As we get ready to depart San Francisco for the center spine of the state, I’ve been thinking about San Francisco, especially in contrast to Los Angeles.
I’ve always made the distinction between “East Coast” and “West Coast” cities. New York is the model East Coast city; Los Angeles is the model West Coast city. In this scheme, St. Louis and San Francisco are East Coast; Kansas City is West Coast. I’m sure you can add to the list. What makes the difference is manyfold, but includes things like urban density, formality, whether people actually live in the heart of the city (few folks live in downtown Los Angeles, although there are efforts to change that).
SF is a much more populated city core. People live here; visitors visit here. There are actually things to do in the core of the city (as opposed to downtown LA, although they are trying to change that with LA Live). I like the populated core, although it makes the parking a pain. Parking is one thing I do not like about San Francisco.
SF has districts; LA has communities which are much more like individual cities. The SF districts are colorful and vibrant. Some LA communities/cities are the same (WeHo, Fairfax, Melrose, NoHo, Hollywood), but many are just more residential. There are some similarities, but each are distinct. I did enjoy the Haight; the Mission District along Valencia was OK; but along Mission it reminded me of downtown LA. But some SF areas (such as Nob Hill, where we were staying) are quite distinct. Pacific Heights reminded us of Toluca Lake or Larchmont.
The street layout can be a pain in SF, but I do like the street names in concrete at the corners. The LA urban core is much easier to navigate, and parking is much easier. You may not believe me, but drivers are saner in the core of Los Angeles than the core of San Francisco.
I do believe prices for restaurant meals are lower in Los Angeles. However, San Francisco has a greater density and quality in the urban core. LA’s good restaurants are more spread out.
Going to San Francisco has made me realize what Los Angeles’ problem is. LA never embraces itself — it always feels the #2 spot. It tries to be New York or San Francisco or Chicago. It never just accepts itself as uniquely Los Angeles: a collection of suburbs and communities that pulls together as a city when necessary.
That said: I’m a LA-boy. I’m native LA, lived all my life in LA. I’ve enjoyed this visit to San Francisco, but I think I’m ready to get on the road again, and start working my way south.
