1. The Bay Trail (www.baytrail.org)
There is no more heavenly way to spend time on a weekend than a wander along the Bay Trail. It's a 500 mile network of walking trails connecting all nine bay counties in the region. The little stretch near my hotel that I traverse changes colour each week (this week was yellow, last week pink) as different flowers bloom and you always have to tread carefully to avoid stepping on the local fauna - snails, slugs, squirrels, rabbits. Living in San Fran is like living in a giant botanical garden with the most idyllic water views everywhere you turn.
2. The famers markets and incredible produce.
There is definitely something to be said for California soil. The produce at the weekly farmers markets is mindblowing - whole stalls with six types of cherries, or ten types of asparagus, or countless different chillies. And everything organic, sustainable and/or grown with love! Check out the elephant garlic below. You can only gauge how big by they are by comparing them to the (fullsize) onions on the right.
The markets are always awash with flowers too. I'd never seen blue roses until I made it to SF!
3. The bakeries.
Tartine, Miette, Thoroughbread, and of course SFBI! The cake cabinet at Tartine is entirely worth the one hour queue on a Sunday morning.
And this would be a good spot to show you a photo from class this week. The middle dough took lamination to a new level, with pistachio marzipan used to laminate the dough in place of butter. It was the last week of viennoiserie by the way, next week pastry.
4. The "collection of neighbourhoods".
The Mission, Castro, Noe Valley, Downtown, Hayes Valley, Lower Haight. So many districts and each with their own distinct personality. San Fran is like ten Sydneys rolled into one. Even the laundromats are individual, from the more salubrious Rub a Dub Dub and Launderland, to the chic Sit and Spin and Washateria pictured below. Bet you want to wash your clothes there!
5. San Fran walking tours (www.sfcityguides.org).
On any day of the week, you can go on one of circa ten different walking tours and learn about different aspects of San Fran - districts, historical events, architecture. And San Franciscans love their city so much, can you believe that there is actually a 12 month waiting list for guides wanting to volunteer their time to lead these tours?!
6. The city architecture.
Thanks to the walking tours, I have become an expert in identifying architectural styles - Chicago movement, Victorian, Edwardian.... And this Frank Lloyd Wright building (first picture below) which houses the Xanadu art gallery is another style unto itself. Pretty cool, hey?
7. The celebration of diversity.
Two weekends ago was Pride, San Fran's equivalent to Mardi Gras and undoubtedly the biggest event on the city calendar annually. The whole city (and I mean everyone - see photos below!) came out to celebrate the occasion. OK, maybe it was just an excuse for hundreds of thousands of people to party for 48 hours straight, but what impressed me was the incredible feeling of solidarity on the streets. There was one moment I'll always remember when I overheard one guy turn to his partner and say "Don't you just love our city babe?" That pretty much sums up the San Fran vibe.
8. The fact that a movie ticket is only $6 but I don't even want to go as there is so much else to see and do! I just love San Francisco!
