San Francisco

The only attractions that I knew about in San Francisco before moving to central California were the Painted Ladies and the Golden Gate Bridge. Turns out it is one of the most beautiful large cities in the U.S., if not the world. Many large cities are on the water due to easier ways of transport, but San Fran is built on a hilly peninsula which offers many great vantage points.

San Fran reminded me of a smaller version of New York City with its pockets of neighborhoods in a large city culture, island adventures with beautiful boat rides (Alcatraz Island vs NYC’s Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty), and picturesque bridges. I got my recommendations here from my patients and one of my childhood friends who currently lives there.

What to Do

Twin Peaks

This windy steep road ends at a parking lot with the most spectacular view of the city. Twin Peaks was my first stop when visiting San Fran for the first time and my jaw dropped for a few good minutes. I was taking pictures next to a couple who pointed out the Golden Gate Bridge to me. I immediately had tears in my eyes as I have always wanted to see it and was not expecting to see the bridge until later in the day. What a moment! After I was done sightseeing, there was a tour going on so I listened in to get more of my bearings. Then they helped me get a fun picture looking like I was falling into the city!

Ghirardelli Chocolate Experience

If you love chocolate like I do, you will act like a kid in a candy shop in Ghirardelli Square! Here there are 3+ Ghirardelli shops. I recommend going to the original store first to see how the chocolate is made and get a selfie with an employee with a cool hat! Then head to the Ghirardelli chocolate experience shop where you have more of a selection of gifts and chocolate selections. This shop reminds me of a miniature version of the M&M store that’s in NYC as you get to pick through all of the different chocolate squares and put them in a gift bag. Also, don’t miss out on their hot fudge samples in the back, and try their “world famous” hot fudge sundae.

Golden Gate Bridge

The draw you feel at this mighty red bridge is real as it is a west coast landmark. You get the elated feeling, “we made it!” And then as you stare at its magnificence and the surrounding city and landscapes you ponder “why do they call it Golden?” Hint: the Gold Rush ;-) We parked at the Golden Gate Bridge Vista Point on the north side. You can’t go wrong at any of the Golden Gate Bridge lookouts!

*Be careful of car break-ins here. If you leave anything out you can be sure that your window will be smashed and they will take it! As we parked on the street, the car in front of us had its window smashed in about 30 minutes before we got there. We were very lucky it didn’t happen to us.

Lombard Street

This is the world's curviest road! It was so fun to drive down it and then take pictures from the bottom. Play some fun music on your radio and video tape the whole route!

The Painted Ladies

Made famous from Full House, these dollhouse-looking row homes are a sight to see on Alamere Square.

*Be careful of car break-ins here as well. Luckily my friend Amelia saw a man staring our vehicle down so we didn’t go very far from our parked location. If we had walked or turned away for one minute it would’ve happened so quickly we wouldn’t have known what to do!

Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory

In the middle of Chinatown, there is a tiny shop where you can watch fortune cookies being made!

Alcatraz Island

To be honest, the ferry ride to and from the island was one of my favorite parts of this excursion in San Fran. Maybe it’s because I’m now a photography geek and taking pictures of the island and architecture from afar are pretty cool. But we also loved the excitement of being close to the island that we had seen and heard about prior to this trip. I think we were expecting the tour to be more about what made this place so famous in the first place: the escapes. Instead, it was more about life on Alcatraz. Which was also pretty cool to learn about too. On our drive back to Santa Cruz that evening we listened to a podcast, “Infamous America - the Greatest Escapes from Alcatraz”, which discussed the escapes in great detail.

Musee Mecanique

One of our other four musketeers in our college group said we had to go to Musee Mecanique. Knowing Ellen, it had to be a good one. This place was full of fun arcade games of old, bringing back memories of games we used to play, and other arcade games that were the precursor to our generation's games.

Where to Eat

Biscoff Corner

This small shop on the touristy Pier 39 in downtown San Francisco has one of the best cups of coffee I’ve ever had: their Biscoff Latte. Plus, with each purchase of coffee you get a free Biscoff cookie! Amelia was thinking about getting the pumpkin latte (she’s so basic) but I insisted she get the Biscoff latte. Needless to say, she was “wow’d.”

At the back left side of this pier is the sea lion viewing area. You also can get a good view of the Golden Gate Bridge from here on a good day.

Boudin Bakery at Fisherman’s Wharf

This famous sourdough bread is most likely the best you will ever have. We very happily ate lunch here. On the inside of the bakery you will find bread that is made into tons of different shapes. For example, for Christmas this year, I ordered Santa Claus bread with jingle bell rolls. We were all impressed with the look and the flavor!