San Francisco – what a fabulous place!! Another place I visited where I wish I had stayed for longer! We only visited for three days but what a fun-filled amazing three days it was. During our trip we saw the following places:

Union Square – the central shopping, hotel and theatre district of San Francisco! Pack a credit card! Saks Fifth Avenue, Tiffany’s and plenty of other high end stores await!

Coit Tower – also known as the Lillian Coit Memorial Tower. Coit Tower was paid for with money left by Lillie Hitchcock Coit. Lillie Coit was one of the more eccentric characters in the history of North Beach and Telegraph Hill, smoking cigars and wearing trousers long before it was socially acceptable for women to do so. She was an avid gambler and often dressed like a man in order to gamble in the males-only establishments that dotted North Beach. Lillie had a special relationship with the city’s firefighters. At the age of fifteen she witnessed the Knickerbocker Engine Co. No. 5 in response to a fire call up on Telegraph Hill when they were shorthanded, and threw her school books to the ground and pitched in to help, calling out to other bystanders to help get the engine up the hill to the fire, to get the first water onto the blaze. Lillie’s will read that she wished for one third of her fortune “to be expended in an appropriate manner for the purpose of adding to the beauty of the city which I have always loved. “Two memorials were built in her name as a result – one was Coit Tower, and the other was a sculpture depicting three firemen, one of them carrying a woman in his arms.

Alcatraz – Be prepared to spend a good few hours at this fascinating place! During your tour you can expect to see, amongst many other things, the morgue, the showers, the cells, the dining area, the recreation yard, the lighthouse and the prison office! I think hubby was keen on locking me in a cell and leaving me there though!

Also while at Alcatraz they cover the amazing stories of those who have escaped the prison, the most famous escape being the June 1962 prison break. More info can be found here.

San Francisco Cable Cars – the worlds last manually operated cable car system and an icon of San Francisco! Only three routes now remain – two routes from downtown Union Square to Fisherman’sWharf (Powell-Mason line 59 and Powell-Hyde line 60) and the third along California Street (California Street line 61).

We travelled on the Powell-Hyde line which I was told was the best one to take to capture pictures of the fantastic hilly streets of San Fran. The route also takes you past the infamous Lombard Street – a street with eight hairpin turns and described as “the most crooked street in the world”.

The Golden Gate Bridge – The bridge has been described as the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world. As you can see, unfortunately on our trip to the bridge we were the victims of San Francisco’s well known microclimate and the majority of the bridge was covered in fog! Such a shame!

Presidio Park is a park and former U.S. Army military fort and is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The park is characterised by many wooded areas, hills, and scenic vistas overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. It was recognized as a California Historical Landmark in 1933 and as a National Historic Landmark in 1962.

The Painted Ladies Victorian Houses is the row of Victorian houses at 710–720 Steiner Street, across from Alamo Square park, sometimes known as “Postcard Row.” The houses were built between 1892 and 1896 by developer Matthew Kavanaugh, who lived next door in the 1892 mansion at 722 Steiner Street. This block appears very frequently in media and mass-market photographs of the city and its tourist attractions and has appeared in an estimated 70 movies, TV programs, and ads. 

The Financial District serves as San Francisco’s main central business district. It is home to the city’s largest concentration of corporate headquarters, law firms, insurance companies, real estate firms, banks, savings and loans, and other financial institutions. The city’s tallest buildings, including 555 California Street and the Transamerica Pyramid (see below), and many other tall buildings, such as 101 California Street and 345 California Street are located there. Montgomery Street (sometimes called “Wall Street of the West”) is the traditional heart of the district.

The Transamerica Pyramid is the second-tallest skyscraper in the San Francisco skyline and on completion in 1972 it was the eighth tallest building in the world. The building no longer houses the headquarters of the Transamerica Corporation, but it is still associated with the company and is depicted in the company’s logo. It’s a very fascinating building!

China Town centered on Grant Avenue and Stockton Street is the oldest Chinatown in North America and the largest Chinese community outside Asia!! Since its establishment in 1848, it has been highly important and influential in the history and culture of ethnic Chinese immigrants in North America. Chinatown is an enclave that continues to retain its own customs, languages, places of worship, social clubs, and identity. There are two hospitals, numerous parks and squares, a post office, and other infrastructure. China Town is also a major tourist attraction, drawing more visitors annually than the Golden Gate Bridge!! Well worth a visit whilst you are in San Fran!!

Pier 39 – also worth a visit whilst you are here! At Pier 39, there are shops, restaurants, a video arcade, street performances, the Aquarium of the Bay, virtual 3D rides, and views of California sea lions hauled out on docks on Pier 39’s marina. California sea lions have always been present in San Francisco Bay and they started to haul out on docks of Pier 39 in September 1989. Although fluctuations in the number of sea lions at Pier 39 are dramatic, (as many as 1,701 in Thanksgiving Week in 2009, have been officially reported at one time) many of whom are recognisable and some of whom have been unofficially named! 

An amazing city unlike anywhere else! If you get the chance to visit then do so – my only other piece of advice is to check the temperatures before you go – the weather is very unpredictable and for the majority of the three days we were there, hubby and I were absolutely freezing when we were out and about (especially at Alcatraz and near the pier!) Speaking to some locals, they said that local traders make the most of their profits through tourists mis-judging the weather! Apparently the most popular items purchased from local stores are hoodies and sweatshirts!! So travel prepared guys and wrap up warm!!