Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
20
Soif
B2
21
Walnut Ave Cafe
B1
Drinking & Nightlife
22
Caffe Pergolesi
B2
23
Hula's Island Grill
B2
25
Vino Prima
C5
Entertainment
26
Catalyst
B2
27
Kuumbwa Jazz Center
B3
Shopping
28
Annieglass
B1
Santa Cruz has marched to its own beat since long before the Beat Generation. It's coun-
terculture central, a touchy-feely, new-agey city famous for its leftie-liberal politics and
live-and-let-live ideology - except when it comes to dogs (rarely allowed off-leash), park-
ing (meters run seven days a week) and Republicans (allegedly shot on sight). It's still cool
to be a hippie or a stoner here (or better yet, both), although some far-out-looking freaks
are just slumming Silicon Valley millionaires and trust-fund babies.
Santa Cruz is a city of madcap fun, with a vibrant but chaotic downtown. On the water-
front is the famous beach boardwalk, and in the hills redwood groves embrace the
University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) campus. Plan to spend at least half a day
here, but to appreciate the aesthetic of jangly skirts, crystal pendants and Rastafarian
dreadlocks, stay longer and plunge headlong into the rich local brew of surfers, students,
punks and eccentric characters.