Summary of time:
· Sunshine, and clouds
· Pier 39 and the Sealions
· Little Italy
· Pier 43 ½ and the submarine
· Walking up and down hills
Handy hints –
§ Hop on/off tours are good for orientation
§ Be prepared for walking up and down hills, unless you always use transport
§ The Sealions smell
§ It can be breezy at the bay front
Info on San Francisco.
C1847 San Francisco was a small town run by Mexico, by 1848 with the gold found in Sierra Nevada, the population had grown from 800 to around 10,000. A mixed bunch of people, varying trades, and varying degrees of honesty now lived in San Francisco. By 1850 California was taken from Mexico and became part of the US, which meant that San Francisco suddenly had to bring the unruly saloons etc under public order.
The price of gold fell, and led to irrational behaviour, but the debt situation meant that people had to find work, albeit dangerous work, building railroads. San Francisco had ambitions, but in 1906 it suffered an earthquake, followed by fire. 3,000 dead, 100,000 homeless and many buildings were rubble. You couldn’t keep the city down and those in the performing arts, performed for free.
WWII impacted greatly on the working environment with women and African Americans worked in the shipyards, creating a new economic boom. It also saw the internment of the city’s Japanese American community, who had been a long time part of the community.
SF has seen many things grow and fall, it’s been a place testing out civil rights and free speech. It was also a testing place for LSD, instead of turning 1 man into a fighting machine, he served it in Kool-Aid and it was the start of the psychedelic 60’s. 70’s saw the out and proud gay community, 80’s saw huge stock market gains, and many deaths from AIDS. 90’s this city became a model for disease treatment and prevention, as well as a place for the homeless, runaways and addicts where they can try to repair their shattered lives. Also, the dot.com bubble from Silicon Valley, which burst in 2000.
There is still a bohemian life style to be had in this city.
Landing in San Francisco, the sun was shining and it was definitely a few degrees warmer. Collecting luggage was no problem, and then it was the sky train to the International Terminal, and the BART into town. Coming out of the BART near City Hall, it was a block South, and a few blocks West – why are directions given in North, South, East and West? You need a compass if you don’t know the area.
Actually finding the hostel was not that difficult, and soon had my stuff in the room, and got a bed for the next night – the last in the hostel.
Then out to explore, get my bearings, but following the strict instructions from staff to turn left out of the hostel, then right and right....don’t go right out of the hostel along Ellis, as this is an undesirable area....well i took the heeding as i was on my own.
Down Geary to Union Square, down into the Financial District, along a few blocks and then up and over on Pine. If you’ve not been to San Francisco, then you need to know that there are a couple of hills, which means that you can walk along way round or go up and over (and in some places its steep) or you use transport. The buses and trolley buses are a fixed fee of $2 and you can use your ticket to transfer to another bus within the time allowance of your ticket.
Walking at the higher part of Pine Street, i was walking along the edge of Nob Hill, here you will find some of the more expensive residence’s in the heart of San Francisco.
Dinner was Fish and Chips, from a place that looked like a fish and chip shop from back home, run by a lovely Chinese couple.
Next morning, as i was changing rooms, i had to pack everything away and put it into store. Then following the recommended route, i headed down to Union Square and the hop on/off bus, great 2 days for the price of 1 deal, though the last trip from the Cannery nr Fishermans Wharf leaves at 5pm. Union Square is number 6 of 10, when the bus got back to stop 1, it was time to change bus. The guide on this bus, was really good, so i stayed on for the full trip around, even though some i had already done.
The bus starts at the Cannery, so named for the Warehouse where they used to can fruit...for the man he say yes. Then passing Fishermans Wharf, we headed down Embarcadero (along which you can see the trolley buses, all with different livery from cities across the country, and places around the world, inc UK), turning down Battery, you can see the Famous Fog Dinner, made famous as it was in a film, before continuing down through offices, and hotels. It is interesting seeing the change of styles. This area is known as Barbary coast, and was the original shoreline. Many ships were abandoned along the shore, and are now under the foundations of the buildings. At the corner of Pacific & Battery is The Old Ship Saloon, which is the oldest saloon still in existence, and the sign is hung off the yard arm of a ship.
Passing the Ferry Terminal, from here you can get ferries across the bay, there is also an upside down bow, with the arrow pointing into the ground, giving the impression that Cupid shot it and just left it there. At the corner of Stuart and Mission, is an old Whiskey Distillery which is the only building that was not destroyed in the 1906 fire, because they offered free whiskey to all who helped save it from fire.
Heading into South of Market, you can see some of the newer condominiums that are being built, with a very hefty price attached to them, before reaching some of the museums. Then the bus heads into Union Square. The square is a meeting place, a place to stop and watch the world pass by, and sometimes you may even hear music. Then off around the edge of the Tenderloin area, where you will find the Theatres, before getting to the City Hall. The City Hall has a partial gold dome, i’ve seen that idea in Boston and in Montpelier before, and there is also the Old Library, which is now Asian Art Museum, but there is the new modern Library across the road. To the north of City Hall is one of the most visited buildings of the city (actually the most), its where parking fines are paid!
Then up Larkin, and you enter one of the newest named districts, Little Saigon, before turning East onto Post, and back to Union Square. Some of the buildings in this area, are preserved on the exterior, but the insides have been transformed...into Garages, there is a shortage of places to park in this area.
In the centre of Union Square is a beautiful statue of a female. When it was first unveiled many men fell in love with it, and wanted to know who she was. One man found out and married her; his family had made money from Sugar Cane, and he was 27 years her senior, this was a scandal and the term that was printed in the papers was “Sugar Daddy”, it was meant to be a negative terminology.
Overlooking the Square is Sir Francis Drake Hotel, where at certain times, you can have a meal and be entertained by dancers, sometimes they are not who they appear to be.
Leaving Union Square you pass the Levi store, which originally had a hot tub, so you could sit in it and mould your jeans to fit you. It is not there anymore.
Turning up Grant, you will see the Gate into Chinatown, definitely a place to visit for those shopping inc for the cheap souvenirs, or eat at a dim sum. But before you get to the gate, you will pass through Little France.
But east a block, and passing the only bank that is also a pub and it’s Irish, then north on Kearny, passing through the Financial District. You will then pass the building that was originally home to Bank of America, a tall black glass building. It is distinct for a few reasons; one is that each office is a corner office, the windows all stick out with 90 degrees in them, another is that a few films have used the exterior in dramatic scenes. A few buildings down, an artist was commissioned to make some statutes for the top of the building, but he didn’t actually put a face on any of them, just had hoods up on them. His response was “Why bother, no one is going to be able to see them”
On the corner of Kearny and Columbus is a green (copper weathered/rusted) triangle building, owned by a director who edited some of his films at home (Godfather I & II). Turning up Columbus (it is one of the few roads that runs diagonally), looking back you will see the Transamerica Pyramid building, but turn back as you head up into Little Italy. On some of the buildings you will find murals.
There are many good places to eat, but one of the unusual is the Stinking Rose. There many is based on Garlic. Everything is garlic, including the ice cream. So it’s not Garlic with your food, but food with your garlic. I was told how much garlic that they get, but i now forget.
Heading on through, look up Filbert Street, it is the steepest at 31 degrees, and then along Lombard street is a church where Marilyn got married, or so the photos say, but they only posed on the steps, having got married at City Hall. Lombard is also famous for its curves...well at 1000 block the road was so steep the road was done as a switchback, and if you’ve a car it is well worth the drive down (did it 16 years ago, when last here...well dad drove it, we were in the car). Then back through the streets, passing Pier 39 and onto Fishermans Wharf. A good place to get off the bus and grab a bite to eat. Fish anyone.
I got a Fishwich from Salty’s, it is a large piece of fish in a small baguette, it was almost enough for 2 meals. I sat overlooking the waterfront, and with my fellow lunchers was joined by several seagulls wanting food. The sun was shining, what a way to spend a day.
After lunch at Pier 43 ½ i decided to explore the Submarine US Pampanito, it held a crew of 70, during it’s time of service. I paid the extra $2 to get the audio tour, was a great idea, as having no real knowledge of submarines, it was really informative, especially as it had ex crewman sharing their stories as well. I was surprised at how small it all seemed, and with a crew of 70, ingenuity would have been used in sleeping, working conditions. Actually not everyone had their own bed, you had to share. Also the whole engineering of running the sub, not just to make it go, but water filtration system, air, cooking etc. It was really interesting. Including the small space for the bathroom, not much for the size of crew...but then they were not having showers every day. The ingenuity in using every space wisely, fitting small offices in corners, no doors, but enough space to get cupboards, shelf for a desk and a chair in. No space was wasted.
On 1 trip, the Pampanito torpedoed a foreign vessel, to discover that it had been transporting British and Australian prisoners, they rescued them from the waters, and only 1 ally died, but the additional 70 people on board, made it a bit more challenging for living conditions.
Near the Submarine was a Liberty Ship (used in WWII), which was a large merchant vessel, that carried “beans, bullets and black oil” to the troops. These ships were built in 60 days “from keel to launch”, a simple British design using parts that were made in loads of factories across America, and they were building them quicker that the enemy could sink them. This ship has now been fully restored, and you can even sail on her.
Enjoying the sunshine, i walked along the wharf’s walking out along pier 41, and watched the hundreds of Sealions relaxing at Pier 39. There are floating boards, on which they are all sleeping, catching the rays, over and under each other; some of the larger males are showing off their size. Eventually i walked around to get a closer look, and smell, from Pier 39. The strong fish smell is overwhelming. But i stood for ages just watching them, a little one perched on a corner, some swimming and returned to the floats and being successful or not to get on and a space on top of another. There was one float where half of it was empty, and 1 sealion was defending it from 2 others who were trying to get on....
I wandered around the shops on Pier 39, finding some shark socks for my nephew. I could find several things to buy for myself or others, but was good and resisted most of them, conscious of space in my luggage and having to carry it, or the cost of getting it back.
Time was getting on and i realised that it was after 5pm, so i had missed the last bus, but wandered down towards the Cannery, and then up Hyde. Hyde is one of the streets that the cable car goes up, the queue was too long as well, but i walked up it was reasonably steep, at the top i got to look down the switchback part of Lombard St. Heading west 1 block i was then on Larkin, so it was easy to then get back to the hostel. Walking some of these roads, i am fascinated by the design on the cornices at the top of the buildings.
· Sunshine, and clouds
· Pier 39 and the Sealions
· Little Italy
· Pier 43 ½ and the submarine
· Walking up and down hills
Handy hints –
§ Hop on/off tours are good for orientation
§ Be prepared for walking up and down hills, unless you always use transport
§ The Sealions smell
§ It can be breezy at the bay front
Info on San Francisco.
C1847 San Francisco was a small town run by Mexico, by 1848 with the gold found in Sierra Nevada, the population had grown from 800 to around 10,000. A mixed bunch of people, varying trades, and varying degrees of honesty now lived in San Francisco. By 1850 California was taken from Mexico and became part of the US, which meant that San Francisco suddenly had to bring the unruly saloons etc under public order.
The price of gold fell, and led to irrational behaviour, but the debt situation meant that people had to find work, albeit dangerous work, building railroads. San Francisco had ambitions, but in 1906 it suffered an earthquake, followed by fire. 3,000 dead, 100,000 homeless and many buildings were rubble. You couldn’t keep the city down and those in the performing arts, performed for free.
WWII impacted greatly on the working environment with women and African Americans worked in the shipyards, creating a new economic boom. It also saw the internment of the city’s Japanese American community, who had been a long time part of the community.
SF has seen many things grow and fall, it’s been a place testing out civil rights and free speech. It was also a testing place for LSD, instead of turning 1 man into a fighting machine, he served it in Kool-Aid and it was the start of the psychedelic 60’s. 70’s saw the out and proud gay community, 80’s saw huge stock market gains, and many deaths from AIDS. 90’s this city became a model for disease treatment and prevention, as well as a place for the homeless, runaways and addicts where they can try to repair their shattered lives. Also, the dot.com bubble from Silicon Valley, which burst in 2000.
There is still a bohemian life style to be had in this city.
Landing in San Francisco, the sun was shining and it was definitely a few degrees warmer. Collecting luggage was no problem, and then it was the sky train to the International Terminal, and the BART into town. Coming out of the BART near City Hall, it was a block South, and a few blocks West – why are directions given in North, South, East and West? You need a compass if you don’t know the area.
Actually finding the hostel was not that difficult, and soon had my stuff in the room, and got a bed for the next night – the last in the hostel.
Then out to explore, get my bearings, but following the strict instructions from staff to turn left out of the hostel, then right and right....don’t go right out of the hostel along Ellis, as this is an undesirable area....well i took the heeding as i was on my own.
Down Geary to Union Square, down into the Financial District, along a few blocks and then up and over on Pine. If you’ve not been to San Francisco, then you need to know that there are a couple of hills, which means that you can walk along way round or go up and over (and in some places its steep) or you use transport. The buses and trolley buses are a fixed fee of $2 and you can use your ticket to transfer to another bus within the time allowance of your ticket.
Walking at the higher part of Pine Street, i was walking along the edge of Nob Hill, here you will find some of the more expensive residence’s in the heart of San Francisco.
Dinner was Fish and Chips, from a place that looked like a fish and chip shop from back home, run by a lovely Chinese couple.
Next morning, as i was changing rooms, i had to pack everything away and put it into store. Then following the recommended route, i headed down to Union Square and the hop on/off bus, great 2 days for the price of 1 deal, though the last trip from the Cannery nr Fishermans Wharf leaves at 5pm. Union Square is number 6 of 10, when the bus got back to stop 1, it was time to change bus. The guide on this bus, was really good, so i stayed on for the full trip around, even though some i had already done.
The bus starts at the Cannery, so named for the Warehouse where they used to can fruit...for the man he say yes. Then passing Fishermans Wharf, we headed down Embarcadero (along which you can see the trolley buses, all with different livery from cities across the country, and places around the world, inc UK), turning down Battery, you can see the Famous Fog Dinner, made famous as it was in a film, before continuing down through offices, and hotels. It is interesting seeing the change of styles. This area is known as Barbary coast, and was the original shoreline. Many ships were abandoned along the shore, and are now under the foundations of the buildings. At the corner of Pacific & Battery is The Old Ship Saloon, which is the oldest saloon still in existence, and the sign is hung off the yard arm of a ship.
Passing the Ferry Terminal, from here you can get ferries across the bay, there is also an upside down bow, with the arrow pointing into the ground, giving the impression that Cupid shot it and just left it there. At the corner of Stuart and Mission, is an old Whiskey Distillery which is the only building that was not destroyed in the 1906 fire, because they offered free whiskey to all who helped save it from fire.
Heading into South of Market, you can see some of the newer condominiums that are being built, with a very hefty price attached to them, before reaching some of the museums. Then the bus heads into Union Square. The square is a meeting place, a place to stop and watch the world pass by, and sometimes you may even hear music. Then off around the edge of the Tenderloin area, where you will find the Theatres, before getting to the City Hall. The City Hall has a partial gold dome, i’ve seen that idea in Boston and in Montpelier before, and there is also the Old Library, which is now Asian Art Museum, but there is the new modern Library across the road. To the north of City Hall is one of the most visited buildings of the city (actually the most), its where parking fines are paid!
Then up Larkin, and you enter one of the newest named districts, Little Saigon, before turning East onto Post, and back to Union Square. Some of the buildings in this area, are preserved on the exterior, but the insides have been transformed...into Garages, there is a shortage of places to park in this area.
In the centre of Union Square is a beautiful statue of a female. When it was first unveiled many men fell in love with it, and wanted to know who she was. One man found out and married her; his family had made money from Sugar Cane, and he was 27 years her senior, this was a scandal and the term that was printed in the papers was “Sugar Daddy”, it was meant to be a negative terminology.
Overlooking the Square is Sir Francis Drake Hotel, where at certain times, you can have a meal and be entertained by dancers, sometimes they are not who they appear to be.
Leaving Union Square you pass the Levi store, which originally had a hot tub, so you could sit in it and mould your jeans to fit you. It is not there anymore.
Turning up Grant, you will see the Gate into Chinatown, definitely a place to visit for those shopping inc for the cheap souvenirs, or eat at a dim sum. But before you get to the gate, you will pass through Little France.
But east a block, and passing the only bank that is also a pub and it’s Irish, then north on Kearny, passing through the Financial District. You will then pass the building that was originally home to Bank of America, a tall black glass building. It is distinct for a few reasons; one is that each office is a corner office, the windows all stick out with 90 degrees in them, another is that a few films have used the exterior in dramatic scenes. A few buildings down, an artist was commissioned to make some statutes for the top of the building, but he didn’t actually put a face on any of them, just had hoods up on them. His response was “Why bother, no one is going to be able to see them”
On the corner of Kearny and Columbus is a green (copper weathered/rusted) triangle building, owned by a director who edited some of his films at home (Godfather I & II). Turning up Columbus (it is one of the few roads that runs diagonally), looking back you will see the Transamerica Pyramid building, but turn back as you head up into Little Italy. On some of the buildings you will find murals.
There are many good places to eat, but one of the unusual is the Stinking Rose. There many is based on Garlic. Everything is garlic, including the ice cream. So it’s not Garlic with your food, but food with your garlic. I was told how much garlic that they get, but i now forget.
Heading on through, look up Filbert Street, it is the steepest at 31 degrees, and then along Lombard street is a church where Marilyn got married, or so the photos say, but they only posed on the steps, having got married at City Hall. Lombard is also famous for its curves...well at 1000 block the road was so steep the road was done as a switchback, and if you’ve a car it is well worth the drive down (did it 16 years ago, when last here...well dad drove it, we were in the car). Then back through the streets, passing Pier 39 and onto Fishermans Wharf. A good place to get off the bus and grab a bite to eat. Fish anyone.
I got a Fishwich from Salty’s, it is a large piece of fish in a small baguette, it was almost enough for 2 meals. I sat overlooking the waterfront, and with my fellow lunchers was joined by several seagulls wanting food. The sun was shining, what a way to spend a day.
After lunch at Pier 43 ½ i decided to explore the Submarine US Pampanito, it held a crew of 70, during it’s time of service. I paid the extra $2 to get the audio tour, was a great idea, as having no real knowledge of submarines, it was really informative, especially as it had ex crewman sharing their stories as well. I was surprised at how small it all seemed, and with a crew of 70, ingenuity would have been used in sleeping, working conditions. Actually not everyone had their own bed, you had to share. Also the whole engineering of running the sub, not just to make it go, but water filtration system, air, cooking etc. It was really interesting. Including the small space for the bathroom, not much for the size of crew...but then they were not having showers every day. The ingenuity in using every space wisely, fitting small offices in corners, no doors, but enough space to get cupboards, shelf for a desk and a chair in. No space was wasted.
On 1 trip, the Pampanito torpedoed a foreign vessel, to discover that it had been transporting British and Australian prisoners, they rescued them from the waters, and only 1 ally died, but the additional 70 people on board, made it a bit more challenging for living conditions.
Near the Submarine was a Liberty Ship (used in WWII), which was a large merchant vessel, that carried “beans, bullets and black oil” to the troops. These ships were built in 60 days “from keel to launch”, a simple British design using parts that were made in loads of factories across America, and they were building them quicker that the enemy could sink them. This ship has now been fully restored, and you can even sail on her.
Enjoying the sunshine, i walked along the wharf’s walking out along pier 41, and watched the hundreds of Sealions relaxing at Pier 39. There are floating boards, on which they are all sleeping, catching the rays, over and under each other; some of the larger males are showing off their size. Eventually i walked around to get a closer look, and smell, from Pier 39. The strong fish smell is overwhelming. But i stood for ages just watching them, a little one perched on a corner, some swimming and returned to the floats and being successful or not to get on and a space on top of another. There was one float where half of it was empty, and 1 sealion was defending it from 2 others who were trying to get on....
I wandered around the shops on Pier 39, finding some shark socks for my nephew. I could find several things to buy for myself or others, but was good and resisted most of them, conscious of space in my luggage and having to carry it, or the cost of getting it back.
Time was getting on and i realised that it was after 5pm, so i had missed the last bus, but wandered down towards the Cannery, and then up Hyde. Hyde is one of the streets that the cable car goes up, the queue was too long as well, but i walked up it was reasonably steep, at the top i got to look down the switchback part of Lombard St. Heading west 1 block i was then on Larkin, so it was easy to then get back to the hostel. Walking some of these roads, i am fascinated by the design on the cornices at the top of the buildings.
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