More Than 101 Fun Things To Do In The San Francisco Bay Area

[Photo above: Jesús and Ann in 1998 having fun in beautiful Northern California. Ah, the good ol' days!]

I can easily list thousands of great things to do in the San Francisco Bay Area. San José is only 40 minutes from Santa Cruz and 50 from San Francisco. The fun is close by in the Bay Area.

Yes, the Bay Area has great weather. While Austin and Redlands languish in 100+ degree weather ... San Francisco is a pleasant 75 in the summer. No wonder homes go for a premium there.

Here is my "short list" of fun things to do

1. See the sea lions at Pier 39 in San Francisco.
   
2. Visit the San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art.
   
3. Go to the University of California at Santa Cruz and see the redwoods.
   
4. Enjoy the beautiful homes and breathtaking coastline while driving from Pacific Grove through Del Monte ending in Carmel.
   
5. Go fishing off the Capitola Pier.
   
6. Visit the San Jose Rose Garden (Before San Jose evolved to become the heart of Silicon Valley it was called the Garden City).
   
7. Go to the Santa Cruz Beach and Boardwalk.
   
8. See a special performance or contemporary art at Villa Montalvo in Monte Sereno.
   
9. See the studios of emerging artists during open studios in San Jose or San Francisco.
   
10. Go to Carnaval in San Francisco.
    
11. Have a slice of pizza at Frida's Pizza in San Francisco's Mission District.
    
12. Save gas and the environment by taking a trolly, bus, Caltrain or BART ride to somewhere new in the bay area.
    
13. Drive scenic Highway 1 from San Francisco to Santa Barbara.
    
14. Watch the Oakland Raiders play football at the Oakland Coliseum.
    
15. Go to the world's largest flea market in San Jose.
    
16. See art at Galeria de La Raza in San Francisco.
    
17. Take a Red and White boat tour of the San Francisco Bay.
    
18. See low riders, Banda dancers, and much more, at the enormous San Jose Cinco de Mayo.
    
19. Take a cable car ride in San Francisco.
    
20. Enjoy international food and listen to music all weekend long during Tapestry and Talent in downtown San Jose.
    
21. Have a tasty hamburger or a crepe at the Crepevine in San Francisco's Sunset District.
    
22. Go bike riding or just enjoy the flowers at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco.
    
23. Take in Japanese Culture at the San Jose Obon festival.
    
24. See a painting by Frida Kahlo at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.
    
25. Shop at Bloomingdale's near Stanford University.
    
26. Have some of the best Vietnamese food in the Bay Area at Tu Lan on (sleazy) 6th Street near Market. Park yourself next to the cooks and watch the cooks perform.
    
27. Tour the wine country and order a beer.
    
28. See art or picnic at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco.
    
29. Have some of the best pizza on earth at North Beach Pizza.
    
30. Enjoy the San Jose Jazz Festival at Cesar Chavez Plaza.
    
31. Shop in the Castro, Haight Ashbury, Mission, Noe Valley, Pacific Heights, Marina or any of the unique districts of San Francisco.
    
32. Have a sandwich or coffee at Robert's of Woodside.
    
33. Rent a houseboat on Shasta Lake. You can get a tan while fishing.
    
34. See the San Francisco Fortyniners play football.
    
35. Watch for whales near Davenport.
    
36. Have an ice cream at Ben Jerry's at the corner of Haight and Ashbury in San Francisco.
    
37. Enjoy camping on a beach south of Carmel.
    
38. Shop at San Francisco's Goodwill or Sak's Fifth Avenue stores.
    
39. Fish, drink a soda and eat calamari at the Santa Cruz Pier.
    
40. Listen to music or dance in a club in San Francisco.
    
41. Go to San Juan Bautista and visit the Mission and shop for antiques in rural setting.
    
42. Camp, hike, bike ride, fish or whatever you like in Lake Tahoe. (Several hours from the Bay Area)
    
43. Have a BBQ at San Jose's Alum Rock Park. One of many parks to choose from in the San Francisco Bay Area.
    
44. Have a doughnut at Rollo's in San Jose.
    
45. Go fishing off the Pacifica Wharf.
    
46. Dance to Salsa music in the Mission District of San Francisco.
    
47. Visit the dramatic shoreline of Carmel.
    
48. Have breakfast at the Pork Store in the Haight Ashbury in San Francisco.
    
49. Shop and play in Capitola.
    
50. Investigate San Jose State University's new Martin Luther King Jr. Library.
    
51. Go to annual Greek festival in San Jose.
    
52. Go to Nordstrom's in downtown San Francisco and get your shoes shined for $2.00.
    
53. Picnic along the secluded San Mateo Coast.
    
54. Go to the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose.
    
55. See the sea otters and sea lions at Cannery Row in Monterey.
    
56. Visit the new Mexican-American Cultural Arts Center in San Jose and see a Chicano performance or art exhibit.
    
57. Take a charter boat-fishing trip out of Santa Cruz, San Francisco, Monterey, Half Moon Bay or Berkeley.
    
58. Shop or eat in San Francisco's Chinatown.
    
59. Visit the Green Gulch Zen Center near Mill Valley. Take a walk from there to their gardens to the beach where Alan Watts lived.
    
60. Have a Taco at Taco Bell (on the beach) in Pacifica.
    
61. Have lunch in downtown Mendocino. Watch out for the brownies!
    
62. Have coffee at Mr. Toot's (by the beach) in Capitola.
    
63. Camp at Big Basin State Park.
    
64. Grab a cup of coffee at Java Beach and stroll the shores of San Francisco.
    
65. Visit upscale galleries in downtown Carmel or San Francisco.
    
66. Have a steak at Original Joes in downtown San Jose.
    
67. See a Stanford or California football game.
    
68. Take photos in secluded Bodega Bay.
    
69. Go to Cole and Carl in San Francisco and take a short walk to the Haight Ashbury District.
    
70. Watch the Gay Pride Parade in San Francisco.
    
71. Catch plenty of catfish in the San Joaquin Delta.
    
72. Go to the Stanford University Chapel for a performance.
    
73. Visit California's most beautiful Mission in Carmel.
    
74. Take in a symphony, opera or ballet in San Francisco, San Jose or Oakland.
    
75. Go to the DeSassait Photography Gallery at Santa Clara University.
    
76. Take a dip and enjoy a massage at one of the many hot tubs in Santa Cruz. My favorite is the Well Within.
    
77. Have Sunday brunch in downtown Carmel.
    
78. Pick a quiet spot in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park and have a picnic or play a game of touch football.
    
79. Buy a book at City Lights bookstore in San Francisco's North Beach.
    
80. Take time for a leisurely coffee or lunch in Santa Cruz's Pacific Garden Mall.
    
81. Enjoy a performance or an exhibition at the Mission Cultural Arts Center in San Francisco.
    
82. Watch the Giants play baseball at the new ballpark in San Francisco.
    
83. Listen to Los Lobos or other performers at Santa Cruz's Catalyst.
    
84. Hike or picnic at Alum Rock Park in San Jose.
    
85. Buy a pumpkin for Halloween in Half Moon Bay.
    
86. Go to the Century theaters and see a movie in San Jose.
    
87. See motorcycle or auto races at Laguna Seca.
    
88. Picnic or play basketball at the San Francisco Art Institute. You will enjoy a great view of Fisherman's Wharf from the roof top basketball court and cafe.
    
89. Inspect the archives at the Chicano Center at San Jose State.
    
90. Go to downtown Los Gatos (Los Altos, Palo Alto, Burlingame, Sausalito, etc.) and observe yuppies down $6 cappuccinos.
    
91. Watch out for firecrackers at San Francisco's Chinese New Years Parade.
    
92. Go to MACLA in San Jose and see a Chicano art exhibit or performance.
    
93. Ride your bike in affluent Woodside, Atherton, or Hillsborough.
    
94. Hike in magnificent Muir Woods.
    
95. Just look in the newspaper...your bound to find a festival, performance or exhibit that is just right for you in the beautiful San Francisco Bay Area.
    
96. Go to a performance or exhibit at MACLA in downtown San Jose.
    
97. Have a picnic at Stinson Beach.
    
98. See the fish at San Francisco's Steinhart Aquarium.
    
99. Go horseback riding near Uvas Meadows in San Jose.
    
100. Visit the KPFA studios in Berkeley.
     
101. Stroll along the beach in secluded Bolinas.
     
102. Go water or snow skiing (gambling too) in Lake Tahoe. (Several hours away)
     
103. Hang out with the tourists at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39.
     
104. Go to annual Italian Carnaval at San Jose's Holy Cross Church.
     
105. Go shopping in downtown San Francisco. There are too many wonderful shops to list. Everything from fly-fishing gear to high-end fashions.
     
106. Go to the San Jose Museum of Art.
     
107. Enjoy the Santa Clara County Fair in San Jose.
     
108. Go to the Castro Theater in San Francisco and see a movie and an organ (music) performance during intermission.
     
109. See the San Jose Sharks (NHL).
     
110. Have some Japanese food in San Jose's Japantown.
     
111. Go to Zellerbach Hall at the University of California in Berkeley and see a performance.
     
112. Go boating in the San Francisco Bay.
     
113. Go water skiing in the San Joaquin Delta.
     
114. Have some corn on the cob or sushi at the San Jose Nihonmachi festival in Japan Town in San Jose.
     
115. Go sailing on the San Francisco Bay.
     
116. Drive to the top of Mount Hamilton and see the Lick Observatory in San Jose.
     
117. See Teatro Campesino perform La Posada in San Juan Bautista.
     
118. Take CalTrain from San Jose to San Francisco and back.
     
119. Drop someone off at Alcatraz Island.
     
120. See the giant redwoods in Big Basin Park near San Jose.
     
121. Hang out at one of the many Silicon Valley watering holes in San Mateo to San Jose.
     
122. Go to Japan town in San Francisco.
     
123. Enjoy a California or Stanford basketball game.
     
124. Take an extension class at one of the many colleges in the Bay Area.
     
125. Go dancing at the Top of the Mark Hotel in San Francisco.
     
126. Enjoy a sunset at any beach.
     
127. Visit the Galleries of the Academy of Art University or the San Francisco Art Institue.
     
128. Go water skiing at Calero reservoir or at several great area reservoir or lakes.
     
129. Visit Angel Island in San Francisco Bay.
     
130. Jog at the San Jose State University track.
     
131. And finally ... enjoy a beautiful summer day with no humidity ... anywhere in the Bay Area. That's my little jab at life in Austin, Tejas (I lived there from 1999 to 2005) where the summers are hot and humid — winters icy cold. No wonder Texans are so cranky.
     
     Once, I told a Texan I was from God's Country. She asked me what part? I said California. She immediately scolded me saying California was the "devil's playground." She proclaimed Texas is God's Country and gave me a long list of reasons why she "hated" California and Californians. I won't repeat her comments.
     

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