Micheltorena St, Silver Lake

Like so many streets in Los Angeles, Micheltorena has its ups and its downs, literally. I lived on what I'd call the "down" side of the street--the "flatlands" near the 101 freeway, where things got a little dicey, in terms of safety; and buildings/houses weren't always kept as tidy as I would have liked. The nearest bus stop was on a dicey little sliver of a street; after one too many encounters with drunken vagrants, I opted to walk all the way up to the Sunset Blvd. stop. On the other hand, walk up towards the Sunset section of the street, and you're in Silverlake heaven! Micheltorena crosses Sunset (with lots of shops and restaurants) and then climbs higher up into the hills; it's one of the best L.A. neighborhood walks I've ever had, particularly when you reach the grounds of a rumored-to-be-haunted old mansion which belonged to a 1920's heiress and is now a nunnery.

My advice: Pay attention to what section of Micheltorena you're considering!