Sam had just started his new job, and had to go to San Francisco for a meeting during winter break. So we decided to make a trip of it. Sam took a few days off before and after the meeting, and we got to see all the famous sites San Francisco has to offer.
Sunday – Around San Francisco
Cartoon Art Museum – The Cartoon Art Museum is a California art museum that specializes in the art of comics and cartoons. It is the only museum in the Western United States dedicated to the preservation and exhibition of all forms of cartoon art.
Lombard Street – We traversed San Francisco on foot and taxi. Lombard Street, the steepest street in America flanked by expensive town houses.
Cable Car Museum – We rode the famous cable cars, and visited the cable car museum to see how they are all powered from one central location.
Golden Gate Fortune Cookies – In Chinatown, we visited one of the shops that make fortune cookies. These round pieces of dough come out of the machine and someone puts in the fortune and folds the cookie over it.
Coit Tower – We walked up telegraph hill to Coit Tower overlooking the city and San Francisco Bay.
Ghirardelli Square – Stopped by the famous chocolatier for some hot chocolate.
Musée Mécanique – This fun museum/arcade was full of old fashioned mechanical arcade games that were fun to play and intricately built.
Monday – Alcatraz & Golden Gate Bridge
Alcatraz – We took a boat out in the morning to the infamous Alcatraz Island. We saw the jail cells, and learned about some of the prisoners here and a prison escape attempt. One of the buildings also hosted an art exhibit by Ai Weiwei on freedom and political justice.
Golden Gate Bridge – In the afternoon, we rented bikes and rode across the Golden Gate Bridge to the town of Sausalito. It was a bit chilly, but it was a great way to see the bridge and the quieter North Bay area. Once we got there, we rode the ferry back.
Tuesday – Golden Gate Park & Haight Ashbury
Academy of Science Museum – Science Museum in Golden Gate Park, with a cool rainforest exhibit, and some exhibits on earthquakes and plate tectonics.
Haight Ashbury – This neighborhood near the park is known as the birthplace of the 1960’s hippie culture. We walked the streets and shops that still feel like 1960.
Sunday – Keith Haring
De Young Museum – Back in Golden Gate Park, we went to the De Young Museum of Art to see their Keith Haring exhibit. Keith was an LGBT artist in the 80’s who was famous for his graffiti art, and his activism around aids, sexuality, and politics.
