The San Francisco Treat

Apparently there is a group of people out there advocating San Francisco as the “best city in the world”. I haven’t actually met any of these people, and am not sure if they’re residents or visitors, but you know, they might have a point.

Sailboats on the Bay

There’s just something so damn amenable about the place. I imagine it has something to do with the friendly residents that chat with you on the buses, the breathtaking harbor views, the proximity to nature, the world’s “crookedest” street (for the record, I believe the San Francisco city council invented this word just to win this nonexistant title, which in my mind should disqualify them from any record; though, I must admit Lombard Street is very nice indeed) or possibly the amazing level of diversity which gives San Fran such a worldly feel. I’ll tell you what it’s not though, the weather – the city just can’t make up its mind. Windy? Cloudy? Rainy? Sunny? How about all at the same time? When you’re in the sun and sheltered from the wind you’re in a T-shirt and 30 meters (sorry 100 ft) away when you’re in the shade and exposed to the wind you’re wearing two jackets just to save from hypothermia.

Palace of Fine Arts

Regardless of the finicky weather, there’s a lot to keep a visitor or resident alike busy in San Francisco. For instance you could; check out the few remaining burnt out hippies in Haight Ashbury and grab a Starbucks coffee and do some shopping at Armani while you’re out there; visit the former residence of Al Capone and enjoy splendid harbor views and Midwestern tourists on Alcatraz; watch the sea lions fight and frolic on Pier 39; bike across the golden gate bridge and explore the wild headlands just a couple Ks from the city and then grab an ice cream cone in quiet seaside Sausalito before grabbing the ferry back to the Pier; alternatively, share a pitcher of PBR with hipsters at a biker bar in the Mission; or, finally take the ultimate travel picture – a picture of you in front of Danny Tanner’s house.

Alcatraz, The Bridge and the City from the Headlands


Welcome to the Rock

So San Francisco’s good. I was surprisingly surprised most by the two most idyllic symbols of the city: the Golden Gate bridge and Alcatraz. I always figured these were overrated (like the Hoover dam) but came to find that in fact I was prematurely underrating them. Though it’s over a mile away, Alcatraz really dominates the harbor view with the light tower, huge jailhouse and ruins of old residents for the island’s guards and workers. The Alcatraz audio tour is also wonderful with descriptions of life on the island (and escape attempts) told by old convicts and guards, and taking a walk out side you get great views of the city as well as the thousands of crazed seabirds which now inhabit the island. One tip if you go: Get the early morning tour and get some privacy before the jailhouse gets crowded and claustrophobic mid-morning. The other thing is the Golden Gate bridge which is phenomenal. It’s remarkably impressive in real life as it stands out in the skyline and is really, really long. The bright red paint also marks a great entrance into the harbor. I always thought a bridge to be a strange icon for a city, but now I understand and think it works.

Alcatraz Gulls


Damn, Now That There's a Good Lookin' Bridge, You Reckon?

In the city I was staying with this guy Chris whom I met through a social networking site called couchsurfing which was setup for travelers looking for a place to crash. Chris was a wonderful host and immediately showed me around his sweet one bedroom in Marina, threw me a set of keys and said, “enjoy”. I even met some fellow “couchsurfers”, had the place to myself while he went home for the weekend and borrowed his bike for a trip over the bridge and into the headlands. Although I wouldn’t expect all hosts to be as gracious and trusting as Chris, I would definitely couchsurf again and recommend it to anyone as a way to meet locals (and get a free place to crash).

I also got to see some old friends in the city whom eagerly showed me the different neighborhoods and watering holes. This included Neil my old roommate from high school and my friend Kiran from college who was kind enough to receive a package from my folks. This package contained my laptop, iPod and a present from the Easter bunny whom was kind to me this year. Sadly, the package did not contain the key item – my drivers license, which appears to have gone to wherever it is that lost licenses go these days. This cut short my plan of renting a car for the long haul north, but at least I’m reconnected to the technological world and thoroughly enjoying access to my music for the first time in 5 months.

It’s also been very interesting to return to the US after 5 months abroad. The first day I just marveled as I overheard people’s American chatter in this busy city. People like to talk frantically about money, relationships and work with an intensity I’m not used to. I’m also not used to hearing “like” used as every fifth word and must admit I’m slipping back into this bad habit myself. People look at me a bit strange when I say "cheers" instead of thank you or "no worries". In general I’ve begun to realize the truth of the foreigners stereotype of how loud Americans are and how tacky American tourism is. Ah American tourist, I can’t say I’ve missed you. Walking down the constantly packed Pier 39, I was amazed to see large masses of tourists virtually yelling at each other and almost everyone wearing a garment from, presumably, their last stop: Yosemite; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; The corn palace – you name it, they have sweatshirts for it. There are other things to adjust to like paying tax over the stated price and tipping which is slowly coming back. There are also good things like pizza. I almost snapped my neck in excitement when I caught my first whiff of Pizza shortly after getting off the BART from the Airport. Mmmmm.... Pizza....

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San Fran Sunset