By Garrison Frost

Angels Gate Cultural Center: Located on an old Navy Base at the end of Gaffey Street, this is probably the largest and best concentration of art and culture in the South Bay. Proof positive that one doesn't need to be in the middle of the big city to have a unique and noteworthy artistic voice.

Portuguese Bend: This vast undeveloped area on the far side of Palos Verdes is about as remote as one can get without leaving the South Bay – and it's like that for a reason. A geological slide that has persisted for decades has scared off most development, leaving the wild terrain for an odd mix of artists, bohemians, outdoor types and old-school natives.

Gallery C: Fans of the Bijou Theater in downtown Hermosa Beach weren't happy when the town's storied art house was turned into retail space. But they felt a heck of a lot better about it with the opening of Gallery C, a spacious, honest-to-god art gallery that takes risks and brings quality art to an area crying out for consistent culture.

Del Amo Fashion Center: The South Bay is home to one of the largest – and most blandly annoying – malls in the country.

El Camino College: There are other community colleges in the South Bay, but this is our favorite, mainly because it does an equally good job of capturing the ethos of the area's east and west sides. Also, it's got a mighty fine art department and gallery.

Point Fermin: One of those rare areas that seems to retain its identity solely because of its distance from the nearest freeway on-ramp, Point Fermin is a blast of old Los Angeles. Quaint neighborhoods with old homes, a great park, breathtaking cliffs and beautiful views make this neighborhood one of the best around. Add to that its down-to-earth San Pedro attitude and you've got a place to envy.

Greenbelt: When the Santa Fe railroad vacated its right-of-way through Manhattan Beach and Hermosa Beach a few decades ago, the cities took the progressive step of turning the swath of land into green open space. With the value of land in those cities today, it would be hard to image the cities doing the same thing today. As dense as these cities have become over the years, this elegant curving park provides welcome relief from the people jam.

Heart of the City: A good example of what might have happened if the railroad right-of-ways had come available a few years later, the ongoing political crisis surrounding the potential opportunity to redevelop the AES power plant site in Redondo Beach has become one of the lamest political circuses ever in the South Bay. After years of talk and million in consultant fees, the only thing this issue has produced is a gaping division among residents.

Interpretive Center, Point Vincente: Wanna see a whale? Then go here.

Joslyn Fine Arts Gallery: One of several public facilities in the South Bay named for the late philanthropist Marcellus Joslyn, the Joslyn Fine Arts Gallery in Torrance promises to be one of the new centers of South Bay culture when it reopens in the middle of 2005. We can't wait.

Korean Bell: There's a scene in "The Usual Suspects" when our band of cool criminals comes out west and strikes a deal with an L.A. bad guy to do a robbery. The tense conversation takes place on a windswept cliff with a giant bell and pavilion in the background. This is that bell and that pavilion, and it's even cooler in person.

Lines: It's one thing to put on a tiny black minidress and stand in line to get into one of the bars on Hermosa Beach's pier plaza in August when it's warm. It's a completely other thing to do it in the middle of winter when the icy wind blowing down that desolate square would freeze the paint off a car. But people will still do it. Put simply: people in the South Bay must love standing in line, because they will do it every chance they get.

Madrona Marsh: There aren't too many unspoiled patches of land left in the South Bay that are the same way now as they were hundreds of years ago. This is one of the few, and well worth the trip to Torrance.

Naja's: In addition to being the regular first stop on any summer bicycle booze cruise, this popular bar featuring about a million beers on tap is also one of the few reasons to ever go to Redondo Beach's International Boardwalk.

Old Hometown Fair: On one level, we're loath to compliment the self-aggrandizing burghers of Manhattan Beach for anything, but we have to admit, they run one great community fair. Food, games, booze, music, crafts and community organizations combine to make this October fair probably the best in the South Bay.

Palos Verdes Art Center: Long a cultural institution, the Palos Verdes Art Center has something for just about anyone associated with the arts – classes, top-flight exhibitions, clubs, sales and meeting places. Rather than just another off-putting, condescending arts institution, the PVAC has a place for just about everybody and so is just as much a product of the community as it is a service.

Quesadilla: There are a lot of places to get a quesadilla in the South Bay, but for our purposes now we're going to suggest Arturo's on Western Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway, which features about the best Mexican food you're going to find in the area.

Rat Beach: An acronym for Right After Torrance, this is the last beach before you hit the cliffs of Palos Verdes.

Sloopy's/The Shack: In an area known for divey beach eateries, these two – at either end of Vista Del Mar – are classic places to go with sandy feet and salt in your hair.

Tree Section: Sure lots of other places in the South Bay have trees, and several have a lot more trees, but somehow this area of north Manhattan Beach got the name – primarily because of the tall eucalyptuses lining the streets. Ironically, development and the bark beetle may make them change the name in time.

Union War Surplus: A San Pedro institution, and one of the best places to buy a canvas duffle and canteen.

Vanity: Forget Hollywood – nobody spends as much time and attention perfecting their appearance as people from the South Bay. Cosmetic surgeons flourish here, and people beat themselves silly to get a body that will look good on The Strand. And while people might think that 90210 might be the capital of conspicuous consumption, check out the McMansions and luxury SUVs west of Pacific Coast Highway. These are people convinced that they are better looking, in better shape, more hip and more wealthy than you – and they're not going to stop at anything to prove it to you.

Weeklies: If you include the Palos Verdes News (which is technically a bi-weekly), the South Bay has a huge number of free weeklies to choose from, most of them pretty good. You've got the Easy Reader, the Beach Reporter, the El Segundo Herald, More San Pedro, Random Lengths and many, many more.

Xenophobia: Sure, people in the beach cities didn't invent the disorder, but they've certainly brought it to new heights. Imagine folks in Manhattan Beach converting a blighted industrial site in the middle of their downtown into a fashionable retail complex – and worrying that too many people might come! If there's a problem in the world for these people, there is no end to the logical contortions that residents of the South Bay will make to blame non-residents for it: crime, property value decreases, parking trouble, pollution, the weather ...

Spyder (with a Y): In a community of surf shops, the Spyder name and chain has gained more and more credibility in recent years, both as a producer of quality surfboards and gear, and as a culture retailer selling the lifestyle.

Mr. Zog's Sex Wax: For a long time, the best way to get kicked out of class at Mira Costa High School in Manhattan Beach was to wear your Sex Wax T-shirt to first period. Sure, there's nothing particularly South Bay about the stuff, but if you're from here, you know that smell, you've put it on your board and you've probably even chewed on it.

(March 1, 2005)

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