san fran day trip
Jul 28th, 2002, 09:54 AM
#1
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san fran day trip
hi i will be in napa in sept, but want to drive to san fran and spend a day there. any advice on what to do, or where to park my car? have a senior so can't do a lot of walking. where is best for enjoying the city and sites and dealing with my car?
thanks
sharon
thanks
sharon
Jul 29th, 2002, 02:29 PM
#2
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Unfortunately, SF is a walking city and parking a car is expensive and difficult. THere is a big parking structure just across the street from Pier 39. From there the walking is at least level ground. You will need to make use of taxis or take a tour if your senior can't do a lot of walking. Could senior manage the cable cars? My 91 year old MIL no longer can climb up onto the car. We end up driving her around and then valet park for lunch somewhere nice. She still enjoys the visit but it's not the way you should see SF.
Jul 29th, 2002, 02:38 PM
#3
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Another fun idea might be taking the ferry from Vallejo. Parking in Vallejo is free and the ferry takes a little over an hour. No city driving hassle. You can get off at Fisherman's Wharf, enjoy a walk around, have lunch, even ride the cable car if the line isn't too long.
Or, you could get off at the Ferry Plaza. If you go on a Saturday you can check out the farmer's market right there, which is great for foodies. You can then ride a cable car from the foot of Market to Union Square for shopping or lunch. Cabs are readily available too if there's a particular sight you want to see in the city.
At the end of the day catch the ferry back to Vallejo and drive back to Napa, only about 30 minutes away. Here's a link to the ferry service:
www.baylinkferry.com.
Or, you could get off at the Ferry Plaza. If you go on a Saturday you can check out the farmer's market right there, which is great for foodies. You can then ride a cable car from the foot of Market to Union Square for shopping or lunch. Cabs are readily available too if there's a particular sight you want to see in the city.
At the end of the day catch the ferry back to Vallejo and drive back to Napa, only about 30 minutes away. Here's a link to the ferry service:
www.baylinkferry.com.
Jul 30th, 2002, 03:10 PM
#4
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If you can't do a lot of walking but would like to enjoy the sights of SF, I'd recommend driving the "49 mile scenic route" that goes all over the city and to a number of different neighborhoods. It should be listed in guidebooks and there are signs around town to help you follow it.
If you're in town on a weekend, there is a free shuttle that runs all over Golden Gate Park. You could get off in a number of different spots and visit different parts of the park. Likewise, there is a free shuttle that goes all around the Presidio.
If you want to go to Alcatraz, there is a tram that the senior with you can take to the top of the Island. (Be sure to buy tix several days in advance.)
If it's a nice day, you might consider taking the one-hour Bay Cruise that leaves from Fisherman's Wharf. It provides some wonderful views of SF from the water, goes under (or at least out to) the Golden Gate Bridge, and has a audio tour that goes with it, I think. Tix are sold at Pier 41 (next to Pier 39).
If you're in town on a weekend, there is a free shuttle that runs all over Golden Gate Park. You could get off in a number of different spots and visit different parts of the park. Likewise, there is a free shuttle that goes all around the Presidio.
If you want to go to Alcatraz, there is a tram that the senior with you can take to the top of the Island. (Be sure to buy tix several days in advance.)
If it's a nice day, you might consider taking the one-hour Bay Cruise that leaves from Fisherman's Wharf. It provides some wonderful views of SF from the water, goes under (or at least out to) the Golden Gate Bridge, and has a audio tour that goes with it, I think. Tix are sold at Pier 41 (next to Pier 39).
Jul 30th, 2002, 03:21 PM
#5
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I really like Susan's suggestion to take the ferry from Vallejo. And a Saturday would be great because of the Farmer's Market, an attraction in itself. You could take a taxi down to Ghirardelli Square where there are restaurants, shops and places to sit down and people watch. Have a great day in SF.
Jul 30th, 2002, 04:39 PM
#6
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The 49-mile drive is not good. If you do decide to drive it - only do the part that starts at the Embarcadero (near Pier 39) and stop once you get to the Cliff House (near the Great Highway).
The rest of it is ridiculous and not very pretty. (Who wants to see Army St?)
The rest of it is ridiculous and not very pretty. (Who wants to see Army St?)
Jul 31st, 2002, 05:30 AM
#7
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Sharc,
I personally would skip SF as a day trip and spend the extra time in Napa or head over to the coast in Mendocino. For one thing, SF is really dirty because of all the street people and drug addicts that use the sidewalks as a public bathroom, along with having a significant crime problem. Driving in town is also a major hassle, and finding parking is next to impossible.
I personally would skip SF as a day trip and spend the extra time in Napa or head over to the coast in Mendocino. For one thing, SF is really dirty because of all the street people and drug addicts that use the sidewalks as a public bathroom, along with having a significant crime problem. Driving in town is also a major hassle, and finding parking is next to impossible.
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Jul 31st, 2002, 12:22 PM
#11
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Kam,
I was last in SF about 2 month ago.
These are some quotes from the local SF newspaper. No doubt that with a rise in homelessness and even parolees, increased crime goes right along with it.
"Homelessness, the dirty streets and the drug use rampant in the area are as much a social problem as a criminal one."
"In San Francisco, we have a high transient population," said Rick Winistorfer, supervisor of one of the four parole units in San Francisco. "The last person you want to have as a transient is a high-risk sex offender."
I was last in SF about 2 month ago.
These are some quotes from the local SF newspaper. No doubt that with a rise in homelessness and even parolees, increased crime goes right along with it.
"Homelessness, the dirty streets and the drug use rampant in the area are as much a social problem as a criminal one."
"In San Francisco, we have a high transient population," said Rick Winistorfer, supervisor of one of the four parole units in San Francisco. "The last person you want to have as a transient is a high-risk sex offender."
Jul 31st, 2002, 12:41 PM
#12
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The sad decline of San Francisco as seen through the eyes of a resident who fell in love with this city over 20 years ago, and now is saddened by how decrepit it has become.
Those faces from my days here in San Francisco haunt me. The dead-eyed, hunched, androgynous person who sits in a wheelchair on the corner of Divisidero and Haight at rush hour. The African American man who holds a skinny pole and teeters along an embankment doing a bizarre fishing pantomime on Van Ness. The chubby, slightly menacing bearded grump who slumps on the sidewalk in front of Cala supermarket on Geary, staring down at the sidewalk drawing circles.
I have lived and visited many U.S. cities, but never have I seen so many wretched, diverse souls - all with their hands out, all grabbing at part of me, every day in San Francisco. In restaurants they try to sell me dead flowers. On street corners they ask for whatever you have as they push shopping carts and flash toothless smiles.
Each morning I pass the line in front of the Veteran's Administration building before speeding off down Highway 101 toward work. On my way home I wait at every street light reading signs panhandlers clutch. ``Down and out,'' ``Homeless,'' ``Out of work,'' the signs say. Their owners stare at you blankly as you wait for the light to turn. You pretend you don't see them. They always ask for whatever you can spare - even a smile. Most of the time I don't feel like smiling. This change begging ritual depresses me and wears me down.
When I have it, I toss quarters and dollars their way, hoping to make myself feel better for the moment. The words ``if you're not part of the solution you're part of the problem,'' skirt through my head, as I ponder political activism or soup kitchen volunteering. Later, when the fifth person in a given night has made similar pleas for cash and I am out of change I only want to scream because there is nothing I can do to stop it. While some who beg for your quarters are thankful for whatever you give, many emit anger and frustration as they shake the cup.
I think about what people do with the change they collect, how they build a small life around that money every day. Sometimes in Cala market I watch men with grubby hands spill dimes and pennies in front of the cashier, paying out like children for a bag of Doritos and a fifth of some cheap vodka. I sometimes help make up the difference by tossing in a dollar, but do not get involved. I do not want a stranger following me home to my studio apartment.
I do ponder ways to deal with this strange life, a life where people with families and pasts and secret hidden passions and talents keep asking me for money where ever I go.
And there is no answer, I think, as I scrape the lining of my pocket for a quarter. I could move to a socialist country, flee to a suburb, never leave my apartment, though I know these are no answers. I am always going to feel sick and guilty about how we ignore the poor in a way that nothing else in my life makes me feel.
Those faces from my days here in San Francisco haunt me. The dead-eyed, hunched, androgynous person who sits in a wheelchair on the corner of Divisidero and Haight at rush hour. The African American man who holds a skinny pole and teeters along an embankment doing a bizarre fishing pantomime on Van Ness. The chubby, slightly menacing bearded grump who slumps on the sidewalk in front of Cala supermarket on Geary, staring down at the sidewalk drawing circles.
I have lived and visited many U.S. cities, but never have I seen so many wretched, diverse souls - all with their hands out, all grabbing at part of me, every day in San Francisco. In restaurants they try to sell me dead flowers. On street corners they ask for whatever you have as they push shopping carts and flash toothless smiles.
Each morning I pass the line in front of the Veteran's Administration building before speeding off down Highway 101 toward work. On my way home I wait at every street light reading signs panhandlers clutch. ``Down and out,'' ``Homeless,'' ``Out of work,'' the signs say. Their owners stare at you blankly as you wait for the light to turn. You pretend you don't see them. They always ask for whatever you can spare - even a smile. Most of the time I don't feel like smiling. This change begging ritual depresses me and wears me down.
When I have it, I toss quarters and dollars their way, hoping to make myself feel better for the moment. The words ``if you're not part of the solution you're part of the problem,'' skirt through my head, as I ponder political activism or soup kitchen volunteering. Later, when the fifth person in a given night has made similar pleas for cash and I am out of change I only want to scream because there is nothing I can do to stop it. While some who beg for your quarters are thankful for whatever you give, many emit anger and frustration as they shake the cup.
I think about what people do with the change they collect, how they build a small life around that money every day. Sometimes in Cala market I watch men with grubby hands spill dimes and pennies in front of the cashier, paying out like children for a bag of Doritos and a fifth of some cheap vodka. I sometimes help make up the difference by tossing in a dollar, but do not get involved. I do not want a stranger following me home to my studio apartment.
I do ponder ways to deal with this strange life, a life where people with families and pasts and secret hidden passions and talents keep asking me for money where ever I go.
And there is no answer, I think, as I scrape the lining of my pocket for a quarter. I could move to a socialist country, flee to a suburb, never leave my apartment, though I know these are no answers. I am always going to feel sick and guilty about how we ignore the poor in a way that nothing else in my life makes me feel.
Jul 31st, 2002, 02:54 PM
#13
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Cal, beautifully written and I completely agree. I hope we will find a real solution to this problem and those who suggest a pen next to the Buffalos in the park need to remember "there but for the grace of God......" JK, I read the Cronicle every morning, not just two weeks ago. When I think of crime I think of stabbing, gunshooting, armed robbery, armed breakins,child abduction and murder, not some rheumy eyed drunk sitting at a corner with a "Homeless" sign. But, if you want to stay away, that's just fine with me. BTW, I have never felt as unsafe as I did once in a moderate sized midwestern city where there was large scale gang activity and a patrol in the parking lot to keep your car from being broken into.
Jul 31st, 2002, 04:47 PM
#16
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But, Jack, that is not what you said, is it? You also quoted some random quotes from our newspaper. So far SF has not become the murder/rape/shooting/gang activity/home invasion capital of the U.S. so why are you trying to scare off the tourists? Do you think your posts are constructive? Do you have some "bash SF" agenda? Were you threatened two months ago when you were in the city? Yes, we have a whole lot of homeless people, most of whom are drunks, drug abusers, and organic brain disease suffers as well as schizophrenics. Do you also disapprove of dogs peeing on the city streets? Enough said....no more, I'm really tired of trying to get this through some very thick heads out there. Those of you who choose to come to SF, I wish you a wonderful time in a remarkable city; those of you who find our problems beyond help, please find some place else to go and I hope it lives up to your expectations because the homeless are always with us.
Aug 1st, 2002, 09:36 AM
#17
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Kam,
There is no use having a discussion with someone who refuses to take their blinders off to see how really bad SF has been on the decline over recent years. As I stated before, I never said homelessness was a crime, but it ultimately leads to crime either out of desperation or as a result that many of these people are mentally ill. We must realize that SF is no longer waht it used to be. I am not trying to "scare" tourists but feel that SF is being misreprsented to people who do not otherwise know what SF is really like.
Also, how can you equate dogs peeing on the sidewalk to people using the streets as toilet? That is a very weak argument.
There is no use having a discussion with someone who refuses to take their blinders off to see how really bad SF has been on the decline over recent years. As I stated before, I never said homelessness was a crime, but it ultimately leads to crime either out of desperation or as a result that many of these people are mentally ill. We must realize that SF is no longer waht it used to be. I am not trying to "scare" tourists but feel that SF is being misreprsented to people who do not otherwise know what SF is really like.
Also, how can you equate dogs peeing on the sidewalk to people using the streets as toilet? That is a very weak argument.
Aug 1st, 2002, 09:47 AM
#18
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Jack, is it possible you are overstating your "warnings"? Many, many people come to San Francisco on vacation and have the best time of their lives. I am in San Francisco frequently and love the city. It has nothing to do with blinders. People are living on the streets in SF. That problem isn't going to go away when you discourage all the tourists from visiting. It's a problem the citizens of SF need to solve. The rest of us can't vote on the SF ballot.
Where's Sharc? I think he/she's gotten some good advice here about her question, which was about the best way to enjoy the city with a senior who is not able to do a lot of walking.
Where's Sharc? I think he/she's gotten some good advice here about her question, which was about the best way to enjoy the city with a senior who is not able to do a lot of walking.
Aug 1st, 2002, 09:53 AM
#19
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Susan,
It is not only a homeless issue. It is also the trash on the streets, the prostitution, the open drug dealing, and all of the negative elements that go along with this type of activity that people should be made aware of. I think that many tourists are not aware of the problems that plaque SF and once they go there, they are disappointed.
It is not only a homeless issue. It is also the trash on the streets, the prostitution, the open drug dealing, and all of the negative elements that go along with this type of activity that people should be made aware of. I think that many tourists are not aware of the problems that plaque SF and once they go there, they are disappointed.
