(Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2006)
And so ends a love affair … or, so begins an indefinite hiatus. An unrequited love; I’m sure San Francisco and Berkeley won’t miss me. Nonetheless, I agree with Herb Caen, who said:
One day if I do go to heaven … I’ll look around and say, “It ain’t bad, but it ain’t San Francisco.” [or Berkeley]
Although a couple of destinations didn’t live up to my expectations, I had great experiences and thoroughly enjoyed my time there. People who know how much I enjoy the Bay Area have asked me why. I usually reply, “It’s like Seattle on steriods; bigger and better.” How is it better? For starters, it’s much brighter. Sure, all those sunny days help, but it’s more than that. The Bay Area is so colorful, with its brightly painted houses and murals (Seattle colors are more subdued). Downtown San Francisco has a wonderful mix of original, traditional buildings alongside modern, steel and glass skyscrapers (in Seattle, we usually do away with the old to make room for the new). Although San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland, and Alameda comprise a large region, that entire area feels condensed and easily accessible. The many public transporation options make it very easy to get around: A couple of different bus systems, BART, and, in downtown San Francisco, cable cars. I took advantage of all except the cable cars. And I relied a lot on my feet and found it easy to get around that way, as well. Even with as much mileage as I put on my feet these past 3 weeks, I felt like everything I wanted to see and do was fairly close together.
And the Bay Area has so many vegetarian, vegan, and vegan-friendly restaurants — at least 4 100% vegetarian or vegan restaurants within a mile (easy walking distance) of the place I stayed.
In short, the Bay Area is perfectly suited to my car-, meat-, dairy-, and egg-free lifestyle. (Better suited than Seattle, although I remain quite fond of the Emerald City.)
A note about the people: Everyone I encountered in the Bay Area was friendly and helpful: Restaurant staff and owners; bus drivers; BART customer service folks; Garland, who invited me into the (empty at the time) little church in Berkeley to look around and take pictures, and Anthony, who told me a bit about the history of the church; the young man who saw me consulting my map on a street in San Francisco’s Upper Fillmore neighborhood and asked if he could help me find something.
And have I mentioned that the weather was mostly spectacular?
(Question for self: Why did we come back to Seattle? Oh yes, this is where The Boyfriend and The Friends are.)