San Francisco, CA Local Community

Along with New York, San Francisco is considered one of the most unique modern cities in the world. It is a city that comes to mind when thinking of California and a city that might even represent California better than Los Angeles. Even if you have never visited San Francisco before, you can find easily identify many famous places you've only seen in pictures and movies here- the Golden Gate Bridge that's known to be one of the most beautiful bridges in the world, the oldest Chinatown in North America, and the city's famous cable cars that appear so often in movies and commercials.

So If you are a movie buff, then you probably have seen San Francisco on the big screen, this is in part because of the film-making community and the proximity to Hollywood. Also because this is a very photogenic city!
 
San Fran is very popular around the world for its liberal community but there is much more to this city. It's Victorian architecture, scenic beauty, and cultural diversity makes it a great place to spend some days and have tons of fun.

The city has 11 official governmental districts, and each one of them has its very own and unique culture. Outside of those, the Golden Gate city has several fashionable and upscale neighborhoods popular with visitors as residents alike. Fisherman's Wharf is a frequent spot for the tourists for its views. The Nob Hill-Russian Hill and Chinatown-North Beach areas are two very vibrant immigrant communities. Union Square-Financial District is the center of shopping, arts, and theater, while Civic Center-Tenderloin, SoMa (South Market) is a rapidly changing zone with tons of construction. Other areas include Western Addition, Haight-Ashbury, The Avenues (Golden Gate Park, Richmond, and Sunset), Twin Peaks, Castro (known for being the cultural center of the LGBTQ community), Mission-Bernal Heights, and Southeast San Francisco.

San Francisco has a color hard to be found anywhere else in the world. San Francisco's uniqueness is created with the mix of fantastic views and skylines along with some of the world's best universities. The city is famous for being diverse and colorful, compared to other cities that hold just one distinct characteristic. Being the most densely populated city in the United States, San Francisco has a special atmosphere of its own, and so much so that a first-time visitor might be confused to think that they are in America. Unlike the main cities in the east such as New York, Chicago, and Boston, San Francisco is famous for being especially familiar to Asians, partially due to its closer proximity to Asia.
 

San Francisco has a very regular and mild weather. It's cool in the winter and dry in the summer. During the summers, you are going to delight with the fog and drizzle and humidity might be very constant.
 
You can walk the city and go from one neighborhood to another. Most of the neighborhoods are friendly, but you need to be aware anyway. San Francisco suffers from crime in some downtown districts and at the southeastern part of the city. This is why visitors should be aware while walking through these areas, especially at night!
 
San Francisco has one of the most comprehensive public transportation systems in the US. The main transportation systems are Muni (Metro subway, streetcars, buses, trolley buses and cable cars within San Francisco proper), BART (regional subway services in the Bay Area), and Caltrain (commuter rail to San José).
 
San Francisco Bay is a mecca for sailors (boats, as well as windsurfing and kitesurfing), due to consistent strong westerly/northwesterly thermally-generated winds. A shoreline bicycle and pedestrian trail is known as the San Francisco Bay Trail encircle the edge of the bay.

You can also plan a visit to Alcatraz Island, a place that offers a close-up look at the site of the first lighthouse and the infamous federal penitentiary long off-limits to the public. Rich in history, there is also a natural side to the “Rock”- gardens, tide pools, bird colonies, and bay views beyond compare.