Yep, now you have to go back in the spring to see Yosemite at its best. Had you been there in May, you would get completely soaked from the mist standing on the bridge where you took that picture.
I just spent 3 days at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in Golden Gate Park. , Fuck, I love San Francisco. Free concert in Golden Gate Park, it was like some kind of 60’s party. I saw Ralph Stanley, Elvis Costello, John Doe, Joe Ely, Jimmy Dale Gilmore, Richard Thompson, and Emmy Lou Harris, and many many more. SF cops are completely cool, they let you piss in the bushes and smoking pot is no big deal.
I’m glad the OP enjoyed their visit to San Francisco. I’ve never understood the love for the city, though- I was very disappointed when I visited. Didn’t hate the place, just thought it overrated.
Having said that, I suspect it’s the sort of place that’s better if you know someone who lives there.
As a San Jose resident and big-city hater, I both hate and like San Francisco. It’s picturesque and scenic, but I’d rather be in Marin, or the foothills, or anywhere other than The City. Still, it has great restaurants and museums and Crissy Field, but I avoid it whenever I can.
Also glad you had fun visiting this neck of the woods. I live on the Peninsula (between SF and San Jose) and this weekend we went to a kids’ birthday party in Sonoma (which is really, a longass way to go for a kids’ bday party, but I digress…), anyhow, we went through SF, over the GG, etc. as always, Mrs. Ripop remarked how nice the city is and how maybe we could live there instead of the suburbia where we do, and damn, it is always so nice (as long as you’re not trying to park a car, that is.) Since I’m the unofficial photographer of the various kids’ parties of the people in our ‘circle’, I ended up taking a bunch of pics of the city and GG bridge on the way back. You just can’t help photographing it, it so beautiful, even though we’ve lived here for 15 years and have been over it and through the city a million times. I think the Bay and close-by nature make it nicer than NYC (Manhattan anyway, the only place I’ve really spent any time in NYC), but I can definitely see why people love NYC too. But I’ll take Cali weather, and Cali women, over the east coast, any day
Come back and visit NorCal again! There’s lots to experience!
The best chicken and waffles in the Bay Area are at Brown Sugar Kitchen. It can be hard to get into on weekends, so plan accordingly.
The redwood trees in Yosemite are a different species from the ones in Muir Woods. The ones in Yosemite are giant sequoias - the most massive trees in the world. The ones in Muir Woods are coast redwoods - the tallest trees in the world. The biggest examples of each of these species are in Sequoia National Park and Redwood National Park, respectively.
The best Chinese restaurants in San Francisco are not in Chinatown. There are many fine ones on Clement Street.
I hope you come back to San Francisco some day. There’s so much to see and do here, and you barely scratched the surface. If you do make another trip here, try starting a thread asking for advice on things to do.
It was my understanding that giant sequoias and California redwoods are the same species. Afterall, there aren’t but a few species of redwoods out there left in the world.
This trip was kind of a project for myself. A project for planning for the future (i.e., giving myself a goal to look forward to) and also rewarding myself for having paid all my debts.
You’re young, Wesley. Just a few years younger than me, IIRC. There’s still plenty of time to go wherever you want to go and do whatever you want to do. SF will still be around in another year or so. (We have a couple of years left in this world, right?)