Tips for Oz and San Francisco please

[OurManInTangier]

Hi.

I'm working in Australia (Perth) for a week at the end of July then driving from Adelaide to Sydney before heading up to a place called Bloomfield just north of Cairns for a weeks holiday before flying to San Francisco for five days work there.

If anyone could recommend some good places to explore with my camera, decent bars & general places to visit I'd be extremely interested and grateful.

I'm stopping off in Singapore briefly first but know my way round quite well, Oz and San Francisco are both new to me though so a little help from some locals would be great!

P.S. SF MoMA is already on my list just from seeing various RFF'ers photos

Thanks

 

[35mmdelux]

1) The Cliff House and the Baths -- two classic side-by-side locations off the Pacific.
2) Twin Peaks - two highest points in S.F.
3) Coit Tower - high point near the bay, great vantage, and a short hike to the wharfs.
4) Walk from Union Square (downtown) through Chinatown to North Beach (entertainment, nightclub area).. Short walk from North Beach to Columbus St restaurants. Enjoy the trip.

 

[djfiesta]

I've only been to Perth once, but Fremantle is really nice, sit by and relax on the Cappuccino Strip.

Depends how long you're in Adelaide, you can wander through our gardens (don't know how different it'll be to any other gardens in any other city), our parklands, and our rather small city. Great restaurants in our town, some nice ones in the city on Rundle Street, and Gouger (Goo-ja) Street for the more Asian persuasian.

Outside the city there are the famous winery area's of Barossa Valley and Mclaren Vale, seaside town of Victor Harbour for whale watching, and if time permits a trip over to Kangaroo Island to see the penguins and seals in their natural element (as well as too many Koala's and Kangaroos).

I'll let Sydney natives tell you more about their local areas.

 

[mfunnell]

Sydney, well, there's so much so it really depends on what you like and want to photograph. There are the really obvious places (Circular Quay, The Rocks, the Queen Victoria Building, Darling Harbour, Chinatown) that, while obvious, also give many great photo opportunities and have decent bars, coffee places, restaurants etc. From there, well, pick a direction: down south to the Royal National Park, north to Kuringai National park (varied, with lots of things to see, do and photograph), west to the Blue Mountains (for the scenery or the old-style buildings in various towns or the bush). And on it goes. PM me, if you like, and give me an idea of what you're after.

Or PM me and I'll see about meeting up at a pub somewhere then playing local guide, depending on my employment circumstances (if they're what they are right now I have plenty of time: if I find a new job between now and then, well, all bets are off).

I'm not just saying: PM me and I'll do what I can to help locally around Sydney.

...Mike

 

[wgerrard]

Bring comfy shoes to San Francisco.

Fisherman's Wharf is pretty touristy/tacky. Pier 39, on the eastern edge of the Wharf, is tackiness slightly upgraded, but might have some interesting photo chances if the mix of milling people and tourist shops appeals. It's also one place to catch a ferry across the bay. (I usually surrender myself to the tackiness and take pictures.)

The walk from the Wharf west along the bay, through Fort Mason and the Marina, and down toward the Golden Gate can be interesting. And has the virtue of being mostly flat.

I like to recommend that people get out of the city by taking a ferry across the bay to Tiburon and/or Sausalito. Weather cooperating, the view back to the city can be impressive, expecially at night. Sausalito, especially the strip right along the water, attracts and caters to tourists. Tiburon attracts tourists who spend money at a little cluster of shops right at the ferry landing, but the town itself is definitely one of those "You Can't Afford To Live Here' places. Both towns are small and easily walkable.

 

[.ken]

neat tips. i'm planning on making a SF trip soon as well so this is really helpful.

 

[chut]

In San Francisco, don't miss the Ferry Building Marketplace. It's a food lover's paradise and a great place to take photos. Also, the recently opened California Academy of Science Museum in Golden Gate Park is fantastic, especially the new aquarium.

 

[majid]

In SF the Presidio has great views and stunning scenery. So does Telegraph Hill.

The necklace of abandoned fortifications around the Golden Gate is quite interesting. Most are nominally closed to the public but still readily accessible:
http://www.nps.gov/goga/historyculture/seacoast-defenses.htm

 

[wayneb]

Yeah, don't bother with fisherman's wharf.

here's a few tips:
- for a walk, start at the sutro baths and walk the land's end trail to ocean beach. wonderful views.
- for a view, go to the top of the deyoung museum tower (across from the science museum in gg park). it's free.
- for a coffee, the best espresso drinks are at blue bottle coffee at mint plaza, or at the rooftop cafe in the sfmoma

 

[OurManInTangier]

Thanks for the info so far, very useful and will give me a better idea of what to research in more depth before I leave.

Mike, I'll send you a PM when I can, I'm waiting for full details of where and when I'll be dependant on the work I'm doing. Thanks for the kind offer.

 

[Jamie Pillers]

Hi Simon,
If you have a taste for the off-beat landscape stuff, I can tell you more about Treasure Island (abandoned military base w/great views of San Francisco and Bay); East Bay waterfront parks (trash sculpture/art/homeless encampments); East Bay hills trails (amazing views of the Bay, hiking trails to 'mystical' labyrinths). PM me. Depending on your schedule, I'd be happy to show you some of these places.
Regards,
Jamie

 

[monopix]

Are you hiring a car in Perth? If so, make sure you take the extra insurance which limits your liabilty. And when you take the car back photograph EVERY panel, including the roof, so you have proof of it's condition on return. I found out the hard way that they have a habit there of charging your credit card for 'damage' several days after you've left so you stand no chance of contesting it. I've since heard of others suffering fom this scam so it wasn't just me. Personally, I'd never visit Perth again if it was the last place on earth. I've never met such a bunch of miserable people, and they call us 'winging poms'...

 

[jmilkins]

If you are driving from Adelaide to Sydney (are you coming to Melbourne too?) I would highly recommmend one of the most scenic coastal drives in the country - the Great Ocean Road - http://www.greatoceanrd.org.au/

Melbourne is full of parks, cafes and laneways for interesting urban photography.

PM me if you are coming to Melbourne - we can have a beer/coffee, or both.

 

[RayPA]

If anyone could recommend some good places to explore with my camera, decent bars & general places to visit I'd be extremely interested and grateful.

For SF:

There are a lot of good bar and restaurant areas in the city that get pretty lively. For example, there's North Beach, which is a great place to shoot any time of the day, especially in the evening. Our local groups frequently plan night shoots up through there. The lower Haight has a bunch of bars and a great weekend nightlife.

Great street/scenic shooting areas are Market Street (pretty much the entire length), Chinatown, the Tenderloin (take care), Union Square, North Beach, the Haight and the Mission. The first five you could hit in one day. They all butt up against one another in one way or another. Local RFFers and Flickr groups frequently organize shoots that circle through these neighborhoods. You could probably spend a couple of days in each of those districts shooting nothing but street and scenic. The Mission is pretty big and colorful, and the Haight is cool, because you can shoot there and get to Golden Gate Park pretty easily--great if you like natural landscapes.

The other thing is there is always something going on in SF (e.g., street fairs (just about each district has one) or some wacky event). Depending on when you visit there might be more or less happening. There are SF event calendars that you can access, so check those out and let us locals know when you come into town. Maybe we can arrange a beer & gear.


/

 

[carlb]

OMInT

I live in Perth and would second the recommendation to spend some (if not most) time in Fremantle (or Freo as we natives call it). The CBD area of Perth is a bit the same as any other modern city (ie generally soul-less and not very distinctive or interesting in an architectural sense) but there are great views from Kings Park which is easily accessible from the CBD. For getting around outside the CBD a car will (unfortunately) be your best bet (but the drivers are awful!!!!!).

Feel free to PM me if you want any more info

Monopix: I've never heard of the scam you're talking about but it's probably not bad advice to use when you hire a car anywhere. And we're not that miserable, honest 🙁


Edit: I might be available for some sort of meet-up

 

[Keith]

I may be travelling to Perth from Brisbane to stay with a mate I haven't seen for years for a week or so at the end of July work permitting ... if so I'll be tracking you down Simon! 🙂

 

[jonmanjiro]

Hi.

I'm working in Australia (Perth) for a week at the end of July then driving from Adelaide to Sydney before heading up to a place called Bloomfield just north of Cairns for a weeks holiday before flying to San Francisco for five days work there.

I was going to suggest hiring a car and driving from Cairns up past Port Douglas into the Daintree Rainforest area, but I just looked up where Bloomfield is. You'll be right in the forest anyway! Great spot!!!

As for Sydney, there's lots to see there. It's always fun to catch a ferry from Circular Quay over to Manly, and back.

Chinatown can be fun if there's a festival on, and the Sydney fish markets are great if you like sushi!

Have a great trip!

Jon

 

[Tarzak]

Any trip to Adelaide that does not include a visit to the Central Markets is a trip wasted.

Lucia's is an old coffee shop inside and you have to hover around to wait for a table, the coffee is worth the wait.

 

[Tarzak]

Depending on where your work in Perth is, I'd recommend that you stay in Freo and commute to work in the city.
Freo is a really nice port town and Perth is just a modern city. It's only about 40 minutes on a bus. It might be quicker now, perhaps our Perth residents can add some accuracy to that.

 

[Tarzak]

Just checked the transperth website and you can catch a train from Freo at 8:30 and be in Perth before 9:00.