Monterey Bay Aquarium

Jackie and I took a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium some time ago. It's a pretty amazing place, comprehensive, informative, and entertaining. It's worthwhile whether you go with 987452903475 kids or not. It always seems to be fairly crowded, but the place is huge, and most visitors are good about viewing a tank for a moment, then moving on. There are gigantic tanks, tiny tanks, interactive exhibits, a fish petting zoo, and, since the building used to house a cannery, a cannery exhibit.

The jellyfish are particularly eerie and mesmerizing. Turns out they're poisonous! 

Of all the seahorses, these are the strangest and most beautiful. But the rest of the seahorses are nothing to sneeze at, either. 

The jellyfish do spend most of their time "upside-down". 

Other highlights:

Sea otters feeding time, is when they're most active, but also when the biggest crowd shows up. Check the feeding schedule, and find a spot about ten minutes before the feeding starts.

Be sure to make time for a visit, downstairs, to the Giant Octopus, another big favorite of mine. He lives pretty much in the dark, so photography's out.

Oh, and although the Aquarium is located in an area that is the bastard step-child of Pier 39 (rock candy, fridge magnets, etc), I did manage to spot this sweet ride there.

It's a hurried half day trip from SF, since it's about a two hour drive, going the fastest way. However, you should take the two-and-a-half hour drive along the coast. This scenic route features plenty of views, twisty roads, and historic WPA projects along the way.

Monterey Bay Aquarium, directions.

Dynamo Donuts

As much as it's changed over the last fifteen years, the Mission isn't swank. Oh sure, there's Liberty Heights, or Foreign Cinema, or that one bar where all the Marina people disgorge from limos, and there's a lot of condos, TIC's, and "lofts", but that hasn't changed the Mission's dirty, artfreaky little heart. And I still love the Mission.

I had a hankerin' for a donut, and I visited Dynamo Donut. Of course, it's been in the Mission for over a year so it's probably played out, but whatevs, it's donuts. Also, I'm 41 years old, and I don't care.

I went in the afternoon on a Sunday and it was real quiet. There's the counter there, on the sidewalk, and there's some seating inside.

That's right. These donut flavors are little round brothers to Bi-Rite Creamery's ice cream flavors. And yeah, check the prices.

Nevertheless, they're very good. Ugly, but good. Sweet but not so much your teeth hurt, you know? That's a spiced chocolate, a candied orange blossom, and a pumpkin chocolate chip. And no, I didn't eat three...I brought the pumpkin one home to Jackie.

It's very San Francisco to gourmet up some common food, and Dynamo does it Mission style. Well worth the visit.

How to get there Dynamo Donut + Coffee

2760 24th St at Hampshire. Ten minute cab ride from downtown, or take the BART to 24th and walk about six blocks, Eastward through the always "colorful" 24th St area. If you drive, take care where you park.

And if you hang out in that neighborhood, you could get lunch at Roosevelt Tamale Parlor (although it's really not the same since it's been remodeled), or have a sandwich at the St Francis Fountain, not to mention getting more coffee at Philz Coffee.

Bi-Rite Creamery's maybe a 20 minute walk from this area, if you feel like seeing if they have any identical flavors.

Goldsworthy's Spire

Jackie and I were running on a trail in the Presidio a while back when we were surprised by this huge wooden spire that had appeared.

It was pretty startling, and then intriguing. Turns out it's a work by Andy Goldsworthy. I like his work, and even more so his attitude toward his work and his process.

I watched Rivers and Tides some time ago. I was most struck by a scene where Andy Goldsworthy is carefully stacking rocks. He builds them up to a certain level, but the rocks suddenly collapse into an indiscriminate pile. He hangs his head in frustration for a moment but then says "This is my work".

You can find Spire by entering the Presidio at the Arguello Gate. Make a right at the gate and follow the road down the hill. After maybe a quarter mile, you'll see on overlook on your right. Look left and you should see the spire.

It's a ways from downtown, but if you catch the 38 Geary from downtown, get off at Arguello, and walk north, up the hill, about six blocks. That'll put you at the Arguello gate. Cabbies might not know where the spire is, but they should know the gate.

If you feel like getting some golf in after, the Presidio Golf Club is a public course. Or you could head down to Clement St and get a bite to eat. Giorgio's Pizza, Burma Super Star, and the tiny sushi place that's between those two are all great places. Avoid the sushi boat place however.

Finally, it seems that Andy Goldsworthy has inspired some imitators near the spire:

Tilt Annex

Jackie and I saw a film at the Metreon recently, and wandered around there afterward. In the space that was once the Microsoft Store (I know!), and has since been a bajillion different things, there is this:

If you haven't guessed, those are all claw games. And, spookily, just claw games. It's an entire store space in the Metreon occupied by nothing but claw games.

And nothing, and no one, else. Jackie and I were the only people in there. Occasionally a machine would kick into attract mode - make some blips and flash some lights, but otherwise, it was eerily quiet.

Just a bunch of lonely stuffed animal prisons and us. This claw machine room appears to be an annex of Tilt, next door. I remember Tilt from way back, as the arcade with virtual bowling and a bar. I don't remember anything about claw machines.

Claw machines have always struck me as a bit sad; never more so when dozens of them are packed into some otherwise empty space. Until I'd watched the video linked above, I never had proof that they're rigged, but I always instinctively knew that. Jackie and I, uh, admired all the toys, but felt no interest in trying to get any.

Even the prizes are a little off - these Disney characters are monochrome.

And yes, that is a VW Bus-shaped claw machine!

Tilt and the Claw Machine Annex are in the Metreon, San Francisco's premiere kiddie (and when I say kiddie, I mean late-teen) mall. It's right near downtown and a bunch of hotels, so it might be worth breezing through if you have a hankering for low-grade stuffed animals. Chronicle Books has a little store on the first floor, which is a good place to spend some time, but otherwise, there's not much of interest in the Metreon.

Well, since they closed the Warhammer store. Now that was a place for social anthropology.

Pika Pika

Jackie and I went to Japantown recently. Japantown's always struck me as odd - there's a weird energy there, like it's built on an indian burial ground or something. It's nothing that really sticks with you, it's just a bit off.

But it has the Hi-Tech Car Air Freshener Store, a combination weird/awesome knife store, pretty good Udon at Mifune, and a dozen other japanese stores. Oh and now that Sundance has taken over the cinema and turned it into a cocktail-dinner-movie experience, the movies have gotten better.

But it also has Pika Pika.

This entire shop is devoted to insanely complicated japanese photo booths. It's in the corner and the outside is pretty nondescript - I'd never noticed it but it's been there awhile. Walking in results in slight disorientation because of all the graphical busy-ness, jpop music, and occasional shrieks of teenage girls. Picking a booth turns out to be rather difficult. There are about a dozen, and they're all kind of overwhelming, not least because all the instructions are in japanese. In the end, I'm not so sure it matters which one you choose...

That's right. Eight bucks. Well worth it though. You put your money in and step inside. And then you panic. There's a shrill voice telling you what to do (in Japanese) and high strung girls on video showing you how to pose...and a countdown. You try to keep up and do something interesting.

After (5? 10? 30?) minutes, you've posed four to five times, encouraged to do some pretty bizarre things. But wait, you're not done. Go around to the side of the machine where you'll find a screen with a stylus - here you can customize your pictures with as many saccharine glittery effects as your little heart desires.

You end up with something like this. If we were in Japan, you could have the machine email the pictures to your mobile phone.

It's pretty easy to get to - straight shot West on Geary from downtown ($10 cab ride, 15 minute bus ride, and there's a parking garage). All in all, it's a slightly bizarre, highly entertaining afternoon in San Francisco, especially if it's raining.

Find Pika Pika on Yelp.