Westward Ho!

[ladysprite]

So it looks like I'll be spending some time next month in San Francisco. Just for a few days, but I'll still have time to adventure and explore - and I'll be more or less on my own, at least during the day.

I've never been to the west coast before. I'm vaguely intimidated by the thought of being somewhere where the water is on the wrong side, but at the same time, it should be a lot of fun.

I just have no idea of what to do while I'm out there. So - anyone local to the area, or anyone who's been there before, what should I do or see or explore while I'm there?

Comments

[siderea]

The Exploratorium

[ninjarat.livejournal.com]

Seconded, thirded, fourthed, fifthed and sixth.

[leanne-opaskar.livejournal.com]

It's not so bad with the water being on the west instead of the east. When it's south ... ! Texas is really disorienting for me. (:

You should get dim sum at Yank Sing, and Italian at Scoma's, assuming they're both still there. I'd send you to Mango Rossa too, but it closed. Boo. Get some salami to take home, or a sandwich to eat while you're there, at Molinari. (Warning: they were't open on Sundays the last time we went.) Definitely view the Balclutha and the other sailing ships and the submarine if you like that kind of thing. I adore that sort of stuff. Alcatraz is missable, IMO, at least, it was when I went. The prison history is okay, but the really interesting stuff is the Civil War fort it was built on, and they didn't have much on that when we went.

Their aquarium is not at the level of the Boston one but is still nice and I enjoy it. I wholeheartedly recommend their Japanese garden, which is *gorgeous* and I have not had a chance to go back. The Exploratorium (science museum) is also very good.

Have fun!

[deguspice.livejournal.com]

I've always thought that Coit Tower is a nifty place to visit. You can pay to take an elevator to the top for the views, but what I find more interesting are the WPA-era murals painted on the inside of the tower. The murals are free to view.

You can take a cable car up Hyde St to Lombard St ("The Crookedest Street in the US") and then walk east along Lombard to the tower (Google says about 15 minutes).

If you like aquatic mammals, there are (or were) a bunch of sea lions that took over part of the marina next to pier 39. They're also free to view.
http://www.pier39.com/home/the-sea-lion-story/ (there's a web cam so you can see if they're still active)

If you're a chocolate fan, you can go to Ghirardelli Square and have a hot fudge sundae from Ghirardelli.

The Exploratorium is definitely a fun place to visit.

[moonchylde.livejournal.com]

Insider trick with the cable cars.... Don't bother waiting in the giant lines at either end. Walk a little ways in, towards touristy stops and just wait for it to come by and drop people off. You can usually hop on there easily. Buy a multi day ticket for the buses and I think the cable cars are included still. (it may have changed.)

Presidio is very pretty, Golden Gate park as well. The Haight/Ashbury district is still full of hippies, and there is some fantastic food in every area. :) And 24hr Chinese food delivery in the yellow pages, if they still exist. I just loved the idea of 3am delivery, though I never did it.

Oh and there is a lovely tea shop in Chinatown where a man pulled myself and two friends in, gave us samples of about 5-6 types explaining everything and chatted for probably an hour. It was random and a fun experience.

[ninjarat.livejournal.com]

Also, Alcatraz Island, but not if the weather is nasty like it is in Boston today.

[evcelt.livejournal.com]

[siderea]

Oh, pay close attention to the weather forecast while packing. There is an entire industry based around provisioning shivering tourists who didn't pack warmly enough, thinking CA = the sunny 70s, instead of SF = the foggy 50s.

[evcelt.livejournal.com]

I don't know about you, but when I go, I want to visit sites associated with Emperor Joshua Norton.

[cyan-blue.livejournal.com]

Get a car, drive the coast. If you are ok with driving along curvy cliffside roads. North or south, either way, it is beautiful.

If you are wanting redwood trees, skip the overcrowded Muir, and continue your coastal drive down to Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park. There is a bonus steam train ride between the adjacent Roaring Camp and the beach boardwalk in Santa Cruz.

[cyan-blue.livejournal.com]

Oh and if you like garlic, get a reservation at the Stinking Rose restaurant... ask for one of the canopy tables.

[vettecat.livejournal.com]

I've always wanted to get a hot-fudge sundae at Ghirardelli's.