# Things to do in California.



## secretsquirrel (Feb 20, 2008)

*very* excited - flights are booked for a 2 week trip in June to California for me, t'other half and his kids (ages 10 and 8)

We're staying with his friend and family in Silicon Valley and definately spending a few days at Lake Tahoe. However, his friend being a v.v.hospitable host wants to know what else we'd like to do. So, I'm looking for suggestions for stuff we can do with lots of kids in tow and stuff we can do when we've left the kids behind for a few hours. 

Already suggested Big Sur, San Francisco is a must (considering Alcatraz?!) - but what else would peeps recommend as a must see/do? We're both foodies and I love my wine so hoping to go to a vineyard - preferably a smaller, independent one. I'm not adverse to a good old shop and would love to do a bit of culture type stuff. 

C'mon - give me some ideas of things I'm not going to find in the usual tourist manuals...


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## bodach (Feb 20, 2008)

secretsquirrel said:


> C'mon - give me some ideas of things I'm not going to find in the usual tourist manuals...



Loads of plastic bodies.


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## MikeMcc (Feb 20, 2008)

bodach said:


> Loads of plastic bodies.


If you are in the SF area:

Muir Woods (National park with huge Coastal Redwood trees), 
The Cable Car Museum (free, is also the power house driving the cables)
Pier 39 to see the seals and sealions
Alcatraz
Fort Point and the Golden Gate Bridge (they are cleaning up the coastal batteries in that area at the moment, should be done by then)
Pacific sunset on the beach near Cliff House

Nearer where you're staying there's Yosemite, I haven't been there to be able to tell you how accessible it is but I'd love to see it.

LA:

Mann's Chinese Theatre with the hand and foot prints.
The Walk of Fame (gets a bit seedy at the far end though)
Venice Beach


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## 1927 (Feb 20, 2008)

Alactraz is a great trip.

Yosemite is an absolute must, I can't stress that enough. I have never felt so humble to be a human being in my life. Imho more impressive than the Grand Canyon. Truly a religious experince and I say that as a confirmed atheist.

Old Sacramento is good, old houses and some great museums.


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## D (Feb 20, 2008)

secretsquirrel said:


> *very* excited - flights are booked for a 2 week trip in June to California for me, t'other half and his kids (ages 10 and 8)
> 
> We're staying with his friend and family in Silicon Valley and definately spending a few days at Lake Tahoe. However, his friend being a v.v.hospitable host wants to know what else we'd like to do. So, I'm looking for suggestions for stuff we can do with lots of kids in tow and stuff we can do when we've left the kids behind for a few hours.
> 
> ...



awww, shame I don't live there anymore - I'd give you the D-tour (!) of San Francisco.

If you have specific Bay Area-related queries, I'm happy to answer.  I have some good suggestions for the kiddos too.


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## phildwyer (Feb 20, 2008)

Tijuana.


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## Sweet FA (Feb 20, 2008)

phildwyer said:


> Tijuana.


 Tijuana is _never_ a good idea.


Camping on Big Sur, drinking red bought from some roadside shop next to a vineyard, watching shooting stars and listening to the sea


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## mhendo (Feb 21, 2008)

MikeMcc said:


> Muir Woods (National park with huge Coastal Redwood trees),
> The Cable Car Museum (free, is also the power house driving the cables)
> Pier 39 to see the seals and sealions
> Alcatraz
> ...


All excellent suggestions for SF. I was skeptical about Alcatraz, but it really is worth the time. 

The Cable Car Museum is not very big, but it's fascinating; it's really cool seeing the massive wheels and the cable pulling the cars. 

If you can all ride, i'd also recommend going to Golden Gate Park and renting bicycles. You can even get tandems and cycle-cars that seat 4 or 5.

If you're staying in Silicon Valley, and thus are already in the South Bay area, you should definitely make the trip down to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, in Monterey. It's only about an hour in the car from Silicon Valley, and it's one of the best aquariums i've ever been to. The kids will love it, and you will too. It's a perfect family attraction. And if the weather's good (in June, you might be lucky), it's really lovely driving along the coast.

Another excellent South Bay attraction is the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose. Heaps of fun for everyone.


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## D (Feb 21, 2008)

*okay*

w/ kids:

Exploratorium (and book time in the tactile dome - it's old, it's goofy 70s San Fran, it used to be popular with EST people, but, whatever it's still cool)
GG Bridge
Musee Mecanique (much better when it was near Cliff House, but still worth visiting while it's on the piers)
Chinatown
Lombard St (the curvy bit)
picnic in Dolores Park
Cartoon Art Museum

w/o (or w/ depending on the kids and the exhibit/performance):

De Young museum
SF MOMA
a show or two

SF has AMAZING restaurants.  I'm happy to recommend a few if you tell me what you might like.  Also a huge bar culture, tons of live music.

www.sfbg.com
www.sfweekly.com


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## MikeMcc (Feb 21, 2008)

D said:


> w/ kids:
> 
> Exploratorium (and book time in the tactile dome - it's old, it's goofy 70s San Fran, it used to be popular with EST people, but, whatever it's still cool)
> GG Bridge
> ...


John's Grill just off Union Square is good, lots of movie memorabilia, particularly for the Maltese Falcon because it's mentioned in the book.  There's good eating around the Cannery, Ghiradelli Square and of course Chinatown and the fresh seafood at Fishermans Wharf.  The restraunts in Sausalito are meant to be pretty good too.

Down in San Jose theres TheTech, again it's not one I've been to, but it's meant to be pretty good.
http://www.thetech.org/


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## D (Feb 21, 2008)

No, no, no, don't eat in Fisherman's Wharf! Bleh!

Sorry, Mike Mcc.  Steer clear of tourist trap restaurants (unless that's what you want).

There are soooooo many good restaurants in SF.

San Jose is, well, not a great city.  At all.  But there are some decent restaurants there and in Palo Alto/Menlo Park too.


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## D (Feb 21, 2008)

Likewise - I'd say avoid Ghiradelli Square and the Cannery for dining if you can help it.

Mission, SoMa, Tenderloin, Fillmore, Marina - much better food to be had in those neighborhoods


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## phildwyer (Feb 21, 2008)

Sea Lions.


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## mhendo (Feb 21, 2008)

D said:


> No, no, no, don't eat in Fisherman's Wharf! Bleh!
> 
> Sorry, Mike Mcc.  Steer clear of tourist trap restaurants (unless that's what you want).


My wife's from San Francisco, and we never eat at Fisherman's Wharf when we go back there.

BUT...

A few years ago, some friends and family came out from Australia, and we all went to Fisherman's Wharf for lunch. Yes, it's a tourist trap, but it was also kinda fun, and if you like seafood then the food itself isn't too bad. It's a very SF tourist experience.

But there are definitely more interesting places to eat in the city. Like *D* said, the Mission, South of Market, etc. have some great places. I really love the Pancho Villa taqueria at 16th and Mission, but there are a whole bunch of awesome taco places in that area. If you go to the Mission, spend some time walking the streets and alleys to check out the excellent murals. 

Out in the Avenues, on Geary and on Clement, there are also some excellent little Chinese places that have great food for little money.


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## 1927 (Feb 21, 2008)

D said:


> w/ kids:
> 
> 
> SF has AMAZING restaurants.  I'm happy to recommend a few if you tell me what you might like.
> ...



On the restaurant front you just have to go to Gary Danko. www.Garydanko.com. Sure its expensive, we paid $400 for dinner for two including tip and wine, but it was worth every penny, one of the most wonderful experiences of my life, and food like I will never taste agin. If you fancy it probably need to book about three months in advance!

Pop over to Oakland, Jack London Square to be precise, just to see his shack and the most fantastic little pub, and it really is like a pub, no two walls are parallel and the best pint of Guiness in california!!


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## MightyAphrodite (Feb 21, 2008)

Sweet FA said:


> Tijuana is _never_ a good idea.


bullshit! 
its a grand idea....always


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## dada (Feb 21, 2008)

you should take a tour at the google campus.
(i think they're open to the public are they?)
but mind you, after that you'd feel your current job perks are shit as hell.


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## MikeMcc (Feb 21, 2008)

mhendo said:


> My wife's from San Francisco, and we never eat at Fisherman's Wharf when we go back there.
> 
> BUT...
> 
> ...


Ok, I was on expenses so I didn't give a monkeys about tourist traps! 

SoMa is good if you keep to the eastern side (between Moscone Centre and just north of Market)  there's some good cinemas, restraunts and bars.  Go any further than 5th St and you're getting into a pretty seedy area.


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## D (Feb 22, 2008)

*restaurants*

Classic, Californian cuisine, quintessential San Francisco - Zuni Cafe (phenomenal oysters, shit offerings for vegetarians)

Relatively new place, all locally sourced ingredients, emphasis on fish and meat - Fish and Farm (in the Tenderloin, my old 'hood, no less)

Californian - Bacar (SoMa)

Italian - Lulu (SoMa)

Vegetarian (extra special, delicious fantastic vegetarian) - Millennium (also in the TL!)

My favorite tea lounge in SF - Samovar (one on 18th and Dolores, one in the Yerba Buena Center)

tasty brunch that will make you really fat - Dottie's True Blue Cafe (TL!)

tasty brunch that will make you a little less fat - okay, I can't remember the name, but it's on Sutter Street between, say, Leavenworth and Jones and it's in the bottom of a hotel - I'll look it up when I have time

new agey, raw foods restaurant with extra yummy desserts - Cafe Gratitude

Vegetarian Japanese - Chai Ya

Pizza - Delfina (Mission/Dolores Park)

Amazing bakery/patisserie - Tartine (it's PACKED to the gills on the weekends)

upscale Californian - Bacar (SoMa)

Italian - Lulu (huge cavernous, sometimes cacophonous restaurant with very tasty fare, also in SoMa)

famous desserts - Citizen Cake (Hayes Valley)

another great cafe/tea lounge - Modern Tea (Hayes Valley)

yummy tacquerias - Pancho Villa (Mission), El Mariachi (Mission), Balazo (Haight)

and I managed to live in the Bay Area for 4.5 years and never dine at Chez Panisse  

funky, tasty Rasta cafe near Ashby BART in Berkeley

that'll do for now - I'm happy to send further, neighborhood-specific recs

I can also second mhendo's recommendation that you venture into the Richmond for Asian fare, especially Chinese desserts and dim sum

posh dimsum can be had at...what's-it-called... Anyway, it's at the embarcadero, it's very tasty and rather expensive


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## mhendo (Feb 22, 2008)

D said:


> new agey, raw foods restaurant with extra yummy desserts - Cafe Gratitude


Not to mention annoying as hell.

All the dishes have a name. For example, the Thai Quinoa Bowl is called "I Am Graceful," and you're not allowed to simply ask for the Thai Quinoa Bowl; the waitstaff insist that you say "I Am Graceful." Not "I would like the I Am Graceful please." Just "I Am Graceful."

It's stupid as fuck. New agey raw food  = good. New agey pretentious bullshit = bad.


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## quimcunx (Feb 22, 2008)

If you're in SF can you just check something for me?  An american collegue from there claims that I would qualify for disability allowance there because I'm under 5' tall.


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## D (Feb 22, 2008)

mhendo said:


> Not to mention annoying as hell.
> 
> All the dishes have a name. For example, the Thai Quinoa Bowl is called "I Am Graceful," and you're not allowed to simply ask for the Thai Quinoa Bowl; the waitstaff insist that you say "I Am Graceful." Not "I would like the I Am Graceful please." Just "I Am Graceful."
> 
> It's stupid as fuck. New agey raw food  = good. New agey pretentious bullshit = bad.



It's hilarious, though! And some of the folks take themselves SOOOOO seriously, which makes it even funnier.  Others who work there know it's a bit absurd and that can be fun too.  I kinda love the place.  The desserts are delicious.  And when they serve you "I Am Graceful", the servers often say, "You Are Graceful" (not "here is your 'I Am Graceful'").

Anyway, if you know what you're in for, it can be a blast, not to mention very tasty as well.

Plus, there's an amusing, kind of hideous mural in the front of the restaurant (taken from the "Abounding River" boardgame, which is sold there) that appears to depict an amputee child swinging from a rope.  It is, I think, actually just poor illustration technique; but I was convinced (and highly entertained by the thought) that it had been some artist's rather exceptional choice to depict a disfigured child ("even amputees can be graceful and have rivers of abundance!").

I love the place.


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## D (Feb 22, 2008)

Papingo said:


> If you're in SF can you just check something for me?  An american collegue from there claims that I would qualify for disability allowance there because I'm under 5' tall.




I've never heard of such a thing.


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## mhendo (Feb 22, 2008)

D said:


> I've never heard of such a thing.


Me neither.

It's worth noting that height is a protected class in the city of San Francisco, meaning that you cannot be discriminated against in employment, housing, public accommodations, etc. on account of your height.

Link 1
Link 2

But i've never heard of anyone qualifying for actual disability payments solely due to height, nor have i ever seen a height of 5' prescribed as a particular marker of one's status.

Also, people who qualify for government assistance due to physical or mental disability in the US are generally only given money at the federal, and sometimes state level. My wife's aunt is 4'11" tall, has schizophrenia, and lives in San Francisco. She gets a (small) check from the Social Security administration related to her mental disability. The money comes from general tax revenue, as part of the Supplemental Security Income program. 

My wife's mother is also 4'11" (she and the aunt are twins) and lives in SF. Neither of them receive, or have ever received, a disability allowance from San Francisco because they are short-arses.


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## Sweet FA (Feb 22, 2008)

MightyAphrodite said:


> bullshit!
> its a grand idea....always


It's a rubbish place


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## Larry Harvey (Feb 23, 2008)

Here's a place where you can find out about interesting underground events:

http://laughingsquid.com/squidlist/events/


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## D (Feb 25, 2008)

Larry Harvey said:


> Here's a place where you can find out about interesting underground events:
> 
> http://laughingsquid.com/squidlist/events/



I thought about posting a link to laughing squid, myself.

I wonder if "Larry Harvey" (whom I assume is not, in fact, the real Larry Harvey) will return to u75 or if that was simply good-natured, well-received spam.


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## MightyAphrodite (Feb 25, 2008)

Sweet FA said:


> It's a rubbish place



oh hell...sorry for your troubles...

still go there OP!! ....

and eh@ the under 5 ft thing...

maybe she meant this....

http://silverchips.mbhs.edu/inside.php?sid=4226

from that site ^ 

"For those who are vertically challenged:
The Billy Barty Foundation: (818) 953-5410
For those of you who have never been allowed to ride roller coasters, the college financial-aid process bears you good tidings. If you are under the height of 4’10” and have valid medical proof of a form of dwarfism, the Billy Barty Foundation may offer you a scholarship."

there is something that does a scholarship for the 'vertically challanged'....but youd have to research up on it....never heard of it til now though.


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## Gavin Bl (Feb 26, 2008)

1927 said:


> Yosemite is an absolute must, I can't stress that enough. I have never felt so humble to be a human being in my life. ..



Agreed, gobsmackingly fantastic - I loved the drive back to SF through this wonderful golden country.


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## Detroit City (Feb 26, 2008)

napa valley and wine country

that and all the fake titties in L.A. v


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## D (Feb 29, 2008)

*I wanted to edit my restaurant post, but I can't!*

Samovar is actually on 18th and Sanchez, not 18th and Dolores

The Rasta cafe near Ashby BART has closed.


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## D (Feb 29, 2008)

*oh, and*

"Larry Harvey" totally spammed us.  But laughing squid IS a good list/web host.


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## free spirit (Mar 2, 2008)

another vote for Yosemite, and I reckon the golden gate bridge is a must too - if I remember right i think there's a park at the southern end of the bridge with a great view of the bridge and bay that'd be good for picnic or something.


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## D (Mar 2, 2008)

There's a park at the southern end, yes (the SF end) - the Presidio with nearby Chrissy Fields.  But there's an even bigger park at the northern end (the Marin end) - the Marin Headlands (it's a national park) full of great biking, picnic tables, a museum, and other fun trails and stuff.

You can't really go wrong on either side as far as parks go.


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## mhendo (Mar 21, 2008)

D said:


> It's hilarious, though! And some of the folks take themselves SOOOOO seriously, which makes it even funnier.  Others who work there know it's a bit absurd and that can be fun too.  I kinda love the place.  The desserts are delicious.  And when they serve you "I Am Graceful", the servers often say, "You Are Graceful" (not "here is your 'I Am Graceful'").
> 
> Anyway, if you know what you're in for, it can be a blast, not to mention very tasty as well.


It certainly is tasty. We went there for dinner this evening (the one in the Mission), and the food really is fantastic. 

I absolutely pigged out on a braised lentil soup, a chipotle and cilantro enchilada, and tiramisu. The soup was unbelievably good, and everything else was great as well. We also shared a bottle of their special preservative-free red wine, which was surprisingly good. I'm sitting here now with a distended belly, and i don't think i could eat another bite.

Well worth a visit.


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## D (Mar 21, 2008)

While you were gorging on raw, vegan food I had my first bite of hamburger since 1993. It was juicy.


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