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San Francisco
The dramatically beautiful
city of San Francisco is the fourth most populous city
of California. An internationally admired tourist
location, San Francisco is famous for its steep rolling
hills, chilly summer fogs, sundry mélange of the
Victorian as well as modern architecture, enclosing the
famous Golden Gate Bridge, cable cars and the renowned
China town. Economically, this attractive city homes
over 30 international financial organizations and thus
the world’s top producing cities rank San Francisco on
number eighteen!
History
The past of this
magnanimous city dates back to the 1776 when the Spanish
set up a fort at the Golden Gate. Following this was the
‘California Gold Rush’ in 1848 that thrusted the city
into a period of swift growth. And so numerous
entrepreneurs intended to capitalize and mobilize the
wealth that germinated out of the Gold rush. And so the
city witness development in almost every sector;
schools, churches, theatres and parks were built along
with the introduction of the Cable cars in 1873. It made
San Francisco the largest city of the western coast.
But then three quarters
later, hardship struck the prospering city when it
encountered the earthquake and fire in 1906. Not losing
hope, San Francisco rapidly pulled itself up and proudly
hosted the Panama-Pacific International Exposition by
1914. Also, the city was the major port of embarkation
for all the service members that shipped out to the
Pacific Theatre. As the war ended, the union of the
returned servicemen, large immigrations, liberalized
attitudes and many other factors lead to the ‘Summer of
Love’ and the gay rights movement. This cemented San
Francisco permanently as the centre of liberal activism
of the United States.
City’s structure
The unique city of San Francisco is
situated on the western coast of the United States,
precisely at the tip of the San Franciscan peninsula and
thus includes vast stretches of the Pacific Ocean and
the San Francisco Bay in its boundaries. The county is
also recognized for its hills; there are over 50 hills
only inside the city area.
The Twin Peaks are the
pair of hills that rest on one of the city’s highest
points and form a renowned overlook site. The highest
hill is the Mount Davidson.
San Andreas
and Hayward Faults located nearby the city are
held responsible for the tectonic activities; however
none of them physically pass though the city. In fact,
the major cause of the earthquakes of 1906 and 1989 was
the San Andreas fault line.
Exclusive San Franciscan
Climate
Mark Twain had once quoted
that the chilliest winter he had ever spent was the
summer of San Francisco! The strikingly spectacular city
of San Francisco is characterized by the cool summer
Mediterranean climate with its coasts emanating mild wet
winters and dry summers.
Being surrounded by water
bodies on all the three sides makes the city is highly
influenced by the cool currents of the gigantic Pacific
Ocean, which tend to moderate the temperature, leading
to an astonishingly mild climate backed by faint
variations in the seasonal temperature.
The summers are highly
typified by cool winds and fog; when compared to the
rest of the cities of United States, San Francisco has
been recorded to experience the coldest daily maximum,
minimum and mean temperatures in the months of June,
July as well as August!
San Franciscan Attractions
The city is colossal when
it comes to size and when talked of its attractions, one
may find even months insufficient to explore this
gorgeous city of the United States. To ignite the
thrilling tour of San Francisco, one may begin with the
Golden Gate Park and the bridge that stand as one of the
city’s most renowned icons. Displaying a grand
biodiversity of over 6000 plant species, the parks
proudly display the California redwoods, the ethereal
Japanese Tea gardens, the Asian art museum, the
Californian Academy of Sciences and its aquarium,
planetarium and lots more.
Other typical tourist
attractions are the Alcatraz Island, Castro district and
the Coit Tower. Entering through the ‘Dragon’s Gate’ at
the Grant Avenue and Bush Street is the China Town which
is the bustling jammed packed warren exposing one of the
finest Chinese shops, restaurants and temples.
San Franciscan Music and
nightlife
It is amazing to note that
the nightlife is as varied and diversified as the city
of San Francisco. Every single bar, club or lounge have
their own special vibes and feel. If you adore the
electronic music clubs, chill art lounges and hip hop,
you must try out the San Franciscan SOMA. While
if you are a bar hopper with rocksters and hipsters,
Mission district is the perfect location.
With the gay rights being
liberalized here, many gay-friendly bars and discs can
be found all over the city, like Castro, SOMA, as well
as the Polka district. The San Franciscan Northern Beach
can be found open until late hours with neon strip
joints and amazing hideaway bars! A couple of must try
places include Ruby Skye, Red Devil Lounge, Hemlock
Tavern, 26 Mix and even the 111 Minna street gallery!
It’s
finger-licking good!
Populated with world-class
wineries, cheese makers and petite farms located just a
few miles from San Francisco, the city is drenched with
culinary wealth. The finger-licking quality and
sumptuous quantity stamp the city as an unparallel food
city of the United States. You could relish its best
known farm fresh ingredient clogged food, available at
restaurants such as the Green, Foreign Cinema and even
the Boulevard. The neighborhoods of Mission District and
Noe Valley mark a trend in their culinary skills
offering humble restaurants such as the Delfina, Incanto
and the Range; while on the other hand the same regions
flaunt their upcoming eat-outs like Coi and Ame who
magnet localites and visitors with their technically
precise and eclectic cuisines. The only loop hole is…
choosing what to eat and what to leave for next
time!
One city you would
definitely not want to miss out of your Californian
itineraries is the awe-inspiring city of San Francisco!
See what locals have to
say about their communities.
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Haight Street
Haight Street is an internationally known, legendary
destination in San Francisco, California. Eighteen
blocks long, it begins on Gough near Market Street and ends
right at the entrance to Golden Gate Park at Stanyan Street.
Haight Street lends its name to the entire district, known
either simply as The Haight or The Haight-Ashbury, which is
bordered to the north by Oak Street and (most would agree)
to the south by 17th Street and the winding Roosevelt.
Haight Street itself is divided into two parts, generally
referred to as the Lower and Upper Haight. Divisadero Street
separates Upper from Lower Haight, but both sections are
rife with Victorian buildings owned or rented to both
residential and commercial clients.
http://www.haightstreet.com/
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Mission District
The birthplace of the Bay area was at a now vanished lagoon
named after the Lady of Sorrows Dolores in 1776. You can
find one of California's newest historical plaques marking
this spot less than half a block from the intersection of
16th & Valencia. Today magazines across the country
talk about this locale as the West Coast's "most
happening" You will find all manner of bars,
cafes, restaurants and shops catering to one of the
most diverse and eclectic communities anywhere.
http://www.sfmission.com/
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Richmond District, Geary Boulevard.
To the virtual home of the Geary Boulevard Merchants
Association and your link to the City of San Francisco.
http://www.gearyblvd.org/
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West Portal
The West Portal neighborhood in San Francisco is home to
about 2200 dwellings and a three block commercial district
with a first-run movie theater, interesting shops, a
multitude of services and great restaurants. GWPNA has been
the neighborhood association since 1974, and has
participated in and initiated many beneficial changes on the
Avenue over the years. We welcome new members at any time
who are interested in the vibrant life of this community in
the "Western Heart" of San Francisco.
http://www.gwpna.org
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Cow Hollow
The Cow Hollow Association (CHA) was
established many years ago to protect and preserve the
residential character of one of San Francisco's distinctive
neighborhoods. Current topics of community interest include
zoning, Presidio development and traffic control.
http://www.cowhollowassociation.org
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Telegraph Hill
Association
Founded in 1954 to perpetuate the historic traditions of San
Francisco's Telegraph Hill and to represent the community
interests of its residents and property owners.
http://www.thd.org
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