Things I liked when living there …
The Weather, of course.
Proximity to desert, mountains for camping/hiking.
Great beaches.
Plenty of activities for the kids.
Cool parks.
It was 10-15 minutes to anything (downtown, Jack Murphy, Sea World, Balboa Park, Zoo, Beaches )
Mexican food.
Lack of mosquitos and flying pests in general.
Things I didn’t realize that I liked until I moved away
Laid back attitude.
Minimal traffic (compared to LA)
Relatively inexpensive housing (Compared to LA)