About San Francisco

The San Francisco Bay Area, sometimes referred to as The Bay Area or The Bay, is a metropolitan area that lies along the San Francisco Bay. It is a collection of a series of cities, towns, villages, military bases, airports, regional, state, and national parks sprawled over 9 counties and are connected by a massive network of roads, highways, rail, and commuter rail. The city of San Francisco serves as the traditional focal point and the cultural, economic, transportation nerve center of the region. Unlike other major metropolitan areas, the urban areas here are completely independent entities with their own completely independent governments and public services and city borders instead of one huge city. 

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History

The Finding and Founding of San Francisco

Miwok Indians to the north and the Ohlones to the south lived a peaceful existence before the coming of Europeans. The Kule Loklo Miwok village, re-created near the Bear Valley Visitors Center at Point Reyes National Seashore in Marin County, provides an insight into their daily life. With an overland expedition by Don Gaspar de Portola, Europeans first laid eyes on the Bay in 1770. In March 1776, Captain Juan Bautista de Anza founded the Presidio and Mission of as-yet unnamed San Francisco. The Spanish presence at the Mission San Francisco de Asis (now Mission Dolores-completed in 1791; the oldest building in the city) and at the Presidio, three miles away, did not amount to much over the succeeding years.

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Fast Facts

Population: 7,039,362

Median Age: 35.6

Male: 49.82%

Female: 50.18%

Ethnic Make up:

African American: 07.30%

Asian: 18.40%

Native American: 00.70%

Hispanic: 19.70%

White/Caucasian: 58.70%
   

Where To Stay

San Francisco’s hotels run the gamut from head-of-state luxury to modest motels and worse, but we won’t go there, and you shouldn’t, either. The City’s premier hotels are almost all in the downtown area including Nob Hill, Union Square, and the Financial District/Embarcadero. Motels along the main corridors in and out of town, and pleasant bed-and-breakfasts in attractive, residential neighborhoods also exist. As a tourist destination with limited space, San Francisco hotels can charge premium prices, and do, especially downtown and on Nob Hill.

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Climate

Neighborhoods

Castro Street and Noe Valley

The center of gay San Francisco, and a landmark for gay culture everywhere, the Castro’s bars, dance clubs, restaurants, and one-of-a-kind shops abound in the commercial area around 18th and Castro Street. There’s arguably more street life in the Castro than anywhere else in the city, especially on weekends. The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence sometimes make an appearance at special events (they’re really men in nun drag), and take it from us-this is the place to be on Halloween. Trek up Castro to Liberty Street to see exceptional Victorian homes. Over the hill lies Noe Valley and its main shopping strip, 24th Street. Cute and relatively quiet, Noe Valley has enough great restaurants and gourmet food shops to make it sophisticated, but not so many chromed-up bars and Italian clothing boutiques to make it stuffy.

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Parking

Parking in San Francisco can be challenge, if not frustrating. According to the California Department of Transportation, San Francisco has more than 308,000 total available parking spaces for its 776, 733 residents, which can make parking a difficult tasks.

With 2 million-plus parking violations issued annually, indoor parking is often the only solution.

Parking garages rates vary – some are based on 20-minute intervals, some every 30 minutes and other are on hourly usage. Be sure to check prices before parking.

Preferential neighborhood parking allows residents of designated neighborhoods to obtain stickers for their cars in order to park on the street legally, but less than half of San Francisco’s streets offer this program. Cars without stickers are restricted to two-hour parking or face a $35 ticket. First-time applicants must show proof of residence with a printed car registration and one other proof of residence (utility bill, car-insurance policy, copy of lease/rental agreement). For more information, call the Residential Permit Parking Program Office at (415) 554-5000.

Public Transportation

Bay Area Transit Information Hotline 511

From outside San Francisco Bay Area (510) 817-1717

www.sfmta.com

Instant phone and online access to transit information for all nine counties in the San Francisco Bay Area.

San Francisco Municipal Railway (415) 923-6864

949 Presidio Ave.

San Francisco CA 94115

A system of buses and light trains serving all of San Francisco.

San Francisco Cable Cars

San Francisco’s Cable Cars climb near treacherous slopes and afford excellent views of San Francisco and the Bay.

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) (415) 989-2278

P.O. Box 12688

Oakland CA 94606

www.bart.gov

More commonly known as BART, this people-moving system of electric trains is a quick option for traversing San Francisco, connects San Francisco with the East Bay via an underwater tube and recently extended service to San Francisco International Airport.

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Air Transportation

San Francisco International Airport

www.flysfo.com
In South San Francisco, San Francisco International Airport serves the City, Silicon Valley and the greater Bay Area. San Francisco International Airport is the 8th largest airport in the nation and handles flights to and from Asia, the Pacific Rim, Europe, Latin America and just about anywhere in the world.

San Francisco Airport Terminals
San Francisco International Airport is well-served by domestic and international carriers who typically board at standard terminals. SFO has three terminals. Following are SFO gate and boarding area information and telephone numbers to the domestic and international airlines serving San Francisco International Airport.

Terminal 1
Airlines: Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Northwest, US Airways, Air Canada and Alitalia
Gates: 1 through 48
Boarding Areas: A, B, C

Terminal 2
Terminal 2 is currently closed for renovation.

International Terminal
Airlines: Aeroflot, Air China, Air France, Alaska Airlines, Atalia, ANA, Asiana, BA, Cathay, China Airways, Eya Airways, Japan Airlines, KLM Airlines, Korean Air, LACSA, Lufthansa, Mexicana, Northwest, Philippine Airlines, Singapore, Sun Trips/Sky Service USA, TACA, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, Air China.

City Area Codes
The area code for San Francisco is 415. The 510 area code encompasses all of Alameda and Contra Costa counties in the East Bay, including the communities of Oakland and Berkeley. The 650 area code covers most of the Peninsula and San Mateo County, including San Francisco International Airport. For dialing outside the 415 area code, callers must dial 1 plus the appropriate area code and seven-digit number.

Television

Radio

Newspapers

The San Francisco Chronicle (415) 777-1111
901 Mission Street,
San Francisco CA 94103
www.sfgate.com
The biggest paper in the city.

The San Francisco Examiner (415) 359-2600
988 Market Street
Local San Francisco news coverage with an arts and sports focus.

SF Weekly (415) 536-8100
185 Berry, Lobby 4, Suite 3800
San Francisco CA 94107
Culture, lifestyle and features about San Francisco Bay Area.

AsianWeek (415) 397-0220
809 Sacramento St.
San Francisco CA 94108

Noe Valley Voice (415) 821-3324
1021 Sanchez Street
San Francisco, CA 94114
Independent community newspaper for and about Noe Valley published 10 times a year.

The San Francisco Bay Guardian (415) 225-3100
135 Mississippi St.
San Francisco, CA 94107
An independent, locally-owned and edited San Francisco newspaper. One of the most read independent weeklies, known for its risqué covers and politicized news coverage.

San Francisco Business Times (415) 989-2522
275 Battery St., Suite 940
San Francisco CA 94111
San Francisco business newspaper.

Dining & Nightlife

North Beach

You’re in the culinary heart of the city! What to eat? Italian, of course! Mangia! The only problem here is deciding just what kind of Italian. Unpretentious, hearty North Beach institutions like Little Joe’s or family-style Capp’s Corner? Calzone’s, or another one of the sleek new Roman places on Columbus Avenue? Off-kilter Sicilian, with gargantuan proportions and chairs on the ceiling? Well, that could only be Caffe Sport. You can also treat yourself to a more elegant and innovative approach to Italian food at hard-to-get- into Rose Pistola.

But there’s more to North Beach than Italian food, of course. Moose’s, facing Washington Square, does a wonderful job with California cuisine, and for a change of pace, try Afghan favorite Helmand, on Broadway. Cocktail hour? If you want to get close to the beatnik soul of North Beach however, Vesuvio’s, Saloon, the Tosca Cafe and Savoy Tivoli are where you must go.

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Art

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SF MOMA) and its excellent temporary exhibitions have drawn tens of thousands of San Franciscans who might otherwise not have bothered to come to an art show. Across Third Street, the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts has interesting exhibitions, often of larger multimedia installations and kinetic sculpture, in its two-floor gallery. The M.H. de Young Memorial Museum in Golden Gate Park and the newly renovated California Palace of the Legion of Honor (a handsome classical pavilion with Rodin’s “The Thinker” at its entrance) are San Francisco’s fine art museums. The world-famous Asian Art Museum, next to the de Young, is a must-see.

Most of San Francisco’s private art galleries are clustered downtown, to the east of Union Square on Geary and Sutter Streets. The more experimental galleries operate in SoMa lofts and Potrero Hill.

San Francisco’s other museums include, to mention but a few, the Museo Italoamericano, the African-American Historical & Cultural Society Museum all at Fort Mason Center, the Jewish Museum, California Academy of Sciences (for natural history) and, designed for kids but great for grown-ups, too, Zeum and the Exploratorium.

Performing Arts

Theater

The American Conservatory Theater (ACT) presents innovative productions of excellent plays, old and new, at the Geary Theater. The Curran puts on both commendable touring plays and musicals. Aside from the big touring productions at the Orpheum and the cavernous Golden Gate, and a handful of small houses like the Theater on the Square, there is only a fringe theater scene in San Francisco. The Magic Theatre, a leading interpreter of Sam Shephard Plays, at Fort Mason Center and a few independent, theater-less companies do mount entertaining productions here and there. Performance spaces, such as Theatre Artaud in the Potrero Hill area or The Marsh in the Mission, host occasional experimental plays.

Comedy
San Francisco’s Standup Comedy Competition winners have been virtually guaranteed television contracts. Cobb’s and the Punch Line are two of the oldest and most popular comedy clubs.

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Music

The award-winning San Francisco Symphony Orchestra plays at ultra-modern Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. Its music director and principal conductor is the charismatic Michael Tilson Thomas, who recently won a slew of Grammys. Touring soloists and symphonies play at Davies, Masonic Auditorium, Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, and other venues throughout town. In the summertime, the natural amphitheater at Stern Grove (on Sloat Boulevard in the Sunset District) features outdoor concerts by the Symphony, the Opera, and other performers.

While in recent years the failure of Keystone Korner and Kimball’s West have left the city without a regular venue for jazz (the best jazz club in the Bay Area, Yoshi’s, is across the Bay in Oakland), jazz fans delight in the annual San Francisco Jazz Festival.

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Recommended Tours

Tour One: Union Square, Chinatown, North Beach

The square takes its name from violent pro-Union demonstrations held there in 1861 as the Civil War brewed. In the center of the park you can still see rising serenely above the construction the Dewey Monument, a 97-foot Corinthian column topped by a winged victory statue, commemorates Admiral James Dewey’s victories in the Spanish-American War. Look in any direction and you will see upscale department stores: Neiman Marcus, Macy’s, and Saks Fifth Avenue all line the square. Cable cars roll by on Powell Street. To the east, in front of the Westin St. Francis Hotel, foreign flags tell you which heads of state and other dignitaries are presently staying in its VIP suites.

Once you’ve gotten power shopping out of the way-with allowances for a side trip with insistent kids to toy palace F.A.O. Schwarz (down Stockton Street from Nieman’s) head east on Geary to Grant Avenue, turn right and visit the Emporio Armani Boutique. Entering this imposing granite edifice, formerly-and appropriately-a bank, you can satisfy your appetite for the latest Italian fashions, and for lunch the Armani Cafe is good enough to warrant a trip even if you’re strictly a Brooks Brothers type.

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Education

Community Colleges
Community colleges exist for two major purposes. The first is to serve as a bridge from high school to college by providing courses for transfer toward a bachelor’s degree. Four out of 10 collegebound high-school graduates start their college education this way.

The second function of community colleges is to prepare students for the job market by offering entry-level career training as well as courses for adult students who want to upgrade their skills for the workplace. They often offer programs that are not available at four-year schools, like fashion design.

Liberal Arts Colleges
Liberal arts colleges offer a broad base of courses in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Most are private and focus mainly on undergraduate students. Classes tend to be small and personal attention is available.

Online Learning
Recent years have witnessed the rise of online degree programs, to allow the busy professional a chance to work at their own pace from the comfort of their home on the path to getting a degree. The costs to students are typically the same as for traditional classes- and financial aid is equally available-while the cost to the institution can be much less.

There are online universities ranging from legitimate distance learning systems to fly-by-night degree-mills. It’s important to research a particular institution before deciding to enroll in their system. Generally, brick-and-mortar schools that also offer online classes are the safest, though there are plenty of fully accredited online universities out there.

Nearly 3 million students are believed to be taking online classes at institutions of higher education in the United States this year. That number has been growing about 25% a year recently. Now, virtually all public higher education institutions, as well as a vast majority of private, for-profit institutions, now offer online classes. By contrast, only about half of private, nonprofit schools offer them. Online schools offer everything from Associate’s degrees to Doctoral programs with available emphases in everything from Business Administration to Criminal Justice to Nursing. Some programs require students to attend some campus classes or orientations, but many are delivered completely online. Online courses generally require a computer with a broadband connection, but are now a serious option for the busy professional.

Public vs. Private
Public colleges are usually less expensive, particularly for in-state residents. They get most of their money from the state or local government. Private colleges rely on tuition, fees, endowments, and other private sources. Private colleges are usually smaller and can offer more personalized attention and often more prestige.

Universities
Generally, a university is bigger than a college and offers more majors and research facilities. Class size often reflects institutional size and some classes may taught by graduate students.

Upper Division
Upper-division schools offer the last two years of undergraduate study, usually in specialized programs leading to a bachelor’s degree. Students then generally transfer to an upper-division college after completing an associate degree or after finishing a second year of study at a four-year college.

Area Employers

Here is a list of some of the many potential employers in the area.

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