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When you first drive through Angelino Heights, you'll feel like you're in a movie. That's partly because houses from this neighborhood have been in so many movies, it's almost a studio backlot. Not that living here is a constant barrage of being shut down for shooting, but there is something fabulous about being surrounded by places so pretty they make a location manager weep.

The neighborhood itself is very small and rather self-contained, just a few streets shaped in a horseshoe pattern with the open end abutted by the 101 freeway, facing the skyline of downtown. Most of the homes here are works of Victorian, Craftsman, and California Bungalow art, many over 100 years old now. It's pretty spectacular.

Not every home is quite as lovely as the next, and there are some run down houses and apartment buildings dotted amongst fully and lovingly restored Painted Ladies, but as a whole it feels like a spectrum of Los Angeles all bound together by just a few streets.

There's not much to do within the immediate neighborhood itself, and for shopping, dining, and entertainment, you'll probably find yourself going into Echo Park, Silver Lake, or Downtown for everything they offer, which are all just minutes away. There is a sweet park not far away, and a few little neighborhood markets for a milk run. But this neighborhood is all about the love of The Home, and the pride in the knowledge that Los Angeles actually does have a sense of style and aesthetic beauty.

Even if living here wouldn't be your cup of tea, it's well worth a drive through on a clear, pretty day, even just to pretend you're a character in "Chinatown", which of course, was partly shot in Angelino Heights.

I knew Silver Lake had fully changed from its edgy past when a lady from Beverly Hills told me she was going shopping in Silver Lake for her holiday presents, and gushed about how cute it was there, with all the shops and cafes.

She was right, Silver Lake is a really cute neighborhood is super cute and getting cuter all the time. I just didn't realize until then that Silver Lake isn't just for East SIders anymore. Once upon a time a Beverly Hills housewife wouldn't have been caught dead in Silver Lake, but now, it's known as a hipster paradise, and has gotten a clean shiny coat of Spiffied Up Awesome thanks to all the new businesses that have sprung up there in the past ten years, with more coming in all the time.

It is a great neighborhood to come and spend the day, or at least a long weekend morning. There's a great tradition of Silver Lake folks to sleep in and have a nice, long brunch in any one of the neighborhoods fabulous cafes and restaurants. There's now too many to even name, but it all springs from the central location of Sunset Junction and moves outward, up toward Los Feliz, mostly south towards Silver Lake Boulevard, where there is also a great little stretch of shops and places to eat.

There's so much to do here if you're feeling like shopping, or brunching. There's a great little farmer's market every Tuesday afternoon and Saturday mornings with that little street permanently closed off now to traffic next to a cute little pocket park. There's Pop Physique if you want to work out, or the lake to walk around if you're feeling old school. Just walking the hills is terrific exercise as Silver Lake has some of the steepest hills in the city, and once you get up high enough (cilmb Micheltorena for instance) some of the very best views.

While it might be too expensive, too hipster, or even still a little too sketchy for all people to feel comfortable living here, it's definitely one of the coolest neighborhoods you'll ever spend time in.

Los Feliz really is its own little town within the city of Los Angeles. It's possible to live here, or just spend time here, and not feel like you have to leave for any reason. it's one of the few neighborhoods in L.A. that's truly a walking neighborhood.

The geography of the place is pretty great, and makes the feeling of the neighborhood bustling, happy, and accessible, but private and quiet at the same time. The two main streets, Vermont and Hillhurst, run North to South, and these are where most of the restaurants, cafes, bars, and shops are, while the residential streets run East to West. So you can live on one of the cross streets, and have a nice, peaceful home, but walk a few block in either direction and immediately be immersed in a real little city.

There is a wide mix of different amenities all across the spectrum. There is a big grocery store, natural food store, gas stations, pet store, everything you need just to live life. There is a huge range of places to eat, many different ethnicities, styles of dining, and range of cost. Some of the very best tacos in the city are here in a little shack in the middle of a parking lot (Yuca's) and one of the coolest, almost New York style restaurants with an exceptional wine list (Little Dom's). And one of the best movie theaters in the city is here, the Los Feliz 3, still charging less for a ticket than almost any place in town, and showing a great selection of first run films.

The little town of Los Feliz would be a great place to live really for any age, and is probably best enjoyed by people who like a taste of real city living close to home.