Seductive San Francisco
On the surface San Francisco is all the cliché tourist icons that we know: the Golden Gate bridge, Alcatraz, Chinatown, etc. But also keep in mind, San Francisco itself is fairly small geographically - not to mention that excluding the residential areas - the city is the home of the SF Giants. During the summertime, a great family-friendly place to catch a ballgame. Sit in the upper deck to see the Bay and the real obvious tourist area of SF. Most residents of the Bay Area do not go down there 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 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, Oakland, Berkeley and further east.
San Francisco is less a single city than it is an amalgamation of many neighborhoods. The major neighborhoods are North Beach, SOMA, Castro, Mission, 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.
 |
 |
||
 |
 |
||
 |
|