San Francisco Attractions & Points of Interest • Academy of Sciences: This is the oldest scientific institution in the West (founded 1853) and is located in Golden Gate Park. The Academy experienced renovation and grand reopening in September 2008, making it one the “greenest” structures in the nation. Check out the organic rooftop, white alligators, simulated rain forest, aquarium, planetarium and natural history museum, all housed in one massive state-of-the-art structure. • Balmy Alley: Located off 24th Street between Treat and Harrison Streets, this is the site of the Mission District’s first community mural. Now there are hundreds of works of public art on display in this neighborhood. It’s said that the alley has the highest number of murals per square foot than anywhere else in the world. • Buddha’s Universal Temple: The largest Buddhist Temple in the United States is just across the street from the Hilton Financial District. It was erected in 1961, and some say its construction was financed by the sale of fortune cookies. • Children’s Fountain: Located on Stockton Street at Union Square, this fountain was completed in 1972. The bronze fountain is dedicated to the San Francisco children who helped design the figures on the fountain that depict the dreams, fantasies and realities of the children of San Francisco. • China Beach: One of the only areas in San Francisco where lifeguards are on duty and swimming is relatively safe, albeit cold. This beach was named for the Chinese fisherman who used to camp there in the 1870’s. It is the westernmost point of the Underground Railroad, which spirited escaped slaves out of the Confederate South. The residential neighborhood there is called Sea Cliff, one of the most upscale neighborhoods in the City (in addition to being one of the only neighborhoods that touches the Pacific Ocean). • City Light’s Bookstore: Located at 261 Columbus Street in the heart of North Beach, this was the de facto headquarters of the “Beat Generation” of the 1950’s and early ‘60’s. It was the nation’s first all-paperback bookstore, and its owner, Poet Laureate Lawrence Ferlinghetti, gained notoriety in 1953 when he published Howl by Allen Ginsberg • City Hall: The crown jewel of the Civic Center complex was remodeled after suffering damage in the 1989 earthquake; it had been completely destroyed by the 1906 earthquake and fire as well. It is one the finest examples of Beaux Arts architecture in the United States. The dome is a replica of the one crowning Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome. City Hall became quite controversial as it was designed to be slightly higher than the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. The interior rotunda, ensconced in marble, contains the grand staircase, the sight of many all types of the City’s weddings. • Crissy Field: Now part of the National Park Service, this was the site of the City’s first airport. It was recently restored to natural wetlands and urban oasis with a blend of public art exhibits. Crissy Field affords breathtaking views of the Golden Gate Bridge. • Crookedest Street: No, it isn’t Lombard Street! Vermont Street between 20th and 22nd Streets is officially the Crookedest Street in the City, although Lombard Street is far more famous and visited much more often. • Ferry Building: At the foot of Market Street, this magnificent clock tower was modeled after the 12th century Giralda Tower of the Cathedral in Seville, Spain. Prior to the opening of the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges, the Ferry Building saw over 50 million passengers a year, making it the busiest terminal in the world (second only to Victoria Station in London). The building, through renovation, has been returned to its architectural splendor. In addition to the year-round gourmet retail stores and restaurants, the building hosts a local farmer’s market on Tuesday, Thursday and weekend mornings. Make sure to look for the statue of Mahatma Gandhi, erected in 1988. • Fifteen Cent Street: This was the nickname given to Waverly Place, a two block alley between Washington and Sacramento Streets, just went of Grant Avenue in Chinatown. The alley derived its nickname from the fee the Chinese barbers would charge for a men’s haircut. This alley boasts some of the most colorfully decorated balconies in the City. • Filbert Street Steps: As Filbert Street travels west up Telegraph Hill the hill is so steep that it becomes a staircase and no longer a standard street. While you enjoy the breathtaking views of the Bay from the steps, make sure to notice the beautiful gardens adjacent to the steps that have been meticulously maintained by the local residents since 1949. • Fire Hydrant that saved Noe Valley: The fire hydrant at 20th and Church Streets is painted gold because it saved the neighborhood! After the 1906 earthquake, fires erupted citywide; the City burned because the fire hydrants were inoperable from the quake; however, this one miraculously worked and was used to save the neighborhood of Noe Valley. This life-saving hydrant gets a fresh coat of gold paint every April 18th, the anniversary of the 1906 earthquake and fire. • Fort Point: On the San Francisco side of the Golden Gate Bridge, this Civil War-era fort was the only one west of the Mississippi built out of brick. It was completed in 1861. Jimmy Stewart rescued Kim Novak from drowning in the bay during a scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo at this location. The shape of the Golden Gate Bridge was changed to incorporate the fort, which had originally slated for demolition. The bridges architect insisted that Fort Point be saved, and he redesigned this end of the span to be built showcasing the fort. • Fortune Cookie Factory: Located at 56 Ross Alley, the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory has been supplying fortune cookies to the United States and the world at this location since 1962; there are other locations where they’re made, but this is by far the largest and most durable. You may watch the cookies being made and buy customized cookies. • Golden Gate Park: AT 1,017 acres, it is the largest urban park in the country; it was built out of what were once sand dunes in 1870. In addition to the well-known attractions in the park, such as the DeYoung Museum, Academy of Sciences, Municipal Golf course, Dutch Windmill, Botanical Gardens and the Japanese Tea Garden, there are many unique hidden gems to discover: There is a herd of live buffalo in the park, Shakespeare’s Garden, the Conservatory of Flowers (the largest greenhouse in the world), and the paddle boats you can rent to ply the waters of Stow Lake. The children’s playground, opened in 1888, was the first playground constructed in the United States; in its day, it was a strange concept indeed to devote resources to children at play. • Greenwich Street Steps: The next-door neighbors to the Filbert Street steps. There is a grove of Cypress tress that is home to the famous flock of wild parrots of Telegraph Hill. The Academy Award winning documentary (of the same name) has made this flock of birds famous the world over. According to local lore, you are not a true San Franciscan until you’ve actually seen the elusive flock of tropical birds that make the City their unlikely home. • Haas-Lilienthal House: As featured in “America's Castles: Castles by the Bay," on the A & E television channel, this exuberant Queen Anne-style Victorian was built in 1886. It is the only intact private home of the period that is open regularly as a museum, complete with authentic furniture and artifacts. The House has elaborate wooden gables, a circular corner tower and luxuriant ornamentation. Volunteer docents lead tours through the House and explain the Victorian architecture of the exterior. A display of photographs in the downstairs supper-room describes the history of the home and the family that lived here until 1972. The house is located at 2007 Franklin Street. • Haight-Asbury: Simply called “The Haight” by locals, this neighborhood became famous during the turbulent era of the late 1960’s. This area became known as the headquarters of the “hippie movement”, especially after the famed Summer of Love Music Festival, held in 1968. The throng of young people spilled over from adjacent Golden Gate Park and settled in. This multi-day music festival brought thousands of young people to the City to protest the Vietnam War, hang out, smoke up, tune in and drop out. Many never left and transformed this one-time working class Irish neighborhood into a multicultural hip urban scene. The Haight quickly became the epicenter of the rock and roll and many performers made their debuts on these streets; some have even set up roots: The Grateful Dead House was at 710 Ashbury Street; Janis Joplin lived at 112 Lyon Street; Graham Nash lived at 737 Buena Vista West (as did Ambrose Bierce and Jack London before him); The Jefferson Airplane’s Surrealistic Pillow album features their home at 130 Delmar Street. The Jefferson Airplane moved from 130 Delmar to the Ionic-columned, Colonial style mansion at 2400 Fulton Street at Stanyan, opposite Golden Gate Park, in May 1968. By then the band was riding high with two Top-Ten smashes, Somebody to Love and White Rabbit. The Haight retains a lot of the gritty street scene of its 60’s roots, though the neighborhood is appears more yuppiefied nowadays. Consignment clothing, Irish pubs, music stores, fun and unique restaurants dot the streets, along with the medical marijuana dispensaries and the famous Haight Ashbury Free Clinic.