It’s been precisely one yr since we moved into our new residence in La Jolla, CA. It’s been sixteen and a half months since we left New York City, our residence for twenty-two years, bringing us to now celebrating an anniversary of calling La Jolla our residence. Maybe it has been even longer. We fled NYC in March of 2020, when Covid broke out, to hunt security in a secluded residence in Long Island for 3 months after which hit the street exploring The United States for ten months, solely to return to NYC for 2 months, with the only real intention of packing our lives up, to relocate to La Jolla, with one other three-week street journey making our approach again throughout the nation. I do know, that is a full load! When we arrived in La Jolla, we lived in a brief residence for 4 months, after which, lastly, we moved into our present residence precisely one yr in the past at this time, on December 15, 2021. What a journey! After so many beds, properties, and suitcases packed and unpacked, it felt so good to lastly dangle our pictures and resurrect sentimental artifacts from the previous to proudly show in our new abode.
After a full orbit across the solar, I ponder what we left behind versus what we’re rebuilding. Below are my private execs of residing in La Jolla versus the professionals of residing in NYC.
Pros of residing in La Jolla:
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The People: The folks that stay on this group mark probably the most important distinction between the 2 cities. La Jollans are welcoming, joyful, inclusive, and most noticeably, irrespective of how profitable they’re of their careers (and they’re very profitable of their careers), they simply haven’t got the identical chip on their shoulders that New Yorkers do. We actually didn’t know what folks did for a residing till we frolicked with them a number of occasions, as a result of hardly anybody inquires or cares what anybody does for a residing right here. In NYC, the query instantly requested when assembly somebody new is “what do you do for a residing?”. New Yorkers measurement each other up, overtly compete over whose life is busier, and shamelessly ask you for a dinner date 4 months upfront. La Jollans might care much less what you do, they’re assured sufficient behind the wheels of their Ferraris, or below surgical lights performing open-heart surgical procedure. To sum it up, the oldsters in La Jolla don’t have anything to show. Somehow, they’re by no means too busy for a drink, a stroll, a celebration, or a dinner date. Planning for one thing greater than a month upfront here’s a ludicrous idea. While New Yorkers boast about who they rub elbows with or their SoHo House memberships, they’re going to hardly ever really make an introduction with the supposed folks they’re near nor allow you to be a part of the membership they rave about. Yet, in La Jolla, we have been instantly launched to probably the most unimaginable community of variety, enjoyable, completed individuals who solely talked about their membership memberships within the context of serving to us be a part of. People in La Jolla share their mates, their contacts, and even their cash. New Yorkers are very protecting of this stuff.
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The Politics: Our youngsters attended a really progressive non-public faculty in NYC. Over the years as mother and father making mates with different mother and father in that college, we realized that there have been many within the closet Republicans within the faculty’s group. In NYC you’re usually shamed for not sharing the identical political opinions because the plenty. I actually know a husband who instructed me in confidence that he voted for Trump in concern of retribution from his spouse. New Yorkers are typically very excessive on their political spectrum. In La Jolla, most individuals are centrist, regular, unaggressive, reasonable of us who genuinely need to assist others and help social justice packages whereas not getting screwed by the federal government. In reality, I’ve witnessed many civil conversations between left-winged and right-winged-minded folks that entailed no judgment, name-calling, and even an oz. of stress as they hashed out their variations of opinions. You are free to suppose and consider what you need right here, overtly. And what I like most of all is that nobody appears to have a must show their political ideas on their lawns with pins, flags or indicators that are inclined to finally alienate and create a group of exclusion.
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The Weather: Ok, this one’s a no brainer. With a median temperature that hits between 62-72 levels all year long, below 263 days of superb sunny skies, it is crystal clear why most individuals are happier right here. We by no means want to fret about Vitamin D deficiency. However, opposite to standard perception, though it doesn’t snow in La Jolla, we do have seasons. As I kind this submit, it’s 51 levels, and really chilly… there’s a legit winter right here (okay, not in comparison with New York however I swear it will get chilly). Fall and Winter are typically the wet season, which La Jollans warmly welcome. I will not lie, there’s nothing that I miss about snow in NYC. I keep in mind getting the children prepared for varsity, of their infinite winter gear, simply to be greeted by filthy piles of snow clumped in gray disappointment and adorned with yellow bursts of canine urine and not-so-artistically positioned cigarette butts on our stroll. Snow is gorgeous…in Tahoe.
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The School System: Once we left the non-public faculty system and joined the general public faculty system in NYC we rapidly realized that getting right into a high public faculty is as troublesome as getting right into a coveted non-public faculty. The stress that oldsters and college students endure stepping into a good public faculty in NYC surpasses the stress of getting your child into school as a result of in New York City you need to undergo the unwieldy course of twice: as soon as for center faculty after which once more for highschool. In La Jolla, there’s one center faculty and one highschool. There is zero stress round getting ready for an admission spot. Middle School youngsters can get pleasure from their middle-school years with out the stress of constantly getting ready for highschool. There aren’t any required take a look at preps for entrance exams or loopy lottery programs leaving a pc to randomly assign a faculty to a baby. Instead, your youngsters simply get to be youngsters, and as an alternative of graduating from elementary faculty and seeing their mates get scattered all through the town primarily based on the faculties they get accepted to, they transfer on with them to the highschool that is just one block away.
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The Food: Yes, whereas NYC is unsurpassable with the infinite creativity of delicacies and culinary expertise, and numerous Michelin-starred eating places, San Diego’s produce is unequivocally the freshest I’ve ever tasted. I by no means knew what a cucumber or strawberry really tastes like till I moved right here. Side word, San Diego has an unimaginable meals scene, and its personal listing of Michelin-starred eating places, albeit approach smaller than New York City’s, however the principle distinction right here is that you simply needn’t pull favors or set your alarm at midnight for the evening the calendar opens at a restaurant to snag a desk. Instead, you may just about get in anyplace inside a month’s discover.
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The Pace: The tempo in La Jolla is unbelievably completely different than the one in NYC. Even although you could end up busy with life in La Jolla, you are not consistently wired since you are sitting in a taxi for forty-five minutes for a five-mile journey, nor will you end up standing desperately within the rain for what looks as if hours ready for an Uber or taxi on a wet night. We lived in our final house in NYC for eleven years. I can attest that almost all neighbors who entered the elevator ignored each other. In La Jolla, everybody cheerfully says good morning, stops you to pet your canine, and also you really know and hang around together with your neighbors. (Caveat: we do have neighbors from NYC that we’ve been shut mates with for over ten years). In La Jolla I can submit a narrative on Instagram providing the yields of a harvest from our backyard and ten La Jollans will reply that they’d love some fruit and are available by to select up a bag. In NYC you will have twenty folks responding that they’d love a bag however none of them will really decide it up, though they’d inform all their mates about their cool buddy with citrus bushes. I usually stroll in La Jolla alongside the coast, I watch sunsets in La Jolla, I stroll our canine in La Jolla (I’d by no means have agreed to have a canine in NYC), I discuss on the cellphone with mates moderately than texting them, I am going on weekend hikes with my girlfriends. The tempo right here is unarguably slower, in one of the simplest ways attainable.
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Everything is simply “Twenty Minutes Away”: This is so true. I can simply listing a bunch of neighborhoods which might be only a twenty-minute drive from La Jolla: Coronado Island, Little Italy, Downtown San Diego, Del Mar, Carmel Valley, Ocean Beach, Balboa Park, Mission Beach, UTC, Hillcrest, and so on… It’s really easy to hop in your automotive right here and arrive to a wholly completely different neighborhood with its personal distinctive vibe. In New York City, what needs to be only a twenty-minute commute can usually become approach longer. Commuting in NYC requires a technique. In La Jolla commuting simply requires that you simply get in your automotive. Let’s check out longer drives as properly. In NYC the preferred native escapes are The Hamptons (which takes anyplace from 2-5 hours to get to relying on the season), and “Upstate” (which is mostly a 2-3 hour drive). In La Jolla, inside an hour you may drive to Laguna Beach or Rosarito, Mexico, or the wine area of Temecula Valley. Within ninety minutes you may get to Orange County/Balboa Island/Newport Beach or you may escape to Julian or Mount Laguna for some snow within the winter. In two hours you may get to Los Angeles or the gorgeous deserts of Palm Springs. Despite the 25,000 miles we drove by the USA, we barely made a dent in what’s accessible to La Jolla inside only a two hours drive.
Pros of residing in New York City:
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It’s the town that by no means sleeps: You can discover something you crave at any hour of the day in New York City. It is a remarkably handy metropolis on this facet. La Jolla alternatively shuts down ridiculously early. I’m speaking like 9:30 pm early. If you crave pizza previous this time, you will must drive eight minutes to Pacific Beach. Even there they shut by midnight. But in La Jolla, we’ve superb home events that go approach into the evening. Just saying.
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A Hub of Culture: New York City is the epicenter of tradition, recognized for its music scene, famend museums, and naturally, Broadway. Yes, that is an especially fascinating facet of NYC however let’s be sincere. How usually do NYC locals splurge on a Broadway present that prices a minimal of $350 per ticket? I lived in NYC for twenty-two years and visited MoMa perhaps 4 occasions and the Metropolitan Museum perhaps six occasions. What I’m saying is that it isn’t like most New Yorkers frequent these venues so usually. They similar to realizing that they’re there. In La Jolla, we’ve The Conrad, The La Jolla Playhouse, and likewise the Old Forge (which isn’t in La Jolla, however shut) which I frequent simply as irregularly. So until you’re an artwork buff or have infinite provides of money to ebook orchestra seats for your loved ones to look at a Broadway present, I feel you will just do high-quality in La Jolla.
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Travel: Oh boy do New Yorkers prefer to journey. When we lived in Manhattan we hopped on a airplane each probability we might, together with most of our mates and colleagues. La Jollans like to remain put. Very few of them speak about journey plans. In reality, every time we’ve requested others what they’re doing on a faculty break, they principally keep native. Now that we’ve been right here for a yr, I notice that individuals really prefer it right here and do not dream of going anyplace else. In retrospect, though sure, we completely like to journey, in NYC we had to get away as a lot as attainable for the sake of our sanity. We’ve been residing in La Jolla since August 1, 2021, and have not gotten on a airplane since. Here I really feel like we ought to journey, not want to flee. Regardless, New Yorkers are extra well-traveled.
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Sports: Okay, sure, San Diego has the Padres however I’ll agree that you simply can not compete with New York City within the sports activities division. From the Knicks to the New York Mets/Yankees or the Giants/Jets, NYC is unmatched on the subject of the sports activities division. I’ll be the primary one to confess, if you need sports activities leagues in your life, San Diego is not the place for you.
So, there you have got it, my insider’s perspective all wrapped up in a single article. New York gave us an unimaginable couple of a long time stuffed with great recollections, mates, and alternatives. I’ll at all times adore it dearly. I’ve but to yearn for a return for a go to though it has been virtually one and a half years since we left. For now, I discovered a greater place for me, for this chapter of my life. I do not miss the hustle, or the grind, of residing in a giant metropolis. I do not miss the seasons that include too many cloudy, chilly, wet days or excessive warmth. I do not miss floating round with very busy folks. Really, La Jolla really does provide every little thing anybody might ever want. I suppose that is why locals like to name it Paradise.