Pictures and Posts about my travels to and around California. Tips on things to do and places to see mostly from the Central Coast and up. As well us other places I've been between here and there.
Who doesn't love a deal, especially as it relates to travel or fun (and isn't travel fun)? Anyway, I spotted this deal on Living Social for a 50% discount on one adult admission to a 90-minute Friday or Saturday night ghost tour and magic show. The tour is from SF Chinatown Ghost Tours and features walking tour departures at 7:30 PM by reservation. According to the Living Social deal info:
Your guides will take you off the beaten path, sharing the spine-tingling stories of Chinatown's more nefarious characters (some say their spirits still roam the streets at night). End the evening in an old gambling den where a magician will conjure the spirit of a gambler who swindled his way to his untimely doom.
While I haven't done this tour, I've definitely added it to my list of things to do in San Francisco. I love tours like this and have been on ghost walks in both Charleston, South Carolina and Edinburgh, Scotland. This tour looks to be frighteningly good, because as we all know from the movie Big Trouble in Little China, lots of supernatural things go down in Chinatown.
Act soon to walk the streets of San Francisco's Chinatown, because there's only 3 days remaining to purchase this deal!
EDITOR'S NOTE: If you saw this post earlier today and wonder why it's a little different, somehow I accidentally deleted the content. So, this is a rewrite of an earlier post and I couldn't remember it verbatim.
California Traveler now has a Facebook page, so please join me over on Facebook and like my page. Subscribe to my FB feed, too. See you here, there, and in California!
The BF and I went to a local Yelp Elite event last night and spent a delightful evening conversing with another couple. Inspired by our conversations, I've put together my Top 5 Things I recommend doing in San Francisco. Now, since I haven't done everything in San Francisco, nor even everything I want to do or see, this is a work in progress. As of today, however, these are the five things I suggest you do (not in any particular order):
1. Coit Tower - Rising above Telegraph Hill, Coit Tower gives you a spectacular view of the city and surrounding areas. Take the elevator to the observation deck for 360 degree views of beautiful San Francisco. In addition to the view, the tower itself houses some 1930's era public works frescoes that are worth viewing.
Coit Tower
View from Coit Tower
2. Marin Headlands - Across the Golden Gate Bridge lie the Marin Headlands, a wild and wonderful landscape that seems much further away from the hustle and bustle of San Francisco than they short distance it actually is. The best part is the view of San Francisco and the new perspective you get high above the Golden Gate Bridge.
The Marin Headlands from the San Francisco side of the Bay.
One of two windmills located on the western edge of Golden Gate Park.
A pagoda in Golden Gate Park's Japanese Tea Garden
The Conservatory of the Flowers
Inside the dome of the Conservatory of the Flowers
The deYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park
4. Sausalito -So what if Sausalito is across the Bay fro San Francisco, it makes my list of musts when in the City. Sausalito is a cute little town nestled along the coast, with its hillside homes and unique boutiques and restaurants, Sausalito is a quiet break from the larger city on the other side of the Bay. Sausalito is easily reached by car across the Golden Gate Bridge or via the ferry.
Homes in Sausalito are perched on the hillside
Sausalito has many shops and restaurants along the waterfront.
5. San Francisco Waterfront - This encompasses many activities from the cheesy tourist kind to some unique sights and sounds, along with a variety of dining options. Encompassed in the San Francisco waterfront area are Pier 39, Fisherman's Wharf, Musee Mecanique, the Ferry Building, and the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park and many other places. Of course, since San Francisco sits on a peninsula, there's a lot of waterfront to explore. These are just some of the highlights (touristy or not.)
Fisherman's Wharf is bustling with tourists no matter what time of year.
One of the restaurants at Fisherman's Wharf
Hyde Street Pier is where you'll find the historic maritime park
You can catch the famous cable cars at the Hyde Street turn around
Pier 39 from the water
Tourists aren't the only ones hanging out at Pier 39
You can catch a boat to visit Alcatraz at the Ferry Building
Tonight, Anthony Bourdain's new Travel Channel show, The Layover took us to San Francisco. The episode explores various dining and drinking establishments (and some not so established) off the beaten tourist path. Bourdain stays at the elegant and historic (opened in 1907) Fairmont Hotel on Nob Hill, but throughout the show he eats and drinks his way through various places in the city from the Lower Haight to Chinatown. He shows us that drinking is a sport in San Francisco, with a great playing field of small and large establishments crowded with locals. He avoids the touristy paces of Pier 39 and Fisherman's Wharf and takes us deep into the heart of this bustling city.
Tomorrow night on Travel Channel the show Hidden City visits San Francisco to explore the infamous side of the city.
Well, if you're in San Francisco for New Year's Eve, then there are at least 925 things for you to do according to San Francisco Travel. And, if you're concerned about transportation, all MUNI lines and routes are free on New Year's Eve from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. (for more information check out MUNI's website.)
The Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum is located in San Jose and contains the largest collection of Egyptian artifacts on exhibit in the Western US. The museum is located in Rosicrucian Park, which includes a planetarium (closed), temple, research library and peace garden. The Rosicrucian Order is not a religious order, but a "non-sectarian body of men and women who study the elusive mysteries of life and the universe."
The buildings are very exotic looking being designed in either an Egyptian or Moorish style. The design pf Rosicrucian Museum was inspired by the Temple of Amon at Karnak. The Rosicrucian Park features lots of roses among other trees, plants and flowers. The parking lot for the museum is across the street; parking is free.
The museum features a well-rounded collection from tiny artifacts to actual mummies. There are also artifacts from other neighboring cultures of the ancient Egyptians. There are a number of large artifacts in the museum which are replicas of actual artifacts, including a replica Rosetta Stone. The museum even features a replica Egyptian tomb, which takes you from one side of the museum to the other.
The museum also features a small gift shop and is currently showing the art exhibit Vibrations by Maria Butina. You can also take pictures in the museum as long as you don't use a tripod or flash.
So, it's been a while since I came back from my last trip to California and I'm just getting around to writing my posts. I did try to post while I was on vacation, but for some reason the BlogPress app on my iPhone/iPad wouldn't post what I wrote. Now that the weather at home has gotten cold and is only going to get colder, I'm definitely California dreaming. So, I will be reliving my last vacation through my upcoming posts over the next few weeks. Enjoy, especially if this winter's day is making you dream of California, too.
