Nothing to add, except we can be as stereotyped as any other major city. I live more or less in the Haight, and I am not some freakazoid hippy moon unit. (Aside: When I told my Mom where I had moved to, her response: “HATE street? That doesn’t sound like a very nice place to live.” :))
I chalk that up to a language barrier on one hand and the ol’ “do not approach the crazy bus-riding person” on the other. Plus, unlike other towns, people walk everywhere here - we’re not out on a stroll, we’re commuting by foot. You wouldn’t get anywhere if you stopped to smile and say hello to everyone you passed.
Another aside: When my parents were out here visiting, we were waiting for the light to change at a crosswalk, and as the light changed a young Asian woman standing in front of us was scrolling through her phone, not paying attention, so my Dad put his hand on her shoulder and said excuse me. Upon touching her, she proceeded to scream and take off on a dead run. My response to his look of shock: “Dad, it’s not a good idea to touch complete strangers on the street here.”
<sniff> <sniffsniff> Do I smell a Dopefest?
Can’t add anything that hasn’t already been said. Traffic, bad. Prices, bad. Everything else, totally awesome.
Okay, I’ll also add my favorite Golden Gate Park factoid: when they were planning the park, the city fathers originally tried to hire the firm that created Central Park in New York City. They refused the job, saying it would be impossible.
Yes the leaves change and fall here - I pulled a ton of them out of my gutters last weekend. But in the East the streets are narrower and the trees are closer together (and often older) so the Fall is more spectacular. It’s not just Vermont, some streets in Princeton are just gorgeous in October, far nicer than anything here.
Me, I still have my snow shovels. I’d love a good snow - the crappy drivers would wipe themselves out, and the traffic would get much better.
Speaking of bad drivers, there is something that the OP ought to know.
Californians cannot drive in rain. Most of us (not me, or any other Dopers, naturally) are terrible drivers when weather happens. So be prepared. Also, cities in CA seem to be built on the assumption that since it doesn’t rain much, no one needs to plan for when it does rain. So a lot of streets flood, and hills fall over, and the evening TV news people say things like “Storms 2004. Will the rain ever stop?” when it has, in fact, been raining for all of two days.
Too true. And a lot of them don’t turn their headlights on in the rain, even when it’s raining quite heavily. I guess they never look for other cars around them, so they don’t know why it’s a big deal that you can’t see them :rolleyes:
The overreaction to weather that would be considered normal anywhere else extends to high and low temperatures, too. I thought it was hilarious when I moved out here, how there were front-page news stories about a heat wave. The new record high for San Francisco for August 1 was 83 degrees.
I see several comments about bad drivers in the SF area. I was there in September, and spent some time driving around. I was amazed at how good the drivers were. There wasn’t a whole lot of weaving in and out of traffic, people knew how to merge, when the lights changed, they went, and they just seemed to be sensible and competent. Driving in the city reminded me a bit of Chicago, where when you need to go, you GO, and don’t mess around.
We hear a lot of crap around here (Colorado) about the crappy California drivers, but I’ve driven in both SF and LA, and I find drivers there to be a lot better than drivers here. I hold it to be true whenever you see someone driving in Colorado make a truly bonehead move, you can almost predict that they will have Pioneer plates on their car (Pioneer license plates are given to people who’s families have been here since the 1800s).
Is the perception in CA really that the drivers are bad there?
Hoo boy, you got that right. I was driving to work today in downpour conditions on 101 S before 92, and here comes a young woman in a Miata, going about 75 mph. Needless to say, I got to watch her hydroplane, completely lose control, slam into the guardrail, then spin all the way across the highway and slam into the construction wall on the shoulder. Nice move, A.J.
What cracks me up are the graphics the news programs flash up there. "STORM FRONT 2004!!!"with a black cloud and a lightning bolt coming out of it. Cut live to Sal Castaneda in his Morton Salt raincoat breathlessly reporting from Pacifica, where there’s been reports of a drizzle.
I’d like to speak up for Silicon Valley, where I live, which I think is just lovely. Of course, I grew up in the “soulless” suburbs, so maybe that’s what I’m used to. We have access to all the good parts of the bay area, but things are more relaxed and spread out and clean and there’s actual PARKING most of the time.
Note that Max lives in Palo Alto, which is on the southernmost part of the S.F. peninsula. There is a string of lovely towns in this area: Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Mountain View, etc. The Peninsula is the nicest part of Silicon Valley by far – we go there whenever possible. (Really, most of the people I know don’t even include it as Silicon Valley, which is much more accurately represented by such areas as Sunnyvale and San Jose, i.e. suburban wasteland.)
It is true that parking in Silicon Valley is ample. I used to live in Berkeley, and only ever used my car to go grocery shopping and to leave Berkeley. Otherwise, it’s just not worth it.
sticks her tongue out at Giraffe ~ I live in Fremont, south of Hayward, north of San Jose. The housing prices are better than they are on the peninsula, the schools are good, it’s got a low crime rate, and people are actually friendly.
Second the atrocious driving habits, though. It rained today. Nobody could remember how fast to go.
My favorite part of living here: Winter is optional. Say it with me: Winter. Is. Optional. My son has never seen a snow shovel in his life. My daughter thinks that snowsuits are something you stick in the closet til you’re ready to go skiing. I’ve never put storm windows on my house, chains on my tires, or owned a set of thermal underwear. Add to that great food not more than two blocks in any direction of my home, music, museums, theater, bookstores, 7 (I think?) major sports teams, golf courses out the wazoo, windsurfing, skiing, Napa Valley, the Pacific Ocean. All of which, IMO, make up for higher gas prices and housing prices. Plus, Dubya never comes here.
I live in Fremont also, and Maureen is right. Of course housing prices being better is only relative. My house has gone up a ridiculous amount the 8 years I’ve owned it. But I do have enough lawn to break out a sweat when I mow it - but not enough to need a power mower.
The first day of rain every year inspires big headlines in the local papers. I’ve been in 20 inch blizzards with less media attention. I saw five accidents on the way to work yesterday morning, with just a drizzle and no traction problems I’ve noticed. And we do have bad drivers. This is the only place I know of where the right lane of the freeway moves faster than the left.
Fremont has the advantage of being at the end of BART, letting you get into SF fairly easily while still enjoying nice suburban living. It is more of a family place though, so I’m not sure I’d recommend it for someone single and right out of school.
