San Francisco in and out. What to see in just 3 days

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 14:09:58 +0000

I had barely returned last week from my first diving trip in the Philippines when I was already off again, bound for San Francisco! Alas, I had only 4 days available, as I was accompanying my partner for work reasons, but they were enough to show him the main attractions. To be entirely honest, I’m not particularly fond of the United States, but San Francisco has that certain something that, even 15 years ago, left me enchanted. Three days and so much to see: where to begin? We started at Pier 39, a San Francisco classic. A place full of shops, typical tourist shopping and restaurants. So if you love giving gadgets and kitsch objects as gifts, this is the place for you: from Alcatraz souvenirs to Golden Gate ones, to shops selling exclusively every imaginable type of magnet. We went there to admire the clusters of sea lions basking in the sun on wooden platforms, happily posing for the multitude of tourists who stroll the pier every day.

Another interesting thing to visit, if you love the sea and the marine world, is without doubt the Aquarium of the Bay. After a first room with tanks containing fish of various kinds, you descend to the lower floor where the real spectacle awaits: an underwater tunnel from which you can admire large tunas, elegant manta rays and beautiful sharks. You’ll feel as though you are truly underwater alongside them! Of course it’s not the same thrill as when I dive, but I must say it comes remarkably close :-) Once at Pier 39 you need only continue along the Embarcadero, reach Fisherman’s Wharf and admire the Golden Gate in all its grandeur, which at sunset always offers beautiful photographic moments.

Pier 39 on nhaima

San Francisco in and out. What to see in just 3 days