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[Just_myles]

Yes, there's a bunch of transplants on the east side, but it's nowhere near as bad, not even comparable to the west side. The west side is just a massive shit show. It's like a massive breast implant. I hate it.

I disagree. East side is almost completely gentrified. Go and ask anyone if their a native to LA, hell even Southern California. They keep going "east".

When did "east side" ever become a thing?

I used to live in Eagle Rock and heard gunshots and cop cars every night, now it's an "artist community". Fucking lol.

Exibit A above.

Koreatown and echo park used to be rough in the 90s with all the gangs. Look what has happened in the past 10-15 years.

I wonder what hood is next.

 

[Cromwell]

As someone looking to work in television, this is disappointing.

Spoiler

San Gabriel Valley local here.

The TV and film industry has expanded beyond LA in recent years. LA will always be "the top" but you don't have to live there to have a career. Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, New York, Austin, some other places I can't think of are all options and IMO any of them would be better than LA.

Also, if you're willing to relocate to Europe, Northern Ireland and other parts of the U.K. are doing quite well.

 

[FStop7]

I want to spend more time in LA, I got the impression when I visited there that:

1) There is an unbelievable amount of shit to do in the area
and
2) That it is laid out in a way that is absolutely infuriating and the antithesis of what I want a city to be like

edit: my company has an office in el segundo, would be cool to do a 2 year rotation there...

There is an unbelievable amount of shit to do but traffic is such a hellish nightmare that you never do more than about 10% of what you actually want to in the space of a year.

Yeah, do tourists even know where Santa Monica is lol.

Santa Monica's a pretty big tourist place. 3rd St. Promenade, the pier, all the way inland to Brentwood/Westwood.

 

[Zaraki_Kenpachi]

Been tempted to move to California recently but not sure I could make enough to live there, plus might set me back on getting my masters.

 

[Chiggs]

I used to live in Eagle Rock and heard gunshots and cop cars every night, now it's an "artist community". Fucking lol.

When I used to work for the now-defunct Adelphia Communications, I was in charge of a regional dispatch department in Colorado Springs that handled Los Angeles metro. We had a rule about paging out technicians to fix cable tv issues in Eagle Rock: no one goes out past 8pm, except if there is a widespread outage; and in that case, teams of 3-4 techs would be mandated.

One technician got beaten, robbed and sexually assaulted back in the mid-nineties, hence the creation of the rule. I should mention the beating, robbery and sexual assault all took place at once, although I'm unsure of the sequence.

 

[starchild excalibur]

cool thread op. I got into art center so i'm gonna be moving there soon, hopefully in pasadena. my friends live in a 3br/2ba in alhambra/south pasadena for about 1450

I went to art center.

Enjoy the deeeeeeeeebt.

 

[TAJ]

The traffic wasn't really an issue for me since my job was in the South Bay and I moved to the South Bay. I liked it there. Some parts have terrible freeway access, though. (but not where I was)

 

[NoRéN]

I disagree. East side is almost completely gentrified. Go and ask anyone if their a native to LA, hell even Southern California. They keep going "east".

When did "east side" ever become a thing?



Exibit A above.

Koreatown and echo park used to be rough in the 90s with all the gangs. Look what has happened in the past 10-15 years.

I wonder what hood is next.

I can answer that. Boyle Heights.

 

[Figboy79]

I've lived in Los Angeles for about 18 years now, since I was 19 years old, and it's been both amazing and fucking god awful.

I still prefer living here than Milwaukee. Milwaukee was a miserable, hateful place. Los Angeles is full of pretentious wannabes, but at least there's the ocean, pretty amazing weather most of the year (with the occasional heat wave or Earthquake to keep it from being perfect), and absolutely gorgeous women. That last one doesn't mean as much to me now that I'm married, but it's still rather nice.

I had to learn the hard way that some people in this city are fucking sharks. I've been lied to, manipulated, robbed, had concepts and ideas stolen, only to have them turn up on the big screen and make millions. It's not a city for the faint of heart, that's for sure.

I didn't even come LA with big dreams or delusions of grandeur. I just wanted to get the fck as far away from Milwaukee as I could, and also find out what it was like in the city of my birth (born in LA, raised in Milwaukee). There have been more ups than down, and I have met some amazing people, and lifelong friends, not to mention my wife, who's also not an LA native. It's an expensive city to live in, but not a difficult one. We're currently living closer to the East Side of LA, near downtown, in a one bedroom apartment paying $769 a month with electricity included. We used to live in Culver City, in a 2 bedroom for $1600, but that was insane, the area was full of snobs, and we eventually just couldn't keep up with the cost of living in that area. There are affordable places to live in Los Angeles, you may just have to make the concession of not living closer to the hot spots or the beach.

I take one bus to work, and I get reimbursed for my monthly bus pass ($100) by my job, so cost of transportation for me is literally $0. Traffic is indeed possibly the worst part of LA, but that's what my Vita and 3DS are for. I just pop in my headphones, and play my games and listen to my music while the bus driver deals with the stress of driving. I used to drive all of the time, but it just got to be too frustrating, and I highly recommend taking public transportation if heading to work will take you 1 or 2 buses, max. Back when I worked at Konami, I had to take three fucking buses to get to work, about 3 hours each way. I had to leave at 4 in the morning. Horrible. Ever since then, I made sure that I never took more than 2 buses, 1 ideally, to get to and from. It's about a 45-60 minute single bus ride during the mornings to work, and an hour and a half ride after. I can live with that. Public transportation and Uber is the only way I roll these days. lol

Eventually, me and my wife will move to a different part of the city, but our current setup is really nice. My advice to anyone planning on living here is to be careful who you trust. More than anything, make sure trust is earned. People will well and truly fuck you over, and with a smile on their face. I keep my friend circle incredibly small, and only trust a handful of people that I have known for damn near 16, 17 years.

On the positive side, I love the food, culture, and diversity here in LA. It's unlike what it was like living in Milwaukee, with a predominantly white, black, and Puerto Rican population. As a young black guy, Los Angeles taught me so much about understanding and shedding so many prejudices I didn't realize I had in my rather sheltered up-bringing. I really can't imagine now living in a city with a non-diverse population. Overall, I love it here. My wife isn't exactly a fan, but when we can, I wouldn't mind moving out of the city, but not too far out. LA is a pain in the ass, but it's actually the first place I've ever really felt like calling home.

EDIT: The East Side of LA is so fucking different than it was when I first moved out here. It was a fucking catastrophe back in '99, but now, it's a different beast entirely. The area is getting cleaned up, and gentrification has definitely made a difference here. It's really quiet, and outside of some obnoxious college students from USC, people are friendly and mostly keep to themselves. We live near a Police Station and a Fire Station, so it's really comfortable here now. There are certainly still some spots further East that I wouldn't be comfortable walking around at night, but Downtown LA has fucking transformed since I first stepped foot in the city.

 

[starchild excalibur]

We're currently living closer to the East Side of LA, near downtown, in a one bedroom apartment paying $769 a month with electricity included.

Is that per person or total? If total, then: how?

 

[GuyKazama]

Moving from San Francisco back to West LA after 5 years. Still apartment hunting, but from my perspective housing options have been pretty good!

 

[jabuseika]

The best thing about LA is the thousand hole in the wall places that have the best food you have ever tasted.

The gang violence has also gone down drastically from what it was 20 years ago.

For every "rich" asshole, there's 10 cool down to earth people, you just have to pay attention.

 

[Pendas]

I agree with a lot of what you have to say OP. I lived in LA for six months while I did some contract work, and I absolutely hated it.

First thing, lots of homeless people. There are so many homeless people all over the place. It's a huge problem and every business I walk into had a 40% chance of a homeless person sitting outside asking for money. It is REALLY bad.

Second. Traffic.. worst I've ever experienced in my life. I thought Miami was bad.. oh boy.

Third. I'm not a racist person by any means... but living there made me despise Mexicans. I know it's a horrible thing to say, and I never understood the hate for a minority until I lived in Van Nuys. Every place I went there was a family of 6-10 kids running around, being loud and obnoxious, whistling all the time. It made going out in certain neighborhood insufferable.

I had to leave. Loved the job, but I hated living in that city. I'm back on the east coast and I couldn't be happier.

 

[Parallax]

The best thing about LA is the thousand hole in the wall places that have the best food you have ever tasted.

The gang violence has also gone down drastically from what it was 20 years ago.

For every "rich" asshole, there's 10 cool down to earth people, you just have to pay attention.

i tell everyone i know about this when they talk about the people here being assholes. there are assholes here sure. massive ones. but the majority of the people here are very relaxed

 

[Glendemonium]

I don't know if anyone could pay me to live in LA, San Deigo maybe... but not LA.

 

[NoRéN]

Third. I'm not a racist person by any means... but living there made me despise Mexicans. I know it's a horrible thing to say, and I never understood the hate for a minority until I lived in Van Nuys. Every place I went there was a family of 6-10 kids running around, being loud and obnoxious, whistling all the time. It made going out in certain neighborhood insufferable.

Mexicans, huh. You ask them where they are from?

 

[MattKeil]

OP, I think you hit on something important overall in your post, which is that you have to go to LA, it's not going to come to you. It's about finding your people, finding your niche, finding what you love, and making that available to yourself. A lot of cities aren't like that, but LA makes you pursue your happiness way more than most people are used to; certainly more than I was used to after years in SF.

That said, I've been here 12 years and don't have any plans to leave soon. Once you find your groove in LA, it's magic.

I lived in LA for six months

I lived in Van Nuys.

Well did you live in LA or did you live in Van Nuys? Living in the Valley is a vastly different experience from living in Los Angeles, although I don't know if it would make a difference on your "I hate Mexicans" thing. WTF.

 

[mollipen]

When I used to work for the now-defunct Adelphia Communications, I was in charge of a regional dispatch department in Colorado Springs that handled Los Angeles metro. We had a rule about paging out technicians to fix cable tv issues in Eagle Rock: no one goes out past 8pm, except if there is a widespread outage; and in that case, teams of 3-4 techs would be mandated.

One technician got beaten, robbed and sexually assaulted back in the mid-nineties, hence the creation of the rule. I should mention the beating, robbery and sexual assault all took place at once, although I'm unsure of the sequence.

As someone who's been to Eagle Rock on a regular basis in the past six years, that's crazy for me to hear. I know some parts of the area still look a little sketchy, but I can't imagine it that bad.

 

[NoRéN]

As someone who's been to Eagle Rock on a regular basis in the past six years, that's crazy for me to hear. I know some parts of the area still look a little sketchy, but I can't imagine it that bad.

Yeah, it was bad.

 

[PAULINK]

From someone who lived in Seoul without a car, the amount of public transportation was nice. Such a nice looking city, wish I had more time to look around while I was there for e3 last year.

Was very thankful gaffer Kevtones let me crash on his couch for the week though!

 

[Shogmaster]

Almost forgot to post this--lived up to all its hype, in my opinion. The sandwiches, the 10 cent cups of coffee, the wood shavings on the floor...really quite a place. Very close to Union Station (which is also worth checking out).

Meh... Over-rated. I'd much rather walk to the end of the block up the hill to CBS Seafood for some dimsum. Not an amazing dimsum by any stretch of imagination, but still a better meal than Philippes IMO.

 

[thefil]

Around the same time you moved to LA I moved to Orange County. With no car. So close, but so terrible.

 

[Chris R]

Visited Anaheim in April, had zero issues with people or the traffic. I firmly believe that the OPs post is filled with lies to keep people away from the LA area.

That or I only missed out on the traffic by not driving around rush hour periods.

 

[Livingskeletons]

As a native to the South Bay I appreciate the compliment.
Most people from here are pretty laid back.

Hope you enjoy LA.

 

[Chiggs]

I've lived in Los Angeles for about 18 years now, since I was 19 years old, and it's been both amazing and fucking god awful.

I still prefer living here than Milwaukee. Milwaukee was a miserable, hateful place. Los Angeles is full of pretentious wannabes, but at least there's the ocean, pretty amazing weather most of the year (with the occasional heat wave or Earthquake to keep it from being perfect), and absolutely gorgeous women. That last one doesn't mean as much to me now that I'm married, but it's still rather nice.

I had to learn the hard way that some people in this city are fucking sharks. I've been lied to, manipulated, robbed, had concepts and ideas stolen, only to have them turn up on the big screen and make millions. It's not a city for the faint of heart, that's for sure.

I didn't even come LA with big dreams or delusions of grandeur. I just wanted to get the fck as far away from Milwaukee as I could, and also find out what it was like in the city of my birth (born in LA, raised in Milwaukee). There have been more ups than down, and I have met some amazing people, and lifelong friends, not to mention my wife, who's also not an LA native. It's an expensive city to live in, but not a difficult one. We're currently living closer to the East Side of LA, near downtown, in a one bedroom apartment paying $769 a month with electricity included. We used to live in Culver City, in a 2 bedroom for $1600, but that was insane, the area was full of snobs, and we eventually just couldn't keep up with the cost of living in that area. There are affordable places to live in Los Angeles, you may just have to make the concession of not living closer to the hot spots or the beach.

I take one bus to work, and I get reimbursed for my monthly bus pass ($100) by my job, so cost of transportation for me is literally $0. Traffic is indeed possibly the worst part of LA, but that's what my Vita and 3DS are for. I just pop in my headphones, and play my games and listen to my music while the bus driver deals with the stress of driving. I used to drive all of the time, but it just got to be too frustrating, and I highly recommend taking public transportation if heading to work will take you 1 or 2 buses, max. Back when I worked at Konami, I had to take three fucking buses to get to work, about 3 hours each way. I had to leave at 4 in the morning. Horrible. Ever since then, I made sure that I never took more than 2 buses, 1 ideally, to get to and from. It's about a 45-60 minute single bus ride during the mornings to work, and an hour and a half ride after. I can live with that. Public transportation and Uber is the only way I roll these days. lol

Eventually, me and my wife will move to a different part of the city, but our current setup is really nice. My advice to anyone planning on living here is to be careful who you trust. More than anything, make sure trust is earned. People will well and truly fuck you over, and with a smile on your face. I keep my friend circle incredibly small, and only trust a handful of people that I have known for damn near 16, 17 years.

On the positive side, I love the food, culture, and diversity here in LA. It's unlike what it was like living in Milwaukee, with a predominantly white, black, and Puerto Rican population. As a young black guy, Los Angeles taught me so much about understanding and shedding so many prejudices I didn't realize I had in my rather sheltered up-bringing. I really can't imagine now living in a city with a non-diverse population. Overall, I love it here. My wife isn't exactly a fan, but when we can, I wouldn't mind moving out of the city, but not too far out. LA is a pain in the ass, but it's actually the first place I've ever really felt like calling home.

EDIT: The East Side of LA is so fucking different than it was when I first moved out here. It was a fucking catastrophe back in '99, but now, it's a different beast entirely. The area is getting cleaned up, and gentrification has definitely made a difference here. It's really quiet, and outside of some obnoxious college students from USC, people are friendly and mostly keep to themselves. We live near a Police Station and a Fire Station, so it's really comfortable here now. There are certainly still some spots further East that I wouldn't be comfortable walking around at night, but Downtown LA has fucking transformed since I first stepped foot in the city.

Great post. I echo your sentiment about not trusting people in this city.

 

[Ultima_5]

Reading the OP makes it sound like the worst fucking thing to deal with

 

[eyeball_kid]

Your insights are pretty spot-on, OP.

People always say, "If you can make it in NY, you can make it anywhere", but LA is kind of a next level version of that. It can be a rough, alienating, lonely place where many people only see you in a context of what you can do for their career. People appear superficially nice, but are quite willing to stab you in the back. At least in NY you know who your enemies are. As you say, it's hard to make good friends in that environment, and the ones you do often leave either because they get sick of the city, or the city became sick of them.

But I think you've moved to LA at a good time. The food scene (and beer scene!) is much better than it was 10 years ago, the art scene has improved, the subways are finally getting built and the city seems committed to expanding that, and though rents are high, they aren't astronomical like in SF. The city is still ugly though, and LA seems to have not cared about its architecture or public spaces since the 1940's. But at least you can stare at the ocean or mountains and pretend you're somewhere else, or drive 40 minutes and be in a forest or the desert.

It's probably going to keep getting hotter due to climate change, it's already started, and that's a worrisome thing for the next decade in terms of livability, fires, and water/electricity shortage. It might come to a point where LA is like Palm Springs, and Palm Springs is like Death Valley.

For all its flaws though, it's a city that keeps drawing you back in for more.

 

[Chiggs]

Your insights are pretty spot-on, OP.

People always say, "If you can make it in NY, you can make it anywhere", but LA is kind of a next level version of that. It can be a rough, alienating, lonely place where many people only see you in a context of what you can do for their career. People appear superficially nice, but are quite willing to stab you in the back. At least in NY you know who your enemies are. As you say, it's hard to make good friends in that environment, and the ones you do often leave either because they get sick of the city, or the city became sick of them.

It's just not a city that overwhelms you with kindness. If anything, it overwhelms you with indifference, with bouts of passive-aggressive sabotage thrown in to mix things up. I think the first year in this town is pretty tough.

I grew up in NYC too.

 

[Senoculum]

I'm visiting in the July 4th weekend! I haven't been to LA since I've been 10, and I'm terribly excited to explore the metropolis.

Not looking forward to the heat, or the price of taxiing everywhere, but I think I'll have a swell time visiting with my best man!

 

[FStop7]

I'm visiting in the July 4th weekend! I haven't been to LA since I've been 10, and I'm terribly excited to explore the metropolis.

Not looking forward to the heat, or the price of taxiing everywhere, but I think I'll have a swell time visiting with my best man!

Lyft is your friend

 

[Pendas]

Mexicans, huh. You ask them where they are from?

I've lived around Latin people my entire life, I'm Cuban and from Miami. I can pretty much tell a Latin nationality depending on how they dress, speak, and their mannerisms.

Well did you live in LA or did you live in Van Nuys? Living in the Valley is a vastly different experience from living in Los Angeles, although I don't know if it would make a difference on your "I hate Mexicans" thing. WTF.

Lived in Van Nuys, worked in LA. So I spent equal time in both parts.

 

[CosmicQueso]

I want to get out of here so desperately.

This.

Once I get out I'm never ever coming back.

 

[olympia]

What are you majoring in? Undergrad or grad? I'm starting in the fall.

undergrad. Either illustration or Entertainment Design. I got into illustration, trying again for entertainment design, either way I'm starting in 2017. You?

I went to art center.

Enjoy the deeeeeeeeebt.

thanks man. If it gets too crazy or if it's not worth it then I'm just gonna drop out and go to a CSU

 

[starchild excalibur]

I've lived in the LA area (more specifically Pasadena, and currently in San Gabriel) since 2010. The people aren't necessarily bad, just different. I came out here to pursue film, so I agree with the sentiment that you can run into a lot of superficially nice people that are mostly just looking to see if you can help them out with your career. The thing I find most depressing living out here is the state of housing affordability.

I'm an introvert so I think a lot of what shapes my happiness is being able to come back to an area that's mine and mine along to recharge. I don't really have that, even living in San Gabriel. My rent is pretty cheap here ($1200 for a 2 bedroom i share with a friend), but relative to my current pay it's not like I could afford to live on my own.

There are great areas to visit like the Angeles National Forest, Salton Sea, and museums like the Annenberg in Beverly Hills, but I think I'd weigh those things more heavily if I was just visiting for a short period of time. Living here full time, the appeal of places like Griffith Park isn't weighted as heavily for me versus the appeal of having a generally more quiet and comfortable quality of living.

If I had the opportunity to, I'd definitely live somewhere quieter that's probably not in California. I can see the appeal it has for people, but I think I'm just not compatible with it in the long term.

undergrad. Either illustration or Entertainment Design. I got into illustration, trying again for entertainment design, either way I'm starting in 2017. You?

A good buddy of mine majored in illustration at Art Center. It didn't work out for him (he's now pursuing engineering), but I don't know much about the major as a whole. You guys have some really nice teachers in your department though.

thanks man. If it gets too crazy or if it's not worth it then I'm just gonna drop out and go to a CSU

I can't speak for Illustration, but as a former film major if I could do it all over again I wouldn't - and that's regardless of if things ultimately pan out for me or not. The debt is just too crazy and (again, for film) there are too many ways to learn the craft that aren't so prohibitively expensive.

 

[MonkeyKing]

Let me say a couple of things as a native of Los Angeles.

Whenever I hear us described as being fake, shallow, backstabbing or vapid, I think, well fuck you too. It's a really big city. I associate that type of behavior with people trying to be part of the entertainment industry. Most of us, however have no part in that industry. I have seen in numerable people come to LA because they want to "make it". They are all attractive, clever and funny. Unfortunately, they find out everyone else in the industry is also attractive, clever and funny. So they get in line waiting for a call that never comes. It makes them cynical and desperate. Don't judge the rest of us by that standard and their behavior.

I was raised in the mid city/Fairfax district. I live in Pasadena now. Whenever I come back to the Westside, I am astonished by how aggressive and entitled the drivers are on the Westside. I was on Wilshire near Westwood when the kid and I were nearly run over by some fucking douche bag that couldn't be bothered waiting for a light to change. The energy on the road in that side of town is very negative and anxiety inducing.

I'm seeing a lot of gentrification lately. Part of that I think is that these "poor" neighborhoods have lower real estate. Plus I think people are tired of the long bullshit commute from the suburbs. Speaking of the commute, it wouldn't be so bad if people could learn how to ride together. I would guess that 80% of the cars on the road are single occupant vehicles. Imagine how much easier it would be if people could figure out how to carpool.

Anyway, it's home to me and I can hardly imagine living anywhere else. The food, the weather, and yes, the women. It's amazing.

Just stay off the 405. And the 105. And the 101. And the 10.

 

[olympia]

I can't speak for Illustration, but as a former film major if I could do it all over again I wouldn't - and that's regardless of if things ultimately pan out for me or not. The debt is just too crazy and (again, for film) there are too many ways to learn the craft that aren't so prohibitively expensive.

with scholarship or no? they give out 9k/term scholarships for ED apparently if you pass portfolio review.

 

[Head of Vengarl]

The traffic wasn't really an issue for me since my job was in the South Bay and I moved to the South Bay. I liked it there. Some parts have terrible freeway access, though. (but not where I was)

Yeah I live in the South Bay and the closest freeway is like 30 mins away lol.

 

[Nyoro SF]

I've lived here for two years. Some thoughts.

If I would say the smartest choice it was to live in the west side close to my work. My co-workers are literally walking coffee chugging zombies because of the traffic. I can see their souls being chipped out of their bodies. Having done a similar long commute when living in Philadelphia I can understand their current irritated, soulless state.

I find that nearly everyone I talk to is pretty nice, but I also do not work in a heavily competitive environment and I find it's pretty easy to make friends if you share similar interests.

Sometimes I really dislike how much I'm paying for rent, and it motivates me to leave, but to be honest there aren't many places I could go that services my degree and work experience while offering the conveniences I have that I've never had before while saving money on rent. Rent is on the rise in every city in the country; including my favorite EC city, Boston.

There are so many interesting places to go in LA, the place is so massive and I still haven't seen it all really.

Can't have it all but I have to call my shots and one year from now I'm going to be reviewing where I am in my life and if LA is still worth it.

 

[Robot Carnival]

Meh... Over-rated. I'd much rather walk to the end of the block up the hill to CBS Seafood for some dimsum. Not an amazing dimsum by any stretch of imagination, but still a better meal than Philippes IMO.

com'on now. at least try their lamb double dip with plenty of mustard before making that comment.

 

[mollipen]

Visited Anaheim in April, had zero issues with people or the traffic. I firmly believe that the OPs post is filled with lies to keep people away from the LA area.

That or I only missed out on the traffic by not driving around rush hour periods.

Anaheim is a completely separate world from LA proper. It might as well be a totally different state.

 

[Dennis]

Reading through this thread I am surprised at all the negativity aimed at Santa Monica.

I have never been there but one of my friends went there on holiday and wouldn't shut up about what a great place it was and how friendly people were.

Edit: lmao I just remembered he went to Santa Barbara - not Santa Monica. Maybe Santa Monica is a shithole after all lol.

 

[BobLoblaw]

Nice post OP. I'm so glad that when I moved to SoCal, I moved to OC. Still traffic and pretentious assholes, but there's more space and cleaner air here. If someone offered me 200k a year to commute into LA each day, I'd tell them to fuck off. To me, it's only a place to visit (and never longer than you have to).

 

[AniHawk]

lived in southern california my whole life and i have to usually spend about a week out of the year in los angeles for work. driving to and through the city is a fucking nightmare, and i don't ever really 'enjoy' being there, but i do find it fascinating. walk down a street for about five blocks and you can see how much of a patchwork the city really is.

your description of santa monica sounds exactly like dealing with people in orange county. people just kinda rich and feel like things are entitled to them. los angeles driving is dangerous because there's too many people. orange county driving is dangerous because too many people feel the road belongs to them and they don't need to live by the rules.

 

[Pendas]

Reading through this thread I am surprised at all the negativity aimed at Santa Monica.

I have never been there but one of my friends went there on holiday and wouldn't shut up about what a great place it was and how friendly people were.

Edit: lmao I just remembered he went to Santa Barbara - not Santa Monica. Maybe Santa Monica is a shithole after all lol.

It's a great place to visit, but a horrible place to live. The nostalgia wears off pretty fast.

 

[Shogmaster]

com'on now. at least try their lamb double dip with plenty of mustard before making that comment.

Been there many time, tried pretty much everything they have to offer. It's decent. but not amazing, especially for the prices they charge.

 

[jasminlovesyoux]

Lived in Los Angeles all my life. Grew up in Venice and used to walk or bike to Santa Monica every day after school. Through all of high school i hung out at the mall, pier arcade or 3rd Street promenade.It's not as bad as some are saying. Even was down there today. Traffic and over population aside, I still dig it over here.

 

[MonkeyKing]

Reading through this thread I am surprised at all the negativity aimed at Santa Monica.

I have never been there but one of my friends went there on holiday and wouldn't shut up about what a great place it was and how friendly people were.

Edit: lmao I just remembered he went to Santa Barbara - not Santa Monica. Maybe Santa Monica is a shithole after all lol.

Santa Monica is not a "shit hole". Van Nuys is a shit hole. Santa Monica is a very nice place unfortunately infested with obnoxious people and their cars.

 

[Pendas]

Santa Monica is not a "shit hole". Van Nuys is a shit hole. Santa Monica is a very nice place unfortunately infested with obnoxious people and their cars.

Tell me about it

 

[GamePnoy74]

Early morning weekend runs or cycling in Venice or Santa Monica is great. It feels as if you have the whole place to yourself.

But once the tourists and everyone else come over at about 10am...I can feel the crowds already giving me anxiety and want to get out ASAP.

 

[SJRB]

Those timelapses in the OP are amazing!