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San Diego, California
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Section: Hippie Havens | Category: Place | Area: California | Topic: Hippiedom
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There are some really cool places to hang, especially Ocean Beach, Encinitas. Laid back mixture of surfers and hippies make for a cool scene. Check out The Black a famous headshop in O.B. Also "blacks beach every full moon at 8:00 p.m.". The music scene in S.D. is really happening these days. Great concerts from major acts and lots of smaller venues showcase local talent. Many things to like about S.D. and you can't beat the perfect climate! Although it's now overcrowded, the traffic sucks at times, and the worse thing is how expensive it's getting to live there.
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Visitor Comments about San Diego, California
Posted by moonshadow on 2008-03-14 22:29:32
My Score:
Comment: Hello...hello...hello
I just moved to San Diego from Colorado...whole nother ball game but I love it. Althought yes I agree it is over-crowded...im in love with sunny days, ocean, beach, water...the whole vibe. My question is...where can I find patchwork clothing by locals or even any kind of clothing that''s (I guess) "hippy"?
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Posted by Virgin on 2008-01-20 01:52:39
My Score:
Comment: Hi fellow Hipsters,
I''ve lived in Ocean Beach for four years, and I love the beach and sunshine! I dig expanding my mind like the next person (DMT is my all-time favorite), but my favorite "hippie" parts about living in San Diego have less to do with smoking weed and more to do with other pre-June 1967 hippie stuff: nature, spirituality, art, communal values, openness to pre-modern cultures.
These are my recommendations for things to check out if you''re visiting my neighborhood: For my nature fix I dig the cove at the end of Santa Cruz Avenue, and walking along the San Diego River on the Sea World side to check out jumping fish and fishing birds. There''s a wonderful pagan bookshop with cool employees on Santa Monica between Cable and Sunset Cliffs. Unfortunately I''m not aware of an art scene here beyond music: jam bands at Winston''s on weekends, and folkies at the Wednesday afternoon street market. If you think there''s more to being a "hippie" than being a long-haired, non-voting pothead who selfishly deprives his neighbors of sleep with late-night noise, public places to connect with community-oriented folks include the OB Woman''s Club, the Green Store, and People''s organic market.
Outside my neighborhood I dig the SRF neighborhood in Encinitas, and my favorite part of living in San Diego is having Mexico right next door (even though there''s a lot of anti-Mexican racism in San Diego). For a taste of Mexican spirituality check out the Tijuana cemetery Panteon Jardin #2 on the afternoon of Nov 2 for "Day of the Dead," and check out Tijuana''s cathedral (and the "botanica" potion store in the mall catecorner to the cathedral) on 2nd St on Dec 12 for The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. While you''re there you can''t believe the U.S. is less than a mile away! Feel free to e-mail me if you want more info: getsomebutu@hotmail.com
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Posted by Virgin on 2008-01-10 22:00:30
My Score:
Comment: Hi fellow Hipsters,
I''ve lived in Ocean Beach for four years, and I love the beach and sunshine! I dig expanding my mind like the next person (DMT is my all-time favorite), but my favorite "hippie" parts about living in San Diego have less to do with smoking weed and more to do with other pre-June 1967 hippie stuff: nature, spirituality, art, communal values, openness to pre-modern cultures.
These are my recommendations for things to check out if you''re visiting my neighborhood: For my nature fix I dig the cove at the end of Santa Cruz Avenue, and walking along the San Diego River on the Sea World side to check out jumping fish and fishing birds. There''s a wonderful pagan bookshop with cool employees on Santa Monica between Cable and Sunset Cliffs. Unfortunately I''m not aware of an art scene here beyond music: jam bands at Winston''s on weekends, and folkies at the Wednesday afternoon street market. If you think there''s more to being a "hippie" than being a long-haired, non-voting pothead who selfishly deprives his neighbors of sleep with late-night noise, public places to connect with community-oriented folks include the OB Woman''s Club, the Green Store, and People''s organic market.
Outside my neighborhood I dig the SRF neighborhood in Encinitas, and my favorite part of living in San Diego is having Mexico right next door (even though there''s a lot of anti-Mexican racism in San Diego). For a taste of Mexican spirituality check out the Tijuana cemetery Panteon Jardin #2 on the afternoon of Nov 2 for "Day of the Dead," and check out Tijuana''s cathedral (and the "botanica" potion store in the mall catecorner to the cathedral) on 2nd St on Dec 12 for The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. While you''re there you can''t believe the U.S. is less than a mile away! Feel free to e-mail me if you want more info: getsomebutu@hotmail.com
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Posted by OldGeezer on 2007-12-31 00:27:52
My Score:
Comment: I''ve lived in SD for 4 years now and this quote from below message hit a chord with me.
[A peculiar downside is trust in people; it may not look like it, but it''''s a place where one must watch one''''s back carefully. Finding a real, trusting ''''friend'''' wasn''''t easy, and I couldn''''t find a place that really attracted our element of life.]
A conversation I had on airport terminal bus on my arrival with a girl who was moving back to SD for business reasons. Her condensed opinion of people in SD were "People here just don''t care".
These two statements have been my experience here in last 4 years. I think it is due to trickle over vibes from overcrowded/rude LA area combined with large population of rich conservative retires and military.
If you are able to hook up with good people, you won''t find a better place on the planet for good weather and beautiful beaches.
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Posted by knotty daytripper on 2007-10-20 05:03:11
My Score: 
Comment: I have been in San Diego for months now. I agree with veggieman, the yuppies have taken over. Ocean Beach is the best place to go to if you are a looking for a more laid back vibe. The main downside to this city is filled with tweekers and plastic people. It is very overcrowded and unfortunately it is hard to find many kind souls. There are a ton of stoners but not many hip people I''m afraid. The weather is great most of the time though. It is also very close to Mexico which is a beautiful country to visit. The cost of living here is outrageous. Overall there are good and bad things about this place. But I have found that I prefer to just pass through this place than to set my roots here. Hope this helps ;D
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Posted by boogiegirl on 2007-07-18 00:44:35
My Score:
Comment: I may be moving to San Diego in the near future, and stopped in to check out the music scene...hoping to find that there''s a lot of jam bands in the area to check out...Peace and Love from Virginia Beach...
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Posted by Sarah on 2007-06-06 23:01:24
My Score:
Comment: Dude... i live in the OC and its totally rockin! Come visit me!
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Posted by veggieman on 2006-12-17 23:52:19
My Score:
Comment: The cool parts of San Diego are the hidden pockets. The yuppies have spread their poison through the peace-love-heart of the city, raised housing prices, brought in a zillion Starbucks, Rolexes, Beemers and bad attitudes.
I make a great living doing something I love, live in a tropical area near the beach and can still find islands of world conciousness secretly hiding admidst the shrinks, plastic surgeons and zanax-viagrans.
Seek and ye shall find the enlightened. More stellar conciousness is welcomed here!!! Bring it on hipsters!!! Turn on, tune in, drop deep...
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Posted by LuLu on 2006-11-25 06:55:16
My Score:
Comment: I live in san diego
and its soo very hard to find any hippies theres a shitload of stoners but not hippies the weather is great and the beach is killer
but other then that there are too many people and a crapppy city council thats tryin to knock down houses and put condos and buildings
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Posted by socal_jan on 2006-09-18 06:53:03
My Score:
Comment: I sooooo agree with hippie chick! I also live in the City of Perpetual Beige (Irvine) and in the 10 years that I''ve been here, my soul has been sucked out by establishment beige of all shades. Did you notice that you can drive through this town and know exactly when something was built by the tint in the beige? 1980''s beige has mauve and teal. Mid-1990''s beige is rife with terra cotta. Trust me -- this town could use a good tie-dying, beginning with the city council. Peace, love, and rock the souls of Irvine by colorizing the beige. By the way, the only other place I''ve ever seen that''s a beige as Irvine is the Belgravia section of London. Seems the lord of the land insisted every house be painted the same shade of beige. Trust me, there is nothing more depressing than travelling 5500 miles for a change of scenery and realizing that you''re looking at the Irvine of England!!! Help!!!! Get me to Carnaby Street and fast!
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Posted by Hippie chick on 2006-01-18 07:32:00
My Score: 
Comment: I think all of us old hippies should invade Irvine... I''ve lived here for 27 years and I think my town needs a make over big time. The only thing that saves my sanity here is that behind my backyard fence and gate out there is a big park where I can beat on a tin trash can if I want. Every works and the mobile home park opposite side of my side of the park only allow55 and up people to live there so give it a few more years and the 75 year olds and up will die off than all of old hippies can take it over ..... yeah@
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Posted by Jeremy on 2005-11-01 21:28:11
My Score:
Comment: Great city. I been here for over two years from the east....(yes i''m a transplant). I am a music lover, and this city offers a wide variety of music venues whether its an arena (coors amphitheatre) or a hole in the wall bar (The Casbah). Lots of bands enjoy touring through San Diego, and if you can''t find a band that tours through this city you could always cruise up to Los Angeles. San Diego is full of transplants from all walks of life whether it be the midwest, east coast, or brazil. The sun, the beautiful weather, and of course the beaches leave a feeling of peace in my mind. Only drawback is the city is full of conservatives....due to military bases situated in San Diego, but don''t let that bother you, if you find the right people to hang out with you''ll really enjoy your livelihood out here .
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Posted by Serg on 2005-10-22 01:28:32
My Score:
Comment: I love it here. There is tons of music every day and all the people are very real and inviting. I am a musicain and have no trouble at all finding people into the same. It is a bit conservative but, coming from Boston, its def not.
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Posted by Michelle on 2005-06-26 14:00:46
My Score:
Comment: I love San Diego{Mission Bay}. Would love to live there if me,my Hubby and our kitty could:) We live in Vegas{Henderson} but we''ve driven to San Diego a few times. The last time was April of this year.
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Posted by Keakoa on 2005-06-18 23:08:53
My Score:
Comment: San Diego is what a body dreams about. Warm days, warm people, and the ocean with great food and lots of music. If you are into music here is a link to some of my photos: http://www.sol-a-koa.com/
http://www.sol-a-koa.com/2002_Photos/SantanaOrishas.jpg
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Posted by emily on 2005-05-03 07:00:53
My Score:
Comment: lived in san diego my whole life, very laid back and chill and a lot of stoners, but unfoutionetly the wholllle country decided to move here making it VERY overcrowded, PLEASE STOP MOVING HERE.
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Posted by Melissa on 2005-01-14 00:54:09
My Score:
Comment: Hello! My name is Melissa Mills. I work in casting at “Trading Spouses,” a family-themed reality show that airs on Fox, Monday nights at 8PM. The purpose of our show is to compare and contrast various families across the country while highlighting their unique interests and cultures! For example, we’ve had everyone from hunters to vegans, alligator wranglers to family bands, tattoo artists to political activists appear on our show.
Currently, we are casting for new episodes and we are looking for Ocean Beach hippie families! We love interesting families who could show the world a little bit about what makes them so special! This is a terrific opportunity for any family who is energetic and who wants to learn about another way of life. In addition, every family who has appeared on the show has been compensated $50,000 and has been given the chance to have exposure to a wide audience.
All families who want to be on our show must have the following: children between the ages of 6 & 18, US citizenship, and an ability to speak English. Also, the spouses must be legally married. Please have a look on our website: www.fox.com for more details.
If you know of anyone who might fit this description, please contact me as soon as possible.
Thanks so much for your time!
Sincerely,
Melissa Mills
Melissa Mills
Casting Assistant/Trading Spouses
Rocket Science Laboratories
323-802-0619
mmills@rocketsciencelabs.com
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Posted by lotus butterfly on 2004-11-30 16:57:39
My Score: 
Comment: I live in San Diego now. There is a lot of diversity so there are quite a few cool, eccentric hiipies, but there are also a lot of ultra-conservatives (especially in the towns with a lot of money). I live in OB and there are a lot of hippies but also alot of people who are just partyers. Just because people smoke weed and party doesn''t make them a hippie. Anyway, I like it here but my husband and I will probably travel pretty soon and find some other cool hippie havens. Oh, and yes it is getting way too expensive and crowded here.
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Posted by AntiEstablishment on 2004-11-30 02:03:48
My Score:
Comment:
San Diego is terrible, and horribly conservative in most areas. Most people in San Diego are products of Consumerism brainwashing culture we live in. There are unique people, but its hard to find them, we stay hidden, because the majority here is against us. There are some commune/monastarys outside of sandiego in Jacumba though! Im moving to one soon... must escape this machine!
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Posted by Perjensen on 2004-09-25 17:50:27
My Score:
Comment: The ''laid back'' attitude of San Diego is real, but there has been a long-time complaint of "Los Angelization". At one time it was the fastest growing city in the country, but now it''s actually losing population. A peculiar downside is trust in people; it may not look like it, but it''s a place where one must watch one''s back carefully. Finding a real, trusting ''friend'' wasn''t easy, and I couldn''t find a place that really attracted our element of life. Crime was another surprise; San Diego doesn''t officially register as a high crime area, but there are so many small crimes that police aren''t often called. Many simple things such as plants near your doorstep or sun tea near the sidewalk can disappear easily. If you have an open-top car you can find a person sleeping in it, or a pile of vomit in the front seat, or that someone has popped your hood and disconnected the spark plug cables. And the place NOT to live is anywhere near a beach. WAY too many people, and crime is rampant. I met a lady who lived on Ocean Beach for less than a year and experienced an average of attempted break-ins about once a month. Cost of living is very high there; rent/mortgage/real estate is preposterous in places. To beat these problems would be areas further inland, or further north. To the north is Oceanside. To the northeast is Escondido, or east is Santee. Most enticing is a National Park to the east, which has a low level mountain range. All around this entire area are numerous small towns, far more remote and private than city dwellings, sumpuously closer to Nature. And let''s face it, it''s the Peace and communion with Nature that is far more preferable. The true to heart ''hippies'' of the 60''s and 70''s knew the Establishment was far too strong and heartless. They changed the way people live in ways they can never fully understand, but they left that scene quietly, with no bullsh#t fanfare. They went in groups to much more remote areas and took up life in whole new ways. I know of some who went to Canada, but most of them went to rural areas in the U.S. I know of one ''family'' that settled in Western Kentucky that was literally a commune. Their way of life was farming. My info on them is sketchy because I never could locate them, but they were a miniature, self-contained community on a somewhat large piece of land that you''d call a ''compound''. They had a sort of governing panel of ''elders'' (those who had initiated the effort apparently) to make decisions and purchases (no personalized ''criminal court''), each person who resided there had their own function (or job) which they were expected to do but not treated like an ''employee'', each had a small ''apartment'', but most importantly, it was a real community. There was a cafeteria, a community hall for hangin'' out, instruction classes for various things, a lot of musicians were there, they had an on-site nurse, a small library, there were many married couples with children - it was a true-to-life hippy commune. Even more amazingly, they had an affiliation with the State of Kentucky. Under certain circumstances people would be sent there who had been in trouble somehow. I got all this information from such a person. We met in a music store (the neck on his guitar was warped and beyond repair, so I sold him a used Alvarez at a VERY good price cuz he didn''t have much to spend - he was a happy guy!), and there was apparently so much to tell that I only heard these generalities. He had been busted for some negligable crime and had the choice of attending this commune as ''community service'', probably at the suggestion of his probation officer; probably a special case of sorts. Once his time was parlayed he had the choice of staying there or moving along, whatever his choice would be. Unfortunately, I never saw him again. The fact is, such communes still exist. Where they are I don''t know because they don''t ''advertise''. But the point is, ''turn on, tune in, and drop out'' only meant to drop out of the bullsh#t of the Establishment. That''s what hippies and communes are all about. All of us have to try finding places where we can hang out with brethren, such as bars or areas of a city, but there are other possibilities. That''s what all of us need to think about.
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Posted by Ben on 2004-08-09 19:02:07
My Score:
Comment: San Diego is a wonderful place to live. PERFECT weather all the time, nice people, and plenty of fun things to do. With Coors Amphitheater nearby, there are always many good concerts to see from very popular bands. And if you''re into the local band scene, you can visit Soma on Sports Arena Blvd for not only local bands, but even many famous bands as well! The Sports Arena is home to many sports teams in San Diego, and concerts are occasionally there as well.
I''ve been living in San Diego my whole life, so perhaps my opinions might be a ''little'' biased, but I absolutely love the place. With the proximity to the Mexican border, just a little drive and you can visit Mexico. San Diego is home to a large variety of people from many different cultures. There is a large Mexican population (a large percentage of which is illegal), due to the border being so close.
Downtown San Diego also has a new ballpark, made for the San Diego Padres, our baseball team. It''s a fantastic park, and it turned out far better than I expected. I really enjoy the place, and I''m not even a very big baseball fan at all. The downtown lights are wonderful at night, and places like the Gaslamp Quarter are always busy with activity. It can get pretty crowded on baseball game nights sometimes.
Yes, San Diego used to have a big military base. But as of recently, a huge number of buildings have been demolished to make way for new housing. The military aspect of San Diego is getting smaller and smaller every day. The once busy Naval Base is now also a large housing area. There''s a lot of redevelopment going on. San Diego is also a home for many fisherman, with a little bit of Portuguese influence. Boats are everywhere, and the ocean is very closeby, and easily accessible.
Places like Ocean Beach and Pacific Beach have a number of smoke shops, and a number of hippies around. I''d call the place pretty chill. It gets more expensive every year to live in San Diego, however--new houses cost more and more, as more people come to live here.
Farther north in places like Encinitas you can find many things to do as well. Del Mar, La Jolla, and many places like that are getting somewhat expensive, but they are beautiful neighborhoods (actually with some very expensive houses...).
Travel is generally pretty easy, but ''rush hour'' traffic can be pretty heavy. Generally driving is good. But it can get very congested late in the day at certain exits, often backing up traffic for quite a distance (especially the I-5 North around Del Mar. By 5:00 it can be stop-and-go for quite a few miles). Fortunately there are other streets that can be taken with less traffic.
San Diego is about a 2 hour drive away from Los Angeles. San Diegans are generally very proud about where they live, and often view Los Angeles as smog-filled and crowded compared to San Diego. I do like Los Angeles, and it''s a fun place to go sometimes, very full of energy and always very busy. There are some extraordinary colleges in Southern California, too.
All in all, San Diego is great. I''ve lived here my whole life (I''m currently 17), and really enjoy it.
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Posted by Mark on 2004-07-30 22:26:33
My Score:
Comment: I am fairly new to S.D. county, does anyone have info about kind shops selling tie-dye/batik/stickers etc? North County/ Oceanside preferably.
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Posted by Jerry on 2004-07-11 14:54:24
My Score:
Comment: Man I love SAN DIEGO! im here Now
HIppies are scares but really cool in SD.
People from all over the country and world are here.
ONE LOVE EVERYONE!!!!!!!!
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Posted by Daniellie on 2004-05-12 08:45:25
My Score:
Comment: I agree with the last post there is a military base there so alot of SD is based around that but I have friends in O.B. it is very cool there
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Posted by Megan on 2003-05-16 02:02:55
My Score:
Comment: Hey sorry forgot to leave my e-mail its MMA0420@aol.com write me if anyone has any ideas I am completely unfamiliar with the area. Also, if anyone has any rentals 1 or 2 bedroom that will take a dog for 450-600, 700 max!! Thanks.
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Posted by Megan on 2003-05-16 01:57:26
My Score:
Comment: Im looking for a cool area in So-California Between L.A. and Mexico, maybe San Diego- its kind of exspensive. Any areas in between that are chill and alittle cheaper but, still near the beach????
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Posted by on 2002-11-07 17:45:04
My Score:
Comment: My absolute favorite thing about San Diego is the diversity. It''s unbelievable how many diverse people there are there! I will never forget this one hippie I met down there...a photographer at that.... See I said I didn''t think my photos would ever get noticed seeing as how I live in West Virignia so I was thinkin about moving out to Cali and he told me...."It''s not where you are....it''s who you are". It may not be much but I will always remember that. I think everyone should check it out at least once. There''s some pretty groovy shops down there and really nice people:)
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Posted by Lily Star on 2002-09-07 21:36:58
My Score:
Comment: I''m not sure about San Diego, i haven''t really been there, but just north of it there''s a little town called San Clamente where i was a few years ago. really nice little town. i dont remember if there were a lot of hippies there but everyone''s really friendly and it''s right on the beach.
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Posted by sd on 2002-05-23 14:54:20
My Score:
Comment: A lot of San Diego is very conservative so you need to hit on just the right spot to feel comfortable.
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