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Travel Guide: San Francisco
- California
- United States
On the surface San Francisco has all the cliche tourist icons that we know: the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, Chinatown, to name but a few. But also keep in mind, San Francisco itself is fairly small geographically, roughly 50 square miles. "The City" as it is called by those residing there is the home of the Giants (MLB) 49ers (NFL). During the summertime, AT&T Park is a great family-friendly place to catch a ballgame. Sit in the upper deck to see the Bay and the real obvious tourist areas of SF. Most residents of the Bay Area do not visit the famous tourist areas except to bring friends and relatives. There are restaurants and lots of shopping directed towards tourists. Of course, at Fisherman's Wharf, you can get the famous Dungeness crab. (Crab season is September/October to about April). You can eat crab all year round but they're best in season. And while it's not really a SF tradition (really an L.A. tradition), the only In 'N Out Burger joint in SF is at the Fisherman's Wharf area so if you haven't had one - get it there! The Pier area (Pier 40 and further south at the Ferry Building) is where the ferries arrive from around the rest of the Bay Area. The mile between the Ferry Building and Pier 39 is an uncluttered waterfront view of underneath the Bay Bridge and the East Bay. San Francisco is less a single city than it is an amalgamation of many neighborhoods. The major neighborhoods are North Beach, Castro, Mission, the Haight, Hayes Valley, Bernal Heights, Noe Valley, and South of Market. Not all of the neighborhoods are tourist destinations, but all of them contain good shopping and cute bistros and cafes. San Francisco is home to a sizable gay population. The main gay neighborhood is the Castro. The Castro is a neighborhood unlike any other and it's a fun neighborhood to visit, offering many fine restaurants and places to stay. Another neighborhood that is fun to visit is called The Mission. Although it's become more gentrified, you can expect some wonderful burritos from places like el Farolito, Taqueria Cancun and plenty of wonderful tapas places.
Across the Golden Gate North is the North Bay, starting with Marin County. You can hop on a ferry at Pier 40 to visit the artisan cove - Sausalito - for the day (or, of course, drive across. Further north (by car) along the coast are Stinson Beach and Point Reyes - both beautiful and romantic whether you travel up Highway 1 or through the forest via Sir Francis Drake Road off Highway 101. There are also other fun, romantic and charming towns in the South Marin area such as Tiburon, Mill Valley and San Anselmo. All of these are within 30-45 minutes of SF. Mt. Tamalpais State Park is another recreational area encompassing biking, hiking, water sports and so forth. You can continue along (another hour or so) to the quaint quasi-resort-rustic village of Mendocino - or choose from dozens of coastal rustic-fishing-resort communities such as Tomales Bay, Inverness, Bodega Bay and Olema along the way - each with its unique charms! You can even take a regional bus to various Marin County parks and overnight camping at Samuel Taylor State Park. Bodega Bay was the site for Alfred Hitchcock's movie "The Birds". Also, close by is a wonderful place to get fresh oysters and another place for wonderful cheese at a reasonable price. I'm sorry I cannot remember the name of the place but I'm sure locals can give you directions. We used to go to the oyster place and buy a pint of shucked oysters and then go the cheese factory where we would also buy some nice Napa Valley wine and sour dough bread. They offer a free tour of the cheese factory and then you and sit by a pleasant pond and have an impromtu picnic of bread, wine, cheese, and wine. Wonderful. To the Northeast is the Napa Valley and to the North is the Sonoma Valley (both part of Northern California's famed wine country). Many of your favorite vineyards are located along these highways and backroads. Napa Valley is the more famous of the two wine valleys, but both offer opportunities to visit small rustic, family-owned vineyards and larger, commercial wineries. Calistoga is famous for the spa treatments, mudbaths, massages and body wraps.
To the East is the East Bay. UC Berkeley, one of the premier public education universities in the world, as well as Oakland, the home of the A's (MLB) and Raiders (NFL).
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