29 Aug Stuff you NEED to do while in San Francisco

Hello all! As classes have just started and we still have a lot of spare time (and not so much homework hehe), I would like to show you a couple of things that I have visited during the past few weeks in San Francisco, which might inspire you to visit these landmarks too!

1. Castro District

Castro: one of the most prominent symbols of acceptance and equality amongst all!

IEEC organized a fun get together at the Mission Dolores Park, which is located next to/in the Castro District. The Park is beautiful and a great place to go and hangout with your friends,  plus you are allowed to drink there (as far as I know, haha). It also offers a great view of the city.

After the park hang-out, my friends and I decided to explore Castro for a bit – there is so much to do in the neighborhood. As you can see, it’s really colorful and beautiful. It’s especially nice to do in the summer months. Make sure you get a burrito at one of the many delicious ‘taquerias’ while you’re at it!

2. Fort Funston/KILLER WHALES!

This is a great activity to do before or after your classes. It’s a small hike – mostly walk – which is located close to university.

Fort Funston was a former harbor defense installation, and very interesting to see. There is a great and endless beach to enjoy too (make sure you bring your bikini). The beach was absolutely deserted, except for some really cute dogs, and Janine (my roommate) and I even got to see some KILLER WHALES!! We were watching the sea from one of the beautiful cliff sighting points when we saw the whales playing around in the water.

Absolutely amazing, and the walk/hike takes you just an hour starting from uni! MUST DO, especially when the weather is nice. You might get cold otherwise, it’s pretty windy at the beach.

Directions: If you start at the SFSU gym, you need to walk towards Lake Merced to then go around the lake, taking the left side. After walking for some minutes you take the bridge towards the other side of the Lake, and if you follow that road to the right, you should get close to the Fort eventually.  You even see the beauty of Lake Merced while you’re at it!

3. SF Giants Baseball game

This might seem obvious, but going to one of the SF Giants Baseball games is tons of fun. My friends and I decided to get together at the Pier, which is a great place to have some drinks before you go to the game. Might as well visit the Pier and Bay Bridge if you’re so close to it anyway!

Be aware though: the baseball games take really long, so it’s not necessary to be there on time! We came in an hour late and were still able to get front seats. The tickets were really cheap too. We didn’t actually buy front row seats, but believe me, a lot of the seats will be free and nobody will notice you’re not supposed to be there haha. It’s great fun!

Make sure you go to one of the bars across the street afterwards, a lot of people go there after the game and it offers a great opportunity to meet some new people.

4. Walk across the Golden Gate

Hehe, another obvious one. Don’t forget to actually walk across the bridge though! You have amazing sights whilst walking on the bridge. Moreover, on the other side of the bridge there is a really cute town located, called “Sansalito”. Make sure you visit this too! If you’re too tired (or lazy) to walk back, you can also take the ferry back. The ferry is really enjoyable too, might as well make a little boat trip while you’re at it!

So these are just some tips to get you started, I still have a huge list of things I want to see in San Francisco, so I might update this blog later on. If you have any tips on what to do in SF for me, please let me know too 😊.

Enjoy your week!

Xoxo,

Julie