Traveling San Francisco California

San Francisco California is located on the centrally on the coast. It is one of California's greatest Bay Area cities. The population is currently 776,733 +. Many people go there to see Alcatraz which is a famous legendary prison island that held famous prisoners like Al Capone, George Kelly "Machine Gun Kelly", and Robert Stroud "Bird Man of Alcatraz". One of the many piers, Pier 39, even has a history of being the center for cable cars, shopping, and much more. San Francisco is famous for it's gold rush era and for it's earthquakes.

This city has so much to do that you wouldn't just want to stay one day to try to see it all. It would take about five days to see mostly everything. Let's start off by booking a comfortable hotel. One that is cheap but has great accommodations like parking, Internet access, phone, television, and good comfortable beds. Now since my travels to and from this beautiful and enchanting city, I recommend Days Inn on the coastal side of San Francisco. It is located on Sloat Avenue and you get a great view for a reasonable price. The managers are friendly and they serve to those with handicaps. Although check in is at 2PM, make sure you have plenty to do before check in.

My suggestion for leisure while waiting for check in is going to the beach to collect sand dollars and sea shells, the San Francisco Zoo, and don't forget to look around the Cliff House that is situated on top of the ridge above the beach area. Another thing to do is take a walk around the Golden Gate Park and check out the dutch windmill. After all these events check in will be a very big welcome at your hotel. The parking is right on premises, in fact it is part of the hotel. If you get a room with a side street view, not to worry, traffic on that road is pretty much quiet throughout the day and night.

Eating is a big pleasure. All that cuisine on just about every corner of San Francisco. Daves Cafe which is located right across the zoo serves a tremendous Louisiana Eggs Benedict for breakfast. Their bacon isn't flabby nor is it burned. Their waffles are delicious and the service there is great. Not too crowded and not overly priced. They have a variety of juices and their coffee is excellent. Unfortunately, they only serve breakfast and lunch and close at 3PM. So get there before they put up their close sign. Let's talk about lunch. Now if you are looking for a great family fun place for lunch and miss barbecue food, try Memphis Minnies located on Haight Street and off the corner of Stiener Street. They serve the best ribs in town along with awesome macaroni and cheese, corn bread muffins, and chili beans. It is a place well worth eating. Picnic bench style with great service and you can even buy a t-shirt. Dinner at the Cliff House located on the Great Highway. Their bistro and menu will blow you away. Price is a bit high but it is well worth the eating. Everything on the menu was superb and it was nice to watch the sunset over the ocean view.

Shopping is a girls fantasy when it comes down to spending time in boutique shops. Try walking up and down Haight Street. Start at the very end where the Golden Gate Park meets up with the McDonalds. Those little boutiques have prices to die for, everything was reasonable, even the stiletto thigh high boots at $30 dollars. There is about 100 + boutiques with great prices for their clothing and accessories on Haight Street. My favorite boutique shop is The Wasteland. Why? Well, it has this atmosphere that makes you feel young and alive when you first walk in. The clothing isn't just all new styles but vintage as well. It is for men and women and the service treats you with respect. Another favorite is The Buffalo Exchange but this boutique seems to get a little over crowded with tourists. Great prices but too small a place to browse and take your time.

Night life in San Francisco can be found at the wharf. You've got bars, clubs, fancy restaurants, and pan handle entertainment. If you walk around Pier 39 you will see every type of entertaining pan handler from the harmonica player to a unicycle juggler. Some pan handlers sell hand painted cards, drawings, and handmade jewelry boxes. Very interesting to browse. The clubs are great, always filled with a mixture of locals and tourists. The restaurants are great to wine and dine in but the prices range from $50 a plate to $200 a plate. Fresh fish is the wharf specialty. Going through the heart of the city is always filled with night life until about 10PM. If you are looking for night life that is pumping until the dawn, go to the beach located on the Great Highway where you can watch bon fires, fire jugglers, and I'm sure one of the nice locals can direct you to an underground club. Yes, the locals are friendly and full of information if you get brave enough to ask.

San Francisco is definately a place to go back to again and again. Plenty of public transportation if you don't feel like driving and friendly bus drivers to help you on your journey. Other things to visit would be Chinatown located on the outskirts of the Civic Center and towards the wharf. The Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park, the Carousal, and so many other wonderful parks. Go to the Exploratorium and take your children there so that they can touch everything. Enjoy the park the Exploratorium is located at with it's grand pillars and Roman like feel. One thing about this city is, you'll never grow bored. There is always something new and exciting around each and every corner, even if you get lost.