History UsefulNotes / SanDiego

Just about every major demographic in the United States has a presence in San Diego, with people from all walks-of-life settling the city. Easily the largest single demographic (making up one-third of the total population) are Hispanics, particularly those of Mexican descent. San Diego is located on the very southwest corner of the continental United States and is literally on the border with Mexico (even sharing an international Twin-City Status with neighboring Tijuana); as such, it's no surprise that the city has a very vibrant Hispanic cultural community. Food buffs especially love San Diego for having what is perhaps the best Mexican food in the entire United States. San Diego also has a large Asian population (making up 16% of the total population), with the largest groups being of Filipino, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Indian decent; Balboa Park even has a Japanese Garden called "Sankei-en" that many say feels taken straight out of Japan. It also has a sizeable African-American population and features several of the various classic "Ethnic Enclaves" that are commonly found in other large American cities, such as its own Little Italy, Little Saigon, Koreatown, Chinatown, Little Baghdad, several Barios,[[note]]Spanish word for "Quarter" and/or "Neighborhood"; commonly used to refer to predominantly Hispanic Neighborhoods[[/note]] and that's just to name a few. Also, just about every major religion has a presence in San Diego. Christianity is by far the largest faith in the region, with nearly 70% of the population being Christian (divided into roughly 32% for Protestants and for Catholics, with the remaining 6% belonging to other Christian denominations). It also has an approximately 25% of its population proclaiming themselves as irreligious/non-religious and the remaining 5% belonging to other faiths (Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc.). San Diego also has one of the largest LGBT+ Populations in the entire United States, with some estimates stating that nearly one-hundred thousand residents, or over 6% of the population, identifies as LGBT.

Another thing that sets San Diego apart from its more well-known sister cities in California is their sport teams... or rather their increasingly lack-thereof. Currently, there is only ''one'' major sports team that calls the city its home, the UsefulNotes/MajorLeagueBaseball team San Diego Padres, though other teams have to come to and left San Diego over the years.

* The '''San Diego Padres''', as stated, are currently the the ''only'' major team from any of the "Big Four" American Sports Leagues to be based in San Diego. Historically, they have been an average or even poor team in the league, seldomly making the playoffs any given year and having yet to win the World Series. However, despite the Padres subpar track record, they are still beloved by the city and have a loyal fanbase. Their stadium, "Petco Park" is located right in the middle of the city's downtown and is considered one of the best in the entire league, another reason to have a soft spot for the team.

Unfortunately, San Diego has lost three notable professional teams over the years, and in both cases for rather shady reasons.

* First off in the [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA]] there was the ''''San Diego Rockets'''', now the ''''Houston Rockets''''. For the record, the Rockets were established ''in'' San Diego in 1967 under that name, due to the city's aerospace industry at the time. However, [[https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-history-of-profession_b_7577694 financial woes]] forced the owner of the time to sell the team to a UsefulNotes/{{Houston}}-based investment group in 1971. Needless to say, the new owners ended up keeping the "Rockets" name for the team, feeling it appropriate for their new home of Space City.

Unfortunately, San Diego has lost two notable professional teams over the years, and in both cases for rather shady reasons.

* First off in the [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA]] there was the '''San Diego Clippers'''. Yes, ''[[MemeticLoser those]] [[ButtMonkey Clippers]]''. In fact, they got their name from the clipper sailing-ships that occupy the San Diego Bay. The Clippers were only in San Diego for six years starting in 1978 and really weren’t successful in the city, so they weren’t able to build a fan base. When the team’s owner decided to move the team to Los Angeles in 1984, which was done without NBA approval, locals quickly got over it. Since the now Los Angeles Clippers have developed such a poor reputation within the NBA, it’s not like the people of San Diego want them back.

Like much of the rest of California, transportation within San Diego is a pain that everyone has to deal with. The roads and freeways are regularly full of traffic, which is a headache for just about everyone (though it's not quite as bad as Los Angeles'). The San Diego International Airport is located just 3 miles from Downtown City Center and is notable for being the busiest single-runway airport in the world. The airport's location is a very double-edged sword for the city. On one hand, its close proximity to Downtown, the Interstate-5 Freeway, and many of the city's popular attractions make it convenient for many people to fly in and out of the city. On the other, its location in one of the few flat areas of the city causes a lot of problems; it cannot build another runway to alleviate the takeoff/landing patterns, the city's many nearby hills make it harder for pilots to take-off and land, and the city cannot construct particularly tall buildings within the vicinity.[[note]]The City's tallest building, One America Plaza, is only 500ft/150m tall.[[/note]] The city also has a Light-Rail Trolley network that connects downtown to the outskirts; it's one of the largest busiest of its kind in the entire United States and is popular even with locals who already own a car.

San Diego is a very popular tourist destination. In fact, tourism is so prevalent to San Diego culture that some argue that traffic is ''worse'' on the weekends than during "Rush Hour". Its many fine beaches are always swamped with visitors during the warm months of the year, not to mention the near endless list of hotels and resorts that dot the coastline region. Along with beaches, the city houses many popular attractions. As stated earlier, '''Balboa Park''' is largely the cultural heart of the city; it houses several museums, gardens, and venues. The most famous of these is the '''San Diego Zoo''', the most visited zoo in the entire United States which attracts millions of tourists every year and famously pioneered the use of open-air cageless exhibits for the animals (when historically animals at zoos were kept in cages). A secondary zoo, the ''San Diego Zoo Safari Park'', is over 30 miles north of the original within the suburban city of Escondido; it allows more space that almost resembles the African Serengeti for larger animals to live. Other popular tourist destinations include the original Ride/{{SeaWorld}}, the Coronado Resort, the Gaslamp District in Downtown, and the USS Midway Aircraft-Carrier Museum on the Bay. And, of course, there is the annual '''San Diego [=ComicCon=]''', the largest Comic-Book and Pop-Culture convention in the United States, attracting over 100,000 visitors every year.

Like much of the rest of California, transportation within San Diego is a pain that everyone has to deal with. The roads and freeways are regularly full of traffic, which is a headache for just about everyone (though it's not quite as bad as Los Angeles'). The San Diego International Airport is located just 3 miles from Downtown City center and is notable for being the busiest single-runway airport in the world. The airport's location is a very double-edged sword for the city. On one hand, its close proximity to Downtown, the Interstate-5 Freeway, and many of the city's popular attractions make it convenient for many people to fly in and out of the city. On the other, its location in one of the few flat areas of the city causes a lot of problems; it cannot build another runway to alleviate the takeoff/landing patterns, the city's many nearby hills make it harder for pilots to take-off and land, and the city cannot construct particularly tall buildings within the vicinity.[[note]]The City's tallest building, One America Plaza, is only 500ft/150m tall.[[/note]] The city also has a Light-Rail Trolley network that connects downtown to the outskirts; it's one of the largest busiest of its kind in the entire United States and is popular even with locals who already own a car.

San Diego is a very popular tourist destination. In fact, tourism is so prevalent to San Diego culture that some argue that traffic is ''worse'' on the weekends than during "Rush Hour". Its many fine beaches are always swamped with visitors during the warm months of the year, not to mention the near endless list of hotels and resorts that dot the coastline region. Along with beaches, the city houses many popular attractions. As stated earlier, '''Balboa Park''' is largely the cultural heart of the city; it houses several museums, gardens, and venues. The most famous of these is the '''San Diego Zoo''', the most visited zoo in the entire United States which attracts millions of tourists every year and famously pioneered the use of open-air cageless exhibits for the animals (when historically animals at zoos were kept in cages). A secondary zoo, the ''San Diego Zoo Safari Park'', is over 30 miles north of the original within the suburban city of Escondido; it allows more space that almost resembles the African Serengeti for larger animals to live. Other popular tourist destinations include the original Ride/{{SeaWorld}}, the Coronado Resort, the Gaslamp District in Downtown, and the USS Midway Aircraft-Carrier Museum on the Bay. And, of course, there is the annual ''San Diego ComicCon'', the largest Comic-Book and Pop-Culture convention in the United States, attracting over 100,000 visitors every year.

San Diego is a very popular tourist destination in California. It's many fine beaches are always swamped with visitors during the warm months of the year, not to mention the near endless list of hotels and resorts that dot the coastline region. In fact, tourism is so prevalent to San Diego culture that some argue that traffic is ''worse'' on the weekends than during "Rush Hour". Along with beaches, the city houses many popular attractions. As stated earlier, '''Balboa Park''' is largely the cultural heart of the city; it houses several museums, gardens, and venues that are popular with tourists and locals. And that's without mentioning the World-Famous Zoo within the park. The '''San Diego Zoo''' is the most visited zoo in the entire United States, attracting millions of tourists every year, and became famous for its pioneering use largely open-air cageless exhibits for the animals (when historically animals at zoos were kept in cages); a secondary zoo, the ''San Diego Zoo Safari Park'', is over 30 miles north of the original within the suburban city of Escondido, but it allows more space for larger animals to live that almost resemble the African Serengeti. Other popular tourist destinations include the Original Ride/{{SeaWorld}}, the Coronado Resort, the Gaslamp District in Downtown, and the USS Midway Aircraft-Carrier Museum on the Bay. And of course, there is the annual ''San Diego ComicCon'', the largest Comic-Book and Pop-Culture convention in the United States, attracting over 100,000 visitors every year. If there is one event that gives the city any national attention, its definitely this one.

Like much of the rest of California, transportation within San Diego is often a pain that everyone has to deal with. The roads and freeways are regularly full of traffic, which is a headache for just about everyone. Though locals will still say as bad as their traffic is, it's still better than Los Angeles'; one estimate even found that San Diegans on average spend "only" 80 hours in traffic per year on average, whereas L.A. residents typically spend ''153 Hours per year''. The city's main airport, the ''San Diego International Airport'', is located just 3 miles from Downtown City center, and is notable for being the Busiest ''Single-Runway'' airport in the world. However, the airport's location is a very double-edged sword for the city. On one hand, its close proximity to Downtown, the Interstate-5 Freeway, and many of the city's popular attractions make it excellent & convenient for many people to fly in and out of the city. On the other, it's location in one of the few flat areas of the city cause a lot of problems; it cannot build another runway to alleviate the takeoff/landing patterns, the city's many hills nearby make it harder for pilots to take-off and land, and because of its close proximity to city-center, the city cannot construct particularly tall buildings within the vicinity.[[note]] The City's tallest building, One America Plaza, is only 500ft/150m tall.[[/note]] The city also has a Light-Rail Trolley network that connect downtown to the outskirts, and has become popular for use among the locals (even those who own a car); one estimate states that San Diego's Trolly system is the largest & busiest of its kind in the entire United States, beating out Los Angeles, Boston, Seattle, and Dallas' services.

San Diego is a very popular tourist destination in California. It's many fine beaches are always swamped with visitors during the warm months of the year, not to mention the near endless list of hotels and resorts that dot the coastline region. In fact, tourism is so prevalent to San Diego culture that some argue that traffic is ''worse'' on the weekends than during "Rush Hour". Along with beaches, the city houses many popular attractions. As stated earlier, '''Balboa Park''' is largely the cultural heart of the city; it houses several museums, gardens, and venues that are popular with tourists and locals. And that's without mentioning the World-Famous Zoo within the park. The '''San Diego Zoo''' is the most visited zoo in the entire United States, attracting millions of tourists every year, and became famous for its pioneering use largely open-air cageless exhibits for the animals (when historically animals at zoos were kept in cages); a secondary zoo, the ''San Diego Zoo Safari Park'', is over 30 miles north of the original within the suburban city of Escondido, but it allows more space for larger animals to live that almost resemble the African Serengeti. Other popular tourist destinations include the Original Ride/{{SeaWorld}}, the Coronado Resort, the Gaslamp District in Downtown, and the USS Midway Aircraft-Carrier Museum on the Bay.

Like much of the rest of California, transportation within San Diego is often a pain that everyone has to deal with. The roads and freeways are regularly full of traffic

* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. Though the team played their first season in Los Angeles, the Chargers called San Diego home for more than fifty years. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record. All that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a new stadium for the team built to replace the aging San Diego Stadium (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. The city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium.[[labelnote:Reason]] The proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate. It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the existing stadium back in the '90s.[[/labelnote]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good. While in theory the Chargers are still close enough to San Diego for old fans to still support the team, most San Diegans were (and still are) ''pissed'' and alienated at this decision.[[note]] Plus, L.A. is still over a hundred miles north of San Diego, and Southern California is notorious for its traffic problems, so it's extremely impractical for fans to spend hours-on-end driving north to see a game and then spend more hours-on-end driving back[[/note]] The Chargers have greatly struggled to attract even close to as many fans in the more competitive L.A. market that did not really want the team much to begin with, but since the Chargers’ owners have made a deal to lease out the new Sofi Stadium for at least 20 years, it’s incredibly unlikely the team will be moving out of L.A. any time soon, much less back to San Diego.

* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. Though the team played their first season in Los Angeles, the Chargers called San Diego home for more than fifty years. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record. All that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a new stadium for the team built to replace the aging San Diego Stadium (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. The city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium.[[labelnote:Reason]] The proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate. It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the existing stadium back in the '90s.[[/labelnote]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good. While in theory the Chargers are still close enough to San Diego for old fans to still support the team, most San Diegans were (and still are) ''pissed'' and alienated at this decision,[[note]] Plus, L.A. is still over a hundred miles north of San Diego, and Southern California is notorious for its traffic problems, so it's extremely impractical for fans to spend hours-on-end driving north to see a game and then spend more hours-on-end driving back[[/note]] and the Chargers have greatly struggled to attract even close to as many fans in the more competitive L.A. market that did not really want the team much to begin with. However, the Chargers’ owners have made a deal to lease out the new Sofi Stadium for at least 20 years, so it’s incredibly unlikely the team will be moving out of L.A. any time soon, much less back to San Diego.

* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. Though the team played their first season in Los Angeles, the Chargers called San Diego home for more than fifty years. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record. All that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a new stadium for the team built to replace the aging San Diego Stadium (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. The city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium.[[labelnote:Reason]] The proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate. It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the existing stadium back in the '90s.[[/labelnote]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good. While in theory the Chargers are still close enough to San Diego for old fans to still support the team, most San Dieganswere (and still are) ''pissed'' at this decision, and the Chargers have greatly struggled to attract even close to as many fans in the more competitive L.A. market that did not really want the team much to begin with. However, the Chargers’ owners have made a deal to lease out the new Sofi Stadium for at least 20 years, so it’s incredibly unlikely the team will be moving out of L.A. any time soon, much less back to San Diego.

* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. Though the team played their first season in AFL in Los Angeles, the Chargers called San Diego home for more than fifty years. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record. All that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a new stadium for the team built to replace the aging San Diego Stadium (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. The city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium.[[labelnote:Reason]] The proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate. It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the existing stadium back in the '90s.[[/labelnote]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good. While in theory the Chargers are still close enough to San Diego for old fans to still support the team, most San Diegans were alienated by the move, and the Chargers have greatly struggled to attract even close to as many fans in the more competitive L.A. market, which was not helped by the fact that the larger city did not really want the team much to begin with. Understandably, San Diegans were (and still are) ''pissed'' at this decision. And in one final insult to injury, the Chargers’ owners have made a deal to lease out the new Sofi Stadium for at least 20 years, so it’s incredibly unlikely the team will be moving out of L.A. any time soon, much less back to San Diego.

* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. Though the team played their first season in AFL in Los Angeles, the Chargers called San Diego home for more than fifty years. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record. All that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a new stadium for the team built to replace the aging San Diego Stadium (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. The city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium.[[labelnote:Reason]] The proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate. It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the existing stadium back in the '90s.[[/labelnote]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good. While in theory the Chargers are still close enough to San Diego for old fans to still support the team, most San Diegans were alienated by the move, and the Chargers have greatly struggled to attract even close to as many fans in the more competitive L.A. market.

* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. Though the team played their first season in AFL in Los Angeles, the Chargers called San Diego home for more than fifty years. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record. All that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a new stadium for the team built to replace the aging San Diego Stadium (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. The city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium.[[labelnote: Reason]] The proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate. It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the existing stadium back in the '90s.[[/labelnote]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good.\\
\\
There are several kickers to this story. Even though L.A. is technically a more lucrative market for the ''Chargers'', the city largely ''did want the team to begin with''. Yes, there were some proposals floated around for years to have the team movie to L.A., but this was largely during the twenty-year gap from when the city did have any NFL teams. And the teams the city ''did'' want were mainly ''not'' the ''Chargers'', they instead wanted either the ''St. Louis Rams'' or the ''Oakland Raiders'', both teams with histories being based in Los Angeles, with the former calling L.A. home for decades before moving to Missouri in the 90s. In 2016, L.A. finally got the ''Rams'' back for good, so there was apparently no reason to have the ''Chargers'' movie north at all. So when the ''Chargers'' settled in L.A., they were immediately overshadowed by the already-more-beloved ''Rams'', and they struggled (and still struggle) to develop a large fanbase in their new home.[[labelnote: How Bad was it?]] Initially, the ''Chargers'' were forced to play in the soccer-specific stadium ''"Dignity Health Sports Park"'' which only could accommodate at most 30,000 spectators... well below the NFL minimum-stadium requirements of 50,000. However, even with this low number, the ''Chargers'' still could not fill the stadium up adequately, with rows-&-rows of empty seats in a tiny stadium. On top of that, most of the spectator who did show up were supporting the ''opposing'' teams and wearing their jerseys & merch rather than the ''Chargers''. Even with the massive ''SoFi Stadium'' built in Inglewood (which the ''Chargers'' share with the ''Rams'') the team still struggles to have a decent fanbase.[[/labelnote]]

San Diego, nicknamed "America's Finest City", "Birthplace of California", and "City in Motion", is the second-largest city in the State of California and the eighth-largest city in the entire United States, a fact that many American and even some Californians never realize (with many believing it to be San Francisco). The city has approximately 1.4 Million residents, along with an additional two million living within San Diego County itself. It houses some of the finest universities in the Nation, several large Navy & Marine bases, a major complex of various museums in the iconic Balboa Park that rival the more-famous ones in other American cities, the San Diego Zoo (widely considered one of the finest in the world), and some of the best beaches in the entire country. Despite this, San Diego is rarely, if ever, represented in media or pop-culture, and is regularly overshadowed by the other two major California Cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco, despite being 75% larger than the latter. There may be the occasional nod to the city's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_Comic-Con famous annual Comic-Con]] held every summer, but other than that it's as though the city's existence is lost to the general public. But if you ask any native San Diegan, or even anyone who takes the time to visit the city, San Diego is one of the most unique, culturally diverse, and easy-going cities in the entire United States.

San Diego is frequently referred to as the "Birthplace of California", and for very good reason. It was the first place in all of what is now California to be settled by the Europeans. Before their arrival, the region was home to the indigenous ''Kumeyaay'' people (later called by the Spanish the ''Diegueño''), who lived there for millennia. When the Spanish arrived to the region from Mexico in 1542, they claimed it for the Spanish Empire, but it was not settled by Europeans for quite some time. In fact, it wouldn't be until 1769 that the Spanish established their first fort in the region; it was during the same year that was the founding of the famous [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mission_San_Diego_de_Alcalá Mission San Diego de Alcala]] by St. Junipero Serra, the first of the many California Missions that dot the state's coastal regions all the way until north of San Francisco. However, these events only led to the creation of small settlements & villages in the region; when Mexico declared its independence from Spain, the entirety of what is now California joined the newly-formed nation, but San Diego was still essentially a small village called ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Diego_Viejo_Plaza Pueblo de San Diego]]'' (which today is preserved as the City's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Town_San_Diego_State_Historic_Park Old Town State Historic Park]]).

Things would change gradually for the village starting in 1850: After the UsefulNotes/MexicanAmericanWar, the entirety of California (along with other regions in what is now the southwest United States) was annexed by the United States. After gaining control of the region, the Americans saw potential in the San Diego Bay, located just south of the Pueblo Village, to be used as a trading port and naval base. Coupled with the arrival of investors, the bay began to see widespread development, forming what is today the city's downtown area. Over the next few decades, San Diego grew from a tiny village into a small-sized city. But probably the biggest event that had the most lasting changes for the growing city would be the ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panama%E2%80%93California_Exposition Panama–California Exposition]]'' in 1915. This two-year lasting World Expo celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal, which bridged the shipping gap between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans; San Diego was chosen to host it as it is the southernmost city along the United States' Pacific Coast and thus the first terminus of ships arriving from the Canal to the country. The expo was really impressive for the city since it was at the time actually 10 times smaller than San Francisco,[[note]]San Francisco, it should be noted, also had their own expo celebrating the Panama Canal, which saw the opening of the city's famous Presidio[[/note]] and yet the city went out of its way to create the famous ''Balboa Park.'' Dotted with Spanish-Colonial and Mission-Revival Architecture, along with massive greenage, Balboa Park remains the cultural heart of San Diego. The expo brought about the first real exposure of the city to the American public and visiting foreigners.

After the massive success of the Panama-California Expo, San Diego grew, and grew. It saw the creation of many military bases within its vicinity, even becoming the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet for several years (until moving to Pearl Harbor before the outbreak of the Pacific War), and housed many early airplane-manufacturers which garnered it the nickname "The Air Capital of the West". In fact, aviation legend Charles Lindbergh's plane "The Spirit of St. Louis" was built in San Diego, and he would use it for his famous transatlantic flight in 1927; the City's International Airport was called "Lindbergh Field" for years, and still keeps it as a nickname. During the Second World War, San Diego became a major hub for the military, with its bases for the Navy & Marine Corp playing a vital role for soldiers & sailors shipping out for the Pacific Theatre, along with becoming a center for wartime manufacturing. After the war ended, the military presence in the city largely remained, and is still a part of local San Diego Culture to this day. The City's status as a military base, a trade port, and a border town (literally located on the U.S.-Mexico Border) made it ideal for many new residents to settle from across the country and around the world. Modern San Diego is considered one of the most diverse cities in the entire United States.

Despite its well-deserved reputation as a beach town, much of San Diego is very rugged. The city is full of many hills, cliffs, valleys, and mesas that dot most of the landscape; its downtown, fittingly, is located in one of the few largely-flat areas of the region along its bay. The cities famous beaches are typically hugging along the coastal cliffs, and can be difficult to access in some locations (but WorthIt for the locals). Much like Los Angeles over a hundred miles north, San Diego is a city that was built "out" rather than "up". And because of this, the city has a very suburban feel to it in many districts (more on that later). Also, whereas San Francisco is nicknamed “The City By the Bay”, San Diego is a city with ''two'' bays. There is the main San Diego Bay, where much of the city first developed and serves as its primary deep water port; and there is Mission Bay, which originally was a series of Saltwater Marshlands that over the decades has been dredged up and now primarily serves as a place for recreation (with SeaWorld located on its southern edges and the Boardwalk Belmont Park located between it and the Pacific Ocean).

Like the rest of the California Coast, San Diego has a largely Mediterranean semi-arid Climate. It has Hot Summers and pretty Mild Winters, so much so that many locals even claim that the city only has ''three'' seasons instead of four: Spring, Summer, and Fall, but no winter.[[note]] Ok, there ''is'' a winter, but it never snows and is hardly any different from Spring or Fall [[/note]] Interestingly, because of the marine layer on the coast, San Diego (along with much of Southern California) has a reputation for being very cloudy & gray during the May & June months of the year (which the locals fittingly call "May Gray" and "June Gloom") as the seasons transition between Spring & Summer.

Just about every major demographic in the United States has a presence in San Diego, with people from all walks-of-life settling the city. Easily the largest single demographic (making up one third of the total population) are Hispanics, particularly those of Mexican descent. San Diego is located on the very southwest corner of the continental United States, and is literally on the border with Mexico (even sharing an international Twin-City Status with neighboring Tijuana); as such, it's no surprise that the city has a very vibrant Hispanic cultural community. Food Buffs especially love San Diego for having what is perhaps the best Mexican Food in the entire United States. San Diego also has a large Asian population (making up 16% of the total population), with the largest groups being of Filipino, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Indian decent; Balboa Park even has a Japanese Garden called "Sankei-en" that many say feels as though it was taken straight out of Japan since it's ''that'' vibrant. It also has a sizeable African-American Population; and of course, the city also has several of the various classic "Ethnic Enclaves" that are commonly found in other large American Cities; such as its own Little Italy, Little Saigon, Koreatown, Chinatown, Little Baghdad, several Barios,[[note]] (Spanish word for "Quarter" and/or "Neighborhood"; commonly used to refer to predominantly Hispanic Neighborhoods)[[/note]] and that's just to name a few. Also, just about every major religion has a presence in San Diego. Christianity is by far the largest faith in the region, with nearly 70% of the population being Christian (divided into roughly 32% for Protestants and for Catholics, with the remaining 6% belonging to other Christian denominations). It also has an approximately 25% of its population proclaiming themselves as irreligious/non-religious; and the remaining 5% belonging to other faiths (Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc.). San Diego also has one of the largest LGBT+ Populations in the entire United States, with some estimates stating that nearly one-hundred thousand residents, or over 6% of the population, identifies as LGBT.

In regards to culture, it can be hard for an outsider to pinpoint what exactly makes San Diego unique, especially since it does not have many of the iconic landmarks & locations that many associate with the State of California.[[note]] Los Angeles has Hollywood and the Entertainment Industry, while San Francisco has the Golden Gate Bridge [[/note]] So, for the sake of convenience, keep in mind that there are two things that practically define San Diego: it's Easy-Going Nature, and its Military Presence.

First off, San Diego is a very Laid-Back, Easy-Going City, especially when compared to other American Cities and even Los Angeles & San Francisco. Because of how the city was built out instead of up, much of the city has a suburban feel to it. This is one thing that sets it apart from Los Angeles; L.A. at the end of the day is still very much a large, busy city and bustling metropolis, even if it was built outward. While San Diego also is a large city, it often doesn't ''feel'' like it; it always kept its small-town suburban feel to it even when its population far exceeded one million people. Because of this, San Diego has become a very popular place for suburban-seeking families to settle down and live in without being overwhelmed by the big-city life.[[note]] As an example/analogy, located immediately north of San Diego County is Orange County, a largely suburban region of Southern California; even though Orange County is considered to be a part of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area, many locals (from both Orange County and San Diego) say that O.C. ''feels more like its a part of San Diego'' rather than a part of L.A. simply because of how much the two counties are alike and how different Los Angeles is from them.[[/note]] One thing that also contributes to San Diego's laid-back attitude is its vibrant surf-culture. With over thirty miles of beaches, San Diego is considered one of the surfing capitals of the world. Even those who don't surf still take the time to relax and have fun on the city's many beaches, which make the city a popular tourist destination. It's widely believed that this lack of a "hustle-&-bustle" feeling that is normally associated with large cities is part of the reason San Diego is overshadowed by Los Angeles and San Francisco; San Diegans frequently like to take it easy in sharp contrast to residents of its northern sister cities. But it is this overall attitude that makes San Diego the most "Californian" city in all of California, since it really embodies many of the cultural traits people associate with the state.

And finally, it cannot be understated how large of a military presence there is in San Diego and its surrounding areas. The city's bay hosts the primary home-base of the United States Pacific Naval Fleet and is thus the largest naval fleet in the world; in fact, along with the primary Naval Base San Diego, there are also several smaller naval bases & facilities that dot much of the city's regions. There are also several bases and supply depots for the United States Marine Corps located within the city, each of which house thousands of personnel at any given time. And because of the strong military presence in the region, San Diego has a large number of defense contractors that provide for the Navy and the Marine Corps.

Politics are something that ''really'' set San Diego apart from the other large California Cities, particularly Los Angeles and San Francisco. Both L.A. and Frisco have reputations for being very liberal, firmly Democratic Party aligned cities. But unlike those two cities, San Diego has always been a hodge-podge of both conservative & liberal political attitudes and Party Support. A key reason for this is because of the aforementioned diversity & variety found within the city's population. On one hand, you have many liberal enclaves who are very firmly on the left-leaning blue-side of political issues, such as the city's vibrant gay community. On the other, much of the city is populated by classic nuclear families and former military personnel who lean more towards the right-wing conservative red-side of issues. And even within these margins, there is ''a lot'' of variety among voters. For example, much of the city's Hispanic population will vote blue on some issues (particularly pertaining to immigration) but vote red on others (such as traditionally conservative values). As of 2023, there is a slight edge favoring the Democratic Party, but this spread is very miniscule compared to other large California Cities who are firmly Democrat; Republicans still hold a lot of sway among local politics.

Another thing that sets San Diego apart from its more well-known sister cities in California is their sport teams... or rather their increasingly lack-thereof. Currently, there is only ''one'' major sports team that calls the city its home, and that is the UsefulNotes/MajorLeagueBaseball team '''San Diego Padres'''. Other teams have come, and left, San Diego over the years.

* The '''San Diego Padres''', as stated, are currently the the ''only'' major team from any of the ''Big Four'' American Sports Leagues to be based in San Diego. Historically, they have been an average or even poor team in the league, seldomly making the playoffs any given year. They also have yet to win the World Series. However, despite the ''Padres'' subpar track record, they are still beloved by the city and have a loyal fanbase. Also, their stadium, "Petco Park" is located right in the middle of the city's downtown, and is considered one of the best in the entire league, and the reason to at least have a soft-spot for the ''Padres''

* First off in the [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA]] there was the '''San Diego Clippers'''. Yes, ''[[MemeticLoser those]] [[ButtMonkey Clippers]]''. In fact, they got their name from the Clipper Sailing-Ships that occupy the San Diego Bay. The ''Clippers'' Basketball team was only in San Diego for six years starting in 1978, and really weren’t successful in the city even then, so there weren’t able to really build a big-enough fan base. When the team’s owner decided to move the team to Los Angeles in 1984, which was done without NBA approval, locals were only slightly bummed but quickly got over it. Since the now ''Los Angeles Clippers'' have developed such a poor reputation & track-record within the NBA, it’s not like the people of San Diego want them back. Even if they did, the odds of that happening are extremely low, especially since the team has a new arena under construction in the Los Angeles County City of Inglewood devoted entirely to themselves rather than sharing with the city’s far-more successful & beloved ''Lakers''.
* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. For more than Fifty Years, the ''Chargers'' called San Diego home. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record, ranging from excellent, to poor, to average. And though they never won a Super Bowl in their decades-long history, they were still beloved by the city. But all that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a New Stadium for the team built to replace the aging ''San Diego Stadium'' (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. After some votes, signatures, and examinations, the city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium.[[labelnote: Reason]] The proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate. It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the stadium back in the 90s.[[/labelnote]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good.\\

* First of in the [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA] there was the '''San Diego Clippers'''. Yes, ''[[MemeticLoser those]] [[ButtMonkey Clippers]]''. In fact, they got their name from the Clipper Sailing-Ships that occupy the San Diego Bay. The ''Clippers'' Basketball team was only in San Diego for six years starting in 1978, and really weren’t successful in the city even then, so there weren’t able to really build a big-enough fan base. When the team’s owner decided to move the team to Los Angeles in 1984, which was done without NBA approval, locals were only slightly bummed but quickly got over it. Since the now ''Los Angeles Clippers'' have developed such a poor reputation & track-record within the NBA, it’s not like the people of San Diego want them back. Even if they did, the odds of that happening are extremely low, especially since the team has a new arena under construction in the Los Angeles County City of Inglewood devoted entirely to themselves rather than sharing with the city’s far-more successful & beloved ''Lakers''.

* In [[UsefulNotes/NationalFootballLeague the NFL]] there was the '''San Diego Chargers''', now the '''Los Angeles Chargers'''. For more than Fifty Years, the ''Chargers'' called San Diego home. They were always local favorites for both the city and for much of Southern California regardless of their often-inconsistent track record, ranging from excellent, to poor, to average. And though they never won a Super Bowl in their decades-long history, they were still beloved by the city. But all that changed in 2017 when the team's owners, the Spanos Family, decided to take the team to Los Angeles. The story behind this is long, but the gist of it is this: for years, primary owner Dean Spanos wanted to have a New Stadium for the team built to replace the aging ''San Diego Stadium'' (then called "Qualcomm Stadium"), leveraging (or rather threatening) to move the team to Los Angeles if he did not get what he wanted. After some votes, signatures, and examinations, the city decided ''not'' to invest in a new stadium, mainly because the proposed new stadium would have been built in the city's downtown, which largely did not have the space, was far too expensive for the city to recoup the costs for years, and there already were plans to develop the section for business and real-estate.[[note]] It also didn't help that the city was ''still'' paying off loans used to cover renovation costs for the stadium back in the 90s[[/note]] [[SoreLoser Not wanting to take this lying down]], Spanos took the team to L.A. for good.//
//
There are several kickers to this story. Even though L.A. is technically a more lucrative market for the '''Chargers''', the city largely ''did want the team to begin with''. Yes, there were some proposals for years to have the team movie to L.A., but