008

What was the burger place in Azusa?
(The Habit wins best burger for me)

And I love the options this area offers from entertainment to climate to topography to people.

Super Valley Burger

[Lifeshadower]

I'll bite:

1) The weather! Despite the fact I grew up in the Valley, I still love the fact that its almost reliably sunny most of the year.
2) Diversity of people. Not only in terms of ethnicity, but also in the ways people think and how they view issues. Unlike other places I've lived, people don't have to claim they are "open minded" to try something new, they just do it.
3) Proximity to all these cool locations and really diverse geography.
4) For such a big city, I love how it DRASTICALLY can go from really dense city to the boonies extremely quickly

I have a whole list of things I love about LA, but the biggest reason I love it is...because it's home. There's no other place in the WORLD I know as well as I do LA. Sure, I MAY end up living somewhere else in the long run, but even with that I think most people have a special attachment to where they grew up. Despite all the negative memories I have here (and believe me, I have a lot), I feel a sense of comfort being here.

There are plenty of things I DON'T like about LA, but the fact remains that it's still home. I know I can always come back and I'll know someone here who'll take me in when times are rough. That's the kind of attachment I have here.

I'm probably going to leave LA again in the next year or two (for a longer period than college was) to further spread my wings, but at least I have a home base. That can't be replicated.

[uptown_urbanist]

Diversity of ALL types! The ethnicities of the residents, of course, but also the architecture, types of neighborhoods, food, topography, etc.; there's no reason anyone should ever be bored in LA. There's no one "typical" LA so you can dabble in everything. And it's by far the best food city I've ever lived in.

[Charles]

The weather.
Despite what people write about and joke about and hate (traffic) about LA, most people who live here are proud to live in LA (Southern California). Unlike a lot of envious east coasters and midwesterners, people in LA aren't too envious of other places.

[californio sur]

I like LA for many reasons and always feel good to come back home when out of the state. Los Angeles epitimizes California and probably has the most diverse populaiton in the state. The glamour of the entertainment industry\ Hollywood makes LA a major destination for actors, writers, producers. I don't know of any other major U.S. city that has as many outdoor amphitheaters with top-rank music and other entertainment groups. Pretty much all the award ceremonies for movies\ tv\ music are held in Los Angeles. I like LA for being committed to rapid transit and putting in more trains than any other city especially after they took out all the street cars years ago. The beauty of the setting is unlike any other American city; the mountains are higher, the coastline is dramatic, ferry to Santa Catalina Island; the Mojave desert within 50 miles. Too bad there is so much sprawl and crowded freeways. I also am proud that LA is a solid Democratic stronghold that influences many elections in California; lots of progressive thinkers and a strong coalition of liberal voters.

[415_s2k]

Originally Posted by Gentoo

No this is not another bashing LA thread. I think there are enough of those.

When talking about LA, it's easy to talk about what we don't like and I've been guilty of it myself. Granted LA has it's issues but it also has it's positives. For me they are:

1. People. I have also liked people from LA, don't know why. Perhaps it could be because unlike the other big west coast cities, LA doesn't seem as smug to me. Perhaps it is and every is just nice to me from there but I find it nice either way.

2. Very close proximity to lots of different environments. While other areas in SoCal boast about how close they are to the deserts, mountains and beaches, LA perhaps has them closer and with mountains rising to over 10,000 feet, it adds to the topography.

3. Never a time when there's nothing to do or no place to go.

4. Diversity, one of the most diverse places anywhere.

5.I'm a bit of a foodie and you can always find the best places to eat. To this day, the best Burger I've ever had was in Azuza (ok San Gabriel Valley but it counts ).

Those are my top five.

Werd!

1. Abundance: if it exists anywhere in the world, it's in LA, somewhere. From Nalley Chili, which isn't generally sold outside the PNW (which I found at a local corner store; the 99c Only stores; to Harar Beer from Ethiopia; to Israeli-made or Lebanese-made fresh-packed hommus; to generally-unavailable-in-the-US Robe Di Kappa athletic clothes from Italy... all here. Hell: you can get an R32-34 Nissan Skyline GT-R, which was never sold in the US, from one of three different converters in the LA area (get out your wallet!).

2. The Santa Monica Mountains: not only did I canyon race here and have some of the most amazingly exciting moments of my life, but I also had some of the most pleasant, enchanting, and memorable day-hikes in Laurel, Coldwater, Topanga, and Malibu canyons, among others. Friends and I sneaked onto the old Will Rogers Ranch after dark and made our way up to Inspiration Point to see the entire LA basin lit-up as far as the eye could see. Caught a rattler that crossed our path - skill I learned during the years of my chilhood I spent in the Oregon desert. Freaked the hell out of the girl I was on a date with, but made her think I was badass, and then made her think I was really sweet because I let it go gently.

3. Food: Los Angeles has some of the best dining out there, I don't care what any gourmet-nazi says to me. Mexican Village on Beverly has the best guacamole on earth; the El Rojo at La Cabana at Lincoln & Rose is one of the best goddamned burritos on earth; Merkato for Ethiopian; Hungry Pocket on Pico across from SMC for Middle Eastern; Cha Cha Chicken in Santa Monica for Caribbean (the jerk/sour cream sauce is [b]amazing[/i] and worth the trip on its own); El Texate for Oaxacan; Mi Jo Ri on 3rd in Koreatown for Korean-Japanese; China Wok for Chinese delivery; California Vegan for Asian vegetarian stuff... the list goes on and on and on and never really ends, all told. Next time I go back, I'm staying for two weeks just so I can hit all my old haunts!

4. The beaches. Bonfires at Dockweiler... red tide on Venice... moonlit clandestine beer-party in Malibu. I used to live three blocks from the water in Venice, and worked at the Casa Del Mar in Santa Monica: my commute every day was walk three blocks to the sand, then walk up the sand along the water's edge for about a mile. Nothing like a walk on the beach at sunset!

5. The sheer number of good bands and fun shows to attend.

Then, there's also what I like to call the "surreal factor" of living in LA, which I guess can be off-putting to some: I walked downstairs to the bar in the Chateau Marmont from a suite where there was a party I was attending that ended up being a bit too "jetset" for my sensibilities, and I took a seat - next to Marilyn Manson, who I ended up having a remarkably normal conversation with. I also nearly hit a Lexus that pulled out in front of me once, leaned on the horn, shouted some heavy profanity out the window - and realized I was screaming at Whoopi Goldberg. A few days after that, Dennis Rodman cut me off in a Bentley and yelled at me for driving too slow. I picked up a girl while taking Japanese at SMC, and it turned out that her dad was a multimillionaire who lives at the top of Stradella in Bel-Air. I got into a street race with a Maserati that ended up being driven by Sinbad. Don't think that any of these things could have occured elsewhere in the world!