<p>YES! This is a great convo!!! I lived in SoCal for three years, from seventh to ninth grade–before that I lived in the Bay Area for a year and a half and in Israel for ten years, while after that I lived in NY for two years and now I’m again in the Bay Area, and all I can say is:</p>
<p>SoCal is the worst place in the U.S. to reside in.</p>
<p>The weather is so dull and routine. I always looked forward for May Gray and June Gloom. “Urban sprawl” is the most accurate definition for the cities of L.A., San Diego, and all the others–they have no downtown area at all, only buildings that stretch from one horizon to another, or a concentration of restaurants that residents call “downtown” but is in fact a street of restaurants (shudder.) And the people–urgh, the people! Middle school was the worst two years of my life. SoCal people are so full of it. It was a perpetuated popularity contest between the most abhorrently irritating people I’ve ever encountered, everywhere. Evil was ubiquitous. </p>
<p>Earthquakes. UCs down the drain. SHOPPING MALLS (how could that be a good thing?) Good CHAIN restaurants everywhere (literally, there were no non-chain restaurants in the middleclass-upscale neighborhood I lived in. it was awful.) Gas prices to gouge out your eyes about. Friends who stab you in the back. Schools that are the definition of the worst type of architecture [neo-brutalism, grr.] </p>
<p>I plan on continuing this rant at a later time.</p>
<p>I definitely enjoy living in California. UC system!! My message to custard was (mostly) a joke. But SoCal and NorCal are like completely different states, which is pretty cool.</p>
<p>Word. And even SoCal’s not that bad if you’re the right kind of person to enjoy it, and that doesn’t necessarily mean a superficial person. LA is where it’s at for the entertainment industry (but not ‘downtown’); San Francisco has more of a cultural and historical feel, but at the same time it’s liberal and very walkable. Pollution’s pretty bad depending on where you are, though. And that person who was like ‘chain-restaurants are everywhere’ (in Southern California) was also right.</p>
<p>The only sure thing I can say about the people of California is that they’re a diverse bunch.</p>
<p>Earthquakes…unlike hurricanes, there’s no warning, but in CA (at least where I live) they’re not a big deal. Wildfires (for the chaparral areas), rainstorms (North Cal) and heat waves (South Cal) are probably worried about just as much.</p>
<p>People who bashed California for the weather (for having no fall and spring, etc.) are right…depending on what city they visit.</p>
<p>A good word for all of California: museums. The abundance of universities and colleges = the abundance of museums, and this does not even include the excellent museums you find in cities big or small. A slight exception for mid-Cal…I don’t have much to say about that area.</p>
<p>Final word - great place to visit (theme parks in Southern California rock too), but not necessarily to stay unless it’s your kind of thing.</p>
<p>I would just like to say: ITS WHAT YOU PUT INTO IT!!!</p>
<p>anywhere you go there are bad things and good things. Find the good and stay there. Don’t look for perfection, its not there. Ever heard the grass always seems greener on the other side expression?</p>
<p>Yeah, the people in Silicon valley are pretty idiotic. And I’m pretty sure the Central Valley is home to the most superficial farm laborers I’ve ever had the pleasure of laying eyes on.</p>
<p>NorCal does NOT have more pollution than any other place in the US. Probably less, actually. As far as “general ickyness,” I’d agree that the Golden Gate Bridge is pretty icky. I mean, a long red suspension bridge linking San Francisco to the Marin foothills, the blindingly blue sky and SF Bay laid out before it, featuring a magnificent view of the SF skyline. ICK!!!</p>
<p>However, as a transplant from Seattle and a lover of winter and rain, I’m going to have to concede that the weather HELLA sucks. (Yeah, that’s right. We have the best slang, too.)</p>
<p>I’ve never lived in California, but I’ve seen a lot of it. There are a lot of nice areas in the state, but there are also some crummy ones. It depends on which part you’re talking about. I think the Bay Area is a really nice place to visit and live in. San Francisco is a really fun city. But, of course, there are some parts of the North and East bay that aren’t so nice. Los Angeles can be a headache with urban sprawl, but there are enough redeeming qualities there that I think I could handle living there for four years.</p>
<p>@TRUFFLIEPUFF Upstate New York and New York City are opposites. One is more country and closer to New England in culture, while the city is more about diversity, fashion, and world culture. </p>
<p>NYC has the lowest crime rate lower than SoCal and all the major cities in the US. Prostitution is very, very low. Traffic is lower when compared to Los Angeles. And there’s way less pollution since almost all New Yorkers use the subway. And a recent survey has been taken showing that New York is actually the most respectful city of its size. And, on drugs don’t argue with that. Many of the drugs go through SoCal, and lets not forget the big weed culture people speak of in LA. Really, don’t say things you have no clue of.</p>
<p>To the topic, not everyone in SoCal is fake I hope. But many people do hype Cali to be this place of wonder and delight.</p>