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All About TownfRom sipping a cappuccino in an outdooR noRth Beach cafe to luxuRious shopping in union squaRe to foRtune cookie-sampling in the countRy’s oldest chinatown, san fRancisco has it all and is Ripe foR exploRation.

Castro/Noe Valley The politically active “gay capital of the world” is as diverse and unique as its residents—people watching is a main attraction here. The famous Castro Theater is a historic movie palace with a lavish Colonial Baroque façade, grand Wurlitzer organ and bright neon marquee. Harvey Milk Plaza is named for San Francisco’s first openly gay elected official, and a giant rainbow flag honors his legacy. Sunny outdoor cafes and jam-packed bars add to the energy. Nearby Twin Peaks offers sweeping views of San Francisco and beyond. Just to the South, Noe Valley is a residential neighborhood and great place for families to stroll while perus-ing a plethora of stores, boutiques and outdoor cafes.

ChiNatowN Walk through one of the most photographed spots in the city—Dragon’s Gate at Grant Avenue and Bush streets, and be transported to the Far East with the neigh-borhood’s vibrant colors, scents, tastes and sounds. San Francisco’s Chinatown is the oldest in the country, and the largest outside of Asia. Ornate pagoda-style buildings with dragon-adorned doorways and red lanterns line the streets. On bustling Grant Avenue find shops carrying everything from San Francisco souvenirs to Asian antiques as well as Chinese restaurants, bakeries, teashops and open-air markets. Less-touristy Stockton Street delivers a more authentic an experience. See (and taste!) fortune cookies at the Golden Gate Cookie Factory on Ross Alley. At Portsmouth Square’s com-munity park, residents play Chinese chess and practice tai chi.

CiViC CeNter/hayes Valley Considered the cultural hub of the city as well as the original home of the United Nations, the Civic Center is the proud home of the War Memorial Opera House, Davies Symphony Hall, the Asian Art Museum and City Hall—an impressive Beaux Arts-style build-ing that occupies two full blocks of Van Ness and Polk streets. Its dome, which owes much to Mansart’s Baroque dome of Les Invalides, Paris, is the fifth largest dome in the world at 307 feet—14 inches higher than the United States Capitol. Burgeoning Hayes Valley to the west maintains a distinctly trendy and hip vibe with its art galleries, fashion-forward bou-tiques and trendy restaurants.

Fillmore DistriCt/westerN aDDitioN/

JapaNtowN Renowned for its musical and cultural heri-tage, the Fillmore District was once known as the “Harlem of the West.” Hear jazz, blues, R&B and salsa music any night of the week at venues throughout the neighborhood. The Fillmore Auditorium rose to fame during the 1960s when artists such as Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Doors performed. Jazz, in particular, gives off a strong pulse; Yoshi’s Jazz Club is located here as well as the newly opened Jazz Heritage Center, celebrating and promoting jazz. The adjacent Japantown is one of only three in the nation and boasts a striking Peace Pagoda at its center, as well as authentic shops and restaurants.

FiNaNCial DistriCt/embarCaDero The towering A-shaped Transamerica Building is the beacon to the Financial District, San Francisco’s center of business. Find corporate headquarters like Wells Fargo with its history museum and Levi’s with Levi’s Plaza, a serene park with a fountain at its center. Jackson Square has buildings dating back to the mid-

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1800s, some supported by the masts from old ships. Down on the Embarcadero waterfront, the Ferry Building is a world-class food market with 40 shops and restaurants featuring some of the area’s most prized artisanal treats. A farmers mar-ket Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday mornings displays color-ful produce, flowers and more.

Fisherman’sWharFThe city’s most popular visitor desti-nation boasts lively street performers, colorful souvenir shops, noisy sea lions, mouthwatering seafood and plentiful sail-boats—all bringing the city’s seafaring history alive. Sample local treats like Dungeness crab, clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl, or an Irish coffee at the Buena Vista. Pier 39 is a bustling marketplace with more than 100 shops and restau-rants, as well as the famous sea lions who reside on the pier’s west docks. Fisherman’s Wharf is also the best place to catch a ferry over to Alcatraz Island, housing the former penitentiary. Ghirardelli Square is just up the street, and the former choco-late factory is now home to boutiques and restaurants, includ-ing the Ghirardelli Ice Cream and Chocolate Shop.

haight-ashbury/nOPaHome to “hippie” culture, Haight-Ashbury stays true to its quirky and eclectic roots. Visit the Grateful Dead house where the band lived during the Summer of Love, or check out some of San Francisco’s best vintage shops. In the 1960s, the corner of Haight and

Ashbury streets was a hangout for activists like Allen Ginsburg and Abbie Hoffman. This neighborhood is also a great entry point for Golden Gate Park, which comprises some 1,000 acres and is home to the de Young Museum, the California Academy of Sciences, Japanese Tea Garden, lakes, gardens and more. “North of the Panhandle” (Golden Gate Park’s pan-handle-shaped grassy stretch) or more col-loquially known as NOPA, is a neighborhood known for its Victorian-style homes as well as Alamo Square, a park with sweeping views of the city skyline, bordered on the east side by the Painted Ladies, a row of seven pastel homes.

marina/COWhOllOW/PresidiOThe Marina and Cow Hollow in the northern section of the city offer coveted shopping and delectable dining on Chestnut and Union streets. Take a stroll or have a picnic at 28-acre Crissy Field. The Palace of Fine Arts, built for the Panama-Pacific Exhibition of 1915, is home to children’s science museum The Exploratorium (which will be closed and moving to the Embarcadero January-spring 2013). Venture north to the forested, 1,500-acre Presidio, a for-mer military base–turned-national-park for access to the iconic Golden Gate Bridge as well as hiking trails, a mile-long beach, gold course, bowling alley and Walt Disney Family Museum.

missiOndistriCtThe city’s oldest neighborhood, the Mission is a vibrant hub for all aspects of Latino culture, with the historic Mission Dolores at the center—one of the oldest structures still standing in the city. Nearby Mission Dolores Park is perfect for families, with plenty of spots for picnicking, relaxing and playing on the Helen Diller Playground. The Mission is home to the largest concentra-tion of hand-painted murals in the city. Every square inch of Clarion Alley is painted, displaying some of the city’s best artwork. The Women’s Building community center boasts the spectacular MaestraPeace Mural. The Mission is also home to eclectic restaurants, vibrant nightlife and trendy shopping.

nObhill/russianhillOnce home to railroad barons and Gold Rush tycoons of the late 19th century, Nob Hill still maintains an upscale aura with luxury hotels, impres-sive homes and landscaped gardens. Grace Cathedral is a replica of Notre Dame in Paris and is admired for its stained glass, Ghiberti doors and labyrinths. Nob Hill is also home to the Cable Car Museum, where visitors can learn about the history and mechanics of cable cars. Russian Hill’s world-famous Lombard Street is known as the “crookedest” street in the world with its steep pitch and eight hairpin turns.

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North Beach/telegraph hill San Francisco’s own Little Italy, North Beach is a mecca for Italian-American bars and restaurants, coffee shops, and lively night clubs. There are also many historic focal points located here. Baseball legend Joe DiMaggio and film star Marilyn Monroe posed for wed-ding photos on the steps of the St. Peter and Paul Church bor-dering Washington Square Park. North Beach is the birthplace of the Beat Movement, showcased by City Lights bookstore, a favorite haunt of 1950s beat poets Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg. Brimming with shops, restaurants and bars, the narrow Grant Avenue is known as the oldest street in San Francisco. Atop Telegraph Hill is the recognizable Coit Tower, with New Deal era murals decorating its interior.

pacific heights/Upper fillmore Attracting the wealthy and powerful, Pacific Heights is home to some of the most expensive and coveted real estate in the city as well as a 180 degree view of the city from Fillmore and Webster streets. Brimming with Victorian homes, residents pay for the bay views in their backyards. The steps at Broadway and Lyon streets provide a particularly scenic point for viewing the San Francisco bay as well as the Palace of Fine Arts.

richmoNd/sUNset districts Golden Gate Park sepa-rates these two working class neighborhoods. The Richmond District is often called “New Chinatown” because of its con-centration of Chinese restaurants, grocery stores and shops. It also holds claim to Lincoln Park with a golf course and the stunning Legion of Honor art museum. The Sunset District is just a few miles from the Pacific Ocean and is home to the San Francisco Zoo and UC San Francisco.

soma/chiNa BasiN/dogpatch The South of Market neighborhood, known as SOMA, is a cultural center of the city with its museums including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Contemporary Jewish Museum and the Museum of African Diaspora. There’s also been a recent influx of tech companies in the area such as Twitter, Yelp, and Zynga. Yerba Buena Gardens offers activities for fami-lies, including the Children’s Creativity Museum, a bowling alley, an indoor ice-skating rink, as well as a restored car-ousel. Bay-front China Basin houses baseball’s 2010 World Series Champions, the San Francisco Giants, at AT&T Park. To the southeast is the up-and-coming Dogpatch neighbor-hood (reportedly named for the feral dogs who once gath-ered there in search of scraps from nearby Butchertown), Originally a center for shipbuilding the Dogpatch has a dis-tinctly industrial, urban feel and boasts a collection of emerg-ing urban wineries and breweries, restaurants and bars.

UNioN sqUare The heart of the city’s upscale shop-ping scene is home to nearly every major designer label in stores large and small. Union Square houses one of the largest collections of flagship stores in the Western United States. Maiden Lane is a pedestrian-only street just off the square that houses a large collection of luxury retail shops. Union Square itself is a palm tree-lined park where music and dance performances often take place. Tourists flock to watch cable car drivers manually turn the 18-foot-long cars 180 degrees to head back in the opposite direction at the end of the line at the intersection of Powell and Market streets. Union Square is also home to renowned art galleries and the San Francisco Theater District.

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NorthbayTake a 30-minute ferry ride or a quick drive over the Golden Gate Bridge north to Sausalito, with its Mediterranean feel, and neighboring Tiburon, a charming seaside town. Both are home to eclectic shops, art galleries and waterfront restaurants. Encompassing the southeast side of Mount Tamalpais, Mill Valley is home to open space pre-serves and parks. Point Reyes is known for its proximity to the National Seashore amidst scenic bluffs and vistas. See elephant seals, and watch the annual gray whale migration January through April.

eastbayTwenty minutes east over the Bay Bridge (or a short BART ride under it), Berkeley is famed for its role as a counter-culture mecca. Between the world-class University of California campus and the swanky Fourth Street shopping dis-trict, downtown Berkeley boasts an eclectic collection of res-taurants, local businesses, and a buzzing arts district. Famed chef Alice Waters’s Chez Panisse is the birthplace of California cuisine. Neighboring Oakland is a thriving urban center and one of the nation’s most ethnically integrated cities. It remains a mix of picturesque hillside neighborhoods, diverse architec-ture, unparalleled views of the bay and more parks and open space than any other city in the Bay Area. At the water’s edge is Jack London Square, a bustling dining, entertainment and shopping district. A half-hour southeast of Oakland lies the lush green hills of Livermore, California’s oldest wine region, founded in 1869 and boasting more than 40 wineries.

southbayFamous for its tech companies such as eBay, Google and Facebook and named for the creation of the sili-con computer chip, Silicon Valley encompasses much of the Southern Bay Area, including the cities of San Jose and Palo Alto. San Jose is the capital of Silicon Valley, and rightfully so. It’s the largest city in Northern California and the world’s technological hub. Palo Alto, a half hour southeast of San Francisco, is one of the Bay Area’s most upscale cities. Life here revolves around Stanford University. Downtown Palo Alto is anchored by University Avenue, a leafy boulevard bus-tling with shops and restaurants. Find high-tech history at the Hewlett-Packard Garage, where the company—and many say Silicon Valley itself—was founded.

beyoNdDrive an hour south from San Francisco along sce-nic Highway 1 and arrive at the funky beach town of Santa Cruz. During spring and summer, this quiet college town transforms into a slice of Southern California, with patio din-ing, surfers and an endless procession of bikinis and flip-flops. The hills above the town are home to a beautiful University of California campus tucked amidst a thick redwood forest. Seaside Monterey is home to the expansive Monterey Bay Aquarium and commercial Cannery Row. Neighbor Carmel-by-the-Sea is an artists’ haven. The gorgeous 17-Mile Drive winds along the breathtaking coast, through the Del Monte Forest and past the Lone Cypress tree, Seal Rock and mag-nificent mansions. Big Sur is 40 minutes south of Monterey and features a plethora of state parks, beaches and towering redwood trees. Three hours northeast of San Francisco sits the sapphire of the Sierra—Lake Tahoe—the largest and second deepest Alpine lake in North America. Two-thirds of Tahoe lies in California and one-third sits in the state of Nevada. Surrounding the big blue, with its 72-mile shoreline circum-ference, 22-mile length and 12-mile width, is the largest con-centration of ski resorts in the country, a dozen casinos and countless activities and attractions for the whole family.

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