Travel Tales: San Francisco

Some of my favorite memories come from Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California.

Besides being home to the coolest playground and carousel that exist (or existed, in the case of the playground, but I’ll get to that), the Park has Japanese Tea Gardens and American Bison. The scent of eucalyptus trees is everywhere.

The carousel was made in 1914 and its official name is the Herschell-Spillman Carousel. According to the National Carousel Association the carousel has one lion, one tiger and one giraffe! When choosing your animal, it may be tempting to go for one of the intricately decorated lions or tigers (sadly, no bears) because riding such an animal is amazing, but beware: they don’t move. That’s right, the coolest-looking animals don’t move on the carousel at all. I recommend taking more than one ride: one to get your chance on one of these fine animals and another to move up and down on one of the horses. At less than the cost of an ice cream cone, it’s a pretty good deal.

The carousel is adjacent to the Golden Gate Park playground, which Retrocrush describes as the coolest and most dangerous playground ever. As someone who has spent countless afternoons there, I can say that this description is accurate. Sadly for those of us with childhood memories of the playground, the park has been razed in favor of a safer and more modern playground, but it will have a rock-climbing wall, so it’s bound to be just as cool.

While the Golden Gate Park provides children with a place to run around and adults a sanctuary from city life, the Golden Gate Bridge offers a magnificent view of the Bay and the city. If you do take a walk over the bridge, make sure to bring plenty of warm clothing. It can get very windy when walking across, and in general it’s just a good idea to dress in layers when visiting San Francisco.  The fog makes the city chilly in the morning, but then it burns off by midday, so bring a sweatshirt or jacket.

San Francisco has not only beautiful scenery, but also great public transportation, including cable cars. They may not be the most efficient way to get around, but they are part of the San Francisco experience.  Don’t board the cable car at its origination point, Ghirardelli Square (where the famous chocolate comes from), but rather somewhere along their routes as you are more likely to get a seat.

Another must when visiting San Francisco is the Exploratorium. Read our article on the Exploratorium right here. The Fine Arts Palace, which is a large and beautiful park near the water, houses the Exploratorium. If you go on a Saturday be prepared to see several newlyweds getting their pictures taken for their wedding album—it’s that beautiful.