Goin' to California! (cue led zeppelin) My wife got a job there. We're sure glad to be moving on. Ten years is too long to live in one place, and ten years is *definitely* too long to live in Memphis.
So what can I expect? Is it a nice place to live?
been out here sincem ay and love it for more detailed info email me and i will let you know the good bars, clubs, reastaurants and the fun with mexico
Well. . .
-Housing is outrageously expensive (especially right now the prices are on the tail end of a "bubble" so they have already started dropping slightly. Slightly).
-The local government has shady operations.
-Tourism is a huge and growing industry.
-There are lots of nice beaches, parks (including Balboa Park which is bigger than New Yorks Central Park), and museums.
-There is a a lot of high tech support for industry and science research. Also having the highest numbers of computers per capita at one time, and now having the second or third highest rate of High Speed Interenet connections per capita, after San Jose and San Francisco (I think).
-The largest number of indian reservations, 18 (there are actually 21 tribes), of any county in the USA. And subsequently at least three-five good size casino's located out "in the sticks."
Were you looking for any type of information in particular? What part of town will your wife be working in?
Mutant_Pie
Dang, I was hoping San Diego would be the one city in the country that doesn't!
Otherwise it sounds nice.
I'm interested mainly in a brief description of what the different neighborhoods are like so we can figure out where to look for an apartment. Someplace on the affordable side would be nice since at first we'll be on only one salary. My wife will be in the San Diego Symphony, mainly working slightly inland from downtown (Copley Symphony Hall), but occasionally some other places as well (California Center for the arts in escondido, East County Performing Arts Center).
When looking for a place to live, do we need to watch out for flood/earthquake prone areas? My impression is that San Diego doesn't have nearly the problems that other parts of CA have.
give bankers hill a try, it is west of balboa park, and about 5 minutes from copley hall, i live in gaslamp about 5 minutes south of copley and by 5 minutes i mean walking distance. only a couple earthquakes in the past year, usually they are very faint and at 1 in the morning so you are asleep and don't even know it is an earthquake
Bankers Hill doesn't cost the same as La Jolla, but it is one of the more expensive mid-town area's.
South Park is cheaper, close enough to downtown, and has a real neighborhood feel to it. Ocean beach is not too bad, the cheaper apartments are a little worn, and it is kind of a longterm hippie/surfer hangout.
Downtown, Little Italy, Bankers Hill, Coronado Island are all close to downtown, nice, and expensive. North Park, Hillcrest, Golden Hills, Old Town are a little less expensive, still nice, and somewhat close to downtown.
You might also consider transportation. If you wife plays a small instrument, like a piccalo (sic?) that is easy to carry, think about a location along side the trolly line. It goes downtown and I think Copley Symphony Hall is 2 blocks north of the C-Street Trolley. Mission Valley (our flood plain, that actually did very well considering how heavy the rains were this year), Old Town, and Little Italy have easy Trolley access to the north of downtown. National City, Chula Vista, Tiajuana (if you want really cheap) are less nice, but are cheaper and follow the trolley line south. La Mesa, Lemon Grove, (soon) the college area (SDSU), El Cajon, and even Santee are much further away, but also have trolley access. Buy a good Thomas Bros. map book of the area, drive around to check out the neighborhoods, and plan accordingly.
Mutant_Pie
try sandiego.craigslist.org you can find some good places at low prices there, it is how i found my apartment here.