San Francisco - Community Thread - San Francisco

It's only of only 2 places in the US I'd happily go back to? ;)

[mod hat on]
We'll give this a run here before moving to the relevant Travel & Dining forum
[hat off]

It's only of only 2 places in the US I'd happily go back to? ;)
Same here - and I'm from the US! :D

To the OP: You'll love it. But whatever you do. don't call it Frisco!

Swanhunter[mod hat on]
We'll give this a run here before moving to the relevant Travel & Dining forum
[hat off]

very much appreciated, keep the suggestions coming (quickly)

But whatever you do. don't call it Frisco!

Why not?

Why not?

British, English, etc... :)

A whole forum dedicated to travelling to San Francisco:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/san-francisco-468/

Whod've thunk it...?

Why not?
For the same reason that Scots don't like American tourists referring to their capital city as Edin-burg. It's not the city's name. :)

Sadly, I shall never experience the place, since I understand the entire State is non-smoking :D

For the same reason that Scots don't like American tourists referring to their capital city as Edin-burg. It's not the city's name. :)

Not true......as a weegie I've called Edinburgh worse names than that. :p

Lots of roadworks on the PCH at the moment, especially between Big Sur and San Simeon. Makes the trip rather less scenic at times and means lots of delays. No reason not to do it, mind you, but still. Please do not stay at Lucia Lodge as I suggested elsewhere. There are building works all around it.

Sadly, I shall never experience the place, since I understand the entire State is non-smoking :D

Ah, it's not! There is a loophole in that if you run a bar with only family members as staff, you can still permit smoking, so if you want your clothes to smell then SF is actually not a bad place to go.

What irritates me about California is the damned 2am alcohol sales law.

Hi...

Sorry... I did not see this till now...

I adore San Francisco. It is my favorite city in the world.

As mentioned, the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz are a must. San Francisco is an ideal place to base yourself for a few day trips too. Places like Sanoma, Napa Valley and the Red Woods are all within an hour or two drive. Plenty of rental car locations in the city. Although I would not recommend having a car whilst in the city. Parking is expensive and public transport so cheap and easy to use.

The IC on Howard Street is very nice, as well as the big chain hotels around Union Square. Fisherman's Wharf is very touristy and as such the hotel brands cater to such, as in Holiday Inn Express etc... However, they can be as expensive as staying in the Union Square area.

Definitely go! Amazing city...

BBB

You took your time! I was expecting a whole guide book from you by now...

Got to agree - great city. First US city I ever visited, on our honeymoon on the way back from French Polynesia. First experience in J too, on NZ, through LA. Pre 9/11 and my very new wife was invited to land in the cockpit into LA from PPT - it cured her fear of flying.

What irritates me about California is the damned 2am alcohol sales law.

If you're lucky! In LA I've seen lights on at 1.30am so everyone is out by 2am - it's crazy. In NY & London I'm usually arriving at the club around that time!

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What irritates me about California is the damned 2am alcohol sales law.

If you're lucky! In LA I've seen lights on at 1.30am so everyone is out by 2am - it's crazy. In NY & London I'm usually arriving at the club around that time!

Pubs in the UK were last orders at 11pm until a few years ago! The primary reason I left London in fact. The whole concept of having to go to a club for a late drink was prehistoric.

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Pubs in the UK were last orders at 11pm until a few years ago! The primary reason I left London in fact. The whole concept of having to go to a club for a late drink was prehistoric.

You don't have to go to a club for a late drink, there's an abundance of bars in most London neighborhoods that stay open well after 11pm & it certainly didn't just happen 'a few years ago' ... I've been frequenting London bars & clubs since I was 16. Anyway, the pub I was at last night in NW London closes at 2am, the pub up the street from my house closes at midnight & the pub that I often go to 10 mins walk from my house does indeed close at 11pm.

And.......you HAVE to go see Mrs Doubtfire's house!!

Mrs Doubtfire? Please! The Tanners' house @ 1709 Broderick St for the win!

Why not?

Because it is the biggest sign of an outsider pretending to be cool.... It ain't cool.

Because it is the biggest sign of an outsider pretending to be cool.... It ain't cool.

Frank Sinatra called it Frisco and I thought he was cool. :p

Frank Sinatra called it Frisco and I thought he was cool. :p

A "stiff" cool and 6 feet under honey :)

Because it is the biggest sign of an outsider pretending to be cool.... It ain't cool.

Whilst on the subject -

"Cali" for California ...
"the O.C" for Orange County

No!

Whilst on the subject -

"Cali" for California ...
"the O.C" for Orange County

No!

We never say Cali..... And OC. Is usually called " behind the orange curtain" you need your passport and dictionary to go there as well as the valley, that is if you are in southern cal.....


And Hiddy... I do love the blue eye crooner. Don't get me wrong, but it is an old terminology and he was from NJ.... Not Ca.

A "stiff" cool and 6 feet under honey :)

You sound as scary as Bette Davis. :D

You sound as scary as Bette Davis. :D

LMFAO.... Shall I translate ;)

If you're lucky! In LA I've seen lights on at 1.30am so everyone is out by 2am - it's crazy. In NY & London I'm usually arriving at the club around that time!

Woooowwwwwoooo hold it there... When I was in the clubbing Years... Aka studio 54 era... In LA, SF or NY, the "in" people never left their houses before 1 am... And I see the same happening in my own daughter's time. When she is in LA, the people who go out before 1am are not the connected ones.... And they rarely come back before 5. Guess you don't know where to go.

Holidays are so personal, but it helps to get as much information as possible about a place. I usually buy two different guide books covering the place and between them they provide good ideas to keep you busy.

Woooowwwwwoooo hold it there... When I was in the clubbing Years... Aka studio 54 era... In LA, SF or NY, the "in" people never left their houses before 1 am... And I see the same happening in my own daughter's time. When she is in LA, the people who go out before 1am are not the connected ones.... And they rarely come back before 5. Guess you don't know where to go.These, uh, "connected ones".

Any idea where they are now?

Oh, and good luck with your daughter.

The trams are obviously a must .

+1 ^

These, uh, "connected ones".

Any idea where they are now?

Oh, and good luck with your daughter.

Lots of ideas where they are now.... Productive members of society... Some married others not...with kids and without.


Thank you fro your concern for my daughter, she is doing very well indeed. Very well. A sophomore at Columbia, just left a much sought after internship because it wasn't the right fit. Was invited to President Obama's inauguration. So I guess she is doing very well indeed. Despite all the partying. But that is what the young should be doing anyway....when are they going to do it, at middle age ;)

Woooowwwwwoooo hold it there... When I was in the clubbing Years... Aka studio 54 era... In LA, SF or NY, the "in" people never left their houses before 1 am... And I see the same happening in my own daughter's time. When she is in LA, the people who go out before 1am are not the connected ones.... And they rarely come back before 5. Guess you don't know where to go.

I have seen clubs in SF that serve alcohol until 2am and then stay open later without serving it, sometimes even beginning again in the "morning"...

As others have pointed out, pubs in Britain have always been able to open later than 11pm if they had appropriate licenses. I don't really understand what changed when the official "24 hour drinking" policy came into place. What I do know is that Westminster council refuse to issue 24 hour licenses regardless so you *still* have a situation where, in the centre of *London*, you can have trouble finding a drink late at night: obviously it's not important what the government of the day intended.

But whatever you do. don't call it Frisco!

Why not?

Because that elicits the same type of reaction as referring to BA as "BritAir" or QF as "Quantas" on here.

This thread seems to be drifting towards becoming a clone of the "community" thread in the...Community Forum. Lots of OT posts, but a chance for people to get to know each other, make jokes etc. .

My concern is that it isn't really providing info on San Francisco per se, which is what the OP was asking about.

SO - I am going to split the SF posts into its own thread, and have a "SFO Community" Thread with the others.

Let's see how this works - and please feel free to PM me w/ any input.

Thanks

squeakr
MOD SFO

Feel free to introduce yourself, say hi, comment on your travels etc...think of it as a lounge thread with a general focus on SF. It's an experiment so please do PM me with your comments!

squeakr
MOD SFO

Ah, San Francisco. Just a bridge away from Oakland.

What can I say, my preferences lie to the East. Not to the exclusion of San Francisco, of course. Why it's a perfectly fine place, until you've made the comparison.

In case anyone is interested. Two fantastic places to dine in SF are:

Brenda's French Soulfood (there's always a line out the door so you know that's a good thing!)
652 Polk St
San Francisco, CA 94102-3328
(415) 345-8100

Thanh Long (the crab and garlic noodles are to die for!)
4101 Judah Street
San Francisco, CA 94122-1124
(415) 665-1146

I live just across the bay from SF and I try to get to these two places as much as possible!

Whilst on the subject -

"Cali" for California ...
"the O.C" for Orange County

No!

I hear people using those two terms all the time.

Woooowwwwwoooo hold it there... When I was in the clubbing Years... Aka studio 54 era... In LA, SF or NY, the "in" people never left their houses before 1 am... And I see the same happening in my own daughter's time. When she is in LA, the people who go out before 1am are not the connected ones.... And they rarely come back before 5. Guess you don't know where to go.

"Connected" to what? Their cocaine dealer, I presume! Another Hollywood myth.

We don't call them trams or trolleys here.
If its powered by an overhead wire, its a "streetcar"
If its cute and goes up steep hills and has a cable embedded in the street, thats called a "Cable Car."
Don't get me wrong, San Franciscans are thrilled that tourists come here. But I have to admit, most locals would look very perplexed if you asked where you could board the tram. I think Californians use that term more for a mountain aerial cableway, i.e. "The Palm Springs Tramway."

We don't call them trams or trolleys here.
If its powered by an overhead wire, its a "streetcar"
If its cute and goes up steep hills and has a cable embedded in the street, thats called a "Cable Car."
Don't get me wrong, San Franciscans are thrilled that tourists come here. But I have to admit, most locals would look very perplexed if you asked where you could board the tram. I think Californians use that term more for a mountain aerial cableway, i.e. "The Palm Springs Tramway."

Do you actually live, and take public transit, in San Francisco? Hard to believe.

There are electric trolley buses that roll on tires and are powered through overhead wires. They are NOT streetcars. (Streetcars are the ones that use overhead wires and roll on rails rather than tires.) Evidently you were unaware of the existence of these trolley buses, even though there are numerous Muni lines that use them. So you cannot accurately claim that "we don't call them.... trolleys here." (I do agree that the word "tram" is not used for streetcars in SF.)

Do you actually live, and take public transit, in San Francisco? Hard to believe.

There are electric trolley buses that roll on tires and are powered through overhead wires. They are NOT streetcars. (Streetcars are the ones that use overhead wires and roll on rails rather than tires.) Evidently you were unaware of the existence of these trolley buses, even though there are numerous Muni lines that use them. So you cannot accurately claim that "we don't call them.... trolleys here." (I do agree that the word "tram" is not used for streetcars in SF.)

I think the place I've most often seen the word "trolley" for the electric buses is right here on FT. If I take the 5 Fulton, I say I'm taking the "bus" and not the "trolley."

I think the place I've most often seen the word "trolley" for the electric buses is right here on FT. If I take the 5 Fulton, I say I'm taking the "bus" and not the "trolley."

But Muni/SFMTA itself uses the word trolley (as in "trolley bus" or "trolley coach").

And personally, I use the word to describe a bus that runs on electricity rather than diesel (a useful distinction).

Anyhow, the post I quoted (which you evidently didn't read) claims that:

If its powered by an overhead wire, its a "streetcar"

which is obviously incorrect in the case of trolley buses -- they are powered by an overhead wire, but are NOT streetcars. Streetcars run on rails; trolley buses do not.

But Muni/SFMTA itself uses the word trolley (as in "trolley bus" or "trolley coach").

And personally, I use the word to describe a bus that runs on electricity rather than diesel (a useful distinction).

Anyhow, the post I quoted (which you evidently didn't read) claims that:



which is obviously incorrect in the case of trolley buses -- they are powered by an overhead wire, but are NOT streetcars. Streetcars run on rails; trolley buses do not.

When I was a kid up in Phila, we called "a bus that runs on electricity" a track-less trolley, same as your usage.