Q&A; : It’s the Food, the Mystery and, Well, the Way Out

What L.A. experience makes all the hassles of living here worthwhile?

Jody Watley, singer/songwriter: The great thing about living in L.A. is that it’s so easy to leave! One road takes you to the desert, another leads you north and then of course there’s my favorite route of all: La Cienega Boulevard straight to LAX.

Leon, actor, star of Disney’s “Cool Running”: Being a native New Yorker, I would have to be a fool not to appreciate a place where I can wake up and play outdoor sports (like basketball) any day of the year. But L.A.’s true draw for me are its romantic nights--always nice enough for a walk by the ocean or a stroll through the Promenade.

Bernard Cooper, author of “Maps To Anywhere” and “A Year of Rhymes”: I’m stirred by our hazy afternoons--part smog, part cloud cover--when the air turns eerie, almost opaque. Every edge is softened. Every vista disappears. The cast of the light is thin and melancholy, and the city seems especially mysterious, a place where anything can happen.

Gwen Darien, executive director, Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE): Los Angeles has a dynamic and exceptional climate for experimentation, particularly in contemporary art and architecture, the things that interest me the most. Then there is the food. Thinking about what makes L.A. worthwhile, I imagine going to see an exhibition in one of our many contemporary art centers, having a seafood lunch in East L.A., then taking an architectural tour of Silver Lake and ending the day with dinner in a Japanese restaurant.