San Francisco Chinese Parade

San Francisco is a destination that will never disappoint. It doesn't really matter what time of the year you go, you'll always find something going on. But, if you want an incredibly fun and interesting cultural experience, go during the Chinese New Year Festival. Go to www.chineseparade.com for information because the dates and events change each year. Consider going towards the end of the festival to take in the parade. Running at about 2.5 hours and featuring more firecrackers and colorful banners, lanterns, and dragons than you thought possible, it's definitely a reason to check out the city during Chinese New Year.

Quick Tips:

Take the time to get to know the city. Every neighborhood has it's own personality and each is worth checking out for various reasons. For two extremes, sit at one of the sidewalk cafe/coffee shops in Union Square as everyone is going to work in the morning. Then, head over to Market Street, jump on the #7 or #71 Muni bus into Haight Asbury for the afternoon. Two completely different views on the city, but both just as valid and interesting. Check out the SF Bay Guardian to find everything from off-beat plays to all sorts of incredible music to thought-provoking art displays, you'll never be bored. You just need to know where to look. Plus, if you don't like the weather, you don't have far to go to improve your day. On another trip, it was about 45 degrees and pouring in the city (remember, August is not summer in San Francisco), so all I had to do is hop in a car and drive out to Sonoma where it was completely sunny and about 80 degrees. Once again, you just need to know where to look.

Best Way To Get Around:

If you're coming to San Francisco to see the sights and get to know the city, don't even think about renting a car. San Francisco is definitely a walking town. It's not always an easy walk, but if you get to know the hills enough, you'll be fine. Public transportation is always cheap and relatively easy to use. If you buy a single or multiple day passport, cable car rides are included in the price. Check out www.sfmuni.org for more information. The major reason for avoiding a rental car is parking. If you're staying at a hotel you'll usually pay about - extra a night. As you're walking around, pay attention to how many locals you see driving around on scooters. That's because street parking is impossible. Don't even think about it. You'll spend half your night circling the block. The only reason I'd ever rent a car in San Francisco is if I were planning to drive out of the city. Depending on where you're going outside the city, you still may be able to use public transportation. A trip out to Wine country, however, will just about always entail a car for the day.

San Francisco can be, if you let it, an exhausting vacation. The Hotel Vintage Court is a very welcome respite from that exhaustion. For a very reasonable price (about $115 a night if you look around), you get an incredibly comfortable room in a great part of town.

Located two blocks from Union Square, it offers quick access to just about any part of the city. Chinatown's gate is two blocks away. The Financial District is just down the street (the hotel also has a Mon-Fri shuttle). North Beach is a fifteen minute walk through Chinatown. Even getting to Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 39, and Ghirardelli Sqaure are simple - just hop on the trolley 1/2 a block away.

More important than the location, however, is the hotel itself. I don't typically feel all too comfortable in "upscale" hotels - they're usually too stuffy for me. The Vintage Court, however, was a very welcome exception to this rule. The staff made me feel right at home from the moment I walked in. Upon check-in, they reminded me of their evening wine reception. This is a really nice touch - it gives you a chance to try out different Napa Valley wines (your room may be named after one of them - look for it) while relaxing in front of the fireplace.

Remember, this is San Francisco - the rooms are not going to be the largest you've ever stayed in. But here, they're very well designed and make good use of the space they're given. For example, the sink was very tastefully placed behind a separate set of doors outside of the bathroom.

The beds are among the most comfortable that I've experienced in a hotel. The comforter was warm without being overbearingly hot and the mattress had an extra feather cushion on top.

I think one of the upscale chains calls them "heavenly beds". I don't care what they call it - I want one at home!

As with hotels in all big cities, I try and request a room on one of the upper floors to get away from the street noise. I forgot that this time and realized, once again, how early the garbage haulers actually start in the morning. With the window closed, however, the noise level was no problem.

One more really nice touch was an electric air filter in my room. I don't know if there was one in every room, but mine had it. Not something I would have thought of myself, but a definite bonus.

Even if it weren't for the great location, I'll definitely go out of my way to stay at the Vintage Court hotel whenever I'm in San Francisco.

Any place that I can order a pineapple and garlic pizza that they don't look at me like I'm insane is ok with me. When my server didn't even flinch when I ordered, I knew I'd come to the right place.

Located two blocks up from Union Square on the Powell-Mason trolley line, Uncle Vito's is one of those little neighborhood restaurants that makes you feel like you're a local. The restaurant itself, is tiny. If you come at a busy time, hope the weather's good, because you may end up waiting out on the sidewalk. The food, however, is worth the wait and the squeeze.

The menu is nothing groundbreaking - pretty standard Italian fare. It's the quality of food that obviously keeps people coming back. The pizza is probably the best I've had in San Francisco. The crust is exactly as it should be - crispy outside and slightly chewy inside - and the cooks aren't exactly shy about the amount of sauce they put on (make sure you have extra napkins). My wife has also tried the eggplant parmesan and the sandwiches and has been very happy with her food every time.

Everybody tends to think that all the good Italian food in San Francisco is in North Beach. Uncle Vito's is definitely proof that good Italian food is also alive and well in Union Square.

The Cartoon Art Museum proves that I'm not the only person that thinks the most important part of the newspaper is the comics page. Even if you now finish off the Business and Sports sections before checking out the comics and you stopped reading comic books when you hit high school, you owe it to yourself to check this incredible little museum out.

With over 6000 pieces of original artwork in it's permanent collection, the museum definitely has a lot to show off. I've been to the museum a couple of times on previous visits and each time I've gotten a look at a different part of the cartoon/comics world. This time I knew I had to make another trip to the museum - they were featuring a collection of 36 original Calvin and Hobbes Sunday comic strips. The last time, they had a pretty extensive collection of Charles Schultz's original Peanuts strips.

In addition to the changing exhibition collection, the museum goes to great lengths to show off the process of creating comics and animation. The representations of of the process beginning with storyboard drawings, going through rough sketches, and ending with the finished comic strip or animation cell is pretty impressive.

The exhibitions change frequently, so I'd definitely recommend taking a look at the museum's website (www.cartoonart.org) before you go.

Located in the SOMA (South of Market) district, the museum is a short walk from Yerba Buena gardens and Union Square. The museum is open from 11am-5pm Tuesday through Sunday, so this is, unfortunately, not an after-work option. Considering this museum will only take an hour or two to go through completely, it's definitely a great way to spend a morning or afternoon.

OK, I'll be honest, whenever I go to San Francisco, I promise myself I'll avoid the Fisherman's Wharf / Pier 39 area. Too many overpriced tourist shops, not enough affordable food, too many people crammed into one place. But, for some reason, I usually end up breaking this promise. So far, I've come up with 4 reasons for this repeated weakness.

Reason number one - the sea lions. You've got to admit, these guys, noisy and stinky as they can be, are pretty cute. They sit on the docks next to Pier 39, barking and sunning themselves, pretty successfully ignoring the crowds of people watching from the edge of the pier. Remember, though, if you visit during the peak summer times of June and July, you may not get as good of a show. The sea lions tend to migrate to the Channel Islands during the summer months. While you're there, be sure to check out the Marine Mammal Interpretive Center and store as well as the National Parks store. Both are located on the upper level of Pier 39, right across from the sea lions.

Reason number two - the view. If you go to the end of the Pier 41 (where the boats leave for Alcatraz), you get some pretty nice views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, and, turning around, of the city.

Reason number three - people watching. I really shouldn't admit this one, but it's true. The best spot is right in front of the Alcatraz ticket office, where the street performers gather. Watching some of the reactions is usually more entertaining than the performers themselves.

Reason number four - Alcatraz. This really shouldn't even count. All you do is leave from Fisherman's Wharf. Check out my separate Alcatraz entry for info on the attraction that all travellers to San Francisco should see at least once.

There you have it - the reasons I usually get sucked into Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39. Avoid it if you can. I hope you're more successful than I usually am.

If I knew I would only have time for one attraction in San Francisco, Alcatraz would definitely be in the running for my one pick. From the size of the crowds gathered at the ticket booth every day, I'm probably not the only one thinking the same thing.

The most important thing to know about going to Alcatraz is you need to order tickets early. Order them before you leave home. In fact, depending on the time of the year of your visit, order them way before you leave home. I've gone by the ticket booth before and have heard announcements that the next available trip to Alcatraz is in 3 days. So, check out www.blueandgoldfleet.com to make sure you get a ticket.

When you're reserving your ticket, seriously consider the "Alcatraz After Dark" tour. It's only offered on certain days and not all sections of the daytime tour are open at night, but you'll get a much different perspective of the island and what life was like on The Rock. Plus, you'll get some incredible sunset and evening views of the San Francisco skyline.

While you're on the tour, there's a couple of things to watch for. First, when you're in the main part of the cellhouse, look for the desk the National Park Service (NPS) has set up offering different Interpretive Programs. These are always really informative and, depending on the tour, may give you an opportunity to see parts of the cellhouse others may not get to see. The program that visits the hospital was really interesting and, after dark, kind of eerie.

Second, when you get to the part of the tour where an NPS guide offers to lock you in a cell in solitary, try it. Just stepping inside the cell is enough, but having someone lock the door behind you gives you a very real feel of what it was like to live behind bars.

Before you go, also make sure you check out www.nps.gov/alcatraz/. The Park Service has a really nice little site going here. It goes into great detail about the history of Alcatraz as well as how to get the most out of your trip.

It doesn't seem to matter where I go, I always end up trying to find that city's best bookstore. Because of the number of really good bookstores in San Francisco, it's really tough to call one of them the best. But, if for nothing else but the history of the place, I seem to always wander back to City Lights.

Founded in 1953, City Lights is, of course, best known for the Beats. Jack Kerouac hung out here when he wasn't across the street at Vesuvio. Allen Ginsberg's "Howl", published by City Lights, set off a landmark battle over First Ammendment rights when co-founder Lawrence Ferlinghetti was arrested at the store for selling the poem. Supposedly, Ferlinghetti still wanders the stacks. I've never seem him, but I've also usually got my eyes plastered on the books.

Even if you're not a fan of the Kerouac and Ginsberg, City Lights is worth the trip. The vast variety of books alone will keep you wandering around for hours. On top of stocking just about everything, the employees know all about what's on the racks. If you have even a vague idea of what you're looking for, ask. Chances are, somebody's going to know exactly what you're looking for.

For more information, check out www.citylights.com. They've got a list of upcoming events and a great selection of recommended books.