A Day in the City

With Your Journalism Staff

Got a few hours extra to spend with your student journalists in San Francisco? If that’s the case, we — the local committee — have you covered with the following suggestions about where to take your group for a little sightseeing and perhaps some street reporting on San Francisco life. Here is the link to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to help you get around the city.

Many of our students spend their weekends in the San Francisco and have pretty strong opinions about what makes a good day in The City. What follows is a collection of their aggregated wisdom, with a few touches of advice from advisers who know the city well.

 

 

1. HAIGHT-ASHBURY — One of the most popular day trip destinations for many students is the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, which 50 years ago was ground zero for the Summer of Love, and still carries a counterculture vibe (as well as some of the city’s best cafes, tie-dye boutiques and thrift shops — here’s a student-produced guide to where to buy your threads. There is no glamour in the Haight, but a heady mix of gentrification and grunge. Students can explore stop by the Grateful Dead house, a Victorian-style home that was one of the many that helped house the thousands of young people that came here to take part in hippie culture, or visit Amoeba Music, with its vast supply of vinyl records and other musical paraphernalia. Student reporters might ask locals how they arrived in The Haight and what made them stay. More than 30 percent of San Francisco households do not include a car. How do they get around?

How to get there: Enter a MUNI subway station on Market Street and take an N-Judah streetcar toward Ocean Beach. Over the course of 12 minutes, the train starts in a subway, emerges as into sunlight, then goes through a tunnel and emerges again into what has a good chance of being sweatshirt weather. Get off at Carl and Cole streets and walk east to Haight Ashbury. Looking for some fresh air? Walk a few blocks to the Panhandle, the entrance to the vast (three miles long!) expanse of Golden Gate Park (including De Young Museum, Strybing Arboretum, the California Academy of Sciences, and the Conservatory of Flowers), or uphill to Buena Vista Park for spectacular views of the city.

 

 

 

2. THE MISSION DISTRICT — The Mission District, particularly the blocks just east of Mission Dolores Park, also has been popular with our students. Long recognized for its Latino and Central American community — including, yes, the best burritos in the city — the Mission is also home to lively cafes (including the first Philz Coffee shop!), the Alta California Mission itself (the oldest building in the city), and a culture of social activism. Student reporters armed with notebooks might ask people on the street how it feels to live/work in such a diverse neighborhood. What impact has resulted from the busing of tech workers from this neighborhood to Silicon Valley? Here’s what one student journalist had to say about the Mission; and another.

How to get there: From Market, catch an outbound J-Church street car (going the opposite direction of the Ferry Building clock tower) and take a 15-minute ride gets you to Mission Dolores Park, the heart of the Mission and a great place to hang out. Bi-Rite Creamery, just on the other side of the historic Mission High School, is a popular ice cream stop, but just the start of what you’ll find in the Mission.

 

 

3. CHINATOWN — Chinatown can be as touristy as a cruise ship port — more tourists visit here than visit the Golden Gate Bridge — and while some come for the endless collections of California T-shirts and souvenir cable cars, there’s much more going on here. The oldest and largest community of its kind outside of Asia, Chinatown is one of most dense neighborhoods in North America, with only Manhattan packing in more people per square foot. Once you’ve had enough of the gift shops, mooncake bakeries and restaurants, move into the cross streets and alleys to get another flavor of the neighborhood. The Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory at 56 Ross Alley is worthy if only for the journey to get there, but expect feeling an obliged to purchase a bag of cookies. On the other side of Grant, across from the TransAmerica Pyramid, is Portsmouth Square Plaza, where you’ll find a replica of the Goddess of Democracy statue used in the Tiananmen Square protest in 1989, as well as people practicing Tai Chi and playing Chinese chess and card games.

How to get there: From the convention hotel, walk to Market Street and make a right; turn left on Grant. Four increasingly steep blocks (consider a short detour left after two blocks to reach the shopping and theater around Union Square) will take you to Dragon Gate, and beyond that is Chinatown for a half mile on Grant and a few blocks left and right.

 

 

 

 

4. PIER 39 and FISHERMAN’S WHARF — If you are looking for tourism zones, you will probably get an eyeful at Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Wharf.  You’ll find street performers, shops, food and much more, but the real stars are often the pack of sea lions that occupy docks off the western edge of the pier. Be sure to check out the Musee Mecanique at the base of Pier 41 for a collection of 200 working, playable classic arcade games. Yes, there are favorites from the 1980s, but the real finds are turn-of-the-century — and by this we mean from the 1800s to the 1900s — coin-operated mechanical instruments, hand-cranked music boxes and and vintage arcade games. The Maritime Museum in the old Aquatic Park Bathhouse Building is also worth checking out, as is Ghirardelli Square. (Just don’t expect to be able to tour the chocolate factory there — it’s long gone.)  If you want to go all out, consider taking a ferry out to Alcatraz Island, windblown home of the city’s infamous former prison — and all-around great tourism destination.

How to get there: Grab an inbound (toward the bayside Ferry Building clock tower visible the full length of Market) F streetcar from near the hotel and stay on as it turns left (but only after a weird wiggle to the right) to go north along the waterfront. If you want to navigate old-school, count the numbers on the piers as they rise 39. Alternately, if you have all day, consider getting to the Wharf by moving through Chinatown to North Beach (known as Little Italy in part for its pizzerias and cafes) and then up over the hills to the Wharf far below. This path is not for the meek, but you’ll have a great sense of accomplishment. Consider taking the cable car back, but be prepared for long lines. Indeed, the lines for the F street cars can be long, too, so build in a lot of extra time or, if you are a small group, consider a ride-sharing option to get back to the hotel.

 

 

 

 

5. The Presidio – If your group is looking for greenery and space, you could do a lot worse than visiting the Presidio, on the north-east edge of San Francisco. San Francisco’s largest park, the Presidio, was home to native peoples for thousands of years until Spain established a military fort here in 1776. Mexico took over in 1821, and by 1846, the Presidio had become a U.S. Army post. Now in civilian hands, it offers acres of hiking trails as well as the Walt Disney Family Museum, a bowling alley, and the headquarters for Lucasfilms, where you can find a patio guarded by a 26-foot-tall Yoda and a life-size Darth Vader. Walk along the water in the Marina District, past the Palace of Fine Arts to Crissy Fields and beyond to Fort Point at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge. A path leads you up to the bridge itself, but beware, if you take this route you’ll likely be exhausted by the time you reach the bridge. For more information, go to presidio.gov/visit.

How to get there: The PresidiGo Downtown Shuttle provides roundtrip service to the Presidio. Pick up the shuttle at the Transbay Terminal or Embarcadero BART. Service is free and runs seven days a week, but check the schedule for times when it is available to the general public. Several SF MUNI routes provide service to or near the Presidio (1, 28, 29, 41, 43, and 45), but none give you direct service from the convention hotel, so if you want to go to the Presidio, prepare for a journey. On the upside, your route will likely take you past spectacular sights through San Francisco. Once in the park, transfer to the free PresidiGo Around the Park Shuttle to reach your final destination. The Around the Park Shuttle is free and available to all seven days a week.

6. The Exploratorium – A hands-on science museum, The Exploratorium includes exhibits where visitors can  “step inside a tornado, turn upside down in a curved mirror, walk on a fog bridge, and explore more” at more than 650 exhibits. With a café, restaurant and two stores (one with an Art-O-Mat machine), The Exploratorium is a multi-hour destination. Just don’t be surprised at the ticket prices — short of a trip out to Alcatraz, this is likely to be one of your most expensive daytrip options.

How to get there: This one is pretty easy. Head toward the Embarcadero on one of MUNI’s F Market street cars. Stay on as the car turns left (but only after a weird wiggle to the right) to head north on the Embarcadero and get off at Embarcadero and Green Street. Alternately, if you can get to the Embarcadero BART or Embarcadero MUNI stop you will be just a 10- to 15-minute walk away.

7. Cable Car Museum – If you don’t have a lot of time, the Cable Car Museum might be a good stop to make. It’s small, but full of fascinating information and it’s FREE. From the first run in 1873 to the present. Learn about the inventor, technologies, builders, rapid expansion, near loss and the ongoing efforts to save and rebuild the cable cars of San Francisco.

How to get there: The Cable Museum is located at 1201 Mason Street & Washington. Get there by cable car using the Powell-Hyde line, the Powell-Mason line and the California line. Powell-Hyde and Powell-Mason lines stop at the museum.  On the California line get off at Mason Street (by the Fairmont Hotel), the museum is 3 blocks north. Cost: $7 each way.

8. Golden Gate Park – On Sundays, John F. Kennedy Drive is closed to cars so people are free to bike, skate or walk through the park. While there are many lovely sights to see in Golden Gate, walking through the park from the east side on JFK drive will allow you to take in the complete SF vibe. Check out the swing dancing that takes place at Tea Garden Drive & JFK drive. There is also a group of roller-skaters who enjoy skating to disco music. You can also check out the Conservatory of Flowers (cost) or just bring lunch and hang out in the grass. There are plenty of things to do in Golden Gate Park. Check them out here.

How to get there: Enter a MUNI subway station on Market Street and take an N-Judah streetcar toward Ocean Beach, as you would if you were going to the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, which as the south end of Golden Gate Park. As with the other trip, the train starts in a subway, emerges as into sunlight, then goes through a tunnel and emerges again into what has a good chance of being sweatshirt weather. You’ll want to consult a map to figure out how far to take it — remember, Golden Gate Park is three miles long! Can you find the buffalo paddock? The Polo Fields? The ride ends around the corner from Ocean Beach, at 48th Avenue. A short walk from there will take you to the sand, which is great for shell hunting. Just don’t go into the surf, which is frigid and dangerous. If you have time and energy, take a grand walk north past the windmills up to the Cliff House for lunch and great views.