Here is an abbrieviated
version of our "must-see" attractions for San Francisco.
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BALMY ALLEY
Between 24th and 25th, south of Folsom
This block long alley features the volunteered works of celebrated
Hispanic muralists. Funky, folksy, and political. The Day of the Dead
parade ends here every November first.
CASTRO THEATER
429 Castro Street
415-621-6120
A stunning 1930's movie palace, with Spanish Colonial architecture, a
plaster ceiling that looks like a big tent, seating for 1600, and organ music
before major shows, this majestic landmark offers the ultimate
movie-going experience in the city. For once, a theater to take a
same-sex date and not receive attitude for holding hands, though just as
many hetero couples make the scene as well.
COLUMBARIUM
1 Loraine Court off Anza
415-752-7892
The ultimate place to stash your ash. A treasure trove of urns line every
wall of this four-tiered sanctuary. With stained glass windows, a copper
dome and classical muzak it seems like an elegant wedding chapel. It was
a polling place during the last presidential election. And the only place you
are literally going to find Prince Albert in a can. The head caretaker,
Emmitt Watson, leads a fabulous impromptu tour. On it you will see some
of the more famous urns in the Columbarium, including those of the
Shattuck Family, the Eddy Family, and, yes, the Folger Family. Open
10:00-4:00 PM M-F, 10:00-2:00 on weekends, this is one of the true gems
of San Francisco.
DEFENESTRATION PROJECT
214 6th St. at Howard
Brian Goggin and a group of fellow artists created quite the stir in 1997
when they erected this sensational installation that incorporates over
thirty brightly colored household furnishings and applicances, such as
couches, chairs, tables, and refrigerators in gravity-defying postitions,
bolted, welded, and rigged on the walls and out the windows of this
gutted, abandoned, six-story building. At first glance it appears as if an
earthquake has shaken the building's contents out the windows and
toward the street below. But they hang in calm repose, perhaps waiting
for the wrecking ball before they decide to complete the leap to the
ground. What is Defenestration: According to Mr. Goggin, "It is the act of
throwing something or someone out of a window." Only in San
Francisco.
GOOD VIBRATIONS
1210 Valencia St.
415-974-8980
This is the most sex positive, progressive dildo shop in the land. Why?
Because it’s owned and run by chix. From vibrators to butt plugs, thigh
harnesses to nipple clamps Good Vibes always has "the right tool for the
job." The staff can be extremely helpful, providing lots of explicit sex
education without a trace of shame. Staffer Nao had us down on all
fours in doggie collars. Their motto: “if you want something done right, do
it yourself.”
LIGURIA BAKERY
1700 Stockton at Filbert
415-421-3786
Stand in line for focaccia, the potato chip of North Beach. This small
place bakes and sells ONLY foccacia in three simple varietes, without all
that yuppie inventiveness found elsewhere, and it is sooooo cheap. The
aromas will knock you over with Italian wholesomeness. For an additional
treat, head across Washington Square (where there's a time capsule
buried under a statue of Ben Franklin) to Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store
Cafe, which uses Liguria’s focaccia in making its incredibly savory
sandwiches.
PETE'S CAFE
San Francisco Art Institute Cafe
800 Chestnut St. (North Beach)
415-771-7020
Plop the interior of this rooftop cafe down on any street in town, and it
wouldn’t warrant a mention. But it makes our highly selective list because
of a very simple truism: location. Of the many cafes in town, Pete’s has
indisputably the best view of the city and bay. What’s more, you get to
hang with groovy academic artistes, which can be soooo heady. You’re
also inside, or, rather, atop, the oldest cultural conservatory in the West,
the San Francisco Art Institute, with mounts consistently high quality
events and gallery shows. And then there's that Diego Rivera mural. The
downside: they’re only open when school is open.
PRESIDIO PET CEMETERY
Crissy Field Avenue near McDowell
Humbly located on a small plot of land right under the SF side of the
Golden Gate Bridge near the thickly wooded aromatic heart of the
Presidio, this sweet cemetery is where military personnel bury their
deceased animal friends. Enter through a white picket fence to an
ominous warning--Caution: Hazardous Waste Area. Inside you'll find a
touching array of pet shrines, some with more trinkets than a queen on
parade. Our favorites are those dedicated to Tyson "T-Bone" Brooks,
Jason The Dancing Dog, Max Our Happy Puppy, Miss Dusty, Radar, Fifi,
Jet, Birdie our parakeet, and Baron ("He Lived to Love and Be Loved").
From a glance at the remarks on the sweet white crosses, it seems the
"owners" loved their pets as much as, if not more than, their spouses and
family.
SAN FRANCISCO ZEN CENTER
300 Page
415-863-3136
I love "Zen Center" because the guy with the pierced nose, ear and
tongue who cruised you at the S&M bar last night is likely to be sitting
next to you calm as a cow. It's a place where Evan Dando
20-somethings who look like they shredded all last night commingle with
itsy-bitsy Jewish girls; a place where women who look like they are nuns
straight out of the Sacred Heart, and guys who look like reps for one of
the Napa Valley vineyards, meditate side by side with neurotic eternally
depressed victims of some sort of imagined childhood abuse. It’s a true
melting pot of Zen, and of San Francisco. I like Zen Center because they
keep everything running smoothly without resorting to Gestapo tactics.
Because they leave you to your own experience, but gently introduce
you to the dharma through lectures and courses you want to drink. I like
Zen Center because they recognize the importance of beauty, even
though this very neat, well-maintained and elegantly precise center is at
times a bit too precious and anal about ceremony and aesthetics. I like
Zen Center because the quality of people who attend are a cut above in
intelligence, character and depth.
WAVE ORGAN
Marina Blvd. and Baker
East of the Golden Gate Yacht Club on "the point" is a truly "organ-ic"
work of public art. Go during high tide, sit down in the lovely alcove, or
put your ear to one end of the pipes, which submerge into the Bay, and
listen to the deep bellowing organ-like sounds of the water. The stone
used in the construction is from a cemetery in Laurel Heights.
