Share a flat with 4 girls? I think not!

Things are moving apace for D. The plan is to leave the UK after the final episode of this season's Doctor Who. (Can't imagine missing out the end of the Bad Wolf story!) I've not bought the flight tickets yet, but that's because there was a slight delay in the visa application. My parents, on the other hand, have been getting excited on my behalf, and have already found a place for me to spend the first few nights: Tiverton House. It looks and sounds alright, but is a bit on the pricey side for me. On the other hand, the first couple of nights are always worst, as the jet lag hits, and the last thing I want to be is disoriented in an unfamiliar place. Crossing the street sounds perfect for the first few confused days. (And they've offered to pay... Oh, joy for the bank balance!)

Trying to be realistic

I can't stay there forever though, so Craig's list and UCLA's own off-campus housing listing database have been a big help for getting an idea of rental in LA. Having gotten so used to not having to share living quarters, I'm aiming to rent an apartment all to myself (without going into torrid details, there are just some things you don't want to see in a bathroom first thing in the morning...). And seeing as LA is quite expensive, it'll have to be, at best, a one bed/one bath, and more realistically, a studio. At very worst, I'm going to sink to a bed-sit (called an efficiency in the US, I think) and eat in the very many ethnic restaus there. Not knowing the place well, my strategy is to take on a sub-lease for the summer months, when the students aren't there, and look for a longer-term rental during that time. It's not looking too bad, and hopefully, I won't have to pay more than US$1,200 per month. And should nothing come through on either of those two free listings, I could sign up with one of those leasing agents... But since you have to pay for that, I'll leave that for desperate times.

Neighbourhoods

I'm probably the wrong sort of person to live in LA, 'cos I love walking. Everywhere, and under all weather conditions (and if you know the weather in Scotland, you know how bad that can be). Since LA is too big for that, I'm going to try to live near the Big Blue Bus route that goes from Venice Beach, through Santa Monica to UCLA. That way, I have an under-one hour bus journey every morning (~40 min if before the peak hours begin), but live in a neighbourhood that I can walk about in. While I'm not a beach babe or a surf dude, the prospect of being a short walk away from the beach for a few months is very appealing. We spend many weekends in summer on the beaches of East Lothian, but even the sunniest days barely hit 20 degC (and that's not even taking into account the unique Scottish phenomenon of the haar). That's the ideal situation, anyway, living in Venice, Santa Monica or even Mar Vista. Until I get really desperate, that is. ;)