Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
basics for rain (a compact umbrella or a poncho), for long-distance walking (good
shoes with grippy soles work on the hills), and for memories (camera, film or stor-
age cards, chargers). Above all, plan to layer your outfits. A 55°F morning can
turn into a 75°F afternoon, so it's hard to be fully prepared unless you're prepared
to strip off—or put on—a light jacket or sweater. That may mean that you should
also pack a small daybag to tote around with you and stuff unwanted layers into
on the go.
Dress to get wet. The rain comes from nowhere sometimes, and even when it
doesn't rain, the air itself may grow so moist that it has the effect of a light driz-
zle. Remember that this might also affect your electronic equipment, so if that
means you need to buy a case for your gadgets, have that ready to go, too.
SPECIAL TYPES OF TRAVELERS
San Francisco is the original outsider's city. Her citizens pride themselves on mak-
ing people of every creed, every ability, and every gender (all of them, depending
on how you count them) feel like they're equally a part of things. So if you do find
that you have special needs as a traveler, you'll likely encounter only people who
are eager to assist and to smooth the way for you. It would go against the grain of
the famous San Francisco inclusiveness to do otherwise.
ADVICE FOR FAMILY TRAVELERS
San Francisco is, by and large, an extremely kid-friendly place. Many of its prin-
cipal attractions, including the Golden Gate Bridge, the cable cars, the
Exploratorium, and even gritty old Alcatraz, will captivate young minds. What's
more, it seems like half the town is made up of young couples who are starting
families of their own, so unless you head into a tony wine bar or nightclub, you'll
find that restaurants are remarkably prepared with high chairs and special kids'
menus—though, of course, the other side of the bargain will be that your kids will
be expected to behave like they belong. In addition to the restaurants in
Fisherman's Wharf and around Union Square, which by dint of their strong
tourist trade are almost exclusively family-friendly, eateries along Fillmore Street,
Union Street, and Hayes Street regularly host lots of kids from the area.
San Francisco is largely a civilized place, too, and one that prides itself on
sophistication, so if all you've seen of the city is images on TV every June of mus-
tachioed men prancing with feather boas down the street, then you can relax.
Unless you stumble across a leather fetish parade, you'll find the residents' behav-
ior to be nothing you'll need to shelter your kids' eyes from.
For the sanity of both kids and parents, I suggest you let the kids take an active
role in planning the vacation. Believe me, they'll be more than eager to fantasize
about all the things there are to do, and their excitement will only make your
investment pay off. Kid-directed planning will help
you,
too—if only because
sorting out the must-sees ahead of time will keep your family from quarreling
later, and it will keep expectations in check.
When in San Francisco, parents should look around for the free newspaper
boxes dispensing
Parents' Press
(www.parentspress.com), a monthly paper that
rounds up events for kids and parents around town (storytelling, craft making,
and the like), particularly by organizers that may only do one or two things a
month and, therefore, would be hard to hear about otherwise.
