Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
7. GEARY BOULEVARD
One of the city's main traffic arteries, sweeping from Van Ness all the way out to Cliff
House, Geary Boulevard is a typically unprepossessing urban thoroughfare, but func-
tional. It begins its journey at Market Street, sweeps past Union Square, and then
forms the heart of the Theater District, before venturing into the notorious Tender-
loin, home to seedy clubs. After it crosses Van Ness, it zips past Japantown and the
funky Fillmore District. Soon you're in the Richmond District and before you know
it, there's the Pacific Ocean.
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8. PRESIDIO HEIGHTS
Originally part of the “Great Sand Waste” to the west, this neighborhood is now
one of the most élite of all. The zone centers on Sacramento Street as its discreet
shopping area. It's worth a stroll, primarily for the architecture. Of interest are the
Swedenborgian Church at 2107 Lyon Street, the Roos House at 3500 Jackson Street,
and Temple Emanu-El at 2 Lake Street.
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9. WESTERN ADDITION
This area, too, was once sandy waste, but after World War II the district became pop-
ulated by Southern African-Americans who came west for work. For a short time, it
was famous for jazz and blues clubs, as embodied, until his death in 2001, by John
Lee Hooker and his Boom Boom Room. Today, it is still largely African-American
in character and rather rundown, although it does comprise architecturally odd
St
Mary's Cathedral
and photogenic
Alamo Square
.
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10. THE RICHMOND DISTRICT
This flat district of row houses begins at Masonic Street, sandwiched between Golden
Gate Park and California Street. It ultimately extends all the way to the Pacific Ocean,
being more and more prone to stay fog-bound the farther west you go. The district
is very ethnically diverse and generally middle class. Over the decades, it has been
settled by White Russians, East European Jews, and most lately Chinese-Americans
and another wave of Russians.
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