I thought SF looked like a dirtier version of Bangkok, myself.
++++++++++++++++
Yes, better comparison. SF still photographs well and the distant views of the city from atop the hills are great but no matter what area of the city you live in it’s not really living. I even put iron bars are my skylights, disabled the buzzer system on my access door for a longer more sturdy deadbolt which meant an inconvenience when visitors came. I had to go down two flights of stairs. I had to remodel my entry way porch so that druggies couldn’t sleep without being seen from the street a day and nightly routine and I lived in a fairly good neighborhood, not really on the beaten path. When parking at home I’d stop the tail end of my car right at the garage door and only moved on into the garage when it closed completely. The fear was so great that I kept a pistol in the car (against the law) as I was more interested in my safety than obeying the law. Unless you have something really specific it’s a joke trying to get a concealed carry in SF. Just being scared is not good enough. City Hall is a joke and like the rest of government are run by special interests, not fed up homeowners. The homeless and druggies have every community action group known to mankind defending them and city hall seems to do backflips trying to accommodate their concerns.
I stopped taking visitors to Golden Gate Park or city hall as the homeless have taken it over. I could go on and on and on about quality of life issues there.
We left CA over six years ago due to quality of life issues, and haven’t looked back. I was burglarized twice and carjacked in my driveway, so you can imagine the rest of the crime I witnessed in the “community.” The area’s crime rate was only slightly higher than average, too...I wonder how they cheat to keep those stats down?