Santa Cruz is beyond cool! Did ya go check out the campus at UCSC? Beautiful, and any college with a Banana Slug as it's mascot is OK in my book
You're right about the prices, though. Unless you're a millionaire, forget about owning a house in that part of California. But the ocean's great, and it's always fun watching the surfers, too. Great place to visit if you can't afford to live there.