I may be visiting San Francisco in September... What do you recommend I do while visiting?

I composed this list a while back. It should still contain a lot of fun stuff.

I don’t remember the street or restaurant but when people come out a guy is hiding behind some bushes and scared the crap out of people and it’s hilarious to look at when people are distracted

There’s just so much! :)

Off the top of my head, not knowing what you’re into:

-There is a great music scene in SF, and big bands play in the city all the time. See a concert.
-Or a play.
-The Exploratorium is fantastic if you’re with kids, or if you feel like acting like one. Do the tactile dome.
-Be a tourist and drive down Lombard, go to Haight St, take a boat ride in the bay, go to Alcatraz, eat chowder on a pier.
-Get sushi in Japantown.
-Go to the beach (but bring a sweater).
-The Museum of Modern Art is amazing.
-Cross over the Bridge and hike the headlands, browse around Sausalito, and house-gaze in Tiburon.
-The Japanese Tea Gardens are gorgeous. As is much of Golden Gate Park.

What’s the name of that long-running performace where the people dress in drag and wear those big wig/hat things? Is it even still going? Go to that. :)

@Tink113 That’s Bushman on the Embarcadero near Fisherman’s wharf.

@shilolo I will be in the City and w/o anything other than the MUNI. I do appreciate the link, though… there is stuff on there that I’ve missed!

@Tink1113 I know what you’re talking about… I’ll look it up when I’m there.

@Likeradar I’m familiar with all of that! Anything else?

See the Golden Gate Bridge
Go to the Bathhouse ruins by the Ocean
Drive north to the red woods along the Ocean
Ride a cable car
Eat in china town (have Dim Sum (sp?) at least once)
Visit the Haight-Ashbury
See the crookedest street in the world
The museum of modern art
The street performers at fisherman’s warf rule!

And don’t worry about things being called touristy. Be aware that in the touristy areas prices are extra high. So eat in the non-touristy areas.

And last but not least go down to the docks where she seals are all resting, wait for kids to come near you and say “geeze look at all the dead seals.”

Muir Woods!!!

@Bri_L Yes! The Bathhouse ruins! It’s by the Cliff House restaurant. It is beautiful. I’m getting homesick reading this thread

@boots All of my suggestions are essentially free, and can be readily accessed by public transportation.

Well, I’ve lived here for 7 years, but what kinds of things are you looking for? All that comes to mind people have already mentioned.

@DominicX Anything that you think should be seen is welcome… Hell, I’d visit you, even!

I enjoy a restaurant called The Franciscan on the Embarcadero.

Head up to Telegraph Hill and see the feral parrots.

@Likeradar – I know what you mean.

@boots – I believe most of mine are to. I don’t know about the museum.

@astrochuck – OOOo good one. Just don’t set off your car alarm with you in the car and you can’t turn it off because the antenna tower is interfering with the transmitter and the button inside is faulty so everyone is staring and starting to think your stealing your own car. Because that would be embarrassing

@boots

haha…that would be hella weird. :P

You can’t go wrong with Union Square and the Westfield Mall. I love that area.

@AstroChuck Oddly enough, I haven’t done that… I really should.

@Bri_L I haven’t heard of a lot of yours… I’ll def. be looking into them. Thank you very much!

@DominicX Been there, done that!

Lets do lunch on the veranda. I see some good Italian around North Beach in our future…

@boots

Well, that doesn’t stop me from doing it again. If you have $100 to blow, we can go to the symphony or the opera. No one except my mom will go with me…lol :P

Or go to Castro and see some gay guys making out. You can’t go through there without seeing that.

Have you ever been to St. Francis Wood or Pacific Heights?

OH,

Also, Alcatraz. I really enjoyed it.

And, watch:
The Rock,
Dirty Harry,
The Joy Luck Club
High Anxiety
Verigo

All movies shot in San Francisco. Or watch them after. It’s kind of neat to see places like that when you see them in the film

@DominicX I do not have 100$ to blow, but I have been to the Castro ‘o plenty… I used to go through the Castro to get to The Height (aka Amoeba Records).

I lived in Glen Park, which is adjacent to both of those neighborhoods.

@boots

lol…Glen Park is nowhere near Pacific Heights (trust me), but Glen Park is right by SFW. That’s where I live. When my parents were going to Stanford, they went to SF all the time and they had no idea SFW was even there. I like it because it’s the only place in SF where the houses aren’t stuck together.

@boots – well I didn’t know you lived there. Now I feel foolish for some of my suggestions.

At least do the “look at the dead seals” one. That gets them every time.

@Bri_L Dead seals… Check!

@DominicX Pacific Heights escapes my mind… I lived in GP, worked in the Mission, and sometimes played around North Beach (Yay strip clubs!). btw, did you ever go to the corner store I suggested for you? It’s literally around the corner from where I’d be staying.

@boots

I don’t know; I’ve been to hella stories. Which one was it? (Sorry, I don’t remember this). :(

I have been visiting San Francisco several times a year for the last thirty years. For the first time in my life, I decided to take one of those “tours” that I have been reading so much about, and it was the funnest day I have had for many years.

I went on a bus with very comfortable seats, and the tour guide was very knowledgeable and spoke several languages. He was able to answer most of the questions of the other riders. It was the Tower Tours, recommended by the hotel concierge where I stayed. I followed it up with the harbor tour under the Golden Gate, and around Alcatraz Island. It was a wonderful day.

@YARNLADY – You bring up a great point! There is nothing wrong with a great tour! Especially on the first day.

Get a taste of everything at the buffet and go back later for seconds on what really interests you!

September is usually very warm so you might want to see GG park or Ocean Beach on rented skates or a bike.

Wicked will still be at the Orpheum and there are many performance venues all over the City.

Go to a Giants game or a hs football game for real fun,

The King Tut exhibit will be at de Young or every week there are different things to see at Fort Mason and then fly a kite on Marina Green.

There are venues for all kinds of music and restaurants for every appetite and every wallet. Within 2 blocks you can get dim sum, piroshki, sushi, burger & fries or a Belfast buttie-each a meal for lt $5

Your best bet is to pick up the Chronicle (Datebook) then go to a cafe and plan your week

i’m sure you’ve been to golden gate park. i love it. i could spend months there i think.

also, baker beach has a great view down the shore and of the golden gate bridge. very nice as well.

i love the entire berkeley area. theres a lot of shops and parks and i enjoy everything about it.

also, in the temescal area near oakland there is something called “first friday” and there are tons of people in the streets and all the art galleries do special free tour things. i dont know, art galleries aren’t my thing but many people seemed to be enjoying it! there was lots of music in the street and dancing and games.

also, if you’ve explored the city by car before i really suggest doing it by bike. :)

Hepz?

@benjaminlevi She knows he’s going, so I’m sure they’ll meet up. I thought about John (JotS), but I don’t think Ken ever interacted with him.

@jeanna I talked to JOTS quite a bit back in the day but he was all mysterious an never said anything about himself. Didn’t even know he lived in Francisco

@benjaminlevi Yeah. I talked to him a good bit. I’m jealous that Ken gets to meet Martina, but we plan to go some time next year together.

Go hike around the Sutro Baths ruins

Stay away from Sutro and the Ocean Beach cliffs during an incoming tide or you might have a very unique adventure. As for swimming, it is very cold and there’s a crazy riptide, Baker Beach is not so bad for going in.

@jeanna Sounds awesome.

@boots: definitely meet up with Martina if you can, she’s rockin! Urban is also in the area along with JOTS. You never know who you’ll run into…

@hungryhungryhortence I don’t see any reason not to visit her. And I never interacted with the last two much… I guess I wasn’t cool enough. :-/