What do you think of San Diego, California?

DAMMIT!!!! I just wrote a multi-paragraph response to your question but had it deleted because of the system brain-fart. GRRRRRR!!!!!

San Diego is nice. Great weather, lots of museums, nice downtown. An interesting mix of ultraconservative/military and gay. It’s a Republican senator’s wet dream!

My brother-in-law lives there. I have been there about ten times over the course of the last twenty-one years.

LOVE
• The weather. Warm, nice breezes, no humidity, very few bugs, cool nights.
• The landscape. The mountains and ocean views are gorgeous.

LIKE
• Downtown San Diego. It’s very nice, but it’s no Boston.
• The people. They are so friendly. It’s great, but it freaks me out a bit.
• The food. Mexican, Argentine = Yummy. Italian, Asian = Meh.

DISLIKE
• Suburban Homogenization. All the neighborhoods, houses, shopping plazas look exactly the same.

FAVORITE PLACES TO GO
• Balboa Park
• The San Diego Zoo
• Catalina Island

@cprevite

lol…no humidity…the humidity is 70% here. Twice as much as SF. Holy crap. It’s only 70 degrees and I’m sweating like a pig it’s so humid here. Of course, I’m by downtown. I’m sure other places are less humid.

@DominicX: Well I’m comparing it to Boston-Summer humidity (or, god-forbid, Florida). Yesterday in Boston it was 85ºF with 87% humidity and no breeze – and Summer just started.

@cprevite

Ha. I remember when I used to live in Vegas. Summer humidity was 10%.

It’s gorgeous. I’m a Louisiana resident but lived in SD for 3 years in the navy. Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Sunset Cliffs, the Tidepools, Submarine base, Cabrillo Point, Hillcrest gay community, Balboa Park…..what more can I say? I used to love sitting at Sunset cliffs with the crash of the waves beating below as the sun sank into the ocean. Hillcrest’s fun clubs, boutique shops, and some great little restaurants. Balboa Parks gorgeos architectecture, horticulture, and rich natural landscapes. Ocean Beach hippy style community….Dog Beach…Climbing down the cliffs of Black’s Beach….LaJolla….paragliding….snorkling….hot SEALs…..I miss it so much! I think i need to move back!! But then again, how could I give up the 105 degree temps, 80% humidity, swamps, and mosquitoes of south Louisiana?

@deepseas72: ”But then again, how could I give up the 105 degree temps, 80% humidity, swamps, and mosquitoes of south Louisiana?”

Ugh. You win the humidity contest by a mile.

@DominicX: ...with over 100ºF heat (in the shade). LOL. Twice I drove from San Diego to Las Vegas through the desert. It was like being in a real life Road Runner cartoon. But then, off in the distance, near a butte, was a lonely silver camper (from circa 1966). Who the hell lives out there?!?!

The San Diego Zoo! Oh, it’s like wrapping up all my childhood happiness and a box.

I thought it was good for a vacation.

I liked the weather (for the time being.)
I liked LEGOLand, because I’m a kid at heart.

I disliked the environment in that nearly every plant is brown and very close to lighting on fire.
I disliked the traffic. (3 lanes is enough for me.)
I disliked how the weather barely changes, to live there, that would be very annoying.
I disliked how everything is very expensive and people are barely getting ahead economically.

(Also I’m not a fan of the gay movement, so that’s a minus for me.)

Not a fan of the gay movement? That’s like saying, I’m not a fan of my neighbor’s new car.

Why do I care if my neighbor bought a car I wouldn’t buy? I don’t.

@monsoon It’s not a literal statement, that’s all.

San Diego rules. I love the beach, the weather, the museums, the schools, the opportunities, Sprung Monkey, the theaters, the…. well ok.. I love almost all of it (except national city).

I plan on living somewhere in the San Diego area when I retire.

I love San Diego. Most of my family lives there, as did we until Hubby’s company paid us to move. We will return when he retires. The only thing bad I can think about it is the extremely high cost of housing there.

There are parts of San Diego that are too crowded, and it’s getting worse, but the overall ambiance is still better than most other places.

San Diego’s pretty sweet.
I’ve lived in SD county for 12 years now (6 years in a very suburban part, 6 years in a very rural area).

I’d love a cooler, wetter situation (Seattle, for example), but I’d definitely rather be here than a lot of other places.

Just for the record, we only have tons of 1-way streets when you’re in our most urban of areas. Nowhere that I’ve lived (nor the 2 campuses I go to now) have 1-way streets nearby.

so, what’s the secret? you going to college down here?

I visited one time on a convention with my then b/f and LOVED the place. If I can afford to live there, ever, I will. They have great restaurants, sea world, the zoo… too much to have seen in 4 short days.

San Diego is beautifully situated, and weather is better than it is in L.A. The beaches are amongst the most beautiful in California. The San Diego Zoo is world class, and I am even more impressed by Wild Animal Park. Sea World is great, too.

But, culturally, I really prefer a bigger city with more to see and do. It is also a little too conservative for me.

I could certainly live there, but other cities would be higher on my list.

San Diego holds a special place in my heart. I spent my Christmas vacations from the age of 5–15 at Pacific Beach. My grandparents lived there during the winter. We would walk (or roller skate) along the boardwalk and to the pier, collect shells, body surf and take tons of photographs. We always visited the zoo, Sea World and sometimes Tijuana. It’s a beautiful city. imo

I was just there. I visited relatives in Chula Vista and stayed with them for awhile. The beaches are just 5 miles away and the weather is nice, it doesn’t really seem to ever get really hot

Okay, I got home today, and after having been there, I will reinforce one con I mentioned before: the one-way streets are annoying as fuck. My friend really had to go to the bathroom (I was driving) and it took us like 20 minutes to find a place. Terrible. (A lot of that had to do with the fact that it was crowded and nowhere to park).

Doesn’t mean I didn’t love the place; I plan on returning many times in the future. :)

@DominicX: Glad you and your friend had a wee bit of fun.

San Diego being my hometown might make me a bit biased… but there’s a reason it’s called America’s Finest City. We have great weather year round… Activities for all tastes.. from theater to fine dining, great concerts (of every genre), tourist attractions, An awesome skyline and great cultural community, pro sports (My padres may not be doing that great right now but how can you not love the Chargers?), and the county has every kind of ecosystem you could ask for… driving distance from everything.. you can surf, hike, the desert is within county lines, Ranches on the outskirts, national forests, observatories, museums (Is there anything like Balboa anywhere else?)... skiing is a measly 2 hour drive, amazing scientific communities (UCSD has more Nobel prizes per capita than most small countries)... we’ve got it all!

There’s something for everyone in my beloved San Diego.. and the best part is the people are friendly and welcoming… most parts of the city retain a small town atmosphere (as far as ambience if not demographics). People are tolerant, helpful and for the most part always up for a good time.

I am from San Diego, and most of my family lives here.. There are great places to go around, beach, weather, school, food, everything and well diverse area.

If you are looking around, let me know and i can tell you other places to go ;) take care.