San Francisco – Tips And Some Good Advice

San Francisco – tips and some good advice

While in San Francisco I stayed at the San Francisco USA hostel located only 4 blocks from Union Square where I would start my trip off with a hop on hop off bus tour. Various bus tours depart from Union Square, it actually seemed like every bus tour in the city stopped there, right in front of Macy's. As you know San Francisco has A LOT OF HILLS so I thought a bus tour would be the smartest way to get a brief over view of the city but it would also take me to places that I might not otherwise get to see or might not of ever found out about.

It was a surprisingly cold day but Anna and I braved the cold city on the open top of the double decker bus but were sadly disappointed when we crossed the Golden Gate bridge and all we saw was fog. Fog, fog, fog San Francisco is know for its fog, where I am from I am use to lots of fog, but this was insane, even though we were on the bridge we literally could not see it.

The largest Chinatown outside of Asia, San Francisco's Chinatown is a great place for some cheap souvenirs and great food among many other things. A couple of girls in our hostel also told us about a fortune cookie factory that we could visit on the corner of Washington Street and Ross (a little back alleyway). It was cool to see how they made the fortune cookies and of course we bought some and they were yummy. Following that we stumbled upon a tiny Chinese restaurant where you literally have to walk through the kitchen to get to the tables, but the food was great and it was really cheap. Watch this funny video about it by Conan O'Brien.

I actually didn't know that much about Alcatraz before I visited. I knew it was an old jail on an island famous for its inmates and people trying to escape it. But then I also learned that although it has a 104 year history it was actually only a federal prison for 29 years and over those 29 years it had 4 different Wardens previous to that it was a military jail and fortification and in between was actually occupied for over a year by American Indians. I could go on… It was very cool to see and the National Park service has been doing a great job to perserve it. Only one tour company operates to the Island and included in your $26 entrance fee is your ferry ride to and from and a free audio guide, which was narrated by former inmates and prison guards and was very easy to use.

San Francisco has over 4,500 restaurants in its 7sq mile area. 4,500!!!!!!!!!!! Eat, eat, eat and eat. Unfortunately I didn't get to go to the “Slanted Door” restaurant that many people suggested I go to and I didn't get to go to “Ozumo” which was apparently one of the best sushi restaurants in town. I did however get to go to the Eat Real Fest which was just across the bay in Oakland and it was amazing!! There were 60+ food vendors and food trucks all together in one small area with no food item more than $5. On top of that there were various beer trailers set up with different types of beer for the tasting. I was in food heaven and quickly in a food coma. (Read more about it here.)

Two restaurants that I did make it to and I would recommend was “Don Pisto's” a mexican restaurant on Union Street that had raving foursquare reviews and “Foregin Cinema” in the Mission District where they project a foreign film on a wall for you to watch while you eat your meal from a California/Mediterranean-inspired menu.

Aside from the Golden Gate bridge the cable car is an iconic image of San Francisco but also of those rice a roni commercials what ever happened to those? “Rice a roni, the San Francisco treat!”…Sorry I got side tracked into the 1990s there…

The cable cars in San Francisco cost $6 for a one way trip but if you have a San Francisco CityPASS you can ride them as often as you want. There are only 3 trolley lines with the most popular being the one that operates between Powell and Hyde street. Line ups form all day long at the starting points on either end of the line so be prepared to wait if you want to ride one. If you just want to ride it to say you hung off of the side of one, walk a few stops up from the starting point and hop on when it comes by and you are almost sure to grab a spot on one of the side runners.

The idea of this sounded awesome, but when the day came and we were actually on our way to go do it I was a bit weary… I detest exercise, am slightly out of shape and hadn't been on a bike in years. But my lovely fit Aussie friend was encouraging and thought it would be fun.

Most bike rentals in the city cost $9 an hour with you never having to pay more than $36. We actually scored a sweet coupon from our hostel and only had to pay $18 #Winning! We picked up our bikes from Fisherman's wharf biked along the National Park Bike path along the bay then crossed the bridge and drove down into the small town of Sausalito before taking the ferry back to Fishermans Wharf.

It was amazing, the views were incredible, there was an ominous fog underneath the bridge, it was a warm sunny day, there were people everywhere, the wind blowing through my hair as I coasted down the far side of the bridge brought back childhood memories and the ferry ride back was a great way to end the day. I highly recommend it and will leave out the fact that you have to bike up (I walked) a couple hills and the big bruise I got on my leg along with Sausalito being way too crowded oh and my butt hurt from the bike seat the whole time. But thats enough about that… just do it!