What It’s Like to Live in Santa Barbara, California.

The American Riviera has its fans. Yet to most people this little slice of heaven remains relatively unknown. Here’s what it’s really like to live here.

Many people have heard of Santa Barbara, but few outside California know where it is (“It’s part of LA, right?”) or what it’s like (“Don’t y’all have big fires?”) So, thought I’d share my own experience.

Now, I could write about how beautiful it is here, but you can find plenty of pictures online. I could write about how nice the weather is, but you can find that too. I could write about how expensive the homes are, things to do, etc., but all this stuff is easy to find out.

What I’d like to write about is what it’s like to live here.

Looking east over the harbor from The Mesa.

First let me just say: I’ve been to 29 countries and lived on 3 continents, and believe me: it simply doesn’t get a whole lot better than Santa Barbara & the surrounding areas of Goleta, Summerland, & Montecito.

Santa Barbara truly is just as wonderful as it seems. Life is easy. Life is relaxing. People are carefree, healthy & full of enthusiasm. The place is absolutely stunningly beautiful. Just stupidly gorgeous in every direction. And everyone seems to realize this fact all of the time. There is an undercurrent of positive energy that permeates every inch of the central coast.

NOTE: As of June 7, 2020, I’ve moved this full essay as a guest post on amaryroad.com. Finish reading about what it’s like to live in Santa Barbara.