The heart of the city's legendary Italian district is now a diverse place where you can watch Chinese residents practice their morning tai chi in Washington Square Park; take in a strip show in a club along Broadway, or just sit drinking caffe latte and watching the world bustle by.
North Beach, which novelist and resident Herbert Gold calls a "glorious American bohemian operetta," is the birthplace of the beat movement. Poets and writers including Jack Kerouac, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, and Allen Ginsburg colonized this corner of San Francisco in the early 1950s, and Ferlinghetti's City Lights Bookstore (261 Columbus, at Broadway) continues to sell and publish works by little-known alternative authors.
Like Chinatown a few blocks to the south, North Beach is all about good eating. From the touristy splendor of The Stinking Rose: A Garlic Restaurant (325 Columbus Ave.) to the pleasures of piping hot focaccia bread from the Liguria Bakery (1700 Stockton Street), there are enough restaurants, bars, and coffee houses here to awaken the most jaded palate.
North Beach is one of the city's most photogenic spots, with the skyscrapers of the financial district looming to the south, the neon lights of the nightclubs along Broadway, and nearby Chinatown close at hand. Day and night, weather permitting, restaurants set up tables on the sidewalks, adding to the cosmopolitan flavor of the neighborhood.
Must-see sights include the double-turreted cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul (at Washington Square); and San Francisco's oldest Italian restaurant, Fior d' Italia (601 Union Street).
After soaking up the North Beach ambience, head up Telegraph Hill for breathtaking views of the city and the bay. Coit Tower awaits at the top of the hill; on the other side of the tower, the Greenwich Steps take you down the hill's eastern side, with still more beautiful views.
To best experience North Beach and Telegraph Hill, set aside a few hours to stroll the streets and check out the galleries, creative clothing shops, and second-hand bookstores. Enjoying a picnic in sunny Washington Square or a leisurely coffee in a sidewalk café is another way to get into the local spirit.
The
ever-expanding hub of the southeastern United States, Atlanta has grown from
an historic southern city into a huge modern metropolis comprised of
prestigious boroughs, corporate and theater districts, modern attractions
and more. Few American cities can match the unique blend of past and present
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Waldorf Astoria Staff Room Hotel is on par to the 202 hotels in the city. In
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Ave. Waldorf Astoria - Staff Room New York City contains Hot Tub/Whirlpool,
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