Where do you live and what does it look like?

[Karl Henning]

The local beach, from 2011.  They recently upgraded the bandstand.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/34574498@N06/sets/72157634704578523/

Lovely.

[Sergeant Rock]

The local beach, from 2011.  They recently upgraded the bandstand.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/34574498@N06/sets/72157634704578523/

Great photos of your hometown, Jeffrey. Seeing the beach makes me rather nostalgic. Reminds me of Clearwater beach. My grandparents lived in Largo and I spent several summers of my childhood and youth there. Haven't been back to Florida though since 1968.

Sarge

[Sergeant Rock]

I live by the Vltava (Moldau) river and yesterday's view, right after a quick storm, was especially lovely, so I took a snap on my phone. That's Charles Bridge on the right.

Beautiful! ...and dramatic.

Sarge

[kishnevi]

Lovely.

Thank you.

Great photos of your hometown, Jeffrey. Seeing the beach makes me rather nostalgic. Reminds me of Clearwater beach. My grandparents lived in Largo and I spent several summers of my childhood and youth there. Haven't been back to Florida though since 1968.

Sarge

Thank you.  We missed each other by a year: I moved down with my parents in 1969.  It's changed a bit.  For one thing, the average age seems to be lower, and the number of early bird specials fewer.

[kishnevi]

Beautiful! ...and dramatic.

Sarge

+1

[Karl Henning]

Beautiful! ...and dramatic.

Sarge

+1

+1 (net: +2)

[Sergeant Rock]

...and the number of early bird specials fewer.

  ....figures it would change just as I reach the age when I could take advantage of that 

Sarge

[The new erato]

Bergen:

[Florestan]

Bergen:

My favorite Norwegian city --- after Ålesund, that is. 

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

Bergen, New York, circa 1915.  I grew up not far from here, other side o' the tracks. Which Bergen would you choose?

[XB-70 Valkyrie]

I live in Southern California (for now). It is an utterly vile and disgusting hellhole of devastating and soul-crushing ugliness, banality, and (in some areas) rampant and senseless violence. My only consolations are that I work in a nice place and live in the Pasadena area--the only community down here that is worth a damn IMO. That, and I am able to frequently escape to the Bay area and Central Coast, as well as Europe.

The rest of it (outside Pasadena area) is ugly, expen$ive as hell, there is NOTHING to do--except maybe get brutalized by the police--(And don't tell me about Di$neyland or Dude-uh-Mel). It is overcrowded, hot, congested, horribly polluted (still), environmentally backward  (You like styrafoam, plastic bags, and hate recycling? You'll love it here!). At times it seems that nearly everyone here either is, or aspires to be, a pimp or drug-dealer--or worse yet, a Hollywood celebrity or executive of a large corporation. Traffic is shit. The freeways are shit.

Drive from Hell A to San Bernardino on the 10 Freeway, and I challenge you to find an uglier stretch of road anywhere in the world! And most of the other freeways around here are no better. In fact, you could drive for hours and hours and still be in the middle of horrible urban wasteland. It takes at least three hours of driving to get away from crapville and into the first area that is worth visiting (e.g., Santa Barbara)

In fact, the roads in SoCal are SECOND WORST in the nation. Second worst--so in that regard at least, SoCal is doing better than it usually does!

As vast as it is, both in terms of population and land area, the area is horribly impoverished food culture with vast swaths of cheap burger, pizza joints. The only ethnic foods available readily are Chinese and Mexican (which I love!), but good examples of anything else are horribly rare by comparison.

My advice to everyone interested in coming out here to see Di$neyland, Hollywood and the like: DON'T This place might just suck your soul out of your body.

[Mirror Image]

I live in Southern California (for now). It is an utterly vile and disgusting hellhole of devastating and soul-crushing ugliness, banality, and (in some areas) rampant and senseless violence. My only consolations are that I work in a nice place and live in the Pasadena area--the only community down here that is worth a damn IMO. That, and I am able to frequently escape to the Bay area and Central Coast, as well as Europe.

The rest of it (outside Pasadena area) is ugly, expen$ive as hell, there is NOTHING to do--except maybe get brutalized by the police--(And don't tell me about Di$neyland or Dude-uh-Mel). It is overcrowded, hot, congested, horribly polluted (still), environmentally backward  (You like styrafoam, plastic bags, and hate recycling? You'll love it here!). At times it seems that nearly everyone here either is, or aspires to be, a pimp or drug-dealer--or worse yet, a Hollywood celebrity or executive of a large corporation. Traffic is shit. The freeways are shit.

Drive from Hell A to San Bernardino on the 10 Freeway, and I challenge you to find an uglier stretch of road anywhere in the world! And most of the other freeways around here are no better. In fact, you could drive for hours and hours and still be in the middle of horrible urban wasteland. It takes at least three hours of driving to get away from crapville and into the first area that is worth visiting (e.g., Santa Barbara)

In fact, the roads in SoCal are SECOND WORST in the nation. Second worst--so in that regard at least, SoCal is doing better than it usually does!

As vast as it is, both in terms of population and land area, the area is horribly impoverished food culture with vast swaths of cheap burger, pizza joints. The only ethnic foods available readily are Chinese and Mexican (which I love!), but good examples of anything else are horribly rare by comparison.

My advice to everyone interested in coming out here to see Di$neyland, Hollywood and the like: DON'T This place might just suck your soul out of your body.

California never seemed like a place I would want to live or really even visit. The landscape doesn't interest me much. Oregon and Washington are a different matter. I'm much more interested in Europe (mainly the Nordic countries, UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands), South Africa, Australia, and Japan. Canada would also be a neat place to visit, especially Toronto, Montreal, and Quebec City.

[Brian]

California never seemed like a place I would want to live or really even visit. The landscape doesn't interest me much. Oregon and Washington are a different matter.

Whoa now. Let's be clear that there are many, many different regions and landscapes in California. And yes, you should want to visit Marin/Sonoma/Mendocino counties - truly spectacular places with great breweries/wineries, gorgeous scenery, redwoods, and a more laid-back atmosphere in general. Plus, you could swing by the SFSO or one of the more eccentric ensembles that makes a home in Berkeley/Oakland.

I am terrified of the LA region and won't go near it unless made to, but I really want to see Yosemite, Lassen Volcanic, and the coastline around Santa Cruz and Monterey.

[XB-70 Valkyrie]

Agreed.

Northern and Central California, especially the coastal areas in/near the San Francisco Bay Area, Mendocino, Sonoma, Marin, Monterey, Santa Cruz, Napa, areas, etc. as well as further south along the Central Coast (Big Sur, San Simeon), are wonderful, spectacular areas, of stunning natural beauty (ever seen the work of Edward Weston or Ansel Adams?). They are largely uncrowded, and have a civilized, laid-back lifestyle, wineries and gourmet/local/artisinal foods galore, stunning (often deserted) beaches, bookstores, record stores. Really wonderful places. Just stay north of Santa Barbara!!

[Jo498]

I've been twice to San Francisco as a tourist, as well to the coast (Monterey, Mendocino, Big Sur etc.) and also to Yosemite, Death Valley, LA (and Disneyland or was it the Universal Studios thing? I think the latter) and San Diego.
I have to agree that those landscapes and the coast of  "central California" are extremely attractive, also nice mild climate. LA was o.k. for a few days as a tourist but I would not want to live there.
But the Northwest coast is also very nice (I still do not know Northern California, my other coastal drive was roughly Seattle - Portland).

[Mirror Image]

Whoa now. Let's be clear that there are many, many different regions and landscapes in California. And yes, you should want to visit Marin/Sonoma/Mendocino counties - truly spectacular places with great breweries/wineries, gorgeous scenery, redwoods, and a more laid-back atmosphere in general. Plus, you could swing by the SFSO or one of the more eccentric ensembles that makes a home in Berkeley/Oakland.

I am terrified of the LA region and won't go near it unless made to, but I really want to see Yosemite, Lassen Volcanic, and the coastline around Santa Cruz and Monterey.

Some good points, Brian, but California is still not on my list of places to see.

Anyway, here's some pictures (not from my own camera) of the town I live in and some surrounding areas, which could be any town in the US (minus the shots of snow).









And yes, we do have winter weather:

[Sergeant Rock]

I live in Southern California (for now). It is an utterly vile and disgusting hellhole...

I have not been to LA--closest I've gotten is Barstow and Fort Irwin (for a couple of National Training Center rotations with the 5th Infantry Mech and the 1st Cavalry Division) but in my imagination LA is hell on earth. You confirm that 

Sarge

[NikF]

I've only gone half a dozen or so pages back, but the photos and descriptions are all interesting for me. There's much value in seeing/reading an account from a local, as opposed to a travel blog or something.

As for Toots and I, we live in the West of Scotland, in Glasgow. More exactly -



- you see the little steeple/church type structure on the right? Our house is not far behind that.

[Sergeant Rock]

As for Toots and I, we live in the West of Scotland, in Glasgow. More exactly -



- you see the little steeple/church type structure on the right? Our house is not far behind that.

So your city was recently carpet bombed? 

Sarge

[ZauberdrachenNr.7]

So your city was recently carpet bombed? 

Sarge

Nah, NikF must be a wee brownie. If so, he's still taller than I am.