A little house within

I have tried many times to get this shot on a clear blue sky, but I have never managed to.
I got a little help from Google + and there you are.

The last time I walked past that building, the little house within was gone....

Worldwide fixture

This reminds me of Paris, of course...
They are everywhere in the city and you can even find some in the Bay.

Yoda in the De Young Museum

The From Botticelli to Braque exhibition has an unexpected character  in one of the paintings...

Could be Harry Potter's Dobby as well...
I let you decide!

In any case, what an amazing, surreal piece of art! I will go back there because there are so many details it deserves another visit for sure.

The Reconciliation of Oberon and Titania (by Sir Joseph Noel Paton)

From the Aquarium

A few weeks ago, we went to the Aquarium.

I wouldn't say it was the greatest Sunday excursion ever.

It was sunny out so I expected few people in the Aquarium, but there were way too many.
Parking is a nightmare. We went to that lot that says free first hour... Turns out, it's only if you eat at some of their selected restaurants... We hadn't!
And then my little one was scared in the shark-ray tunnel. But not of the fish, no. Of the divers who were cleaning the windows...

Next time maybe.

Time flies...

 Old Saint Mary's Church in Chinatown has a message for you...

I find it very powerful. And so true.

We all do the most stupid things when we're young!
I know I did...

Boston in SF

I suppose Cable Cars are not so common anymore and you got to take them from where ever you can... So where did the Giants city got this one?!?

From the Red Sox city, of course!

 

One of my favorite city on the East Coast :)

In Sutro Park

During my second visit to this beautiful park, I noticed these amazing statues...

 One of the 2 lions guarding the entrance of the Park.

Somebody decided that this one needed new antlers!

Diana. The goddess of the hunt.

Turning...

I had noticed this one quite a while back and was waiting for a clear blue sky to take a picture...
Here it is.

A very graceful weather wane.

Intriguing Statue

I have no idea what culture this statue is from. But I love her.
On a sidewalk in the Richmond.

What time is it? It's Valentime...

Another heart in San Francisco...
(Sutro Baths)

Double Entendre

There was a time when everything was a little bit more subtle...

That was way before some men starting wandering naked on Castro Street (now an illegal practice and for sure, not so common in the cold weather).

The old jokes are still there but with the Castro reinventing itself I thought it was wise to immortalize them...

I have been in that restaurant once. Methinks, I did have lasagne with sausage...

I haven't visited the next one. A very much less subtle little shop. I figure it came after... ;)

 

The Moby Dick pub is my favorite one (in terms of innuendos). But I haven't set foot in there either...

The Bridge

Yesterday morning, we were driving along the Bay, past the Marina and Crissy Field, on our way to the other side... We all went "oh WOW".
It was stunning.

I see the bridge almost every day : there are enough hills in SF so that you can do that... But seeing the bridge up close, in the morning light, that was something else.

Artful Engineering

It had already occurred to me before, especially with the white umbrellas piece (that one) but it suddenly became clear with this one. My favorite street artist has more than one talent.

In this very ingenious country, it should come as no surprise...
Most of these pieces turn with the wind. And their realization are therefore very much thought upon.
Duh!

Carousel

My favorite street artist has been hiding a little gem from me... I was going down Church when my eye caught a statue at the end of the foot bridge going to Dolores Park. I tried to take a picture. Then I saw it.

Beautiful.

My favorite so far!

Cervantes in the Park

Any time I walked past this statue, a song comes to mind : Don Quichotte y Sancho Panza

Cervantes has many different fans...

:)

Yellow House

Somewhere in the Sunset, there is a very very pink house.
I took a picture of it on a very sad foggy day... I may have delete the photo from my folders. But I will post it some day because it's worth seeing.

Seeing this yellow house for the first time, I was wondering if I hadn't spotted it before because of the poor weather.
Who knows?

This corner house is stunning. And against that blue blue sky, it certainly reminds me of my hometown...

Amazing Portraits!

I was walking down Castro street, when I saw this...
With my bare eye, it wasn't quite clear but it became evident with the help of my clever camera!

I have read some of James Baldwin's writings... A long time ago. At school. He was pretty popular among my English teachers. Probably because he was a neighbor. Mainly because of the themes of his essays...

As I carried on with my journey, I almost missed the next one (and last -unless I am mistaken) :

Probably because of the shadows...

This one, I have never read.
Poetry has never been my forte.

The Transamerica Building

I walked past early last week for a very serious business. I was impressed.
It's majestic!

It was the first time I was so close (not the last time as it turns out that one of my friend works in the vicinity) and I  found out that the pyramid pattern goes all the way!
WOW!

It's even in the name : Transamerica Pyramid!

Postcard from Chinatown

An empty cable car stopping on Grant St.
On a week day, early morning!

Haring in the Park

A very colorful statue! Very, very, very happy one. Not quite the illustration of what is inside the museum...

I wanted to take this photo for a  long time but each time I went the weather was not the best.

I went back last week and it was a perfect day.

I went back inside and it was as powerful as the first one.  My 8 year old kid asked me why we hadn't been there as a family yet... I can't see myself explaining some of the paintings. Not appropriate I said. Some paintings are too violent, aggressive. You'll see them when you are older.

I know some children went there. I would love to know how they experienced their visit!

The Conservatory

A very pretty building. Even more so in the cold winter sky.

I have come to like what's inside that building : flowers, trees, flowers and some butterflies, fish and other little critters!

Just like the Botanical Gardens next door, this is a very peaceful visit. The colors are amazing and some plants are worth seeing.

The Jungle House 2

A while back I posted a photo of a Jungle House (I called it that way for obvious reasons).

Not my favorite house of SF but noticeable for sure...

After a cover up that looked like a Breaking Bad operation, the house is now all repainted and has some new features...
Can you spot the differences? ;)

Nice job, people!

End of the line

I rarely go there but it's pretty nice...
I still haven't been on this cable car. The lines are always so long to get there!

Another Beast...

I only saw this one 2 or 3 times in the city. I suspect it was a communication stint. But I can't be certain. Maybe somebody in SF really owns this car...
Flashy. Flashy.

Funky House

I like this house.
It's pretty amazing and I'm not even an architecture enthusiast... But no one can deny it : the craftsmanship is stunning.

Paris, France

In San Francisco, there are many little pieces of France.
Some are more obvious than others.

I have to thank a website for this one.
Thank you LostinSF.

Not for everyone to see!

Carpooling has its advantages! One of them is driving through different routes and discovering what only a few people see...

Like these amazing murals!

I have to thank my daughter for these, of course. Because I hadn't seen them : I was driving!

 

Thank you, my heart!

For Charlie

I feel like a Miss World contestant... But, wouldn't it be nice to live in non-violent world?!?

Underground...

It took me 4 years to discover that there was an underground part of the Castro (the other kind of underground).

SFMuni is actually bigger than it shows... What a surprise!
I think I use my car too much.

The Mills

There are 2 mills at the very end of the Golden Gate Park. This is one of them.
We have yet to walk by them.

One of my New Year's resolutions for 2015.

Sutro Baths

I'm back!
Did I miss SF? Not really.
I am certainly glad to come back to more mild weather :)

Today then, I'll post a picture of a sunny afternoon spent at the Sutro Baths. Possibly my favorite historic site of San Francisco.
If you go to the information center close by, you can see pictures of how they used to look and they looked amazing...

That picture was taken quite a while back. Since then the site has been a little bit flooded but it's still worth a visit.