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by pmoriarty 3297 days ago
* Alcatraz (very touristy, but very cool. get tickets well in advance! make sure to take the audio tour, consider taking the night tour)

* Exploratorium (I recommend Thursday evenings when they serve drinks and there aren't any kids running around)

* Muir Woods (a forest full of gigantic redwoods, 20 min drive North of SF)

* Bike or walk across the Golden Gate Bridge

* Day trip South on Route 1 to Monterey to see the aquarium (the views on the way are stunning)
3 comments
vanilla_nut 3297 days ago
I second the Alcatraz night tour- not only is it a much cooler way to experience Alcatraz, you also get stunning views of both SF and the bridge. I really love your list, even though I don't know what the Exploratorium is.
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pmoriarty 3297 days ago
It's a science museum... the most amazing one I've ever seen by far. It's super geeky and full of interesting exhibits and gizmos, most (all?) of them made by hand on-site. It's an absolute must for anyone interested in science or technology. Go see it!!!

Interesting fact about it that I only recently found out:

The Exploratorium was founded by Robert Oppenheimer[1] ("the father of the atomic bomb") after his forced resignation.[2] If you keep an eye out, there are some plaques talking about this history at the museum, and there's also at least one uncaptioned atomic-bomb-related photo (of the first milliseconds of an atomic bomb explosion) on the walls.

[1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Oppenheimer

[2] - https://www.exploratorium.edu/about/history/frank

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isaaclyman 3297 days ago
The Exploratorium is a huge hands-on science museum. Everything sciencey that you could ever want to touch (or never imagined touching) is there. It's slightly geared toward the younger crowd, but my wife and I went last year and loved it. Stayed almost the whole day. Everyone should visit at least once.
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navbaker 3297 days ago
>>* Day trip South on Route 1 to Monterey to see the aquarium (the views on the way are stunning)

This is for sure a must-do. I would recommend going even further south than Monterey, at least to Point Lobos. This is one of the most beautiful places on earth.

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Simulacra 3297 days ago
For Alcatraz, call ahead and politely ask if someone might be willing to take you to the citadel. Very rarely seen part of the prison.
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