(Guest Post) Sarah Goes to San Francisco

That’s right guys, gals, and non-binary pals, your favorite guest blogger is back with tales from a week and a half in San Francisco!

I want to continue the quality travel content that Justin is providing on this website, but to be fair I was in California for three reasons: I needed a break from the depressing nightmare that is New York in January, I wanted to see some friends, and the state just legalized recreational marijuana this month. I’ll try to keep things professional by giving you a few SF highlights and answering the most important question: Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana before going there? My guide is, as always, accompanied by the finest in budget smartphone photography.

Street Art in the Mission

There’s a couple alleys famous enough to show up on a map, but you can spend a whole morning just walking around near 24th Street and turning whenever you see something colorful.

Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana?
Sure. You’ll duck into enough alleys that at some point you’re bound to find an empty one to light up in (not that I would ever condone a criminal act like public drug consumption), and it’ll make the aimless wandering more entertaining.

Twin Peaks

It’s a good view, but confusing enough to navigate that it’s worth enlisting a local friend for help.

Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana?
Ugh, no. Lots of uphill walking, save your lungs the trouble.

Food & Coffee

Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana?
No. Everything in San Francisco costs approximately one billion dollars, and if you get the munchies you won’t be able to afford your return flight. I still ate like an absolute fiend so it’s a bit touch and go with the rent right now.

Here’s some places I ate food/drank coffee at:
Tartine: famous for pastries and bread but their baristas make a mean gibraltar
La Taqueria: tasty burritos
Ritual Coffee Roasters: coffee coffee coffee
Orphan Andy’s: 24-hour gay diner that offers a side of pancakes bigger than the rest of your breakfast
Balompie: delicious pupusas
Taqueria Cancun: more tasty burritos
Stanza Coffee: suspiciously smooth Kyoto cold brew
Taqueria El Farolito: additional tasty burritos

Sutro Baths & Land’s End

Ruins! Beaches! Nature! Right in the city!

Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana?
Yes, provided you don’t mind breaking a bit of a sweat hiking up and down the trails. Nothing makes me want to look at pretty rocks and trees more than smoking a spliff, and it’ll make you feel better when you can barely see the Golden Gate Bridge through the fog.

Shopping

I hate shopping and I’m hardly flush with cash, but the sheer number of independently-owned businesses in San Francisco means you can find stores that feel like they were made specifically for you to enjoy. For me it was Bolerium, a radical gay bookstore with shelves organized by social movement, and Silver Sprocket, a temporary gallery selling comics, art, and accessories with a feminist/queer bent.

Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana?
Not unless you want to spend all your money, dum-dum.

Hiking in Marin

My initial plan was to go to Muir Woods, but apparently it’s so overrun with tourists these days that you need to make a parking reservation ahead of time. If there’s one thing I hate more than crowds, it’s planning responsibly; also I tend to say “wow” and “holy shit” out loud while hiking, and I don’t like to be judged for my innocent, childlike wonder. On a friend’s advice I drove a little further to Stinson Beach and hiked the much quieter Matt Davis – Steep Ravine Loop.

Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana?
Yes (see above re: pretty rocks and trees). If you start at Matt Davis Trail from Stinson Beach, the first half is all uphill, which can be fairly punishing for an out-of-shape stoner like myself. Feel free to spark one up once you hit the grasslands (remember to leave no trace and pack out your roaches). From there on out it’s easy going up until about a mile from the beach, which pays off with this gorgeous scene.

I mean, look at those rolling fucking hills. Jesus Christ. I literally stopped to breathe in with my arms outstretched. I felt like I was in the middle of a goddamn Bob Ross painting. Tell me those aren’t the happiest trees you’ve ever seen.

Botanical Gardens

Should I smoke legal recreational marijuana?
Oh my god are you kidding YES. Before heading in I got a bit (read: extremely) stoned and ended up staying for hours. That place is downright magical. It feels like you are stepping off the city sidewalk into a whole different world, and I was there in January. I think if I went when the plants were in full bloom my head might explode.

Thanks again to Justin for letting me borrow the keys to the blog. If you want to see what I’m up to in Brooklyn while I save up for another vacation, I’m on instagram @caterinevauban. Until next time!