I don't live there but I've been there countless times...the weather is always really nice, and the people seem decent...also it's near the beach and the boardwalk is fun, hehehe...jobwise and housewise, I have no idea what it's like...:P You could always live in another city and commute though...depends what your budget for housing is, that would determine where you could live in the bay area and be close to SC...is there a job opening there?
I haven't lived in Santa Cruz, but I lived in the Bay Area for ten years and visited it regularly. It's very beautiful, has beaches and forests, lovely weather, and the town itself really has a lot of charm. It's a bit on the small side, at least for me, and a 75-80 minute drive from San Francisco. Closer to San Jose, which has less appeal. It's also quite expensive, but then, it's fairly idyllic in terms of climate/geography, and it's on the coast. I have no idea what it's like to try and find work there.
Andy's friend Jon here, Santa Cruz local here with some interesting facts about our little slice of heaven:
-Movies filmed here: "Lost Boys", "Killer Klowns from Outer Space", "Sudden Impact", "Harold and Maude"
-Alfred Hitchcock lived in nearby Scott's Valley. Norman Bates' house is rumored to be based on the Sunshine Villa, which stand atop Beach Hill. In 1961 flock of sooty shearwaters became confused by the city lights and heavy fog and collided with shore side structures from Pleasure Point to Rio del Mar… this is why the bird attacks are reported as starting in Santa Cruz in "The Birds."
-The first woman to vote in the United States (in 1861) drove the stage from Santa Cruz to Watsonville. Charley Parkhurst spent her life pretending to be a man and fooled everyone until her death.
-When the pirate Hippolyte Bouchard sacked Monterey in 1818, Santa Cruz locals rushed to the mission here and told the priests that they would take the church's treasures to the mission in San Jose. They stole all they took.
-The wet suit was invented here… since, although we've got great waves the water is pretty cold.
-The U.C. Santa Cruz mascot is the Fighting Banana Slug. Some famous people who went to U.C.S.C.: Jello Biafra, Pro poker player Gus Hansen, Actress Camryn Manheim, Rebecca Romijn, Maya Rudolph and Andy Samburg from SLN and Marti Noxon (writer on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", which is why all the colleges at Sunnydale U. are named after U.C.S.C. colleges).
-The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake knocked down a good portion of downtown. There are still a few empty lots where buildings used to be but most of the area is shiny and new.
-We've had freakin' huge fires the last two years… nothing like seeing a map of your hometown on the news with a big arrow pointing to it that says "FIRE"!
-Camper Van Beethoven is from Santa Cruz, as was Zasu Pitts and Rory Calhoon.
-Santa Cruz was briefly known as the murder capital of the world (which is referenced in "Lost Boys") because there were two active serial killers and one mass murderer in town.
-Local comedian Richard Stockton calls Santa Cruz "the most diverse group of white people you've ever seen!"
-Monterey Bay is a marine sanctuary. We were at the beach just last week and saw huge flocks of pelicans, dolphin pods cavorting around and piles of sea lions.
So, if you're looking for a laid-back, far-left, stunningly-beautiful, beach and forest, college town filled with weirdoes and eccentrics… Santa Cruz is the place!
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2009-09-01 05:47 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2009-09-02 07:22 pm (UTC)I've heard that it's like the vegetarian capital of America too.
Santa Cruz
Date: 2009-09-03 01:31 am (UTC)-Movies filmed here: "Lost Boys", "Killer Klowns from Outer Space", "Sudden Impact", "Harold and Maude"
-Alfred Hitchcock lived in nearby Scott's Valley. Norman Bates' house is rumored to be based on the Sunshine Villa, which stand atop Beach Hill. In 1961 flock of sooty shearwaters became confused by the city lights and heavy fog and collided with shore side structures from Pleasure Point to Rio del Mar… this is why the bird attacks are reported as starting in Santa Cruz in "The Birds."
-The first woman to vote in the United States (in 1861) drove the stage from Santa Cruz to Watsonville. Charley Parkhurst spent her life pretending to be a man and fooled everyone until her death.
-When the pirate Hippolyte Bouchard sacked Monterey in 1818, Santa Cruz locals rushed to the mission here and told the priests that they would take the church's treasures to the mission in San Jose. They stole all they took.
-The wet suit was invented here… since, although we've got great waves the water is pretty cold.
-The U.C. Santa Cruz mascot is the Fighting Banana Slug. Some famous people who went to U.C.S.C.: Jello Biafra, Pro poker player Gus Hansen, Actress Camryn Manheim, Rebecca Romijn, Maya Rudolph and Andy Samburg from SLN and Marti Noxon (writer on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", which is why all the colleges at Sunnydale U. are named after U.C.S.C. colleges).
-The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake knocked down a good portion of downtown. There are still a few empty lots where buildings used to be but most of the area is shiny and new.
-We've had freakin' huge fires the last two years… nothing like seeing a map of your hometown on the news with a big arrow pointing to it that says "FIRE"!
-Camper Van Beethoven is from Santa Cruz, as was Zasu Pitts and Rory Calhoon.
-Santa Cruz was briefly known as the murder capital of the world (which is referenced in "Lost Boys") because there were two active serial killers and one mass murderer in town.
-Local comedian Richard Stockton calls Santa Cruz "the most diverse group of white people you've ever seen!"
-Monterey Bay is a marine sanctuary. We were at the beach just last week and saw huge flocks of pelicans, dolphin pods cavorting around and piles of sea lions.
So, if you're looking for a laid-back, far-left, stunningly-beautiful, beach and forest, college town filled with weirdoes and eccentrics… Santa Cruz is the place!