Things to do in San Francisco

It’s been a while since my last post describing things to do in California… there are now only 22 days left in the californicatemeter countdown, so let’s get hands-on with the activities!

San Francisco

San Francisco's Golden Gate bridge at night

San Francisco is a major city in California, the centerpiece of the Bay Area, well-known for its liberal community, hilly terrain, Victorian architecture, scenic beauty, and summer fog.

Wikitravel

Things to do in San Francisco

• See, walk through, take an “I’ve been there” photograph and maybe jump of… Golden Gate Bridge.
• Visit The Castro, the flagship San Francisco gayborhood, known around the world by self-identified gay and non-gay people as the unofficial ‘Capital’ of ‘Queer’ identity.
• Visit Alcatraz ($25 depending on the tour), the renouned prison a.k.a The Rock. Get tickets well in advance!
• After the visit we may have lunch in a seafood restaurant in the Fisherman’s Wharf (it’s where you take the ferry to Alcatraz Island)
• Or we may keep it out of the beaten track and have lunch in China Town. I love boba milk tea. There are also eating tours…! ($40 or $80)
• See the views from Twin Peaks. Remember the tv serial? Crazy. This Twin Peaks is not the actual location of the serial… sorry.
• Go the tourist way with the CityPass ($54); includes five attraction admission tickets and unlimited cable car rides.
• Or pay $75 for a 3 hour segway tour.
• Find a rare book in the City Lights bookstore
• Go clubbing to the South Market (SoMa).
  

Sources

• San Francisco in Wikitravel.
• San Francisco in Lonely Planet.
• San Francisco in Trip Advisor.
• San Francisco in ThingsToDo.com.

The 7 Wonders of California

Yesterday I was surfing the net and I found more information, yes, even more !

This time I have found the 7 Wonders of California, well actually this is just a part of a huge website called The 7 Wonders of the USA. Anyways, let’s focus on our road trip !

Here I have attached the 7 wonders but, in their website they even have a map with more info.

Big Sur

“Big Sur is a thinly-settled region of the central California coast where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. This geology produces stunning views and has become a magnet for global tourism. Big Sur’s Cone Peak is the highest coastal mountain in the lower 48 states, ascending nearly a mile (5,155 feet/1.6km) above sea level, only 3 miles (4.8 km) from the ocean.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Sur

Yosemite National Park

“Yosemite is visited by over 3 million visitors each year, with most only seeing Yosemite Valley. Designated a World Heritage Site in 1984, Yosemite is internationally recognized for its spectacular granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, Giant Sequoia groves, and biological diversity (about 89% of the park is designated wilderness area).”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yosemite_National_Park

Balboa Park

“Unlike some city parks which are mostly free of buildings in favor of open space and recreational fields.., Balboa Park is a cultural complex. Besides open areas and natural vegetation, it contains a variety of cultural attractions including museums, theaters, gardens, shops and restaurants as well as the world-renowned San Diego Zoo. Balboa Park has been declared a National Historic Landmark.”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balboa_Park,_San_Diego,_California

Hollywood Sign

“The sign originally read “HOLLYWOODLAND”, and its purpose was to advertise a new housing development in the hills above the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. H.J. Whitley had already used a sign to advertise his development Whitley Heights, which was located between Highland Avenue and Vine. “

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_sign

SeaWorld Adventure Park

“SeaWorld was founded in 1964 by four graduates of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). They had originally considered the idea of building an underwater restaurant. Although this idea was not technically feasible, the concept grew into the idea of a marine zoological park on 22 acres along the shore of Mission Bay in San Diego. “

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SeaWorld_San_Diego

Golden Gate Bridge

“The Golden Gate Bridge was the largest suspension bridge in the world when it was completed in 1937 and has become an internationally recognized symbol of San Francisco. “

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Gate_Bridge

Alcatraz Island

“It was formerly used as a military stockade and later as a maximum security prison. Today, the island is a historic site supervised by the National Park Service as part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and is open to tours. Visitors can reach the island by ferry ride from Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. “

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcatraz_Island

Things to do in California

Click on Arnie to see the video “Visit California” from visitcalifornia.com

California is [...] the third largest state by area and the largest state by population in the USA. The state offers something for everyone: Southern California is home to such popular attractions as Disneyland, Hollywood and the beaches that inspired the television show Baywatch, while the northern part of the state offers the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, the hills of San Francisco, and the vineyards of Napa Valley. Further away from the state’s major cities California is home to some of America’s most rugged national parks, incredible skiing opportunities, and quiet northern forests.

Visit Wikitravel for more useful information.

I’ll excerpt from various sites things to do in California (rather than places to visit in California) that we may find interesting. This will be a general post about California, in further posts I’ll come down to every city we are visiting.

• See Los Angeles, home to the world-famous Hollywood sign, the Walk of Fame, the Mann’s Chinese Theater, Beverly Hills and Rodeo Drive, and miles of wide, sandy beaches.
• See San Francisco, with the iconic Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, a large Chinatown, cable cars, and numerous hills.
• Try your hand at surfing or work on your tanning The OC or Santa Monica.
• Climb a mountain and camp in the Sierra Nevadas or Shasta Cascades.
• Taste wine. Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino are premier wine districts north of San Francisco.
• Visit Hearst Castle and the National Geographic Theater within it.
• Eat at Historic Old Fisherman’s Wharf on Monterey Harbor.
• Whale watching and dolphin cruises in Newport Beach.
• See a match of Los Angeles Lakers, with Pau Gasol!
• Visit Alcatraz in San Francisco.
• Visit National Parks: Joshua Tree, Death Valley, Yosemite, Sequoia & King’s Canyon.
• See volcanoes in Lassen Volcanic National Park and Lava Beds National Museum.
• See more beaches.
• Visit San Jose’s Tech Museum of Innovation.
• Theme parks: Disneyland and Seaworld!

Things to do around California:

• Visit Tijuana.
• Visit Las Vegas.
• Visit Grand Canyon.

I am sure I am missing good things. Please comment on your preferences, new ideas and known experiences!

Sources:

• California in Wikitravel
• California in Lonely Planet
• California in Trip Advisor. Things to do.
• California in ThingsToDo.com