8) Tired? Take a load off in Washington Square Park, one of the few consistently sunny spots you’ll find in San Francisco. The park is across from the landmark Saints Peter & Paul’s Church, with it’s gleaming white double spires. This is another great spot for people watching, a more traditional (and eccentric) collection of long-time North Beach locals. Continue reading A perfect day in San Francisco: or, what to do with your one day in the city, Part II
The editors of KQED’s Pop blog recently asked coworkers what they would do on a hypothetical last day in San Francisco. It’s a fun exercise, and the station’s staff offered up lots of great suggestions on food, drink and shopping. But when I thought about my own perfect day, it had more to do with the enduring physical aspects of the city that made me fall in love on my first visits – walking its streets, climbing its hills and wandering its neighborhoods, and taking in all the sights and sounds with choice stops along the way. Continue reading A perfect day in San Francisco: or, what to do with your one day in the city, Part I
This is one of those things I love about the Bay Area. You can be in the midst of urban snarl somewhere on 101, or the concrete expanse of outer Mission, and in less than 40 minutes you’re so deep in countryside you can almost hear the banjo music. Well maybe not, but at least you can trade in your city stress for plenty of quietude and nature. That’s just part of what the idyllic Hidden Villa farm and wilderness preserve offers. Continue reading Hidden Villa: old MacDonald’s farm, and much more
I have a friend who’s up and moving to Boulder Creek at the end of the month, which inspired me to finally make a visit to the town this past weekend. If you don’t know, Boulder Creek is in the Santa Cruz Mountains along Hwy 9 about 15 miles north of Santa Cruz, or 22 miles south of Saratoga. It’s definitely out of the way, which is part of the appeal. There’s no easy way to get there, unless you’re a crow, but probably the easiest is to drive south on Hwy 17 and cut through Scotts Valley. (Tip: If it’s a sunny weekend day, expect lots of traffic heading to Santa Cruz beaches). You’ll pass through other small towns after turning north from Scotts Valley, from Felton to Ben Lomond to Brookdale, before hitting Boulder Creek, all old logging towns from the late 1800s. Mostly you’re driving through redwood forest, with houses spotted here and there off in the trees. Continue reading Boulder Creek and the best little brewpub in the Bay Area
Before a product called Rice-a-Roni started gracing supermarket shelves in 1958, a little old Armenian lady, Pailadzo Captanian, was cooking up her special rice pilaf for family, friends and Lois DeDomenico. Lois, who briefly rented a room from Captanian, was the wife of Tom DeDomenico, one of the founders of the family-owned Golden Grain Macaroni Co. originally located in San Francisco’s Mission District. Continue reading The original San Francisco treat
According to Yelp, there are 555 donut-serving establishments in the city and east bay. And while an unknown number are cafes, coffeeshops and Chinese cafeterias, it’s obvious the Bay Area is not lacking in sugary fried dough substances. Some are good, some suspect, but generally we do a passable donut product here (not like the sad state of our bagels and pizza*). I thought it was pretty much like that, until I came across a thing so rare I was unaware it actually existed until sinking my teeth into its still warm, perfectly textured (not too dense, not too fluffy), generously iced dough, and was transported to a land of rainbows and unicorns and dancing Homers. And I’m not even a big donut fan. Continue reading Holy O’s!
I’ve just now peaked above the surface to see what’s going on in the world and realized we’re half-way through the month of December, with Christmas ‘yikes!’ just around the corner. That’s two weeks of Christmas stuff gone by, which would’ve been more if not for hearing ‘Baby it’s Cold Outside’ for the 50th time (that’s how long it takes to drill something into my brain). I did get a chance to see Rudolph though, twice, somewhat distractedly, and with the magic of dvd technology I can fill every second of spare time from here to day one with nothing but Christmas classics. Which I might do. Rudolph is awesome. Continue reading Holiday in the Bay Area
After packing in the turkey and stuffing on Thanksgiving, the urge to walk off some of that excess weight is no doubt high. Combine that with a long weekend off, and you can leisurely choose from any number of lovely fall hikes in the Bay Area. For me, this particular weekend calls for something pleasant, accessible, and not too strenuous. Continue reading Best post-Thanksgiving hikes in the Bay Area
There are loads of mountain peaks in the Bay Area – nearly 300 that fit the official 1,000-plus-feet definition – with most of them easily accessible (no crampons needed). And the best thing? no matter where you live in the Bay Area, you’re 3o minutes or less from any number of them. Continue reading (almost) Atop the (22nd) highest peak in the Bay Area
We’re all adults here, right? At least that’s what we tell ourselves, until Halloween rolls around and we’re running for the nearest thrift store/costume shop, firing up the sewing machine and glue gun for the greatest costume this side of World War Z like it’s fifth grade all over again. Do kids even celebrate Halloween anymore, or has it been completely co-opted by ‘grownups’? The number of Halloween events going on in and around the city is astounding, for both the pre- and post-teen set. Here’s a list of some of the best: Continue reading Halloweening in the Bay Area
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