Old Town, San Diego, CA

San Diego began on the bluff above Old Town, where the Presidio went up in 1769, and the town that grew at the base of that hill in the 1820s is now Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. Old Town is small, about 230 acres boxed in by Interstate 8 on the north and Interstate 5 on the west, with Mission Hills rising along its other two sides. Homes are a small part of the picture. Most of the land goes to the historic park, nine hotels, well over a hundred specialty shops and about 32 restaurants, with a limited number of apartments and houses around the edges. Living here means the city's oldest streets are your daily walk. The history is everywhere. The Whaley House Museum on San Diego Avenue is run by the Save Our Heritage Organisation, and the Adobe Chapel is another stop on the same circuit. Presidio Park climbs the bluff where the Presidio stood, with the Junipero Serra Museum at the top, and it is the neighborhood's main green space. Mexican food dominates, as you would expect. Cafe Coyote on San Diego Avenue makes its tortillas by hand, Tahona Bar serves Baja and Oaxaca-style dishes with a deep mezcal list, and a reservation-only speakeasy called Oculto 477 hides behind it. At the other end of the scale, Sushi Tadokoro holds a Michelin star at an intimate counter. Transit is Old Town's real advantage. The Old Town Transit Center connects the Blue and Green trolley lines, the Coaster commuter train, Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner and city buses, so much of the coast is a train ride away. Weekly groceries take a short drive, with the big stores clustered in Midway. With nine hotels and all those shops, visitors are part of daily life here. Once the shops close, the park grounds and the bluff above them feel like a backyard that very few people in the city get to call home.