Climbing Hills - SF's neighborhoods

Well, the weather wasn't perfect at all for photo-taking today. Not cold, not rainy, but grey! 

We had to move again, from Hotel Julian to an AirBnB closeby Van Ness Street. Walked over and it wasn't too strenuous despite of the steep hills. We deposited our luggage and went out again, through Cow Hollow - busy with young hip people getting their (expansive) brunch on a Sunday - to Lombard Street (below),"the crookedest street in the world", in the Russian Hill neighborhood. Earlier in the year, it would have looked more colorful with flowers, but now, it was rather dull,,,

Streetcars are another attraction here,,, tourists still seem to love it!

On to North Beach, the originally Italian neighborhood of San Francisco. It's called San Francisco's "Little Italy" with still some authentic Italian restaurants and bakeries. It was also the historic center of the Beat Culture and San Francisco's nightlife, especially along Broadway.

Rested a bit on the main square, "Washington Square", a park towered over by Saint Peter and Paul Church (where Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio had their wedding photos taken in 1954). On we went, passing by City Lights Bookstore (above), founded in 1953 by poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, a "Literary Landmark". 

Broadway (left) not so much intellectual, though ,,, rather a hub of entertainment of all kinds,,,

Columbus Tower (above), also known as the Sentinel Building, was completed in 1907. The distinctive copper-green Flatiron style structure contrasts with the modern Pyramid closeby, our next stop. The Transamerica Pyramid is a  48-story modernist skyscraper was the tallest building in San Francisco from its completion in 1972 until 2017. Designed by architect  William Pereira it was redesigned and renovated in 2022 by Norman Foster and got an additional exhibition gallery, and an expanded Redwook garden.

Chinatown Autumn Moon Festival next - Grant Street in Chinatown was packed! Vendors, stages, info boothes, people,,,

Contrast below: Japantown in Western Addition (below), one of just three remaining Japan Towns in the US. In the core: the Japan Center East & West Malls and the Kinokuniya Mall – shops, restaurants and - again! - Gashapon machines and a Kiddleton shop -  a Japanese arcade filled with claw machines. Otherwise, not too much has changed since our last visit, but there is construction going on on the main square with the pagoda until 2026. A welcome update!

 

Admired some typical San Franciscan architecture on our way back to the accommodation (below) and passed by the first hotel we had stayed in SF on our first research trip: The Queen Ann Hotel (below, right). We called it a day then, with roasted chicken from Whole Foods nearby and some condiments, feet hurting from "climbing hills" all day!