anybody live or lived in L.A ?

Question

if so whats the places to stay away from and are there many threats of terrorism please my daughter is due to move there in 10 weeks and she is only 18, do u think she will be ok moving there from england? also any advice for her?

Answer 1

It's more about where you stay or live. The West side by UCLA is still very nice. So is Granada Hills and parts of Northridge near CSNU, Woodland Hills, Thousand Oaks, over the hill in Valencia (near Cal Arts), up in the Hills of Glendale, a lot of Glendale and Burbank is still ok. Downtown in a small area is also ok as long as you stay around the big hotel area on Spring st and don't go wandering off.

All the nicer places, however, are quite expensive.

Terrorism is mostly from the Gangs and these are mostly young people 13 to 35 and they are ethnically split and all ethnicities are involved. They are clustered into area like East LA, Most of the central valley, Eagle Rock, parts of Glendale and to a lesser degree Burbank, Compton and the area around USC.

Don't go walking late at night until you really know the area. Don't go joy riding in cars day and especailly night, in side streets around areas you don't know.

Make friends and learn the ropes of your area.

To be frank, it's PROBABLY not much different than London. London has some similar problems.

If she can handle herself in London she can in LA, but LA is not very friendly. People don't talk to people on the street. It's filled with a bunch of self-involved Zenophobes or huskesters and gang bangers.

Girls aren't picked on much, but, as with London, they are targets of sexaul assualt and hoots and hollars from the gang guys, mostly.

The blacks are probably vastly different then they are in England. They are more like what you see in Music Videos.

Like I said, if she can walk London in the evening she can probably handle LA once she learns the ropes.

You really need a car in LA. Transportation sucks. Nothing public moves after midnight. There are almost no cabs. And all the busses are crowded at rush hour.

You didn't say what she was going there for. If it was college, then except for USC and Cal State LA she'll be near good neighborhoods.

I lived all over most of the place, including the central vally and East LA and only had some minor inconviences.

The area is very ethniclly diverse, but they all tend to cluster into neighborboods. There are Persian, Syrian, Armenian, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Shiks, Egyptian, Lebonese, Romainian, Russian, blacks, scattered whites and a lot of Hispanics (Mexicans, Guatamalans, Salvadorians).

There are also a lot of "street people" in downtown, Hollywood, etc..

You're going to have to get use to that. These are like "professional" street people who live off spare change, welfare and reside in card board boxes under the freeways.

These are big city phenomenons and NYC and Chicago as them also.

I don't mean to make it sound scarey, but there will be some cultural shock from all sides. Including the West Side which is where all the UCLA and professionals live.

Flats (apartments) and liable to be strange also. Multi story boxes with white walls, amber carpets, air conditioiners and cheap furniture and cabinets.

Everything is stucco covered, even most of the houses, all in pastel colors. No basements anywhere. Everyone has a swimming pool.

It's either single family homes or aparment boxes. Rarely see a split level or upstairs, either.

And she will have to get adjusted to Earthquakes. You get one or two small ones a year, they shake you in your bed and the first time you feel one it scares you half to death. By years three you don't even notice them anymore. You make casual comments like "Felt like a big 3. Ouuh, that was a four! Ah, not even much of a two!"

Only two major ones ever hit and they were decades apart and LA isn't due for another biggy for a good 5 to 10 years.

The big Earthquake joke is don't get caught in a Veterans hospital when one happens (for some reason, they always sink).

All in all from what I hear about England, it's quite similar. You have some gang problems these days, robberies, rapes, general street crime, problems with the ethnic groups and poverty or lack of jobs.

I'm not sure how much URBAN SPRAWL you have, but there is little country side in California EXCEPT for the FARMLANDS.

To be frank, you can get on a freeway and it'll look like Los Angeles from San Diego to San Francisco. Nothing but buildings all over the place.

Los Angeles is literally 100 square miles in size.

Let's see important stuff!

Buy a Thomas Guide if you are intending to go around the city. They're like $25. The LA and Orange county one is very handy. Almost anyone has one. Shows you ever street. A big book of Yahoo type maps

The LA Weekly is a free paper that will tell you something about what's going on in most of the city.

The Bus and rail system is on the internet and has a trip planner.

Durring daylight you can get to most place by bus and train. But a car is almost a necessity unless you want to be a hermit.

She should get a gal pal or two to travel with. Especailly one from the area.

Answer 2

Is she going to school out there? I just moved out of L.A. I lived there for 30 years and have been all over that damn city :-) My advice would be if she is going to be driving....get a map of the freeway system (there are lots and it can get confusing), if she is going to be in school then find a sorority (the girls will take her under their wing and keep her out of trouble), dont believe what the guys tell you (girls with accents are like trophies in L.A.). Holly wood has a great music scene (Troubador, Roxy, Whiskey A Go Go) and is good for celeb sightings. Orange County has the cleanest beaches if she is gonna actually go IN the water. Venice Beach is a must see on a weekend....drum circles, street performers, lots of fun. Most of all L.A. is a HUGE city. Start from home and work your way out so you get to know the area a bit before you go on any big adventures. Hope that helps a bit.....Enjoy!!

Answer 3

Nobody "lives" in L A (or the entire USA for that matter.
They survive, but with their political system, it's just not possible to "live".
I'd say "Stay away from the USA; go to England, they seem to be more alive there".

Answer 4

california is stuffed with people......TOO many people as a count number of actuality, that's why our freeways are constantly finished of site visitors.....i stay in orange county....too many people right here lol

Answer 5

tell her to stay away from East L.A. - gangster territory