Photo: AT Los Angeles
I was intrigued by this post over at Apartment Therapy Los Angeles, which asks, “what are the perks of your neighborhood?”
I sometimes bitch and moan about living in Sacramento, not because I dislike Sacramento, but because I’ve always felt like more of an urban dweller and I feel….out of place, I suppose, here. But, there are some things I LOVE about our neighborhood, including the following:
- We’re within walking distance to a Trader Joe’s.
- We’re also within walking distance to one of the best Mexican restaurants in the city, a ridiculously well-stocked beauty supply store, a great hardware store, an absolutely lovely nursery and the home of one of our best friends (who has a pool).
- We can walk the dog sans leash while drinking wine/beer/cocktails without judgment.
- We’re incredibly close to two of the best hospitals in Northern California.
- We have a neighborhood corner store 5 houses away, and the owner lives next door. Great for beer runs!
- Loads and loads of trees.
- Proximity to a main street filled with some of the best Vietnamese, Ethiopian and Thai restaurants in the area. This street also housed the second (now defunct) Tower Records, which has reopened as R5 Records, run by the original owner.
- We’re close to Peet’s and Naked Coffee. Espressooooooooooooooyummmmy.
- We’re within walking distance to our voting location :-)
What about you? What do you love about your neighborhood? What do you look for in a great neighborhood? I know you’re dying to share!
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Ooh. Ooh. I would like to contribute!
I live in central Tel Aviv, so there are many obvi things that are awesome about my neighborhood.
1. I live right by Rotschild Boulevard, a beautiful tree-lined boulevard with cafes, Christmas lights, and little parks for children to play in. It is the cutest!
2. There are all these tiny Mom and Pop stores everywhere–a cleaning supply store, a beauty store, a grocery store, etc.
3. There’s a lady who does my eyebrows for $5 living a minute away. Yay!
4. I’m pretty close to the shuk, and grocery shopping in the shuk is the best.
5. Not sure why I haven’t mentioned this until now: Sooooo many bars right by my place. No need for a designated driver.
6. 20 minute walk from THE BEACH
7. It’s really quiet on Shabbat and on holidays.
8. Ridiculously good-looking people live in my neighborhood. It’s a fact.
9. I see Israeli celebs all the time.
10. Less terrorism?
Okay, I could go on and on, so that is enough.
I live in Atlanta and I love it. I’m in the uptown area of the city, just north of midtown and it’s great. I can easily access downtown Atlanta and the surrounding areas. My neighborhood has lots of trees and great areas for walking dogs. I’m super close to loads of restaurants, grocery stores and I can walk to my gym (great warm-up!).
I don’t live too far from work so my commute is only about 25 minutes (heaven sent for Atlanta).
I also live right behind P. Diddy’s restaurant, Justin’s and just down the street from Elton John’s condo. This is not a perk, but it’s interesting as there are always huge Escalades and Range Rovers in the parking lot. You never know who you’re going to see!
I moved to Philly 9 months ago and live in the ‘Loft District’ a few blocks north of Chinatown. I say ‘loft district’ because it is really just a phrase coined by realtors who don’t actually want to tell you that it’s kind of gritty, still sort of industrial, more than a little dirty and there are 3 homeless shelters within a 5 block radius because that would scare people off :) That being said, I live in a former artist materials warehouse with high ceilings, lots of windows and a cement floor that our pups love. Our neighbors are nice, the random bums in our area are always friendly, our neighborhood does seasonal clean-ups that get everyone together and it is within walking distance to the Art Museum, amazing hand-drawn noodles in Chinatown and all of Center City. It’s not exactly for the faint of heart, but I like my little pocket of a neighborhood.
I neglected to mention the fact that I can stumble out of bed and hit my favorite brunch spot 1/2 a block down or stumble home from a great low-key bar with amazing food located 1/2 block away in the other direction.
I live in sunny sarasota, FL in what is called the Rosemary District. The RD was the first Black Neighborhood in Sarasota! Its a neighborhood filled with diversity, cute shops and restaurants, all within walking distance. And my favorite part is that I also live 2 blocks from downtown Sarasota. On the weekends there is a Farmer’s Market, and art and music festivals…. Its wonderful and the best part is that i own the condo I live in :)
I love my neighborhood so much although it is not the best I have ever lived in. I’m a huge fan of neighborhood culture and always manage to find a sweet spot whatever city I’m living in. Where I live right now is right outside the city, and half a mile each from two adorable mini-urban centers, 20 min. train ride to work, almost right in a park. It’s like woodland living in the city. I have tons of space, flowers and a big fat vegetable garden. Spring has been heavenly. I can walk to Salvadoran, Ethiopian and Jamaican restaurants, it’s super diverse, there is good public transportation and there are few if any chain franchises in the area. Sundays are the best — they close the streets through the park so you can just walk and ride your bike at ease, and there is a killer farmers market. My neighbors all have great politics but it’s not all upperclass white liberals — there is genuine diversity in ethnicity, national origin, age, and lifestyle.
I live in a great neighborhood in Charleston. There’s a great slow-food/soul-food restaurant a short walk away that has one of the best brunches ever. There’s a great “greenway” trail for walking the dogs that runs through the neighborhood and will soon be my bike route to the brand spankin’ new grocery store being built nearby. There’s also a Krispy Kreme so close we can smell it. The bus that takes me to work each day stops ridiculously close. And I’m a mere 15 minutes away from a really great beach.
i love my current neighborhood but i’m about to move in two weeks (outerborough living, for the first time in my 7 years of living in new york!) my neighborhood now is chelsea- really western chelsea- quiet, tree lined streets. i’m a block from the side highway which is a perfect place to run in the summer, all along my block and others are art galleries with openings every thursday night (free wine!) there are a lot of great little brunch spots one block over and tons of great neighborhood bars. it’s also easy access to a lot of different train lines, and living near a reliable train is a huge neighborhood necessity. alas after 4 years in the ‘hood i’m moving to astoria, queens where the apartments are huge and sunny and the rents are dirt cheap. PLUS, they have a beer garden!
Jess, I take it you lived in IV? I went to SB a lot in college….it’s definitely a beautiful place.
I just moved back home with my mom and I am not a fan of this town so I’m going to talk about where I moved from. I lived in Santa Barbara for four years for school. Here is what I loved
- Walking distance to school
-The little college part of the town I lived in had tons of great food. Of course there was great food in downtown SB
-Gorgeous weather most of the year
-I lived right next (and I mean RIGHT next) to the beach and had access to tons of other fun beaches. I loved Arroyo Burro beach since I could take my dogs there
-Great great people. I had a really good support system there
-Once you turn 21 the downtown scene is AWESOME. I had my favorite bar/club that I went to all the time. I got to know a lot of the people who worked there and were just regulars. I love and miss those people like crazy
- Farmers Market
-Always some sort of random but fun festival or parade
-Really great museums. I got to work for one for a little bit which was fun
-Not too far from fun towns like Ventura and Solvang
-Access to the Channel Islands. I got to work on excavations on two of the islands and I LOVE it out there. Its gorgeous
-Sunday brunch. One of my friends hosts a brunch every Sunday at a restaurant and everybody shows up, drink tons of mimosas and eat omelets
-Close to home but still far enough away for me to be independent
….I really miss SB. Hopefully I will be up there soon for a visit.
Three years in IV (my friend’s that lived downtown pitied me). I didn’t party there though cause it wasn’t really my scene. I just remodeled IV and I left right before they finished but it looks pretty good
oops- the city remodeled IV not me :)
Hey that photo IS my neighborhood!
I live in Venice, Ca and I love that:
- i can park my car on friday and not use it again until monday
- in walking distance is abbot kinney blvd, the cutest street with restaurants, boutigues, bars, etc.
- the VERY best part is that there are no chain stores on abbot kinney
- i can walk to the beach
- i can walk to the venice canals
- i have palm trees lining my street
- i have a peach tree in my front yard
- venice is home to many things – including peace protests, artists, surfers, beatnik writers, drum circles on sundays at the beach, muscle beach bodybuilders, entertainers galore on the boardwalk
- venice pier