Living in Los Angeles: Venice, CA
Known for its boho-chic, Venice is a casually eclectic, sunnily artsy beach town in Los Angeles.
Stroll shopping district Abbot Kinney and window shop everything from crowded antique and vintage stores to carefully edited boutiques of high-end independent designers; walk alongside the Venice Canals and face neighboring cozy craftsman homes and shining minimalist modern houses; dine at an Asian fusion bistro or snag take-out at a homestyle Chinese hipster dive.
Live in Venice and see Los Angeles’ high-end design meet its hipster street.
Living in Los Angeles: Studio City, CA
Ventura Blvd. winds through most of the San Fernando Valley, and plays as Studio City’s main street.
Cruise on Ventura Blvd. and see designer boutique shopping sprinkled between major chain stores, breeze by Starbucks and four-star sushi dives, glimpse multi-million dollar homes in Studio City’s hills to your side, keep driving southeast until Ventura Blvd. morphs into Cahuenga Blvd., and land in Hollywood’s heart and hustle, and understand Studio City:
Hollywood’s casual glam softened by suburban convenience.
Living in the Inland Empire: Riverside, CA
Founded in the 19th century largely by English and Canadian investors, Riverside was home to southern California’s first polo and golf courses. And in the midst of its quiet suburbia, Riverside’s most notable building is the historical Mission Inn, a famed hotel modeled after various European architectures.
A stroll through the Mission Inn is a miniature Grand Tour of Europe: walk narrow passageways that echo a Tuscan village, sun in a Spanish courtyard overlooked by a Medieval clock tower, admire Tiffany stained-glass windows in its St. Francis Chapel, dine in one of its three restaurants and know a New World hotel rich in Old World culture, understand a city that’s a classic melange of international influences.
Living in Los Angeles: Westwood, CA
While Los Angeles neighborhood Westwood is famously home to UCLA’s sprawling campus and most definitely a college town, Westwood is equally a glossy business district of skyscraper offices and penthouse apartments.
With Wilshire Blvd. as its backbone, Westwood is a central district of Los Angeles, and equally centered in its university fame and multi-million-dollar high-rise real estate: Westwood Village is a cozy shopping district both bustling late night while one of the safest parts of Los Angeles, Westwood Village is both In N’ Out and Nappa Valley Grille, Westwood is a few minutes west of glitzy Beverly Hills and south of hipster Sawtelle.
Living in Los Angeles: San Marino, CA
With one of the best public school systems in Los Angeles, a disinterest in chains (could this be the one neighborhood in Los Angeles with only one Starbucks?), and a dedication to cultivating a quiet community, San Marino is small-town smart in the middle of Los Angeles’ entertainment-centered metro.
Home to railroad magnate Henry E. Huntington’s estate - now a public library and park - , San Marino still has a bit of back East old school charm and manners: in place of Barnes & Noble is the San Marino Toy & Book Shoppe, grocery boutique and takeout cafe Julienne’s idea of a hamburger is dressed in Gruyere cheese and caramelized onions, and San Marino is locally famed for its decorating the St. Albans Rd.’s tall trees with Christmas lights come holiday season.
Living in Los Angeles: Hancock Park, CA
Nestled between Beverly Hills, Hollywood, and downtown Los Angeles, Hancock Park is quiet, glammy, convenience in LA.
Sometimes called “Old Beverly Hills,” Hancock Park first began thriving in the 1920’s and 30’s, when many of Hancock Park’s classic Spanish- and Mediterranean-style homes were built by some of the most prominent architects of the time. Conservative in comparison to the rest of Los Angeles, Hancock Park’s tree-lined neighborhoods surrounding the Wilshire Country Club are complemented by Larchmont Blvd., a strip of boutique shopping and star-sprinkled al fresco dining.
Living in San Diego: San Diego, CA
Named the safest city in the nation in fall 2006, famed for its sunny SoCal sands, more than a comfortable beach town, San Diego is a glittery metro of waterfront skyscrapers, loft homes, and five-star hotels.
Tagged one of the six centers of innovation, while San Diego has preserved its historic Gaslamp Quarter of Victorian buildings, San Diego is also a leader in biotechnology, communications, and software development. San Diego’s dedication to both its past and future-present meet in San Diego’s recent revival of its East Village: once an industrial district, San Diego’s East Village has been transformed into a modern live/work/play community.
Living in San Diego: Carlsbad, CA
Named after one of the then most famed spas in Europe, as Carlsbad’s fresh water was so similar to the spas’, Carlsbad’s old world resort origins still well into the suburb’s high quality of living.
Carlsbad’s quality of life stems from modern values - high-performing schools, low population density, and environment protection - and Carlsbad’s charm grows out of the town’s dedication to preserving its past - streets such as Highland Drive lack new sidewalks and street lighting to preserve a country vibe.
Carlsbad’s three lagoons, its Hosp Grove, a grove of trees that serves as a public park, and its quaint downtown maintain Carlsbad’s village charm that complements internationally-famed golf courses and worldly hotels and spas, such as the five-star Four Seasons Aviara Resort and La Costa Resort & Spa.
Living in Los Angeles: Long Beach, CA
Surfing? Check. Mexicali taco dives? Check. College beach town scene? Check.
Thriving arts district?
Check.
It’s easy to cruise through Long Beach on a weekend and vibe a twenty-something-year-old’s partyland, but slip down the eastern side of downtown Long Beach to its East Village, and discover boutiques selling everything from mid-century antiques to custom sneakers to hundred-dollar designer denim. Catch Long Beach Transit’s free Village Tour D’art and view the Long Beach Performing Arts Center, Long Beach Sports Arena, the Art Deco Breakers Hotel, the Museum of Latin American Art, the Oceanic Art Museum, historical churches, shop Long Beach Promenade shopping centers, and dine in Long Beach’s West Village.
Metro meets surf?
Check.
Living in San Diego: La Jolla, CA
Supposedly named after the word “jewel” (”la joya”) in Spanish, or a corruption of a pirate’s “Ahoy,” La Jolla is most likely “La Jolla” after the Native American word “Woholle,” which translates into “hole in the mountain,” a reference to the caves in the cliffs next to La Jolla Cove Park.
True or not, all these origins of La Jolla’s name point at the surfside resort community’s culture: technically part of San Diego, it shares in the city’s Spanish origins; a Mediterranean climate and vibe make La Jolla seem a southern Euro treasure; and its dramatic coastline of caves, cliffs, and canyons gives off rugged island glamour.
As gorgeously rough as La Jolla’s landscape is, its downtown is posh: upscale boutiques and famed restaurants make Prospect St. and Girard Ave. feel a touch Beverly Hills, La Valencia Hotel was a movie star fav during the silent film era, and PGA TOUR Buick Invitational is hosted by Torrey Pines Golf Course.
