Why do people on here compare Rice Village to Santa Monica CA?

[radiodude84]

I don't have a problem with houston. What are you talking about? I complained about crime the other day that was it....hmmm everyone is so defensive about Houston lately.

[Malvie]

Originally Posted by radiodude84

Well having lived in both CA (los angeles) and Austin at different points I found austin to be much more desirable, but that's just me. Less congestion and smog, still great weather and very pretty,

I've never understood people thinking Austin is "pretty". The much-vaunted Texas Hill Country does have kind of an austere quirky charm, but I can name 10 places in the US right off the bat that are MUCH prettier, MUCH nicer, and MUCH more desirable. Austin is a smaller Texas city plopped in the Hill Country. (My sister is one of these Austin-Hill Country-worshippers; she just loves it there; moved to Boerne to be there. I don't get it.).

In no particular order:

1. Ozarks, Northwest Arkansas
2. Catskills, NY
3. Vermont/New Hampshire/Maine
4. Blue Ridge
5. Smokies
6. Piedmont
7. Rockies (all)
8. Northern California (Redwood country)
9. Pacific Northwest
10. Lake Tahoe

All have much to offer, and I like each and every one of them better than the Texas Hill Country.

As far as attractive areas in Texas, I think the area northwest of Houston, say between Houston and College Station, is some of the most attractive land in Texas. East Texas is more my speed as well.

[Sampaguita]

Originally Posted by ShelbyGirl1

Gotta go with AK123! Couldn't have said better!

Agreed!

I've never heard of anyone comparing Rice Village to Santa Monica. Maybe I didn't read the pertinent thread but that's an absurd comparison to make!

Originally Posted by radiodude84

SM is in LA area - they have Occidental, UCLA, USC, CalTech (probably the most prestigious school in the country) etc. Or did you mean the IMMEDIATE area?

I guess it depends on what your definition of prestigious is and what area of concentration you're looking at.

I have to disagree that Austin has much more to do entertainment wise than LA. Maybe a different range of entertainment but certainly not "more".

The size of LA alone over Austin should make that obvious along with all the venues ranging from sports arenas, to clubs & bars to outdoor concert venues, etc...not to mention the regular tourist traps that Austin in no way has (Hollywood Walk of Fame, Universal Studios, Burbank Studios, Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills).

[radiodude84]

Originally Posted by Sampaguita

Agreed!


I have to disagree that Austin has much more to do entertainment wise than LA. Maybe a different range of entertainment but certainly not "more".

The size of LA alone over Austin should make that obvious along with all the venues ranging from sports arenas, to clubs & bars to outdoor concert venues, etc...not to mention the regular tourist traps that Austin in no way has (Hollywood Walk of Fame, Universal Studios, Burbank Studios, Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills).

Well, people who actually live in LA never actually go to those places . It's more for the tourists lol. There's only so many times you can look at some stars on the sidewalk or drive past fancy stores you'll never afford before it gets old. For actually living, Austin was much more "livable" if that makes sense. I was NEVER bored with the range of outdoor activities (I could go caving in the city limits or swim year round in the springs - not to mention some really great hiking and biking trails in the city limits, or kayaking) and the constant live music shows and comedy clubs I could go to. The thing that really appealed to me about Austin was that it was much easier to get around for the most part - people assume Austin sprawls like most western/sunbelt cities but the central part where all the stuff is is actually quite small - everything is along a few narrow corridors like congress, lamar, downtown, and then north of downtown up to about 45th street and east of 35. And downtown was great - probably the best downtown of any city I've lived in.

Sports was lacking in Austin, I'll give you that (except college sports of course, which LA also have lots of too with UCLA and USC). Thankfully I'm not a sports fan really.

I totally think some people might prefer LA though especially if you're into beaches or if you're there for certain things like the movie industry. It really is personal preference. For me I didn't dig the lifestyle in LA very much - too much a pain in the arse to get around anywhere, and very "fake" and plastic - people overly concerned with looks and material stuff. Austin was super chill, very live and let live vibe which I like.

As for Houston - my favorite thing here is the food. Beats any city I've lived in by a long shot.

[hsw]

Funny thread

LA and Hou are only comparable in that both are decentralized regions with most of economy and wealth on Westside of both regions

Hou is the global epicenter for energy industry and easily has more major corporate HQs than the entire LA region; entertainment industry is largely HQ'd in both NYC and LA...and LA's most valuable co. (by stock mkt value) is Occidental Petroleum, followed by Amgen and Disney

Caltech is a joke of a school for dumb geeks; was a decent engineering and sciences school 25+ yrs ago, but, much like MIT, has failed to produce many high-powered alums or valuable tech companies in past 25yrs....just compare how few valuable tech cos. are in LA or Bos region vs SiliconValley...and examine where the founders of major tech cos. went to college....Stanford, Berkeley, Illinois, Carnegie Mellon, Harvard all dwarf either Caltech or MIT in notably wealthy <50yo alums in tech industry

[Sampaguita]

Originally Posted by radiodude84

Well, people who actually live in LA never actually go to those places . It's more for the tourists lol. There's only so many times you can look at some stars on the sidewalk or drive past fancy stores you'll never afford before it gets old. For actually living, Austin was much more "livable" if that makes sense. I was NEVER bored with the range of outdoor activities (I could go caving in the city limits or swim year round in the springs - not to mention some really great hiking and biking trails in the city limits, or kayaking) and the constant live music shows and comedy clubs I could go to. The thing that really appealed to me about Austin was that it was much easier to get around for the most part - people assume Austin sprawls like most western/sunbelt cities but the central part where all the stuff is is actually quite small - everything is along a few narrow corridors like congress, lamar, downtown, and then north of downtown up to about 45th street and east of 35. And downtown was great - probably the best downtown of any city I've lived in.

Sports was lacking in Austin, I'll give you that (except college sports of course, which LA also have lots of too with UCLA and USC). Thankfully I'm not a sports fan really.

I totally think some people might prefer LA though especially if you're into beaches or if you're there for certain things like the movie industry. It really is personal preference. For me I didn't dig the lifestyle in LA very much - too much a pain in the arse to get around anywhere, and very "fake" and plastic - people overly concerned with looks and material stuff. Austin was super chill, very live and let live vibe which I like.

As for Houston - my favorite thing here is the food. Beats any city I've lived in by a long shot.

Um. I did say "tourist traps".

I still think LA has as much or more of the things that you think make Austin livable. I think it's just a matter of what a person's preferences are. And I think that goes for any city.

Really...the comparisons between Houston and other cities threads are so tired.

[worldlyman]

Rice Village is sort of a trendy, pedestrian entertainment district which comes close to resembling anything in L.A. or SoCal for that matter. Some of those storefronts and cafes do remind me of 3rd Street Promenade. The international mix of people and all that are ubiquitous but the vibe is more relaxed, less Disney.

Let's not say that Houston and L.A. are all THAT different. There are lots of young and trendy folks in both cities and they have the shops to accommodate them.

To me, Rice Village does get some mild comparisons to Santa Monica that way. But whereas the shopping streets in SoCal all have that same wide sidewalk, parallel parking look that's rather uniform across the region (does Robertson really look all that different than Westwood, Melrose or Colorado Blvd in appearance and street structure?), the Rice Village is a jagged mix into an intimate quasi-village grid style which I kinda like. Rice Village's look is quite different than the River Oaks Center, Montrose or downtown Houston, that's for sure. That's what is to appreciated in H-town.

Houston's other interesting outdoor shopping villas such as Old Town Spring, Woodlands Waterway, Kemah Lighthouse District and such are not the types you'd readily find in SoCal. And the advent of the newer "lifestyle centers" (that CityCentre really has a cool scif-fi vibe to it) do complement and contast the old style Houston outdoor centers quite effectively.