San Francisco is a very interesting mix of cultures both financially and culturally in very close proximity to one another. The city itself is stunning and the trams give a lovely old school feel. It is considered the Innovation capitol of the world with Mega tech companies such as Facebook and Apple on their doorstep in nearby Silicon Valley.
Day one of my stay consisted of the usual suspects such as window shopping on Market St and the mandatory visit to Fisherman’s wharf and Pier 39 to see the Sea Lions. Check out live here. And of course some lovely lunch at a rather confused little Italian restaurant by the name of Swiss Louis. Don’t get me wrong the food and location was superb it was just the name that threw me.
Day 2 of San Francisco was all about the Brunch -it is the done thing you know. If you want to visit a more urban real side of San Francisco then look no further than Union St. It has a brilliant Cafe culture and plenty of shopping to satisfy your penchant for a bit of retail therapy. You really get a sense of what living in San Francisco is all about! Ill be honest I would have stayed here all day if my time had not been son short.
Alongside the gastronomic cafe culture is a surprising mix of homeless people begging for money and looking very down on their luck. It is surprising just how quickly the city plunges from the beautiful designer stores of Market St to a almost favela style wasteland with a mix of Caucasian, blacks and hispanic people who look very sick and down on their luck. It begs the question where have they all come from? It is not to say that a lot of large cities don’t have these types of communities but there was  marked difference in the levels of displaced homeless people in comparison to New York which in itself is surprising.
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Some of the more innovative street people I saw was a band that played every day for about an hour at 4pm on the corner of market st and 3rd generally alongside a ‘hanger on’ street person the most amusing of which had a sign that said ‘Why lie I am begging for beer’. Very much a fun side!