The real San Francisco – an insider’s guide!

But if you’ve done all that before and felt, well ….. a little like we all feel when we’ve ‘done’ the tourist thing and have the tee-shirt or tea towel to prove it; then it’s time to get out into the real San Francisco.

Earnest is ‘abroad’, as we used to say. But she is still pleased to be on duty with Frank and Earnest and continuing to share news and ideas, with a particular slant on positive ageing.

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For two weeks, right now, I’m in San Francisco, northern California: my favourite city in the US.

San Francisco is one of the best known cities in the United States. Whether you’ve visited or not, it’s a city – alongside New York city, Los Angeles, Washington DC and maybe Las Vegas – whose imagery is burned into our brains through its extensive exposure in films and television programs (remember The Streets of San Francisco? with Karl Malden and a youthful Michael Douglas?) and a few well-known international landmarks.

The siena red Golden Gate Bridge, often photographed with its two towers poking up through the city’s signature fog is doubtless the most iconic symbol of the city. But other landmarks, like Alcatraz prison, Fisherman’s Wharf and of course the cable cars that ply the vertiginous streets of the city centre, are also very well known.

I spent six months in this city in 2009 and had three children all attend school here. While it wasn’t enough to feel like a true local, I came to know it in a way that most visitors don’t – as one of the most interesting, diverse and liveable places on the planet.

The tourist trail 

Any tourist website, brochure or guide book will tell you to ride the cable car down to Fisherman’s Wharf and the Ferry Terminal, to eat clam chowder from a hollowed out bread bowl and visit the sea lions whose antics would keep you entertained for many more hours were it not for their less than alluring odour!

By all means, take in the fabulous, riotous colours and chaos of Chinatown and have lunch or gelato in Little Italy (North Beach). Hiring bicycles and riding over the Golden Gate Bridge is a truly outstanding experience on a sunny day and the visit to Alcatraz is a definite must (ideally after watching Escape from Alcatraz, with a young Clint Eastwood, before you go).

…no village is far from the next one. And many of the good ones are close together so if you’re up for it, it’s great to stroll between some of them.

BUT… if you’ve done all that before and felt, well ….. a little like we all feel when we’ve ‘done’ the tourist thing and have the tee-shirt or tea towel to prove it; then it’s time to get out into the real San Francisco. There will still be tourists and cameras aplenty but you will see what really makes this city such a great place to be.

The real San Francisco

Like many cities, San Francisco is a network of villages – or neighbourhoods, as they are known – each with their own interesting identity. And because it is a small city – roughly a seven mile by seven mile square (11.2 x 11.2kms) – no village is far from the next one. And many of the good ones are close together so if you’re up for it, it’s great to stroll between some of them.

All of them have plenty of interesting architecture and, due to the extremely hilly terrain, offer an inspiring array of vistas. Most of them have their own Saturday farmers’ markets, groaning with organic produce, flowers and home made foods. Just find the main shopping street and there will be a square or a carpark transformed in this way and heaving with locals.

Some of the key streets are iconic in themselves – and I don’t mean the much photographed Lombard Street in Russian Hill, which is so dangerously steep that it has one whole block section with eight hairpin turns. Valencia Street in the Mission district, is one of them, especially the section between 16^th and 24^th streets where the cafes, bars, boutiques and restaurants have really proliferated under the influence of a new ‘hipster’ scene since we were here in 2009.

24^th Street itself, especially the Noe Valley end (pronounced No-ee), from Diamond Street to Dolores Street, is likewise a great stretch to explore on foot. While there are plenty of boutiques and antique stores, cafes, restaurants and yoga studios here, unlike Valencia St, the feel is lot more villagey, local and low key. There is a friendly, ‘happy’ vibe here, lots of public benches outside shops to offer rest stops and people-watching and well served places to park your pooch.

Street-wise

The eastern end of 24^th street offers an entirely different but equally vibrant experience for visitors and locals alike. This is Mission heartland – deeply Hispanic in its historical roots and home to an incredible array of mural art and great places to eat Mexican food.

A fabulous morning or afternoon activity is the Mission Mural Walk – a trail that takes in some of the major mural art works in the area, including the famous Balmy Alley. We have explored this marvelous area several times, with different visitors.

There are guided walks or you can get the brochure and do a self-guided tour.   It is all coordinated by the Precita Eyes Muralists Association and Center, the community based mural arts organisation established in 1977 by local artists.

At the other end of the Mission district, 18^th Street offers a different vibe again. For the well informed traveller, no trip to San Francisco is complete without pizza at the much loved Pizzeria Delfina (or if budget and time allows, Delfina’s award winning main restaurant next door) followed by hand made salted caramel ice cream from BiRite Creamery and Bakeshop across the street, the latter of which should be enjoyed in nearby Dolores Park, watching the crazy world go by.

Other great San Francisco streets and neighbourhoods on my list include Castro – the street and the neighbourhood – which is best known as the heart of the city’s gay community and the gay rights movement in the United States. There is a great GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual) history museum, a fabulous art deco movie theatre and endless shops, bars and restaurants, festooned with rainbow flags, with names that are racy puns I shall refrain from printing.

A warning: local authorities cast a blind eye toward the odd bit of public nudity (not so odd in the summer) so perhaps not recommended if you are overly conservative about such things!

Psychedelic SF

Only a short walk north along Castro Street from Castro, you’ll hit the famous Haight Street. Turn left and a few blocks down you’ll find yourself in the heart of the (now long-gone) 1960s hippy flower-power heart of the city. At the cross street with Ashbury Street, you can have your photo taken under the street signs for the tourist collection but the real charm of Haight Street these days is the large number of vintage clothing and upmarket recycled clothing stores.

If, like me, you are a bit of a fossicker, you’ll love Wasteland where you can pick up a pair of Manolo Blanik sling backs or Prada ballet flats in pretty much mint condition for under $50. But Crossroads and Buffalo Exchange (and many others) are also great spots to pick up pre-loved bargains!

I feel I am barely scraping the surface here but my other streetwise tips include:

• Golden Gate Park. This incredible public park, missed by way too many people, cuts a huge, green swathe through the middle of the square peninsula of this city. It consists of 1,017 acres (412 ha) of public park stretching in a wide, narrow rectangle, from the Great Highway at Ocean Beach on the western edge to Stanyon Street at the eastern end.

  

  It is 4.8 km in horizontal length (close to half the width of the peninsula) and just under a kilometre from north to south. Twenty per cent larger than New York’s Central Park, it houses an outdoor music concourse, the De Young Museum, The California Academy of Science, the Botanic Gardens and the Japanese tea gardens, as well as myriad lakes, meadows, playing fields and even a bison paddock! Rent bicycles and ride around at your leisure. It’s nearly all flat.

• the very stylish Fillmore Street – great for shopping, strolling and galleries;
• the marvelous Asian food precinct of Clement Street, SF’s second Chinatown which is literally bursting with dumpling inns, seafood markets, Asian produce. And a classic Chinese cinema! It’s in the Richmond neighbourhood, north of Golden Gate Park.

Green credentials

While SF is pretty much the antithesis of conservative from a political and social perspective, it takes environmental conservation very seriously. Bring your own bags when you go shopping – you will be asked pointedly if you have them in every store. In supermarkets and many stores you pay extra for bags. Conversely, in many places, when you bring your own bags you have the option of a refund or you can donate the refund to a charity.

Organic waste and compost (which is pronounced com-poast) is part of both domestic and council waste collections. It operates in shopping centres, public places and even at temporary outdoor festivals. Expect to separate your waste into organics, recyclables and the tiniest amount of ‘trash’. This city is actually aiming for zero waste!

It’s inspiring to say the least.

Any questions about San Francisco and Northern California?  Napa Valley?  Yosemite National Park?  Lake Tahoe?  Let me know.  It would be my pleasure to further explore!