General

Ty everyone for your inputs!
Committed to USC yesterday.

First off, congrats on your acceptance!
I'm always around the USC area and know plenty of people who attend school there. You'll definitely need a car to get around unless you're extremely outgoing and have a bunch of friends there with cars who are down to drive you everywhere. The weather is always wonderful and there's so many places to see and go explore. Also, while you're at USC, do check out some of the fraternities there during rush week! There's plenty of food places nearby campus and it's really close to Koreatown which has bombbb KBBQ and try the "Army Soup" from GamJaGol! Also, yeah USC is not a safe neighborhood...there's been multiple shootings just a couple streets away from where I've been and it's pretty scary.

If you choose to go to UCLA, as someone who's lived by UCLA almost all her life, the weather is definitely way cooler than it would be by USC. It's been pretty windy lately, but it's a wonderful breezy feeling. Also, the food here is more expensive than by USC in my opinion but still good nonetheless. If you're ever in doubt, just pick a random place down Sawtelle or Westwood to eat at, you won't be disappointed. Fat Sals will be your best friend when you're under the influence and Bella Pita will be your best friend when your wallet is crying. Also, UCLA is known for their on campus food so use your swipes wisely because come finals week, you probably won't have any left LOL.

Also, LA traffic sucks -_- always. Sometimes. Generally from 6AM-10:30AM (morning rush hour), 12:30PM-1:30PM (lunch rush hour), 4:30-8PM (after work rush hour) sooo, if you like to sit in traffic for 2 hours, then go for it. Otherwise, make plans after rush hour times

I just recently moved to SoCal after getting into Caltech. I was from Florida.

I can say that SoCal is infinitely better than Florida. The food is amazing, and USC is located really closed to the LA Metro System. The nearest metro station is only a few minutes away. From what I've experienced, (I visit my GF at USC a ton), there seem to be a decent number of partiers, and that is a pretty big scene.

Environment around USC is also variable, since one half of USC is pretty safe, and the other half is rather sketchy. For example, my GF lives in a pretty safe area, but the opposite side of her campus is sketchy. But, you're located pretty close to downtown, so you have access to a ton of things, such as Staple Center, LA Live, etc. It's pretty neat.

For Transportation, like I said, the metro system will be your best friend. Make sure you're not out too late though, it can be pretty sketchy. I've driven to a Ski resort, and it wasn't tooooo bad. As long as you are a patient driver with little road rage, you should be able to navigate the roads fine. I don't have a car, and I still explore a ton of places. A CAR IS NOT NECESSARY, but it will certainly help.

Recreation: Santa Monica has amazing beaches/other things. There are other places such as Six Flags, Big Bear Mountain, Knotts Berry Farm, etc. Great Recreation.

Food: Fantastic. The metro station allows you to move between downtown LA, to Pasadena (where I am), Little Tokyo, Korea Town (known as KTown), ChinaTown, etc. It's amazing. (Though if you want great Chinese food, Chinatown isn't the place. You should go to San Gabriel for that). Near USC's campus, you guys have several Boba spots, a McDonalds, a Del Taco, and other things like that. There is a ton of Boba in SoCal.

As for USC itself, I believe that you guys have several GE requirements, and I hear they're pretty stupid. But, you guys have a ton of options, and you are like the best film school in the country (or maybe world, not sure). Also, you will see a ton of Asians, as USC has the highest international student population.

USC is a great school, and SoCal is a great place to live. Just develop good street smarts (for those late night metro rides), and make good friends, and it'll be pretty awesome.

Also, a hint of caution: USC and UCLA are extreme rivals. Unsure why, to be honest. Don't ask a UCLA student whether to go to USC or UCLA and likewise, don't ask a USC student the same question. The amount of hatred they have for each other is immense. For your safety, if you're on either one of those campuses, don't talk too much about the rival school (unless you're trash talking), there are some crazy dudes out there.
GL and HF .

[quote=BadCereal]Thanks you two for indepth info on SoCal. So my takeaway is:
1) You need a car in SoCal, but be wary of reckless drivers
2) LOTS of stuff to do in LA
3) USC is in a ghetto neighborhood (I already knew this) so I should refrain from going out too late. If I do, go with friends
4) Lots of nature available within reasonable distance outside LA

Haha, can't wait. It's either there, UCLA, or UW for me (if any1 was wondering).[/quote]Yeah pretty much Congrats btw! <-- Forgot to say it in my first post haha.

Ooh, there are also lots of theme parks to go to... Disneyland/California Adventure, Six Flags, Knotts, and Universal Studios. Universities usually have student discounts for those.
And I know a lot of people have already pointed out the weather haha. But yeah, you won't be needing heavy jackets and coats in SoCal ! Summer is usually 75-85 (although it can go to the high 90s, rarely low 100s), fall goes down to 60-75, winter would be around 50-70 (rarely does it go in the 40s), and spring is usually 70-80. It never snows in LA, but it does hail on rare occasions lol. You'll probably hear about fires though, but it's usually in the Santa Ana region ahaha.

@AugustRain @Everlong
Thanks you two for indepth info on SoCal. So my takeaway is:
1) You need a car in SoCal, but be wary of reckless drivers
2) LOTS of stuff to do in LA
3) USC is in a ghetto neighborhood (I already knew this) so I should refrain from going out too late. If I do, go with friends
4) Lots of nature available within reasonable distance outside LA

Haha, can't wait. It's either there, UCLA, or UW for me (if any1 was wondering).

[quote=BadCereal]Alright I'll highly consider it now then. Good to hear from ppl who have experience living in LA, cuz my parents and I are just clueless lolol.
There's also tons of Asians in SoCal too, right?[/quote]

oh no, i never lived in la permanently. just travelled there intermittently, staying there from weeks to months for two years. im from the pacific northwest too, n there's a wide difference in ppl and weather in la.

congrats on getting in ! my ex goes there, haha. also, usc is unfortunately located in ghetto area, so be safe.

@BadCereal: Oops lol, yeah I'm not sure what other people call it hahaha. Just the roads where all the street lights are, and the intersections... Basically the roads that aren't the freeway.

Everyone in SoCal seems like they're always in a hurry. Not sure when they're driving, but even when people walk, it's fast lol. I don't know if it's just me... Or I don't know haha, I'm weird.
Although you'll be smack in the middle of the city lol, try to explore away from Downtown too! The beaches, hiking up mountains (Runyon canyon is a famous one, it leads you close to the Hollywood sign, Eaton canyon in Pasadena has some small waterfalls, and there are plenty of other hiking trails near the beach), snowboarding when it's winter.
There will be malls everywhere, movie theaters everywhere, food/restaurants everywhere... Lots of things... everywhere lol.

[quote=polardare]wave to the hispanics standing outside home depot.[/quote]
Lol, we have that here in WA too haha.

[quote=BadCereal]What do you mean by side streets btw? Just local routes?
And anything else that a complete noob on SoCal should know? Throw out anything since there's gonna be at least some that's news to me.[/quote]

wave to the hispanics standing outside home depot.

[quote=Everlong]@BadCereal: Yeah, pretty much :x lol. It's okay, you'll get used to driving like SoCal people soon enough lol! The next time you go back to Seattle, you'll be like "why is everyone driving so slow?" >:]
Try to take advantage of the carpool lanes. If you can, try to have at least one other person in the car with you lol. You'll fly through the freeway (in most cases). Sometimes taking side streets will be faster though, it depends where you're going and how close/far it is. You'll eventually learn the good times and bad times to go on the freeways, when it's better to just side street, short cuts, blahblahblah
edit: To answer your post above this lol... Yeah, there's tons of Asians. More in certain areas (Ktown, Lil Tokyo, San Gabriel, Alhambra, El Monte, keep going East and there's more Asians... Lol.)[/quote]
What do you mean by side streets btw? Just local routes?
And anything else that a complete noob on SoCal should know? Throw out anything since there's gonna be at least some that's news to me.

@BadCereal: Yeah, pretty much :x lol. It's okay, you'll get used to driving like SoCal people soon enough lol! The next time you go back to Seattle, you'll be like "why is everyone driving so slow?" >:]
Try to take advantage of the carpool lanes. If you can, try to have at least one other person in the car with you lol. You'll fly through the freeway (in most cases). Sometimes taking side streets will be faster though, it depends where you're going and how close/far it is. You'll eventually learn the good times and bad times to go on the freeways, when it's better to just side street, short cuts, blahblahblah

edit: To answer your post above this lol... Yeah, there's tons of Asians. More in certain areas (Ktown, Lil Tokyo, San Gabriel, Alhambra, El Monte, keep going East and there's more Asians... Lol.)

[quote=AugustRain]yes, you'd need ur car. u cant get anywhere in la w/o one. everything's so spread out there.[/quote]
Alright I'll highly consider it now then. Good to hear from ppl who have experience living in LA, cuz my parents and I are just clueless lolol.
There's also tons of Asians in SoCal too, right?

[quote=BadCereal]Oh, great.
So I guess I should bring my car and just get used to ppl who don't give 2fks about driving rules?[/quote]

yes, you'd need ur car. u cant get anywhere in la w/o one. everything's so spread out there.

[quote=Everlong]Lol, good luck if you don't plan on driving and taking freeways. You won't get anywhere you'd want to be on time... Or anywhere at all. There's a reason why SoCal has tons of freeways. You could technically take side streets to get to your destination... If you like taking the super long way or spend money on gas. My advice, drive and take the freeway lol. Don't rely on public transportation because it's horrible here.

Don't be afraid to meet new people... Especially people who were born and raised in SoCal, they'll know good places to go to food, sight seeing, hang out, etc.

USC is like a whole different "city" compared to the surrounding area.

It's fun to explore SoCal

** I've lived in Los Angeles all 25 years of my life, lol.[/quote]
Oh, great.
So I guess I should bring my car and just get used to ppl who don't give 2fks about driving rules?

@metaghost4: sadly it wasnt a joke but you dont drive so I dont expect you to understand

Lol, good luck if you don't plan on driving and taking freeways. You won't get anywhere you'd want to be on time... Or anywhere at all. There's a reason why SoCal has tons of freeways. You could technically take side streets to get to your destination... If you like taking the super long way or spend money on gas. My advice, drive and take the freeway lol. Don't rely on public transportation because it's horrible here.

Don't be afraid to meet new people... Especially people who were born and raised in SoCal, they'll know good places to go to food, sight seeing, hang out, etc.

USC is like a whole different "city" compared to the surrounding area.

It's fun to explore SoCal

** I've lived in Los Angeles all 25 years of my life, lol.

Ooh Santa Monica...

[quote=BadCereal]@LuckyNinja: Cheaper than up here in the northwest though.[/quote]

Fair enough.

Bike rides along the beach are fun. I went from Redondo Beach to Santa Monica. Not much, but I'm fat so I was hella tired but happy because of the fresh air and wonderful views.

@LuckyNinja: Cheaper than up here in the northwest though.

@BadCereal: well not THAT cheap.

[quote=nopaycheck]I guess I'll add that the air quality isn't as good as Washington.
Then again, Washington is quite golden in terms of air quality anyways.[/quote]
Ehh, that I don't mind.
Thanks though.

I guess I'll add that the air quality isn't as good as Washington.
Then again, Washington is quite golden in terms of air quality anyways.

Does any1 have more suggestions?

You're going to love the sun. It's sun 24/7, unlike washington.

@Zoneflare4: Good thing I don't plan on driving then. I guess I'm spoiled with having safe Washington drivers around me, so I'll probably rage a lot down in Cali.
@IKickCats: USC is a party school? Whatt....if you can explain more could you?
@LuckyNinja: Yea I heard the food in SoCal in general is really cheap (at least compared to Washington) and good. I like busy-city environments so I guess that's a plus for downtown LA.
@NonSonoFronz: Great...I say "hella" a lot...

I live on the east coast but I do a lot of work with a guy from California.
According to him a lot of people take pride in either being from Northern California or Southern California.

So if you say "hella", don't say it down there because according to him that's a NorCal thing. Can anyone attest to this?

You literally just won the lottery.

Welcome to California my friend. The weather is all you need to know.

I'm not in university, but I'll give a description of SoCal. (Keep in mind that I'm still in high school but still a local)

1. Weather really doesn't change. Sometimes, there's a breeze but it's always about 70-80 degrees. Not much rain. (oh sometimes summer is hella hot)
2. People are cool. Don't be a dbag and just try your best and make some friends. And if you listen, you'll learn new things about SoCal
3. Downtown LA is hella busy. South Bay is really nice (cause I live there, I know)
4. In-and-Out Burger is beast. (maybe not for the fries tho) There's a lot of food around and (since I'm Vietnamese) go to Santa Ana if you want some Viet food. Little Tokyo is fun for shopping and there's some good food there too.
5. There are some good parks and bad ones. Libraries are good depending on where you go. Just explore and find out. (katy geissert library ftw)

Very nice place to be and very hard to want to go another place. (All my friends want to go to East Coast, idk why)
Again, if you make some friends and listen around, you'll learn to explore and have fun!

USC huh well learn to party if you're legit going to USC it's a good school but ya you'll know what I mean once you get there and make friends. Zoneflare is right about the fwys people are aggressive and really give 0 Fs about speeding laws, don't drive on fwys during this time 7~9:30 Am and 3~7:30 PM it's generally when there's a lot of traffic, generally the buses have bums or drunks on them 40% of the time(at least where I live) they're also full , generally people are friendly if you're friendly to them but so cal teens are judge others harshly but you're going to college were most are supposed to have matured so you might not deal with it.

That's all I could remember right now so cal is great place to live it even during winter our weather could reach up to 80F, when it's summer though get ready to go to the beach alot, not to mention there's A LOT of places for you to go visit (china town, little tokyo, Hollywood, rosebowl etc)

I dont live there but visit often, five times a year and will advice you as a fellow Washington driver to stay away from the freeways. The drivers are mean and aggressive.