Posts Tagged ‘USA: California’

San Francisco Snapshots

November 30th, 2010

Here are some snaps of my favorite things about San Francisco. On a cold, gray and rainy day in New York, it’s easy to catch oneself California dreamin’.

: Vintage trolley car downtown

: Transatlantic Pyramid building

: Bay Bridge, fireboat, blimp

: A colorful window in the Inner Sunset, and its occupant

: Sculpture on Market Street

: Cop petting corgis at the Ferry Building. Corgi on the ground does not like sharing the attention

: Met him in Panhandle Park: the Panhandle King! Turns out he could hula-hoop in his royal regalia. Not surprised

: Hibachi grill

: “Green technology” bus shelters – solar powered lighting, disability access, ergometric seats, recycled materials, all sorts of good hippie shit

: Downtown, Ferry Plaza

: Parking lot Lady Liberty

: City Hall at dusk

: And now for some snaps of the beautiful San Francisco Bay

: Seabird with Treasure Island and Bay Bridge behind

: Ferry Building and downtown, view from the bay

: San Francisco skyline

: Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge

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Posted in Photo Galleries, San Francisco, Travels, USA: California

Tags: alcatraz ferry building ferry plaza photos san francisco san francisco bay Travels USA: California

San Francisco: More Goodies from the Ferry Building

August 4th, 2010

It’s a little disconcerting to be posting so much Africa stuff when I’m so far away from there* … and back in San Francisco … so here are some snaps taken locally. One of my favorite places in any city, anywhere, is the Ferry Building, where organic meets om-nom-nom.

: White chocolate, organic pears and Napa Valley chard? Yes please!

: Organic cherries from Farm Fresh to You

: Some of the meatastic selections at Golden Gate Meat Company

: Organic New York strips from Prather Ranch Meat Company, fixin’ to get tossed on the grill

: Lunch for $5 or less, part 1: Buffalo chili from Golden Gate Meat Company

: Awesome band celebrating the opening of Heath Ceramics

: Wheels of cheese stacked up high at Cowgirl Creamery Artisan Cheese Shop … sharp Gouda, cumin Gouda, Beecher’s Flagship, Lincolnshire Poacher …

: Lunch for $5 or less, part 2: homemade pizza slices from Boriana’s Corner

: So many fabulous things to put on pasta at Farm Fresh to You … all kinds of tomato sauce, pesto, artichoke sauce …

: Soft cheeses, organic milk, creme fraiche, and sheeps’-milk yogurt inside Cowgirl Creamery

: Applewood smoked salt turns basic eggs and meat into SERIOUS YUM

: Lunch for $5 or less, part 3: Organic hot dogs from Prather Ranch Meat Company

: Vosges Luxury Chocolate – because salt and chocolate are meant for each other

* But there are more Africa photos in the hopper, and they will be posted in the near future. Woop woop!

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Posted in Fooooooooood., Photo Galleries, San Francisco, USA: California

Tags: ferry building om nom nom san francisco USA: California

San Francisco Public Art, Part 1

June 12th, 2010

: “Large Four Piece Reclining Figure” by Henry Moore, outside Davies Symphony Hall.

: “Admission Day Monument” by Douglas Tilden, honoring California’s admission to the Union. On Market Street downtown.

: “The Mechanics Monument” by Douglas Tilden, on Market Street.

: The artist was inspired to create it after watching men operating a large level punch.

: “Creazione” by Dimitri Hadzi, Embarcadero Center. Inspired by the music of Mozart.

: “Lotta’s Fountain” by Douglas Tilden. Man, that guy is all over Market Street.

: “Abraham Lincoln” by Haig Patigan, outside the Civic Center

: “Mistral” by Elbert Weinberg outside the Embarcadero Center.

: The sculpture “represents the warm winds that originate in Africa and sweep upwards to southern Europe.”

: “Blocks” by Anne Van Kleeck, in the Embarcadero Center

: Up close you can see the letters etched into the blocks.

: “Angel on Market Street.” Outside the Asian Arts Center. Dunno artist.

: “Three Heads Six Arms,” by Chinese artist Zhang Huan, on view in front of City Hall through 2011.

: The sculpture is here as part of the Shanghai San Francisco Sister City 30th Anniversary Celebration.

: I loved seeing this – took me right back to Thailand and the beautiful Buddha sculptures there.

: “A Monument to Analysis,” Arman, Old Federal Reserve Bank building downtown.

: “Ashurbanipal,” ancient king of Assyria (holding a lion cub) by Fred Parhad. City Hall Square.

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Posted in Photo Galleries, San Francisco, USA: California

Tags: art photos san francisco USA: California

San Francisco – Vehicles, Part 1

June 9th, 2010

A few snaps of some of the more interesting vehicles spotted lately in the Bay Area …

: Vintage San Francisco MUNI trolley, still rockin and rollin downtown.

: GoCar — a GPS-guided talking tour car.

: Vintage car spotted on Hwy 101

: And another view from the side. Love the lines, simple & elegant.

: Pedicab!

: Bookmobile! Parked outside the main branch of the San Francisco Public Library.

: Hi-Speed Green Machine, scrubbing the sidewalks of San Francisco.

: The Green Machine from the front

: Vintage Velocette motorcycle on display at the Embarcadero Center. These were popular with English police officers in the 1950s and 60s.

: Vintage pickup truck pimping Planet Fitness.

: Dragon car at an Art Car show @ Maker’s Faire.

: Market Street Trolley

: Vintage fire truck

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Posted in Photo Galleries, San Francisco, USA: California

Tags: cars driving photos san francisco USA: California vehicles

San Francisco, Dolores Park — Memorial Day ‘10

June 1st, 2010

Just a few snaps of what was goin’ down in the Mission District on Memorial Day. A big, free, sunny public party.

: Buncha people converged on Dolores Park to observe Memorial Day.

: … and there were hula hoopers

: and people gettin down

: … and dogs

: and swings …

: and a band up in there somewhere.

: Up next to the band

: … there are dancers

: … and the singer groovin around with random children.

: Mission Dolores at the end of the park.

: A closer look

: ‘cuz it has cool towers

: and other cool stuff goin on.

: This day brought to you by PLINY THE ELDER.

Here’s a short video clip of the band and crowd scene — I tried not to dance while filming, but found it impossible; the band was just kick-ass.

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY.

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Posted in Photo Galleries, San Francisco, USA: California

Tags: crunk dawgs dolores park fun fun fun live music memorial day mission district photos san francisco USA: California

Rooftops of San Francisco, Part One

April 29th, 2010

San Francisco doesn’t have as expansive or as thrilling or as foreboding a skyline as a Hong Kong or a New York, but it does have a great skyline. Its buildings are sleek and cool and expressive, lots of them capped with interesting features.

(I write this while coming off a Ferry Building market-meal high: New York strip steak from Prather Meat Co., grilled pineapple and sweet fingerling potatoes from Farm Fresh to You … eating well is another big part of San Francisco’s aesthetic.)

I’ll keep adding to the collection as I continue to explore the city … so this is just Part One.

: One Embarcadero Center on a gloomy day

: Cupola on the Charles Schwab building, Front Street

: Transcontinental Pyramid

: Transcontinental Pyramid spike, sidewalk view

: Top of the Matson Building

: Top of the downtown Hilton Hotel — Cityscape Bar & Restaurant

: The domed top of San Francisco City Hall

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Posted in Photo Galleries, San Francisco, USA: California

Tags: buildings photos san francisco USA: California

Snaps of the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus

April 24th, 2010

This week I caught an awesome-as-usual show by the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, which performed “RockAria” at the Davies Symphony Hall. I’m a fan of the SFGMC — indeed, anyone who likes music, theater, drama — or, hell, 200 men — would be. I wish the pictures were a little less blurry, but hey, you still get the gist of the show. Rock On, Gay Men.

: The SFGMC at Davies Symphony Hall, Thursday April 22 ‘10

: Stairway to Heaven

: If you liked it then you should’a put’a ring on it

: Don’t be mad when you see that he want it

: If you liked it then you should’a put’a ring on it

: The awesome Mr. Ethan Pope, ASL interpreter for the SFGMC

: Here I am with chorus member Brian Jung, my favorite

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Posted in Travels

Tags: fun fun fun gay san francisco USA: California

Hanging out at Games of Berkeley

April 14th, 2010

Recently I paid a visit to Games of Berkeley, a rad corner of Shattuck Ave. in downtown Berkeley. It’s one of those rare places to acknowledge that at every age, all of us need to play. This place has everything for kids and adults … fantasy/ roleplaying games to bar games to travel games to casino games to brain games to classic board games and much more, plus a clever and cool selection of toys. On a gray, morose, rainy Sunday, this place was a cheery blast of color and fun.

: Old-school games: Operation, Twister, Connect Four, Battleship

: Portable old-school games

: Adult fantasy and roleplaying games … Runecraft, Pandemic, Battlestar Galactica …

: … World of Warcraft, Runebound, Descent

: Brain puzzles for people with teh smartz

: Flying discs, kites, puzzles

: Barack Obama action figures

: Darts and dartboards!

: Spacey stuff

: The thinking man’s dolls: Shakespeare, Buddha, Obama

: Exotic stuffed animals

: ZOMBIEEEEES

: Build your own boyfriend — oh look, the emotion pieces seem to be missing

: Multitudes of marbles

: Celebriducks: Scream, Shakespeare, Obama, Uncle Sam, Marilyn Monroe

: And finally, The Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog …

: … with his nasty, big pointy teeth!

Play on!

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Posted in Berkeley, USA: California

Tags: Berkeley fun fun fun games geekery USA: California

The Best Six Things From In -N- Out Burger’s Secret Menu

April 11th, 2010

In many ways, California is a big insider’s club, as reflected by the “secret menu” at In-N-Out Burger. Here are the top six “secret menu” items … with a couple you don’t see on the In-N-Out Web site.

ANIMAL STYLE Burger/Fries — “Animal Style” means a mustard-grilled beef patty, covered in their secret sauce (kind of like a less tangy, more savory Thousand Island), grilled diced onions and extra pickles.

Animal-style cheeseburger.

NEAPOLITAN SHAKE — The thick, creamy chocolate, vanilla and strawberry shakes, offered separately on the menu, are layered together.

PROTEIN BURGER — Any regular burger on the menu is wrapped in a lettuce leaf, Atkins/ Asian-style.

GRILLED CHEESE — Cheese alone, sans burger, on a toasted bun and with any of the fixins.

FOUR BY FOUR — This is a jumbo burger of four beef patties, four cheese. At this volume of food consumption I’m not sure why you wouldn’t just get two double-doubles … less bread, I guess … but the point is, the choice is yours.

FREE STICKERS — When you order, tell them whether you want drive-thru-based fun stickers or an In-N-Out bumper sticker for your car, and you’ll get one free of charge.

Road and auto love in sticker form.

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Posted in Fooooooooood., USA: California

Tags: driving in-n-out burger om nom nom USA: California

Road Trip – San Francisco to Oregon

April 9th, 2010

Despite all the traveling I’ve done in the continental U.S., I’ve spent relatively little time in the Pacific Northwest. I aim to fix that now that I’m spending a prolonged period of time in the Bay Area, and my first road trip involved a six-hour drive from San Francisco to Ashland, Oregon, a beautiful little town right across the California-Oregon border.

As we drove up I-5, the topography took the turn from lush rolling foothills to spiky, towering mountains, reminding me why I need to continue exploring the Pacific Northwest. Mountains have a way of conveying majesty in a way that the ocean, with its impossible vastness, cannot. A mountain is at once humbling and inspiring — finite, looming proof of how small and impermanent we are.

As much as I wanted to keep on driving up, up, up north, I was with other people and couldn’t just follow my whims as as I can when I’m traveling solo. Not that I’m complaining too loudly; Ashland is lovely and worth a few days’ time to stop and take it all in.

: The trip begins. Sunrise over Sonoma.

: Mist rises from the water.

: A Lab bouncing around the bed of a truck on Highway 101. Folks … don’t do this. Seriously.

: Grapes aren’t the only fabulous, luxurious crop in these here parts.

: Almost otherworldly green hills along Highway 101.

: Northern California: vineyards in front, mountains looming behind.

: God’n'Country on the side of a barn.

: I-5 bridge over Lake Shasta, just north of Redding, California. My first glimpse of this gorgeous lake.

: Lake Shasta seems to just go on and on and on.

: Sign pointing to Weed – yes I am 12 years old.

: The ethereal blue Lake Shasta.

: I think this one is called Black Butte? One of the land masses adjacent to Mt. Shasta.

: The awe-inspiring Mount Shasta.

: Mt. Shasta, a volcanic mountain with 4 volcanic cones. Theodore Roosevelt: “I consider the evening twilight on Mt. Shasta one of the grandest sights I have ever witnessed.”

: Lots of color along the side of the road approaching Oregon.

: Another view of the butte/foothill/whuteveritis near Mt. Shasta.

: Mt. Shasta, 14,179 feet. Joaquin Miller: “Lonely as God, and white as a winter moon, Mount Shasta starts up sudden and solitary from the heart of the great black forests of Northern California.”

: Mt. Shasta, “White Mountain.” John Muir: “When I first caught sight of it … I was fifty miles away and afoot, alone and weary. Yet all my blood turned to wine, and I have not been weary since.”