09 May 2017

San Francisco Botanical Garden: 9 May 2017

This ramble to the San Francisco Botanical Garden started at West Portal and finished on Geary Boulevard.

Click on an image to see the full-size photograph.
This UPS driver is delivering a large shipment of packages. The location is in a commercial area of the Inner Sunset

The West Portal Branch of the San Francisco Public Library was built by the Federal Works Progress Administration between 1938 and 1939. The branch is located on Lenox Way at Ulloa Street. 

The entryway to a duplex located on Tenth Avenue in the Inner Sunset. 

A house located on Tenth Avenue in the Inner Sunset. 

This apartment building originally had a neighborhood grocery store located at street level. The Inner Sunset. 

I believe that this building was originally constructed as a neighborhood grocery store. The Inner Sunset. 

Arizmendi Bakery, a worker owned cooperative, was founded in 2000. It is located on Ninth Avenue near Judah Street in the Inner Sunset District. The Arizmendi Association is made up of seven member businesses. 

Plans for the San Francisco Botanical Garden (formerly Strybing Arboretum) were originally laid out in the 1880s by park supervisor John McLaren, but funding was insufficient to begin construction until Helene Strybing left a major bequest in 1927. Planting began in 1937, and the arboretum officially opened in May 1940. 

In the San Francisco Botanical Garden. 

In the San Francisco Botanical Garden. 

The San Francisco Botanical Garden. 

The San Francisco Botanical Garden. 

Traveling on a Muni Metro 38R bus heading east on Geary Boulevard. The destination is downtown San Francisco, as seen ahead in the distance. 

The distance traveled was approximately 5.6 miles (9.0 kilometers). The cumulative elevation gain was about 553 feet (168.5 meters). Mile markers are displayed on the GPS-generated track. 


This chart shows the elevation changes encountered during this ramble. 

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"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera.” Dorothea Lange 

"Photography has not changed since its origin except in its technical aspects, which for me are not important." Henri Carter-Bresson

"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." Ansel Adams

"The important thing is not the camera but the eye." Alfred Eisenstaedt


The first volume of the San Francisco Bay Area Photo Blog contains galleries of photographs that were posted on the Internet between 2002 and 2011. Click Here to view these photo galleries.

Panasonic GX7 camera body mounted with an Olympus 17mm lens was used to take these photographs.

Question or comment? I may be reached at neil@mishalov.com

05 May 2017

West Portal to Timbuk2 in the Mission District: 5 May 2017

I had an appointment to view the Timbuk2 messenger bag manufacturing facility located in the Mission District of San Francisco. I started the walk to Timbuk2 at West Portal and walked through Diamond Heights, Noe Valley, and the Mission District before arriving at the Timbuk2 factory for an informative one-hour tour.


Yes! The fast-moving runner could board the J-Church Muni Metro light rail streetcar; its final destination is downtown San FranciscoThis location is at the intersection of Church Street and Twenty-fourth Street. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

Here is a partial view of Glen Canyon Park as seen from the top of the ravine. John McLaren Park is visible in the distance; the view is looking south. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

This is a view of the newly completed Noe Valley Town Square. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

Here is a view of San Francisco Landmark #234. This is the Mission District Branch Library which is located at the southwest corner of Bartlett Street and Twenty-fourth Street. The library was opened to the public in 1916. Andrew Carnegie paid for the cost of its construction. Thank you, Andrew Carnegie! Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

The street art surrounding the House of Brakes on Twenty-fourth Street has been updated, and it looks amazing. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

A view of a MUNI bus stop, a small above-ground entryway location to the underground 24th Street Mission BART station, and Taqueria El Farolito. The location is Mission Street at Twenty-fourth Street. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.
This building has had an interesting history. It was built in the early 1900s, before the 1906 earthquake. It was originally St. Johannes' German Evangelical Lutheran Mission. The building, located on Twenty-second Street near Capp Street, was just out of reach of the 1906 fire that destroyed a large portion of the Mission District. In 1992 the congregation moved to a smaller building around the corner. This building then became a private residence. The plan was to divide the building into condominiums. At the last moment, the United International World Buddhism Association purchased the building for $2.5 million in 2002. It is now the Hua Zang Si temple. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

I joined about twenty people on a tour of the Timbuk2 headquarters building and factory. Timbuk2 is a San Francisco original; it was founded in 1989 by a bike messenger in a garage in the Mission District, not far from its current location. Since its inception, Timbuk2 has designed quality bags and packs. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

This is the Bethany Center Senior Housing building. It is located in the Mission District on Capp Street at Twenty-first Street. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

The distance traveled was approximately 5.7 miles (9.2 kilometers). The cumulative elevation gain was about 318 feet (97 meters). Mile markers are displayed on the GPS-generated track. Click on the image to see the full-size map.

"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera.” Dorothea Lange 

"Photography has not changed since its origin except in its technical aspects, which for me are not important." Henri Carter-Bresson

"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." Ansel Adams
"The important thing is not the camera but the eye." Alfred Eisenstaedt


The first volume of the San Francisco Bay Area Photo Blog contains galleries of photographs posted on the Internet between 2002 and 2011. Click Here to view these photo galleries.

Sony RX100 camera was used to take these photographs.

Question or comment? I may be reached at neil@mishalov.com


29 April 2017

A walk starting at the Ferry Building, then over Telegraph Hill and Russian Hill; and finishing at the Presidio: 29 April 2017

This ramble began at the Ferry Building and traveled northwest along San Francisco Bay via the Embarcadero to the Levi Strauss headquarters. The route then ascended Telegraph Hill via the Filbert Steps and the Greenwich Street Stairs. After which, the ramble continued to the Presidio of San Francisco, the conclusion of this walk.



The Southern Pacific Building is located on Market Street near the Embarcadero. The construction of the building began in 1916 and was completed in 1917. The property was the headquarters for the Southern Pacific Railroadit was the tallest steel-framed structure west of the Mississippi River at the time of its constructionClick on the image to see the full-size photo.

The distance traveled was approximately 5.2 miles (8.4 kilometers). The cumulative elevation gain was about 553 feet (168 meters). Mile markers are displayed on the GPS-generated track. Click on the image to see the full-size map.

This photo was taken from the EmbarcaderoMarket Street Railway streetcar #1071 is traveling towards the Ferry Building. The final destination on its route is the Castro District. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

This is the corporate headquarters of Levi Strauss & Co., the manufacturer of Levi Jeans. The site is located on the east side of Telegraph Hill  Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

The east side of Telegraph Hill with the Filbert Steps leading the way to the top of the hill. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

This is Julius' Castle; it is San Francisco Landmark #121 and is sited below the summit of Telegraph HillThe view is looking north. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

The Filbert Steps are steep and beautiful. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

This is a view of Nob Hill as seen from the summit of Telegraph Hill. The picture is looking southwest. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

Here is a vista of Russian Hill as seen from Filbert Street on Telegraph Hill. The view is looking west. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

Saints Peter and Paul Church is located on Filbert Street adjacent to Washington Square Park. This is the church where baseball legend Joe DiMaggio's life story was recorded. 
DiMaggio married actress Dorothy Arnold at Saints Peter and Paul Church on 19 November 1939; 20,000 well-wishers jammed the streets during the wedding ceremony. They had a son on 23 October 1941 and were divorced in 1944. 
On 14 January 1954, DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe eloped at San Francisco City Hall. After the marriage at City Hall, Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio went to Saints Peter and Paul Church to be photographed together on the church's steps. DiMaggio was still married to Dorothy Arnold as far as the Church was concerned, and thus he could not be married to Marilyn Monroe within the church. DiMaggio's funeral was held at the church on 11 March 1999. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

 Washington Square Park was established in 1847. It is one of San Francisco's first parks. Here are a group of people doing their morning exercise in the park. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.


The Tons of Bubbles Laundromat is located on Russian Hill at Jones Street and Filbert Street. The business was started by Deanna Caprini on 21 November 2004, her twenty-second birthday. She is still making bubbles, and money, at this location. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

This is a view from near the summit of Russian Hill, looking east down Filbert Street. Telegraph Hill is ahead, with Coit Tower proudly occupying the top of the hill. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

Here is a view from Russian Hill looking west. The Marina District and the Presidio are visible. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

The Palace of Fine Arts, located in the Marina District, was constructed for the 1915 Panama-Pacific Expositionit was designed by the esteemed architect Bernard Maybeck (1862-1957). Bernard Maybeck moved to Berkeley, California in 1892, and was a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

 PresidiGo Shuttle is a free bus transportation system that became operational recently. The shuttle was authorized by the Presidio Trust. This picture was taken from a PresidiGo Shuttle bus heading from the Presidio of San Francisco to downtown San Francisco. The bus is now traveling east on Lombard Street. Russian Hill is ahead. Click on the image to see the full-size photo.

This graph shows the elevation changes encountered during the walk. Click the image to see the full-size chart.

Bay Area Rapid Transit recently inaugurated a new train station on the BART system. The Warm Springs/South Fremont BART Station became operational on 25 March 2017. This new version of the BART route map illustrates the location of the new station. Click on the image to see the full-size photograph.

"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera." Dorothea Lange 

"Photography has not changed since its origin except in its technical aspects, which for me are not important." Henri Carter-Bresson

"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." Ansel Adams
"The important thing is not the camera but the eye." Alfred Eisenstaedt


The first volume of the San Francisco Bay Area Photo Blog contains galleries of photographs posted on the Internet between 2002 and 2011. Click Here to view these photo galleries.

Panasonic GX7 camera body mounted with an Olympus 17mm lens was used to take these photographs.

Question or comment? I may be reached at neil@mishalov.com.

20 April 2017

A Caltrain ride to Palo Alto, including a view of Steve Jobs' home: 20 April 2017

This journey started at the San Francisco Caltrain station at 4th and King Street and finished at the Caltrain California Avenue station in Palo Alto. From there, it was a short walk to view Steve Jobs' (1955-2011) Palo Alto home for the last twenty years of his life. I then walked through the Old Palo Alto neighborhood and the Professorville Historic District in Palo Alto. I continued walking north through Palo Alto and into Menlo Park, the corporate headquarters of Facebook. At the Menlo Park Caltrain Station, I boarded a train going to San Francisco. 
I did not take the train all the way to San Francisco. Instead, I took Caltrain to the City of Millbrae's fourteen-year-old Intermodal Terminal, a train station for both Caltrain and BART trains. I switched to a BART train in Millbrae and took it to the 24th Street Mission BART station in the heart of San Francisco's Mission District. I went upstairs to ground level and had a burrito at La Taqueria. Then I went back underground and boarded another BART train for the ride home.


In 1989, Steve Jobs met his future wife, Laurene Powell, when he gave a lecture at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where she was a student. After the speech, Jobs met up with her and invited her to dinner. Jobs and Powell married in March 1991. Jobs and Powell moved to this house in Palo Alto in 1991Their first child, Reed, was born in September 1991; they had two more children, Erin, born in August 1995, and Eve, born in 1998. Jobs died in this house on 5 October 2011; he was 56 years old. The house is still owned by the Jobs family. 

The distance traveled by Caltrain from San Francisco to the California Avenue station in Palo Alto was about 32 miles (51.5 kilometers). Mile markers are displayed every two miles on the GPS-generated track. 


San Francisco's 4th and King Street Caltrain station. 

Boarding the train at San Francisco's 4th and King Street Caltrain station. 

All Aboard! 

San Mateo Caltrain station as seen from the train. 

Menlo Park Caltrain station as seen from the train. 

 Palo Alto University Avenue Caltrain station. Yes, this picture was also taken from the train.

Palo Alto's California Avenue Caltrain station. This is where the walk began. 

A home in the Old Palo Alto neighborhood. 

Another home in the Old Palo Alto neighborhood.

This home is located in the Professorville Historic District of Palo Alto. 

The distance rambled was approximately 4.3 miles (6.9 kilometers). Mile markers are displayed on the GPS-generated track. 

"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera." Dorothea Lang 

"Photography has not changed since its origin except in its technical aspects, which for me are not important." Henri Carter-Bresson

"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." Ansel Adams
"The important thing is not the camera but the eye." Alfred Eisenstaedt


The first volume of the San Francisco Bay Area Photo Blog contains galleries of photographs that were posted on the Internet between 2002 and 2011. Click Here to view these photo galleries.

Panasonic GX7 camera body mounted with an Olympus 17mm lens was used to take these photographs.

Question or comment? I may be reached at neil@mishalov.com.