Tag: San Francisco

Exploring San Francisco…

Exploring San Francisco…

Sometimes we are so busy with our daily lives, that we forget how much fun it can be to slow down, and explore the world at our own doorstep.

Yesterday I got to do just that for a few hours. My colleagues and I took an afternoon off work to go bo

nd in the city! We took a BART train from Oakland, traveled under the bay to San Francisco, and met Lily, an Urban Adventures tour guide, at the Ferry Building to embark on the Embarcadero, Ferry Building and Fortunes Tour.

old and new in San Francisco

We first took some time to look across the bay to Treasure Island as Lily explained its 1939 World Fair origins. Then we explored the Ferry Building, indulging our lunchtime appetites with some of the great fare on offer – personally I recommend the Turkey Pot Pies offered by the Golden Gate Meat Company, very tasty!

Striking out from the Ferry Building, we navigated some of the elevated walkways of the Embarcadero Towers. With their giant pots of bamboo and quiet corners, it’s easy to forget you are in the middle of the Financial district – even more so when you arrive at the half acre Redwood Grove at the base of the Transamerica Pyramid! Transplanted from the Santa Cruz mountains, the redwoods bring a tranquility and natural beauty to this corner of the city that I was previously unaware of!

From there it was just a few blocks to Vesuvio Cafe. At the intersection of North Beach, Chinatown and the Financial district, Vesuvio and the neighboring City Lights bookstore are filled with mementos of Kerouac, Ginsberg, Ferlingheti and the beat generation. So of course we had to stop for liquid refreshment, and some appropriately contemplative conversation, at this historic shrine!

We then strolled the colorful streets of Chinatown, and stopped briefly at the old Bank of Italy to marvel at the workmanship of the impressively over-engineered vault door. At the Wells Fargo Museum (another previously unknown ‘gem’ for me!) I left my colleagues to explore the stagecoaches and look at nuggets of gold, as I cut short the tour to catch a train back to the East Bay, happy to have discovered some new treasures at my doorstep…

Les Nubians rock the house at Yoshi’s SF!

Les Nubians rock the house at Yoshi’s SF!

Taking in the local music scene when you travel is a great way to get a better feel for the local culture, and an excellent way to meet people, and just soak up the vibe. And in those long, dry spells between big trips, it’s always great to catch visiting bands that bring colorful culture and great music to our doorsteps!

Les Nubians rocking the house at Yoshi's SF
Les Nubians rocking the house at Yoshi's SF

One of my favorite bands to see live is Les Nubians, and on Friday they lived up to my (high!) expectations by putting on a great show at Yoshi’s in San Francisco. Their ‘Afropean’ blend of French chanson, West African rhythms, Jazz and Hip-Hop made for great music to dance to. They have a message too, that as world citizens we have a responsibility for others, and a need to treat everyone equitably irrespective of sex, skin color or race, and this adds depth to their performance.

Helene and Celia Faussart, Les Nubians
Helene and Celia Faussart, Les Nubians

 

 

I Just May Have to Break Down and Buy a Smartphone…

I Just May Have to Break Down and Buy a Smartphone…

I’ve been resisting it… The lure of instant access to email and the web. The electronic leash of a smartphone. I mean, I must be the only bona fide IT geek in the San Francisco Bay Area who still doesn’t have one, right? Add to that the fact that I am “text averse”, and I guess my cell phone should have a rotary dial on the front.

However, I have now come up with a really good reason to make the jump to a smartphone… A few weeks ago, I’m hiking out to Tennessee Valley Beach in Marin with a really good friend. We hadn’t seen one another in a while, so we are chatting, catching up, when suddenly we come around a bend in the trail, and meet several hushed, awed hikers, “Bobcat, there on the trail…” they whisper. And sure enough, there on a side trail, is a bobcat, hanging out on a Sunday afternoon, totally ignoring all the awestruck bipeds.

So, what does this have to do with a smartphone you ask? Well, everyone else has their iPhones and Droids, and is zooming in for feline close-ups. Me? I take a couple of very sad, fuzzy shots with my 1.3 megapixel not-so-smartphone!

Blurry Bobcat, Tennessee Valley, Marin
Blurry Bobcat, Tennessee Valley, Marin

This is only the 2nd bobcat I’ve seen in the wild, and all I have to show for the encounter is a blurry photo. So yeah,  that smartphone with the 8 megapixel camera? Next time I hike that trail, I’m going to have one with me, just in case…

Egypt by the Bay?

Egypt by the Bay?

The Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum & Planetarium in San Jose brings a little bit of ancient Egypt to the San Francisco Bay Area.

photo credit: www.egyptianmuseum.org
photo credit: www.egyptianmuseum.org

This museum “houses the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts, on exhibit in the western United States — including objects from pre dynastic times through Egypt’s early Islamic era”, including several mummies, all located in a building “Architecturally inspired by the Temple of Amon at Karnak”.

Set in a beautiful ‘Peace Garden’ the museum has a great collection of Egyptian artifacts, and even a replica of a rock-cut tomb. Not quite the same as visiting the valley of the Kings and Queens, but next best thing!! Displays are well marked and give a good representation of ancient Egyptian life and religion. Well worth a few hours!

so we all know San Francisco is beautiful…

so we all know San Francisco is beautiful…

… but sometimes those of us who are lucky enough to live here are so busy, we forget just how beautiful our surroundings are! Or maybe we just start to take it for granted? Either way, in the last couple of weeks, I’ve been reminded, both by personal visits and by news stories about the state budget crisis, of the incredible natural beauty, and unique history of the area, and the need to preserve them both!

Golden Gate from Angel Island
Golden Gate Bridge from Angel Island

Alcatraz is the island in San Francisco Bay that everyone has heard of, along with Al Capone, it’s most famous former resident. But not far beyond Alcatraz lies the much larger Angel Island. A slice of wilderness in the middle of the bay, Angel Island was originally a hunting and fishing site for Coastal Miwok Indians, and later the West Coast equivalent of Ellis Island, when hundreds of thousands of mostly Chinese immigrants were held here prior to being allowed to enter the USA. With great hiking trails, a fascinating history, and spectacular views of San Francisco, Mount Tamalpais and the East Bay, it’s a great place for a picnic, a hike, and, for those who want to learn more about the island’s history, a visit to the newly opened Immigration Station.

Alcatraz and San Francisco, from Angel Island
Alcatraz and San Francisco, from Angel Island

However, once the crowds have left on the last ferry of the day, that’s when you can really experience the magic of this little piece of wilderness! The campsites tend to book up months in advance, so some forward planning is required, but in my mind the best sites are the West Ridge sites, with views of the Golden Gate bridge, Alcatraz, and the San Francisco skyline. It’s hard to beat roasting ‘smores to the backdrop of city lights, fog rolling through the Golden Gate, and the surreal soundtrack of the foghorn!

Beach and fog, Angel Island
Beach and fog, Angel Island

But Angel island is a California State Park, and as such still remains under threat of closure due to the state budget crisis. Park fees are being raised effective Monday, but even that will not be enough to prevent many park closures. I had heard that in the event the state does try to close some parks, the feds are ready to intervene. And on a recent visit to another local park, Point Reyes National Seashore, I had the opportunity to ask a National Park ranger about that. He told me he didn’t know all the details, but confirmed that Point Reyes does have some contingency plans to help out the local state parks should the ‘governator’ proceed with closures.

View from Mt. Wittemberg to the Pacific, Point Reyes
View from Mt. Wittemberg to the Pacific, Point Reyes

And after my recent visits to Angel Island and Point Reyes reminded me once again of the natural beauty of the San Francisco bay area, and the need to do everything we can to help keep our State Parks open, I also found a very evocative photo, that for me sums up our multicultural, mysterious, city by the bay. Click on the thumbnail below and see if you agree!

Dragon attacks

Photo credit for ‘Dragon attacks Golden Gate bridge’: Caitlin of www.roamingtales.com, reproduced with permission.