cuiji02

West Yanonali and East Yanonali are like night and day. The East is industrial but the West is one of the best spots in santa barbara. It has little apartments surrounded by hotels. But the street has this calming effect when you are walking by. Its just cute overall. Great for families but also amazing for singles who want to be close to everything but still in a quiet area close to the beach. Its close to State St, SBCC, the beach, shops on the Mesa, the Amtrak station, the Public Pool, the yacht club and the 101 freeway entrance at Castillo. It is also close enough to Cabrillo Blvd which leads to the Santa Barbara wharf. It is one of the best places to roller skate or just walk down.

When I was at SBCC my friend and I would always take a drive through that street when we wanted relax. It is a mountain road but it has these amazing homes and views of the ocean and Santa Barbara. To locals it is known as APS. It has this little area where you can pull over and admire the views. The best time to go is when the sun sets. I like to drive through there at night but If you don't know the area you can get lost and it can be difficult to get out since there are windy narrow roads. It is one of my dream streets in Santa Barbara. I do not recommend walking.

My friend used to live on this street. This street and mostly all the surrounding streets are small little homes. Compared to other areas of Santa Barbara. It is a clean family neighborhood. All the streets have small trees or palm trees. The homes all have some character in their architecture. Harding school is located around there and it has really improved during these last couple of years. It has a very mellow vibe and its a very diverse neighborhood.

South Milpas is the little stretch of milpas that leads to the East Beach. You also take the street to get to the homeless shelter and the zoo. To the softball park located across the beach. This little stretch used to not have much going on but now there is a Habit hamburger place. It is also home to the only batting cages in Santa Barbara. There is also a grocery store called Tri-Country produce where celebrities shop. Its just there to take you places. The beach being my favorite one. It is one of the best beaches because of its volleyball courts.

This is one of my favorite streets in Santa Barbara. It takes you up to the Santa Barbara mission. While you are driving through there you get to see some of the best cozy looking and amazing Santa Barbara homes. My favorite is this home with the statue of a dog in its front yard. Legend has it that the dog saved the owners family from a house fire. The mission at the end has an amazing park with a rose garden. During the winter time they have a nativity set that I love to go see because they have little goats. You can see the ocean and all the surrounding mountains. The street turns into mission canyon road which leads to the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum and the Woman's Club. A beautiful estate where many weddings and non-profit fund-raisers are held.

West Micheltorena after San Andres St is a family neighborhood. The corner of it where it hits San Andres St. Has a bad reputation but it is not that bad. That part of the street is home to the first Super Cucas restaurant in town. It is a great little mexican restaurant and meat shop. It is the best place to get meat for carne asada. That part of Micheltorena is also home to the West Side Neighborhood clinic. A clinic dedicated to providing care to the low income community of Santa Barbara. Most of the bad reputation comes from the street being considered a gang hang-out but I have never experienced a problem.

Micheltorena is home to two of the best parks in Santa Barbara. Alice Keck Memorial Park is great to have a little picnic. It has a lot of plants and flowers. Its main attraction is this little pond in the middle of the park. It has fishes and turtles. You can sit there an enjoy the afternoon and read a book. Across the street is Alameda Park. It is the home of "kids world." I think its one of the best playground areas in town. It has two big whale statues. It is a huge park that also host many festivals throughout the year. One of them is the big earth day celebration. It is also where most parades in Santa Barbara tend to end. The rest of the street is a family neighborhood area but there are also many little apartment buildings for singles.

Milpas is the main street ont the Eastside of Santa Barbara. Many people think of it as the "ghetto" of Santa Barbara but it is home to some of the best things in town starting at its very North end where the Santa Barbara bowl is located. I think it is one of the best concert venues. Secondly, It is home to some of the best Mexican restaurants in town. La Super Rica which was made famous by Julia Child. There is always a line coming out of the place. There is also a new restaurant called Los Agaves which has some amazing food too. I also really enjoy el bajio restaurant, it is located in a smaller little white building and its a little harder to spot while driving down the street. It also has many other options and fast food restaurants available.

Montecito St towards the Mountains is a family neighborhood place. From Milpas towards Cesar Chavez st. Is a mix of businesses, homes, the side of a church and at the end a non-profit called La Casa de La Raza. Because the street has a more industrial feel to it people do not tend to frequent it much, but during the day is is definetly worth a walk. It is a tree lined street. In the corner there is an italian restaurant, when you are walking by the pet hotel place you can say hi to the little parrot in its cage. Casa de La Raza sits at the end. It is mostly known for serving the Latino community in Santa Barbara but it host many different activities and events. It is two big halls that are available for rent to the public for parties and events. They have many youth programs that run mostly after school. It is also home to bici centro. A bicycle repair shop that was created to give youth an outlet for creativity. It is also open to the public. They also have many used bikes for sale which have been fixed by the youth in the program.

Haley St between State St. and Milpas St. does not have the best reputation in Santa Barbara mostly because of this shady little spot called "las conchas." Which at night attracted shady characters. It was a little cabaret that has been shut down. At night is better but I would not recommend walking through there. However, during the day it is totally worth taking a walk through there at some point. It is a mix of industrial businesses and ecclectic little shops and old established restaurants. Many of the buildings are actually home to a couple of non-profits such as PUEBLO and the Pacific Pride Foundation. I like many of the little shops. A little bakery called Los Tarascos which has really good tortas and fresh fruit juices. There is also a little coffee shop called muddy waters. Old established restaurants like the Rose Cafe. There are a bunch of litle businesses totally worth taking a look at. During the day they are definetly hidden treasures.