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San Francisco Highlights
Hi,
I will be arrving in San Francisco Sep 29 and leaving Oct 7 for the JavaOne conference. The conference is Sep 30 - Oct 4, so the 5th and 6th are mine for sight seeing and there may be some time for seeing things in the evening during the conference itself. I'm staying in the Mission area and am looking for some advice on restaurants and maybe see some live music Friday and/or Saturday night. Any great music houses? Also, advice on sights to see during the day would be appreciated. I'm more into interesting neighbourhoods to stroll through and/or parks versus sites like Alcatraz. Thanks! |
What kind of music are you interested in hearing? Yoshi's is a great jazz house (reserved seats at nightclub-type tables) the Independent and the Boom-Boom Room are great bars/music halls with an eclectic range in live music. Get ahold of a Sunday San Francisco Chronicle or look on sfgate.com for what's "on".
Neighborhoods - the Mission is one - great for strolling, fabulous for eating, on the funky side. Other neighborhoods which are good for strolling, shopping, eating, people-watching, looking at great house architecture: Noe Valley, The Marina (Chestnut Street), Cow Hollow (Union Street), Fillmore Street/Pacific Heights, Hayes Valley Walking outdoors - along the Embarcadero, Chrissy Field and Marina Green, Gokden Gate Park. |
What neighborhoods to visit depends on where you are coming from. Besides the excellent ones recommended by sf7307 -
You might find Little Italy and Chinatown interesting to wander through. They are adjacent to each other. Another twosome group is Japantown and the Fillmore District which has several jazz clubs. |
Japantown isn't very interesting, in my opinion, but I don't know how I could forget Chinatown and North Beach!
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I realize that Japantown itself isn't all that interesting, except to go to a movie and eat there, but the OP wanted music and you mentioned jazz - so the Fillmore would be a natural place to go for jazz. If one had to go to the Fillmore district then combine it with Japantown. Or is this a zigzag way of thinking?
I know a number of Fodorites think that Fisherman's Wharf is tacky, but it's just a few blocks of it. On the Western part of Fisherman's Wharf are several attractions that deal with SF maritime history. The Maritime Museum itself has reopened, there's also the Argonaut Hotel and its displays in the area next to the lobby as well as the pier (entrance is $5) with all those historical vessels. Then there's little strip of beach and the Aquatic Club. Besides which Fisherman's Wharf itself is still a working fishermen's wharf and there's a beautiful small Catholic chapel that's dedicated to the men lost at sea. The restaurants in the area range from great to awful. San Francisco has a fantastic maritime history and to ignore that history just because parts of the Wharf has some tacky shops and awful restaurants - I don't get it. So, I'll add Fisherman's Wharf, especially the western end of it, as a good walking area. |
re: live music
It depends of course on the type of music you enjoy but here are some venues I'll suggest. Check their event calendars for the dates you are interested in. Hotel Utah Saloon http://www.hotelutah.com/ Cafe du Nord http://www.cafedunord.com/ Slims http://www.slimspresents.com/ Bottom of the Hill http://www.bottomofthehill.com/ DNA Lounge http://www.dnalounge.com/ The Fillmore http://www.livenation.com/The-Fillmo...o/venue/229424 Great American Music Hall http://www.slimspresents.com/venue_detail/gamh/ The Warfield http://thewarfieldtheatre.com/ Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Music Fest is happening Oct 5-7 In Golden Gate Park. It's free. Huge lineup. http://www.strictlybluegrass.com/ |
Thanks for all the great suggestions.
I'm coming from Calgary, AB, a typical N. American city architecturally. We have great parks though and I love to spend time in them. I love most music genres, jazz, blues, folk, rock. Pretty much everything except heavy metal - I don't like being screamed at :). |
I've been in Calgary and I think your description is accurate. Among other things I think you'll enjoy in San Francisco is the architecture -- primarily the residential architecture. Because you'll be here such a short time, you might want to take a tour.
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Here are a few nice parks to check out as you explore some neighborhoods:
Ina Coolbrith Park Russian Hill neighborhood Taylor & Vallejo Streets http://www.yelp.com/biz/ina-coolbrit...-san-francisco Portsmouth Square Chinatown neighborhood Clay & kearney Streets http://www.yelp.com/biz/portsmouth-square-san-francisco Alta Plaza Park Pacific Heights neighborhood Pierce & Clay Streets http://www.yelp.com/biz/alta-plaza-park-san-francisco South Park SOMA neighborhood btwn 2nd & 3rd on S. Park Street http://www.yelp.com/biz/south-park-san-francisco Yerba Buena Gardens SOMA/Downtown 745 Mission St btwn 3rd & 4th http://www.yelp.com/biz/yerba-buena-...-san-francisco Washington Square Park North Beach neighborhood Union St & Columbus Ave http://www.yelp.com/biz/washington-s...-san-francisco Rincon Park Embarcadero south of Ferry Bldg park along embarcadero san francisco Pier 7 Financial District waterfront Embarcadero & Broadway Streets http://www.pierfishing.com/pier_of_the_month/9810.html Crissy Field Presidio - north waterfront 1199 E Beach http://www.yelp.com/biz/crissy-field-san-francisco Dolores Park Castro neighborhood 18th St & Dolores St http://www.yelp.com/biz/dolores-park-san-francisco |
I work in the Embarcadero and never knew Rincon Park had a name!
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Yep, it has a name. It's a great spot to brown-bag a lunch on warm, non-windy days. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnPVdcvGgnU
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<<<It's a great spot to brown-bag a lunch on warm, non-windy days>>>
I just walk by, admiring the sculpture, on my regular trips to AT&T :-) The other day we saw people climbing on the sculpture, which I assume is a no-no. |
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