Living in Newport Beach provides one with a glamorous and often comforting distraction from the outside world.
Before I retired, I spent a majority of my time outside its boundaries, but since retirement, I have slowly immersed myself in life here in the Heights.
Although I grew up in a beach city, it has never been the beach which has attracted me for the physical activity it allows, but moreover it is the beauty and pace of life that one finds here that is so alluring.
In particular, I love the Heights because it provides the luxury of living close to the ocean without having to get involved in the crowds and the traffic. It also reminds me of an area in the town in which I grew up called the “tree section.” That is certainly one of the attractions of the Heights too, the number and variety of full-grown trees.
I love walking around my neighborhood for exercise and to marvel over all the unique homes and yards. Over the years, the transition from cottages to large houses which dominate the lots has been a constant phenomenon. But the variety allowed by all the different styles, large and small, has been consistently captivating.
Even though I am a frequent walker in the area, I never fail to marvel over something new.
In addition to the variety of houses, in the last few years I have become aware of the variety of dogs in Newport. The Heights has to be one of the best places in the city to walk your dog, particularly on the streets with less traffic. Every day I see at least a dozen dogs, many of which I have never seen before, parading up and down my street and adjoining ones.
And certainly one of the other benefits of dog walking is that it helps foster communication between the dog owners.
The beautiful park on Cliff Drive is a dog walkers’ paradise in addition to being a location for planned and impromptu friend and family outings.
It is located on one of the most popular routes through the Heights from which the park gets its name.
Newport Heights is also a good neighborhood in which to find and foster friendship because of the pace of life one finds here. Instead of driving 20 miles several days a week in retirement to get together with friends, I have discovered a good number of them nearby. We share texts, emails, food, camaraderie, walks and memories.
But mostly we share a friendship that helps to comfort and sustain us on a daily basis.
Lynn Lorenz / Newport Heights
