Salinas, California

They grow lettuce there

Also, I hear that they’ve got an unfuckable fat crazy clown who nobody loves lurking in the shadows. The local kids spit on him when he has leave his house for groceries.

Dumpy, hot, dull, and poor - a bit of flyover country a few miles from the Pacific Ocean.

Full of people who do the workaday jobs for nearby Monterey, but who can't afford to live there.

One day up near Salinas, my Lord, I let him slip away

You don't want to go to Salinas, OP. There's a hideously deformed monster living there. It won't let you pass unless you shit in its mouth.

No one is safe.

I went to the artichoke festival there one year. Also, the Steinbeck house and museum is there.

Ghetto as F

Great salads though. Tender plants like lettuce thrive in de he cool ocean breeze.

thrive in the

Salinas is the only poor place on the California coast. It's where all the "minorities" live who serve the "normal" people.

Shithole

That hottie SteveS lives there.

Ugh. That self-absorbed fuck is mos def not hot.

R12 = Qwhip trash.

Went there for a weekend last year for a funeral. Googled gay Salinas to see if there was anything to do in regards to nightlife and the only thing that came up was a restroom in the mall (!). Nothing remotely Steinbeck about the place. Ugly little town.

Yeah stayed the night there at a Motel 6. It was the most low rent Motel 6 ever. Worst experience ever. Salinas is to Monterey what Oakland is to SF.

Total shithole overrun with gangs. Do not go.

But is has nothing on nearby Watsonville. Watsonville makes Salinas look like Pac Heights.

In general, when in the Bay Area, avoid anything south of San Jose.

[quote]I went to the artichoke festival there one year.

The artichoke festival is in Castroville.

r9 Hardly. First of all, it's not on the coast, it's in the Salinas Valley. Second, there are plenty of awful places actually on the coast, like Watsonville as mentioned at r16.

"a bit of flyover country a few miles from the Pacific Ocean"

Parts of California strangely resemble the Midwest. Sacramento, Pasadena...

Parts of California resemble just about anywhere on the planet. That's why they shoot movies and TV shows there. And just about anything that grows (except things that need a really tropical climate like pineapples, bananas or coffee) can be grown commercially there.

Au contraire, bananas grow here, in southern CA.

William Saroyan wrote books about it.

“Well, you had best light out and ride,/there’s pretty women on the other side./in Salinas, you’ll be free as air in Mexico/Camerado...”

This is eons ago, but I went to the most fun gay bar in Salinas? Castroville? One of the small towns somewhere between Gilroy (the garlic fest!) and Monterey. I think it was called Norma Jean’s. Filled with Mexican farmworkers in their best cowboy drag. Lots of drinking dancing grinding. No English. Went there once or twice when my hair was still brown. Loved it. Could it still be there? Anyone remember it?

Oh and - the sweet architecture downtown and the Steinbeck museum notwithstanding - Salinas is probably not worth a detour. The “cute” restaurants on the main strip are blah. Your best bet for food is one of the taquerias that serve a mostly Mexican clientele, away from downtown.

Do the locals say sa-LY-nas or sa-LEE-nas?

The movie [italic]Smile[/italic] had a pageant contestant from there:

What a dump. On a road trip, my husband and I spent the night as some shitty motel and the soles of my feet were black from walking on the carpet. All I recall of Salinas is truck stops, and dirty feet. We got the hell out of there first thing in the morning because it didn’t feel safe. And I’ve lived in some scary neighborhoods in Brooklyn.

Is this where "East of Eden" was filmed?

r26 sah-LEE-nuss. "Salina" means "saline" (or "salty") in Spanish.

[quote]Au contraire, bananas grow here, in southern CA.

Commercially? I don't think so.

It used to have a big gang problem back in the '90s and '00s because when people were released from prison they were often dumped in Salinas.

Guys, isn't Salinas part of the agriculture mecca of the US? Of course it's not going to be a big metropolis. It cannot be since it needs open fields for agriculture to thrive.

Jesus, California has a monopoly in US agriculture. It produces most of it !! No wonder we ran out of water so often. You fat fucks cannot grow produce in your own states.

Here's an updated list.

I taught elementary school there for a few years. The gang violence has gotten out of control. It's one of the most dangerous cities in Northern California. It's really unfortunate as the area is actually very pretty and has perhaps the most perfect weather in the entire state. If you're passing through from San Jose it's a least worth a stop for the Mexican food - the food trucks are incredible.