San Francisco Escape

I was so excited to go to San Francisco! I’ve been dreaming about visiting this city since I was 8 in France, watching “Charmed”, staring at the cute houses and wondering when I would be able to stroll past them.

So, here I was, a couple of weeks ago, visiting the city of Peace and Love!

It has been a wonderful experience, full of laughter, fun, and excitement. I pretty much visited everything I wanted during four days. In order to sum up my SF experience to you, I made a video.

And below you’ll find below my top 3 “must-see” spots.

1. Views
   The city of San Francisco has a stunning skyline. I especially had the chance to discover two nice spots for enjoying nice views.First is Dolores Park in the Mission district. It’s pretty packed, but the view and the vibe there is just awesome. I went there for the sunset: As you can see in my video, it was gorgeous!Second is the Kite Hill Open Space, near Castro (the gay district).

   To access the top of the hill, you have to go through a sketchy climb. But it is totally worth it, as there will be hardly a soul alive there, and you’ll be able to enjoy a breath-taking view from a very high point in total peace.

2. Art
   As a huge fan of Street Art, I really felt complete in the city of love and peace. San Francisco has a lot to offer in regards to street art.The district to stroll around if you love it as much as I do is the Mission District. It’s not really edgy, I actually felt pretty safe there. Just go around: you’ll find small alleys covered with art, cute streets with old authentic houses, and a lot of eclectic ventures.There is a lot to see: Just get lost there for a half day, you won’t regret it!
3. Shopping
   I usually don’t enjoy going somewhere and go shopping. I highly prefer just doing cultural visits and enjoying the vibe. But as I was in the Haight-Ashbury District, I just felt in love with every single store, and I figured that I actually had to share this.If you want to experience the vibe of SF and do some shopping, please go to Haight and Ashbury streets. It’s near Castro and the Golden Gate Park.You’ll find nice coffee shops, vintage clothes ventures and records stores. Actually, I stayed there few hours. Strolling around in 40’s dresses, checking out 60’s vinyl records, enjoying a strong espresso … it just felt right! I highly recommend you this district.

Of course, I did a lot more than those three “must-see” recommendations. Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39, the Musée Mécanique, Union Square, Golden Gate Park, The Castro, Oakland, Emeryville, the cable-cars…

It was also a lot of fun! I hope I’ll be able to come back again, because it is honestly the greatest city I’ve visited in the US so far.

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving break, and I’ll give you some more French updates next week!

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Floriane Simondet is a graduate exchange student from France, majoring in business administration.