Unhappy with your social experience at UCSD? Move to Pacific
Beach! With a brimming nightlife,
marked diversity and a laidback beach vibe, PB has everything UCSD lacks,
making it the perfect complement to college life in San
Diego.

PB is the square grid sandwiched between downtown La
Jolla and Mission Bay,
stretching from I-5 to the beach. Garnet Avenue is the gateway to this eclectic
beach town and the quirky mix of thrift shops, yoga huts, tattoo parlors, bars,
smoke shops and sushi restaurants hints at the diversity of residents.
Everyone, from San Diego State
frat boys to old surf rats, beachside vacationers to the coolest bums around,
creates the stimulating atmosphere that is PB.

While traffic and parking can be an issue, living in PB
solves all problems. There is always something to do just a short walk or bike
ride away. The other vein of life perpendicular to Garnet is the beach
boardwalk, extending from Law Street to the Mission Beach jetty, where you will
find a pulsing mass of skaters and bikers along with one particular
rollerblader showing off his ice-skating techniques to the classical music
sounding from a speaker on his belt clip (you’ll know him when you see him.) The
boardwalk is also home to one of the few youth hostels in San
Diego, a Venice Beach-esque bazaar, a rollercoaster
and a manmade mechanical wave.

PB nightlife caters mostly to the 21-plus crowd but
young’uns can hang out at the 18-and-over hookah bar, Sinbad’s, or find a house
party on every other block. While Garnet can succumb to a bro/ho scene at
night, bars range from upscale to holes in the wall, many offering live music,
so there is potential for everyone. Some fun options just around the corner from
the main drag are Cass Street Bar and Grill, a nautically decorated sports bar
complete with pool tables and shuffleboard, an Australian pub on the other side
of Garnet and the PB Shoreclub, a favorite for its upstairs view of crashing
waves.

But more than partying is the lifestyle that PB affords.
Bike riding to the grocery store, happy hour and Taco Tuesday specials, sports
bars each with their own favorite team, surfers crossing the street to the
beach, board in hand, and a corner breakfast joint and coffee shop for every
neighborhood are just a few things that make San Diego feel like home, rather
than just a place to go to school.

Where to live depends entirely on whether you want to be in
the heart of downtown or in the more residential areas that surround it. Mission
Beach is a unique strand that
separates the beach from the bay with narrow alleyways connecting the two. But
if you prefer a quieter community, life slows down a bit as you head north
around Turquoise Street
where longtime residents share the streets with students, waving friendly
hellos as they walk by with their dogs. Housing gets more expensive the closer
you get to the beach, but you may find that the sound of waves and smell of
salt is worth the extra buck.

So all of you unsatisfied students have no excuse. Look no
further than the crazy beach town off I-5 to become that college town you’ve
always dreamed of.