Blog #14

My experience in San Francisco

September 9, 2024 by Ruth Misori

Recently, I had the opportunity to travel to San Francisco for the first time during the 4th of July since I had some scheduled time off from my summer internship, and I had an absolute blast! San Francisco was one of the cities on my bucket list for the longest time, and I felt like I would never have the opportunity to visit since it’s so expensive and across the country. However, I was fortunate in the sense that because my internship was placed in Dallas, it made booking direct flights to SF and back easier since it’s more accessible and cheaper compared to other cities that have layovers. Afterwards, I immediately made sure that I booked activities ahead of time so I can avoid encountering the risk of sold-out tickets, including cruise tours around the city and to the Alcatraz, movie tours, and to national parks.

I booked the trip for 4 days, so I was able to sightsee and even squeeze in a half-day trip to the Muir Woods since I had decided against going to Yosemite due to the long commute back and forth (almost 4 hours both ways from SF), and had figured that I might not have enough time to see Yosemite, and may end up feeling miserable like I was in NYC. So, I decided to book a half-day tour to the Muir Woods instead since it was in San Francisco and ultimately decided that when I return to SF, then I’ll try to book a longer trip so that I can eventually go to Yosemite and actually enjoy my time there without feeling like I’m in a rush.

On the first day in San Francisco, I had arrived at night, so I didn’t have anything planned except getting a good night’s rest in preparation for the next few days. However, I was too excited to fall asleep, so I watched a couple of episodes of Full-House instead and gushed over the nostalgia, lol. The next morning came, and I woke up around 7 so that I would have plenty of time to sightsee throughout the day without feeling like I’m in a rush. Luckily for me, I was staying in a hostel in North Beach, which was in close proximity to various restaurants, Coit Tower, the Transamerica Pyramid, Chinatown, and Fisherman’s Wharf, which was my very first stop. In fact, every day that I was in SF would always begin with the first stop at Fisherman’s wharf since that’s where one of the cable cars were located, and I would take it as a means to get by in the city, unless I had decided to take the bus, which I preferred. I also had the chance to sightsee by foot since San Francisco is a walkable city, which is probably the best way to experience SF. I was so amazed by the beautiful sights of the Bay Bridge and the direct view of the Alcatraz, and the seagulls that surrounded the Pacific Ocean. As I walked further along Fisherman’s Wharf, I eventually got a glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge which happened not to be covered in fog! I was ecstatic!

I had booked a ticket for a bus tour which wouldn’t start for another hour, so I took more pictures and got a few souvenirs to kill some time. As I passed by various neighborhoods, I was speechless by all of their breath-taking sceneries known for its history, culture, and music. I felt like I was in a movie! San Francisco looks very Eurocentric, as the buildings resembled various combinations of Spanish, British, and Portuguese architecture due to their houses being built Victorian-style or gothic, and many more. Once the bus finally approached the Golden Gate Bridge, I was surprised by two things: the first was that it was much colder than I had expected and since I was on the top deck of the bus, it was windy, and I felt like I was on a rollercoaster. Funnily enough, it was on a perfect summer day, and I only felt cold when riding over the bridge, but other than that, I was fine, and I saw plenty of people walking around in shorts and sandals. However, I definitely advise that you bring a jacket if touring the Golden Gate Bridge because I underestimated how cold it would actually be. Now on to the second surprise which took me off guard, which was how massive the bridge was. It appeared to be much smaller from a view from the Fisherman’s Wharf or from a general distance, but damn! It’s really huge! I originally thought that it would only take a minute to cross the bridge, but it took at least 3 minutes and apparently with traffic, it could take 5 minutes or more. If walking, then the average time it takes to cross the bridge one way is 35 minutes, and 70 minutes both ways. After the bus arrived at the end of Golden Gate Bridge, I decided to walk across it and take some photos. I wanted to cross the entire bridge, but I got tired halfway and decided to go back to Fisherman’s Wharf to get a hot dog, haha.

The next day was the 4th of July, so I went on the cruise tour that gave me close views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Alcatraz, and the city overall and it was a lovely experience. Afterwards I went on a movie tour which included various locations and scenes from Full-House, Alamo Street, Shang Chi, Ant Man, Princess Diaries, and plenty more! After the tour ended, I got to walk up Lombard Street, which is the crookedest street in the world. Later that night, I got a nice view of the fireworks from Fisherman’s Wharf, which was the best way to end the holiday because spending it in SF felt very magical. The following day, which was my last full day in SF, I briefly went to the location setting of Full-House, then went on the half-day tour to the Muir woods national park and Sausalito and was able to capture amazing shots of its beautiful nature.

Time flew by so quickly as the last day approached, and I had to return to Dallas to resume my internship, but just before I departed for the airport, I was able to squeeze in a quick trip to the Alcatraz and ride the Skystar (the SF equivalent of the London Eye) and had so much fun! I wished I could’ve stayed longer but I was on a budget, and I had an internship to complete. While I felt satisfied towards the end of my trip, I still had a strong urge to continue sightseeing and explore because there’s just so much to do in SF. In fact, when I return, I would visit the Coit Towers, go inside the Transamerica Pyramid, visit the Golden gate park and Japantown, and visit the Fine Arts museum. I would also try to drive over the Bay bridge because it’s such an underrated bridge and I want to see it up close by actually driving over it, and even visit parts of Oakland. Though, I’m grateful that I was still able to see it from afar.

I would overall rate this trip a 9/10 because while SF was everything that I imagined it would be (in a good way, duh), the main downside was that it is extremely expensive. Like I originally planned to budget for $600 and ended up spending $1,200 (including flights) for the 4 days that I was there, so I can only imagine what I would’ve spent if I had stayed longer, or even as a local living there! Despite this short trip, I definitely made sure to savor every moment and made memories that will last a lifetime, and I’m already planning my next visit!