San Francisco, California. San Francisco: Journey to the Freest City in the World
If you think San Francisco is all about the Golden Gate Bridge and cable cars, you're right, it is. However, in addition to these well-known symbols, the city has rich history, beautiful architecture, but the main thing that its residents are proud of is the unofficial title of the freest city in the world, which San Francisco proudly wears. At different times, in some surprising way, it became the center of attraction for adventurers and non-standard-minded people - it is no coincidence that the hippie movement was born here. 
Bridge "Golden Gate" - "calling card" of San Francisco Understanding why this particular city is "the freest" is not so difficult if you remember the history of San Francisco. For tens of millennia, Indians lived on its territory, but in 1776 the Spaniards arrived here. Then the settlement was called Yerba Buena. In 1848, the city began to develop and grow rapidly - mainly due to the Gold Rush epidemic that covered these places; then he got modern name. In just a year, the population of San Francisco increased from 1,000 to 25,000 people, people from all over the world came here in search of work, but especially a lot of people from China. China Town still occupies a significant part of the city, a fifth of the population of San Francisco are Chinese.
In 1906, the city was almost destroyed by a strong earthquake, during which three thousand people died and another 300 thousand were left without a roof over their heads. However, over time it was restored. In the 80s of the last century, there was another devastating earthquake in the city, which destroyed the highway that ran along the embankment. By the way, they did not restore it - but now the city has a wonderful area for walking.
Today, San Francisco is one of the most vibrant cities in America, where many cultures and nationalities coexist. The hippie revolution that took place here in the late 60s of the last century turned it into a center of attraction for creative, non-standard and free-thinking people. Some of them are still here today - those who in 1967 took part in the "Summer of Love" festival, speaking on the side of the sexual revolution and proclaiming personal freedom as the highest good that a person can have.
Participants of the festival "Summer of Love" in San Francisco
San Francisco, late 60s In the 80s, San Francisco once again became the epicenter of dissent, this time thanks to homosexuals who first felt free here. To date, almost 15 percent of the city's residents are representatives of sexual minorities - this is more than in any other city in the world. By the way, it was here, in the Castro gay quarter, that the symbol of the LGBT community, the rainbow flag, once appeared. Harvey Milk, the first American politician who declared his orientation openly, also lived here. However, adherents of traditional love feel no less free here.
A couple of days is not enough to get to know San Francisco - this place is worth spending at least a week here.
Marina Savelyeva (HELLO.RU) "grabbed" the symbol of the city - a cable car Most travelers first of all rush to see the main attraction depicted on every postcard - the Golden Gate Bridge, the "Golden Gate". However, the bridge is far from the most interesting thing in this city. What really surprises here is the people. Elderly hippies, street musicians, gays and couples with children do not interfere with each other at all, living side by side.
Dolores Park in San Francisco Apart from hiking, during which it is best to get to know the townspeople, renting housing from local residents will also help to get closer to the city. Instead of staying in hotels located in the tourist center of the city, it is much better to choose one of the options that are abundantly presented on the Airbnb site and spend a week in a regular residential area.
Haight-Ashbury quarter.
This is one of the most interesting areas of the city. Firstly, one of the few quarters that were not destroyed by the 1906 earthquake. Accordingly, the Haight-Ashbury retains old buildings dating from the 19th century. Secondly, this area is considered the birthplace of hippies. In the 50s of the 20th century, you could buy the cheapest housing in the city here, which provoked an influx of representatives of countercultures. As a result, in 1967, the center of this "movement" was formed here - thousands of people from all over the world celebrated the "Summer of Love". By the 80s, it was already part of history, and now Haight-Ashbury is considered quite a prestigious area to live in. Artists and musicians settle here, next to hippies, who can still be found here. Walking along the Haight Ashbury, do not be afraid to turn into the alleys - there you can see a lot of bright graffiti with which the walls of the houses are painted. Most of them are original slogans, with the help of which the “children of flowers”, like 50 years ago, call for love and freedom. By the way, graffiti is not only in this area, there are a lot of them throughout the city.
Graffiti depicting Carlos Santana, who lived in San Francisco
Graffiti in San Francisco takes up entire streets
The area, for every square meter of which there is some symbol of the LGBT community. Rainbow flags can be seen in every window, all the souvenirs in the shops are with the same symbols. Even the pedestrian crossing in Castro is colorful! And it's not just that. Castro is a gay quarter.
LGBT symbols are everywhere in the Castro area
Entire generations of people free from prejudice have grown up in San Francisco
However, do not expect to be surrounded on the streets by scantily clad men fighting for their right to love each other. Residents of this area have not proved anything to anyone for a long time - they just live. If it weren't for the colorful flags (most of which appeared here in support of a recent US law allowing members of sexual minorities to enter into legal marriage), you would hardly immediately understand how this area differs from others. Unless a couple of hours later, sitting in a cafe or standing in line at the checkout in a store, you would involuntarily catch yourself thinking that there are mostly men around. 
Chinatown
As already mentioned, a fifth of the population of San Francisco are Chinese. For the most part, these are the descendants of immigrants who arrived here in the 19th century in search of work. However, if you decide to travel around the city by taxi, every second driver will be Chinese and most likely will speak terrible English. During the earthquake, Chinatown was destroyed and then completely rebuilt. Today, the district occupies a fairly large area in the city.
Lombard Street
The steepest street in every sense of the city, one of the sections of which has an angle of inclination of 27 degrees. Speed Vehicle here it is limited to 8 km / h, but no one tries to go faster: Lombard Street is mostly visited by tourists who want to look at the street carefully and therefore are not in a hurry to pass quickly.
vintage stores
For lovers of vintage and flea markets, San Francisco is a real paradise. In numerous stores located throughout the city, you can find anything from designer jewelry for $ 2-3 to a spectacular leather chair of the 50s for $ 80.
Decades of fashion - one of the largest vintage stores
Showcase of the Decades of fashion store: here you can buy both real vintage items of clothing, and modern, sewn "antique"
A dress with a story can be bought for $30
A real vintage bathing suit - for $ 15
Silicon Valley
In the southwest of San Francisco lies Silicon Valley (or Silicon, as we call it) - the largest technology center in the world. There are technical universities and head offices of Adobe, Apple, eBay, Google, Facebook, Oracle, Yahoo!, LinkedIn and many other companies. The staff includes the best scientists in the world, many of whom live in San Francisco. If you get a chance to visit any of these offices, go - you won't regret it. The internal structure of organizations is unusual and interesting. Airbnb was also founded in San Francisco in 2008 and is also headquartered here.
After walking along the streets and peeping at the life of local residents, you can go on "spot" excursions - visit the famous Pier 39, where dozens of sea lions rest, dine at Fisherman's Wharf. The best view of the city opens from Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill. 210 meters high, you can take excellent panoramic pictures of the city, the entrance to the tower is free, but you will have to pay to go to the observation deck.
The famous "Pier 39" - a favorite place for sea lions
Another place that is criminal not to visit when you arrive in San Francisco is the famous Alcatraz prison. It is located on the island of the same name, which is visible from the pier. Now the prison has been disbanded, and within the walls of the gloomy buildings there is a museum that reminds visitors that at the beginning of the 20th century there was one of the most severe prisons in the world, where especially dangerous criminals served time. The narrow windows of the cells were arranged in such a way that the prisoners could see the city and the free life in it, realizing even more clearly that it was now inaccessible to them. It is believed that not a single prisoner managed to escape from Alcatraz, although attempts were made. Even those who managed to leave its walls could not reach the shore alive because of the cold waters and strong currents in the bay.
View of the island and Alcatraz prison from Coit Tower
The Painted Ladies are also worth a look, six colorful houses in the Alamo Square area. These and several thousand more houses were built in San Francisco during the Gold Rush. The earthquake destroyed most of the buildings, but these six houses remained intact. The fashion for bright, colorful houses at the end of the 19th century was widespread, local newspapers even wrote that if someone's house does not have a lemon or, for example, bright blue hue, then its owner simply does not have taste. Following these houses, which are also called "Six Sisters", "Painted Ladies" throughout America began to be called colorful houses in the style of the Victorian era.
And finally, about the "Golden Gate". This red bridge, almost 2.5 kilometers long, is a symbol of San Francisco. Despite the beauty of the object, it has a rather macabre reputation. The Golden Gate was popularly nicknamed the "suicide bridge", because for almost 80 years of its existence, more than 1000 people said goodbye to their lives with its help. The dense fog that envelops the bridge most of the time looks impressive and mysterious on postcards, but in real life it can interfere with seeing the bridge. So when planning a trip to Golden Gate, be sure to check the weather forecast.
Marina Savelyeva (HELLO.RU)
A few more tips:
1. For the United States, San Francisco has a well-developed public transportation system, but locals prefer to travel by car. So when planning your trip, be prepared to spend $30 to $50 a day on 20-minute round trips. Or you can travel by bus, it will cost you 5-7 dollars a day, but taxis are certainly more convenient and faster.
2. Traveling around the city will be easier if you use the services of Uber taxi. In the American Uber, everything is exactly the same as in the Russian one, and you don’t even have to reinstall the application on your phone - it will simply adjust to the country on the spot. However, there is one caveat: in America, Uber contains a Pool function, by selecting which you can take a fellow traveler along the road and split the bill with him in half.
3. The writer Jack London was born in San Francisco, the actors Robin Williams and Savely Kramarov lived, and to this day the houses of Carlos Santana and Steven Spielberg are located here. Find out in advance where they lived to see the city through their eyes.
The city and county of San Francisco lie in the central part of the Pacific coast of California, on the northern tip of the peninsula of the same name, which borders the bay of the same name from the sea. This is perhaps the most beautiful and certainly the most liberal city in the United States, having its own face and style, not least determined by the picturesque local landscapes and frequent fogs that cover half the city.
Despite its far from small size (the total area of the city is about 600 sq. km), San Francisco is quite compact, hilly and bears little resemblance to the huge chaotic Los Angeles. Considerable "merit" in this belongs to the devastating earthquake that hit San Francisco in 1906 (fires caused by tremors raged then for three days), after which the city was rebuilt according to a clear architectural plan almost anew. Many of the buildings of the city, which still define its face, were built within the framework of this development, from the early 1920s to the mid-1930s.
Landmarks of San Francisco
The historic center of Frisco, as the Americans often call it, lies in the hilly northeastern part of the peninsula and differs from the "big city" just by the almost complete lack of planning - many of its streets are so winding and illogically laid out, they have such a large height difference that they themselves themselves are good attractions (a typical example of this is Lombard Street on Russian Hill). Currently Old city is located within the business center with its skyscrapers and offices and is framed along the entire perimeter by ethnic quarters like Chinatown, North Beach And telegraph hill(Italian quarters), Russian Hill, Mission District(African Americans and immigrants from countries Latin America), richmond(often called "New Chinatown", but many Russian emigrants live here), sunset(immigrants from Asian countries) and other colorful areas.
The tourist center of the city is union square- an ever-noisy center of shops and hotels, flower sellers and the homeless. The famous cable cars run down the west side of the square to Aquatic Park, Washington Street, Chinatown And Financial District, or up - to Mark or Hopkins Hotel. Picturesque area SoMa(South Market Street) seems to link the high office complexes of the business center and quaint neighborhoods along Embarcadero with an ever touristy area of galleries and museums all around Yerba Buena Gardens or night clubs eleventh street. In the territory Fisherman-Warf(foot of Russian Hill) with its fairly kitschy shopping area is located Museum wax figures , and the pier itself is the gateway to such famous monuments of the city as the island Alcatraz prison, Maritime Museum And historic pier.
The city's attractions include the famous Golden Gate Bridge("Golden Gate", 1937, one of the longest suspension bridges in the world - each of its spans has a length of 1280 m) and the nearby park of the same name (1017 acres) with botanical the gardens of the Streebing Arboterium, a charming Japanese garden, Young Museum of Fine Arts and the highest artificial waterfall in the western states; as well as under construction New Bay Bridge, which will be the most advanced structure of its kind in the world, which is not surprising given that its 160-meter supports will be located in the most seismically dangerous place city, exactly in the middle between the San Andreas and Hayward tectonic faults, and the 560-meter span will be supported by just one support.
Museums in San Francisco
Also widely known Alcatraz prison island(used in this role from 1933 to 1963), area of fashionable villas on Montgomery Street, downtown Market Street, Mount Tamalpas(770 m) with a magnificent panorama of the city and the bay opening from its peaks, building Var-Memory Opera House(1932), Museum of Contemporary Art (SFMOMA) to South Market, Museum cable cars (covers the history of another local landmark - the famous San Francisco streetcars, or cable cars, whose history goes back 130 years), Russian cultural center(1939) in the Richmond area, Mexican Museum, Asian Art Museum in the San Francisco Library complex, Science Museum Exploratorium, zoo in Bueno Vista Park by Lake Merced, angel island(former filtration camp during the Second World War, and today - a popular place for hiking and picnics), complex American Conservatory and theater (ACT), International Women's Museum, african museum and many other unusual collections, as well as the lively Castro quarter and the famous High Ashbury, or Hythe, considered the birthplace of the hippie movement.
Beach holidays in San Francisco
The ocean shores around San Francisco are not an ideal place for a seaside holiday - there are quite strong surf, complex currents and rather cool water, the temperature of which in the summer months does not exceed 15 ° C. Swimming on many of the city's beaches is not recommended; on some, it is officially prohibited, as evidenced by prohibitory signs. The beaches of San Francisco are foggy even during the summer months.
Within the Golden Gate Park, you can find many good places for swimming and active pastime, and on the territory of Baker Beach (east of Golden Gate) you can swim and relax quite safely all summer.
Going to sunbathe and swim on the coast of San Francisco, it is better to take a windproof jacket or sweatshirt with you; the winds here are cool even in the summer months.
Water sports enthusiasts should be aware of strong undercurrents. Surfing along the coast of San Francisco is an option for experienced surfers, but not for beginners.
Most of the city's beaches do not allow drinking alcoholic beverages; local police enforce the rule.
Beaches
luxury beach ocean beach, stretching 3.5 miles along the west coast of San Francisco, is more used for running and sports recreation on the coast. Swimming on the beach is not recommended due to the large waves ideal for experienced surfers. Ocean Beach has showers, cafes, volleyball courts, and play areas. Drinking alcoholic beverages on the coast is prohibited. It is allowed to kindle fires, but the company should have no more than 25 people. The most secluded part of the coast is in the south. There is no parking along the beach.
Rodeo- the best beach for children in San Francisco, a little less than a mile long. Swimming is prohibited here due to the pollution of the lagoon. The pebbly beach is equipped with showers, picnic tables with fire pits; alcohol is prohibited on the coast. There are no cafes, restaurants or food shops nearby; Everything you need is worth taking with you. Due to its location and open space, Rodeo is popular with kite enthusiasts. In the northern part of the beach you can find small multi-colored pebbles; the most common are orange.
From the beach Baker, popular among fishing enthusiasts, offers beautiful views of the Golden Gate. The coast is equipped with showers, picnic tables and toilets. Eat free parking, but on weekends you should arrive before ten in order to have time to take a free seat. To the north is the nudist beach North Baker.
On a small beach China located in prestigious area Seacliff, where it's easier to meet locals than tourists. On the coast, the waves are calmer than on Ocean Beach. Due to its location in a sheltered bay, China is one of the few safe places in San Francisco for swimming, but you need to be aware of the ebbs and flows; their schedule can be found on the beach. Lifeguards are on duty from April to October. There are picnic tables and barbecue areas; Food and drinks must be brought with you. Animals are not allowed on the beach.
Nudist beaches
The largest nude beach in the US North Baker located in northwest San Francisco. The coast is an art playground for freelance artists; it is always noisy here and ethnic music sounds. There are areas for beach volleyball. Picnic tables are located a short distance from the coast; alcohol and drinks in glass containers are prohibited. There are no restaurants or shops near the coast; everything you need to take with you. The entrance to North Baker is just behind the sign warning of dangerous surf.
Beach Land's End is located in the city park of the same name and is considered one of the most picturesque nudist beaches on the US West Coast. It is better to come early: the beach is crowded in the afternoon. The coast is rocky in places. Happen on Land's End strong winds Therefore, even in summer it is worth taking a warm jacket with you.
Beach Fort Funston unofficially considered nudist. However, on weekends there are quite a lot of tourists and locals who prefer to sunbathe and swim in their clothes. There are fewer people on weekdays, and these days Fort Funston lives up to its status. In May and October, the coast is very windy. The beach is also popular with hang gliding enthusiasts.
Hotels in San Francisco
In total, there are more than two hundred hotels in San Francisco, including guest houses, mini- and boutique hotels, as well as luxury hotel complexes of international hotel chains - Four Seasons, Mandarin Oriental and Ritz-Carlton.
Resort hotels are located mainly near the Pacific coast, either directly on the beach or across the street from it. Most hotels have a swimming pool, spa or beauty salon, restaurant and golf courses.
How to get there
You can get to San Francisco from Moscow by direct flights of Delta Air Lines. Travel time - from 17 hours. Also on Lufthansa, Aeroflot or Air France flights with a transfer in Frankfurt, New York, Los Angeles or Paris. Travel time - from 20 hours.
The American city of San Francisco is one of the most popular cities not only in the United States, but throughout the world. This city is called the "city of eternal spring" not only because of the special climate - not cold, not hot, but changeable and capricious, "like a woman." Rather, this name was given to the city because of the specific atmosphere of romance and freedom - it was not for nothing that San Francisco fell in love with the generation of beatniks and hippies, rebellious youth and representatives of sexual minorities.
However, San Francisco is also willingly visited by many tourists from all over the world. And there really are very interesting and unique sights.
First of all, you should definitely see the famous suspension bridge"Golden Gate", thrown across the Gulf of California. This is one of the largest and most impressive bridges in the world - its length is almost 3 kilometers (more precisely 2737 meters), it rises 230 meters above the water, and is capable of passing 100,000 cars per day.
Another interesting attraction of San Francisco are the unusual cable cars. Due to the peculiarities of the landscape of the city (located on forty hills), these funicular trams were in the past one of the most convenient means of transportation. But they were very expensive for the city authorities. And now there are only three routes left, and even then only because tourists really liked this unusual way of transportation.
Alcatraz Island is also popular, from where it opens beautiful view to San Francisco. Especially at night - because of which special evening excursions. However, Alcatraz Island is best known for its prison, where many hardened criminals were kept, among whom was Al Capone.
Of course, it is worth visiting Monterey Island with picturesque rocky coasts, pine and cypress forests, crooked beaches. Here you should definitely visit the Oceanarium, one of the largest in the world (one of the viewing glasses of which is the largest in the world), aquariums, where you can see more than 300,000 species of marine and ocean inhabitants.
Popular with tourists is Chinatown, the largest Chinatown outside of China. This is really a real Chinese town, in sharp contrast to the rest of the city, besides, there are many different restaurants, jewelry stores and souvenir shops.
You also need to walk along Lombard Street - the most crooked street in the world, which even got into the Guinness Book of Records.
The Haight Ashbury area is known for being home to hippies in the 1960s. And although the times of hippies are long gone, the atmosphere of those times is still preserved here and today's youth often gathers here.
And representatives of sexual minorities have chosen the Castro area for themselves, but there are still small art galleries and many different cafes.
There are many in San Francisco interesting museums: two museums fine arts– The De Young Museum with a rich collection of paintings, among which the works of European painters and works of early Indian art are of particular interest, and the Legion of Honor Museum with a collection of antiques and exhibits related to American television and Hollywood, science museum, African Diaspora Museum, San Francisco Museum of History, Museum of Crafts and folk art and others.
Of the theaters in San Francisco, the most famous is the War Memorial Opera theatre”, “Herbst Theatre”, “The Louise M.Davies Symphony Hall”.
Of the other attractions of San Francisco, it is worth visiting the picturesque Yosemite national park with lakes, waterfalls, caves, mountain peaks and forests, Embarcadero Boulevard, where food fairs take place, Golden Gate Park, where one of the best Botanical Gardens in the world is located, the unusual Pyramid skyscraper, the Richmond area, known as " Russian Quarter”, the Cathedral of St. Mary, the “Wine Country” valley, where you can taste various varieties of wine.
Have you been to California? California is a piece of paradise located on the west coast of the American continent, one of the most beautiful states in the USA. The city of San Francisco is rightfully considered the pearl of California. and this is no accident. Spread across the northern coast of the San Francisco Peninsula for more than 121 square kilometer, washed by the waters of the Pacific Ocean and the Golden Bay, it remains the dream of tourists from all over the world.
Amazing nature, combined with world-famous sights created by human hands, centuries-old history is a real value for the successful development of the tourism industry.
San Francisco city map
Economic development of San Francisco
San Francisco leads the way largest cities United States, both in terms of population and density. Despite this, most of its inhabitants are not indigenous, but arrived from other states in search of work or better conditions life. As one of the largest cities on the West Coast, San Francisco is the main artery of California's financial, cultural and transportation activities.
Thanks to its advantageous geographical position, access to Pacific coast, as well as remoteness from such global megacities as London and Tokyo, Seattle and San Diego, the presence of seaports, one of which is the port of Oakland, airports - favorable conditions have been created here for business development and the establishment of economic ties. Tourism is the backbone of the city's economy. Number foreign tourists annually visiting the city is huge. The development of the tourism business also determines the rapid development of the city, evidence of this is the fact that San Francisco alone accounts for 30% of the commodity turnover of the entire coast. It is the most important financial center of the region.
The infrastructure of the city is quite well developed. Here are the largest development companies the latest technologies, research centers, different kinds production. Particular attention should be paid to the famous technology center - Silicon Valley, which is also located in San Francisco. Great attention is paid to developments in the field of pharmacology, research is being carried out in genetic engineering, biotechnology, and new medical electronics are being developed.
Despite the rapid and stable growth of the economy, the cost of living in San Francisco is extremely high. The high cost of housing, food and consumer goods is one of the most acute problems of the city. It is noteworthy that with a city agglomeration of 7.4 million people, almost 12% remain unemployed and are below the poverty line. The reason for this is the oversaturation of the labor market with representatives of unclaimed professions who have received a good education and have a bachelor's degree. The state authorities, trying to solve the problem of poverty, are pursuing a consistent social policy, providing assistance to the poor and homeless. However, favorable climatic and social conditions have become attractive to numerous homeless people from neighboring states who arrange whole pilgrimages, hoping to find shelter in a new place.
San Francisco city of contrasts
San Francisco is truly a city of contrasts. Its singularity is observed both in architecture and planning, and even in the faces of the people inhabiting it.
It is noteworthy that representatives of more than six races live in San Francisco, while in percentage terms the numerical difference between them is small, among them whites, Asians, African Americans, Indians and others - other or mixed races, Hispanics of any race representatives of 15.1% of the population San Francisco. The city is also known for its tolerant attitude towards representatives of unconventional orientations. One of its districts, Castro, is considered the capital of homosexuals. The contrast of the city is also observed in its architecture. Despite the fact that the city is overpopulated, its distinguishing feature is low-rise buildings located close to each other. Only the city center differs, where high-rise buildings of offices, banks, shopping centers are built.
Like many cities in the world, San Francisco is divided into districts. There are about forty of them in total. Each district is a separate conglomerate with its own attractions and infrastructure. But still there is a connection between them - to promote economic well-being. The most famous and popular among tourists are: Embarcadero, Financial District, North Beach, Union Square, Chinatown, Nob Hill, Russian Hill, Civic Center, South of Market, Haight-Ashbury, Castro.
Landmarks of San Francisco
In San Francisco, there are many places created specifically for tourists, pleasing to the eye and touching the soul. Nature itself made sure that the city attracted with its beauty by placing it on the hills, there are more than fifty of them in the city. The most popular among tourists is Twin Peaks Hill.
It captivates not only with the beauty and perfection of nature, but also with the fact that, having climbed to its top, you can see most of the city at your feet.
Probably the most visited place in the city is the area called Fisherman's Wharf, which translates as "Fisher's Wharf". Here everything is done for the development of tourism business. Morskoy became a real decoration of the area. historical Museum, Aquarium, Pier 39, where you can admire the inhabitants sea depths peacefully basking in the sun. All this abundance is skillfully complemented by chains of restaurants and bars waiting for their customers.
If you are a fun person, then head to North Beach. The most respectable restaurants, nightclubs and bars of the city are concentrated here. But, do not forget to climb the famous Coit Tower, standing alone in the middle of this fun, to admire the beauty of the city at night, dream in the romantic light of night lights.
Do you want to go shopping, do shopping? Head to the Union Square area. You will be surprised by the huge assortment of goods presented and give yourself an unprecedented pleasure by purchasing another souvenir as a keepsake.
Missing the exotic? You just need to know where to look for it! The most exotic place in the city is the Chinatown area, which translates as "a city within a city." A lot of shops full of exotic goods, markets, restaurants are concentrated here. Here you will satisfy the most extravagant tastes of both yours and your friends by choosing the most unusual surprise.
Hotels and hotels are located in the elite area of the city - Nob Hill. The real attraction and architectural value here is the Grace Cathedral. Do you want to admire luxury buildings, modern architecture? You are on Lombard Street - the most winding street in the world.
South of Market is famous for its museums. The most visited among them are the Zeum Children's Museum and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
Have you ever met representatives of hippie or punk styles? No? Then Haight-Ashbury is waiting for you - a favorite place for representatives of various countercultures.
Buildings of the city municipality and a number of buildings built in a simple classical style, surrounded by two squares Civic Center Plaza and United Nations Plaza, are a real decoration of the Civic Center.
The park ensembles of Golden Gate Park and Lincoln Park amaze the imagination and leave unforgettable impressions.
Walking through Golden Gate Park you will come out to the west coast. Here, from the San Francisco Zoo to the park called "Edge of the Earth", an immense sand beach ocean beach. Walk a little more and you will see the Golden Gate Bridge - main entrance in town.
To the east of the Golden Gates, in an area called Presidio, is the architectural ensemble of the Palace of Fine Arts, a favorite place for brides, and on the other side is the innovative interactive museum Exploratorium.
The sights of San Francisco include the islands located in the bay. One of the most popular among tourists is the prison island of Alcatraz, to which more than one work of world classical literature is dedicated.
The development of the San Francisco transportation system
The pearl of the city and its calling card is the port of San Francisco. He was once one of major ports coast and ranked first in the number of completed cargo transportation. now the direction of the port has changed somewhat and is designed to carry out the main part of the city's infrastructure - contributing to the development of the tourism industry. Marine Terminal Ferry Building, co famous tower with a clock today is not only a landmark of the city, but also a maritime station and a shopping center.
San Francisco Airport is located 20 kilometers from the city - the second busiest airport in the United States. It is second only to Los Angeles.
San Francisco can rightfully be proud of its roads. High-quality roads with comfortable, well-thought-out parking allow, in an overpopulated city, the transport industry to develop successfully and contribute to the development of the tourism business.
Climate of San Francisco
Perhaps nature has rewarded San Francisco with many things. Along with the wonderful flora, the most interesting relief landscape, the city is not deprived of a mild climate. Located in the southern latitude, washed by the cold streams of underwater currents, nature, having accepted all these combinations, has awarded the city a mild climate with small seasonal temperature changes. The coldest month is the month of January, when the air temperature drops rapidly, reaching an average of 9.7 degrees Celsius.
The warmest month is September, with an air temperature of 17.7 degrees. real paradise for vacationers. Gentle solar warmth, golden sea coast preserves and nourishes dreams of summer and relaxation until the Doge season. With the advent of November and into January, the month of San Francisco plunges into the gloom of gray rainy days. The real riot of spring begins in San Francisco in February and March, when the cold gradually recedes, nature wakes up and enlivens the city with the aromas of flowering trees, adding colors of luxurious flowers.
The most favorable time to visit San Francisco can be called April and May, when the morning thick fog first covers the sleeping city with a veil, bringing the freshness of the early morning and gradually recedes under the golden rays of the warm sun. Usually this time of year is dry and warm, but sometimes it rains. June and August are also quite warm months, but at night the cold air takes over the city so much that you involuntarily forget about the delights of a warm summer.
TRAVEL NOTES
SAN FRANCISCO
PART 1: VICTORIAN HOUSES, MARINA AND PALACE OF FINE ARTS.
01. We continue to explore the American continent with AutoTour. Traveling along the Pacific coast almost from the very border with Mexico, every day we looked at new cities that were not similar to each other and discovered a completely different California. Today will be no exception. Welcome to San Francisco!
02. We stopped to spend the night in neighboring city San Jose is only 50 miles from San Francisco. Few people know, but San Jose is larger in population than its famous neighbor and is the third largest city in California. We enter San Francisco on a giant bridge from Oakland San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, which passes through the bay of the bay. The fare is paid and its cost depends on the time of day.
03. The bridge consists of two parts, which are separated by a tunnel that runs right through the island of Yerba Buena. The total length is more than seven kilometers. The western section of the bridge consists of two levels. You come to San Francisco on the upper part, enjoying a good view, and back - for free on the lower non-scenic level. In my opinion, everything is extremely fair.
04. East End The bridge combines traffic in both directions on the same level and is the widest bridge in the world. The opening of the bridge took place in 1936, six months before the completion of the Golden Gate Bridge. By the way, initially cars drove only on the upper level of the bridge, and trains and trucks went below.
05. The bridge is really long enough and with a dense flow of cars. Therefore, it is necessary to take care in advance not to miss your congress. This is how hilly San Francisco appears to our eyes. See how densely the mountains are dotted with small houses.
06. We leave for the Embarcadero embankment - one of the main transport and pedestrian streets of the city. There are always a lot of tourists and strolling locals here, they were given a wide pedestrian area, which is not inferior in size to the roadway. And everywhere palm trees and palm trees, this is California.
07. Remember how convenient San Diego and Los Angeles turned out to be for motorists? In San Francisco, you need to forget about it and transfer to two-wheeled transport without further questions. The limited space of the peninsula on which the city is located makes it impossible to build wide overpasses and highways, parking is expensive by Californian standards, and STOP signs are installed almost every 100 meters.
08. Therefore, we leave the cars in a private parking lot and set off on foot to explore the city. The first thing that catches your eye in San Francisco is the incredibly diverse and colorful architecture of small houses. I doubt that you will be able to find two buildings similar to each other.
09. Hardly any other American city can tell such an extensive history of architecture. Time passed, and the city did not cease to adopt all the new and diverse trends in the construction of houses.
10. Since the middle of the century before last, houses similar to Italian cottages and villas have gained the greatest popularity. Unfortunately, most of them burned down after the 1906 earthquake. Also, many houses of those times were built using sequoia trees from neighboring forests.
11. In the 1920s, there was a demand for uniqueness, fueled by monotonous assembly line production and soaring middle-class incomes. The idea was that each object was endowed with its own soul and was deprived of a factory mark. This trend has been fully reflected in the construction of new houses.
12. Most of the houses are covered with plaster, which traditionally takes on all conceivable pastel colors. One gets the impression that various varieties of delicious ice cream lined up in front of you: vanilla, pistachio, peach, chocolate. Very appetizing houses.
13. In the 1930s, the effects of the Great Depression and the spread of unified international styles gave birth to a minimalist style in San Francisco. Architects drew inspiration from historical heritage countries, but from simple forms of industrial technology.
14. In the 1950s, the era of space exploration began, and, of course, new houses tried to embody as much as possible in their appearance unearthly appearance. During the construction, the most advanced methods of space planning and construction were used, great preference was given to glass.
15. New styles kept appearing, but there was absolutely no room for them. Not only the city center, but also all the surrounding areas were completely built up with houses. Therefore, modern buildings can often be found on distant hills and mountain slopes. But there are excellent views of the city and the bay.
16. San Francisco has always been a center of radical change. Struggle for civil rights and women's equality, the sexual revolution and rock 'n' roll - this spirit of freedom has consistently produced a vibrant mixture of attitudes, people, art and styles. And this diversity has always been very harmonious with the city, year after year leaving its special unique charm of free San Francisco on the streets.
17. Regardless of the time of construction, all houses are very similar in terms of functionality. On the ground floor there is almost always a garage and utility rooms. The second floor is a full-fledged living room, usually with a large panoramic window, and above - one or two floors of rooms or a rooftop patio.
18. Right here on the coast of the Marina Green area, we stumbled upon a very unusual sports ground. It turns out that this is a pilot project of the National Fitness Campaign to realize the cool concept of a new generation of public sports fields. Anyone can practice here absolutely free of charge according to the special program “7 exercises in 7 minutes”.
19. This area has become especially convenient for runners, who can now warm up before running along the bay. The creators of the project want to convey to the population the importance of exercise and healthy eating in everyday life. As planned, such Fitness Court sites should become widespread. This is indeed a very correct and necessary project for a healthy city.
20. Parallel to the beautiful houses, expensive yachts and boats of local residents lined up in the same orderly rows along the embankment. Convenient parking across the street from the house.
21. Thanks to a convenient natural bay in San Francisco, one of the largest ports on the west coast.
22. For lovers of luxury holidays, several yacht clubs are open here. The Golden Gate Yacht Club has been in existence since 1939 and is the reigning winner of the America's Cup Regatta, which has been held since 1848 and is recognized as the world's oldest international all-sport event. San Francisco annually hosts the most prestigious national and international competitions.
23. Also, every year, a section of the AutoTour of America runs through San Francisco.
24. Was your yacht stolen? Call the police right away! Previously, when mobile and landline telephones were not ubiquitous, such communication stations installed on many streets were used by the police and other city services. A direct line immediately connected the police or firemen with the control room.
25. Probably, in no other city in the United States have we seen so many cyclists and such a developed cycling infrastructure. The reason for the ever-growing popularity of this type of transport was the rather compact location of San Francisco within the boundaries of the peninsula and the mild warm climate throughout the year.
26. Both tourists and local residents it is more comfortable and faster to get to the sights, to work or to the store on a bicycle than to waste valuable time on traffic or looking for parking. Despite being hilly, many parts of the city are quite flat and comfortable for cyclists. Ideal road separation - enough space allocated for everyone - pedestrians, bicycles and cars are happy.
27. Look, the bike lane has the highest traffic density. This is despite the fact that bike lanes have nearly doubled in length since 2009 to over 80 miles. According to statistics, approximately 16% of local residents regularly use a bicycle, and this figure is constantly growing. It is expected that by 2020, 20% of the entire population of San Francisco will switch to a bicycle.
28. Incredible quantity events takes place in the city to increase interest in cycling. Up to 10 times a year on Sundays selectively block car traffic, completely giving the streets to pedestrians and cyclists. Every last Friday of the month at 6:00 pm, hundreds of cyclists organize bike rides. In addition, there are many different festivals and cool events.
29. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition has made a great contribution to the development of cycling ideology. For example, anyone can install an application on their phone that will track their movements on a bicycle. Based on the collected data, the streets that are most in need of cycle lanes are subsequently determined. San Francisco is very fond of cyclists.
30. Those who do not want to pedal can ride around the city on such a three-wheeled mini-transport. Rent will cost from $50 per hour. Inside the voice guide with a navigator. It's probably fun.
31. From the embankment one of the most famous prisons in the world - Alcatraz. Until 1934, Alcatraz was a long-term military prison with a fairly mild regime. The prisoners helped the locals with chores and were even allowed to build their own baseball field.
32. In 1934, Alcatraz was completely rebuilt, leaving no chance for prisoners to escape. The prison became federal and only the most dangerous criminals got here, including Al Capone, Machine Gun Kelly and others. In the 29 years the prison has been in operation, it is believed there has not been a single successful escape.
33. In 1963, the prison on Alcatraz ceased to function, and since 1971 the island has been opened to tourists. Now everyone can be inside the cells in the place of the most famous gangsters, bandits and murderers of the 20th century. IN legendary prison can be accessed from Pier 33 for only $30.
34. Almost along its entire length, the embankment is allocated for pleasant and comfortable parks.
35. Here you can see a very cool architectural structure- Palace of Fine Arts. It was built back in 1915 during the Panama-Pacific Exhibition, and this is one of the few surviving buildings of that time.
36. The palace stands out from the surrounding landscape and will certainly impress every visitor. Although this monumental work of art was not always used for its intended purpose. Since 1934, there have been tennis courts, a military depot, limousine parking, and even a fire department headquarters.
37. The initial design was made of lightweight, fragile materials, and due to partial deformations in 1964, the Palace of Fine Arts had to be completely destroyed and restored. Some time later, an interactive museum and a theater for almost a thousand seats were opened here.
38. Many tourists and wedding couples walk among the Greek columns and rotunda. This atmospheric place can rightfully be considered one of the symbols of San Francisco.
39. Spread around the palace big park with an artificial lake where swans and ducks constantly swim.
40. We return to the bay promenade and continue on our way to our main destination.
41. No one can resist taking a photo and selfie in front of the most recognizable bridge in the country.
