joewhen

Judah is a local street; a mere residential street. Both sides are filled with houses and people are rarely seen traveling on the sidewalks; therefore, it is relatively quiet. Nevertheless, one of the muni metro lines, the N line, run along this street and provides a convenient source of transportation. The slope of this street varies from street to street, but overall is even sloped. Judah starts at the Great Highway and turns into Parnassus past 7th Avenue, making Judah a relatively short street. The street is wide enough for one lane on each side and parallel parking spaces are available on both sides of the street.

Noriega is relatively quiet for a large street. Like Ocean, only locals seem to utilize what this street has to offer. Some students would visit this street for lunch every school day. There are supermarkets as well as convenient stores. Safeway, Walgreens, as well as some Chinese owned bakery and dim sum stores. The 17 muni bus line runs on this street and connects Market street to the Great Highway. Although the street is marked for one lane in each direction, the marked lane is relatively wide. There are parking meters for each slanted parking space available to the public.

West Portal can be seen as the beginning of the gathering of all Muni Metro lines before they head off to downtown. This street, similar to Taraval or Ocean, contains convenient stores and food shops. Rite Aid, Walgreens, Starbucks, Noah’s Bagels, Goodwill, and more open up on West Portal Ave. Because this street leads to so many transfer lines, it is seen with many people whether it is leaving to go home or walking to get to work. The M line and the K line travel through this street before entering the underground tunnels. Perhaps because of this, the street is only wide enough to accommodate 2 lanes of traffic, at most, heading in each direction.

Taraval is a convenient street to local residence. Varieties of stores are present but most share the same idea, food. This, perhaps, makes Taraval a popular hangout place for teenagers attending Abraham Lincoln High School. From anytime between 11am to 1 pm every weekday, students can be seen roaming the street in search of food to fill their hunger. Most prefer “The 8 Immortals” if considering Chinese food and “Sushi Zen” when considering Japanese food. Of course, there is also “Kentucky Fried Chicken/ Taco Bell” if anyone prefers otherwise. Other than food, there is also Walgreens for everyday needs, a post office for passports and PO Boxes, and a public library for educational purposes.

Parnassus is the home of the well known University of California San Francisco. Heading east, Parnassus would slope up. The streets are filled with students, patients and visitors alike. Starting your journey at the bottom of the hill, you would notice houses to both right and left of the street. Once at the hill top however, one would see the hospital as well as a café. Of course, walking is not the only source of transportation, bus lines 6 and 43 can bring you right to the entrance of the campus. The N metro line can bring you to Irving Street, where you can get off and take an elevator to Parnassus.

Market Street is perhaps the most popular street in San Francisco. Other than its characteristic of being a diagonal street located at downtown, Market is a fairly congested business area. Tall buildings, busy company workers, and a lot of shoppers fill this street. Perhaps because it is “Union Square,” it has become a fast paced street with bus lines running in and out all day. All underground Muni metro lines gather along Market making it extremely convenient to visit. Starting from the heart of San Francisco to the edge, Market ends when it meets Embarcadero. Passing through this street, traffic and noise is a must.

Marina is a fairly even sloped scenic drive. Passing by, big houses, nice cars, and wonderful yachts welcome you. One side of the street is lined with houses which face the beauty of the ocean water. This street is far from quiet. People can be seen jogging, running, biking, and kite flying. Many events are held, not as often as every weekend, but a lot more than once a month. This street is wide enough for 2 lanes heading in each direction. Because this is a residential area, the speed limit is low, perhaps no more than 25 miles per hour. This may contribute to the presence of numerous stop signs instead of traffic lights. Marina controls traffic by putting traffic lights right at the border where the freeway and Marina meet. Stopped there, one would notice the presence of the Exploratorium and the Palace of Fine Arts; both an excellent choice for an educational field trip.

Sloat Blvd starts from the corner where the San Francisco Zoo and the ocean beach meet. It slowly curves; aligning itself to be parallel to the horizontal. Once past Saint Francis Woods, it becomes Monterey Blvd. I scarcely see populated sidewalks on Sloat Blvd; perhaps when school is let out, children will be the pedestrians that will fill this street. Except for the rushing of cars, not much will be heard. The 23 bus line runs along this street and links you to the zoo all the way to Lakeshore plaza. Once past 19th Ave, the amount of streetlights will diminish and mostly pedestrian crosswalks remain. Many traffic accidents have been caused at the intersection with 19th Ave. Proceed with caution.

The Great Highway is located along the beach. One could call it a scenic drive but, ocean beach is blocked off by a low rise cement wall. The neighborhood is quiet; only the rushing of cars and the clashing of waves could be heard. Depending on the part of the Great Highway you visit, one would find either green and beautiful nature or a few vendors parallel, or rather, facing the cement wall. The 18 bus line does not run on the Great Highway, but it does run parallel to it from two to three blocks away on 46th Avenue.

Sunset Blvd is similar to another 19th Ave due to the amount of cars and the width of the streets. However, the difference resides in the surrounding atmosphere. Sunset Blvd is a quiet street with grass on sidewalks and large trees planted between the houses and the actual street. Students as well as athletes can be seen using this street; whether it is for walking to school or training for cross country. The 29 bus line serves as the primary bus line and runs parallel to the 28 bus that travels on 19th Ave. Because Sunset Blvd stretches so long, it is hard to generalize the slope nevertheless, one can say that street lights are not available at every intersection.

The part of Ocean Avenue that is past 19th Avenue and into Ingleside is lined with mostly stores and restaurants. People range from children to the elderly. Students visit this street to buy lunch, get snacks, or just to hang out with friends. Elderly come out to take a walk or to complete their trip to the grocery store. The K Metro line is the main bus line that travels along Ocean. Ocean is relatively quiet for a big street; perhaps like another big street located in the Sunset District, Taraval Street. Ocean is an even sloped street and runs from Sunset Blvd to Mission Street. Chinese restaurants, coffee shops, and bakeries are a majority of the stores that are present on Ocean. Some well-known convenient stores open there as well. Some include Rite-Aid, Walgreens, Quickly and McDonalds. Of course, there are always exceptions. Besides food, there are some small clothing stores that sell clothes that range from formal wear to casual everyday wear.

Nearing the freeway entrance, precisely at Harding Road and Skyline Blvd, you will find Harding Park. This park, located between the two lakes of Lake Merced, is used by many sports team to practice and train for their upcoming races. When entering Harding Park, one would see the North lake on their left hand side and the South lake on their right hand side. The North lake is mainly used by the dragon boat teams in the bay area. The South Lake is used by crew teams. Not only is this park used for sports purposes, it also serves as a fine location to have parties and family gatherings. Below a small grassy hill, barbeque areas are available to the public. One can host a party while enjoying the view of the lake. A bathroom is not too far away from the site; convenient for athletes to change and for family members to stay sanitary.

Lake Merced Blvd is always filled with runners, bikers, roller bladders and joggers day and night. However, it may be considered hazardous to travel along this street at night unless you have good eyesight, for, there are no street lamps to light the path. Etching the outline of the half the lake, Lake Merced Blvd is a good circuit to exercise or just to take a breath of fresh air. Many are accompanied by their spouse, friends and pets; but nevertheless, this is not to say that it is a crowed street, nor is it an isolated area. When heading north on Lake Merced Blvd, one will find that it will turn into the sunset blvd. Heading south, however, will result in a transition from the County of San Francisco to the County of San Mateo. In the San Francisco portion of Lake Merced Blvd, the 18 Muni line runs the lower half of the street whereas the 29 bus runs the upper half.

Portola Drive, located on Twin Peaks, is a path that, if heading east, has an upward slope. This street is not a straight path like those in the sunset district; rather, it curves occasionally. Driving through this street, one would see that there are close to no pedestrians. The street is wide enough to provide 2 lanes and a parking lane in each direction. Decent houses line the road and there are occasional street lights and some pedestrian crosswalks with no stop signs. The 48 Muni line is the main bus line that runs on Portola, however, the 43 bus line also runs on this street for part of its route. Nearing O’Shaughnessy Blvd, convenient stores and small grocery stores are in business. Perhaps it is because they want to attract teenage customers from the nearby high school, The School of the Arts.

Clarendon Street is a fairly short street that seems to feel long do to the slope. This street connects forest hill Muni metro station to Clarendon Elementary School. Across from the school is a fire station. The 36 bus line runs along this street as part of its route. With the exception of cars running up and down the hill, the street is fairly quiet until 3 to 4 in the afternoon when the children are released from school. Clarendon Street does not have any street lights until it meets with Laguna Honda Blvd. There are pedestrian crosswalks; however, there are no stop signs. Whether it is sitting on the bus or walking along the sidewalk, you would notice that there are not many houses, only trees and occasionally a sign that indicates “no camping.”

Irving Street is a fairly even sloped street from 18th Avenue to 36th Avenue. In this section of Irving, there are many stores and shops. Like Clement Street in the Richmond District, most are Chinese grocery stores; but some, like Walgreens, The Pizza Shop, and the 22nd Ave and Irving Grocery Market, are exceptions. Nearing 19th Avenue, there will be street lights for 2 blocks. Past 20th Ave however, stop signs will appear at every intersection. People start to populate the street starting at around 9 to 10 in the morning. Perhaps it is a good thing that there is no bus line that runs along this street for, the width of the street allows at most 2 lanes of cars to pass in either direction. Nevertheless, there are bus lines that intersect Irving (28, 71, and 29.) On 18th Avenue and Irving, there is a Public Library as well as an elementary school. It is very convenient for parents to pick up their children and then shop for dinner.

Although Clement and Geary are separated by one block, these streets can be seen as opposites depending on which part of the street you have visited. In the Richmond district, Geary is more lively. Chinese restaurants and shops are present; similar to another street in Chinatown. Street lights are present at almost every street corner; if not, a stop sign will substitute it. The 2 Bus line run along this street but does not come as often as the 38 bus line which runs on Geary. Starting off at the northwest corner of San Francisco, Clement runs horizontally; parallel to Geary, but discontinues after encountering Arguello Blvd; perhaps mid San Francisco.

Geary is a fairly even sloped street. Although it is right next to Clement street, it is often very quiet. Street lights vary from street to street. The 38 bus line runs on this street; connecting two of the California Pacific Medical Centers. Other than that, shops such as car repair, fast food restaurants and big companies line the entire Geary street. For those who drive, Geary is a pretty wide road and runs 3 lanes in each direction. Geary Street stretches horizontally from east to west in the city of San Francisco. Heading west on Geary, I find it eventually turns into Point Lobos Ave and then into the Great Highway. Heading East, Geary eventually stops after hitting Kearny Street.

Columbus street stretches diagonally across the Northeast corner of San Francisco. It cuts through rectangular streets and has one end at Washington street. From there, it becomes a vertical street called Montgomery. The street has a fairly even slope that extends from Fisherman's Wharf to Chinatown. Shops line the street; cafes, restaurants, bars and even car repair shops. Traveling from northwest to southeast, I find that It is a fairly quiet street in the beginning, with plants lining the sidewalk every 5 feet. Nearing Chinatown, more people (tourists as well as residents) appear. The streets of Chinatown are rarely empty and crowds of people run in both directions. The 30 bus line runs along this street. It connects downtown to Chinatown and is very convenient to residents.

19th Avenue is often congested between the times of 8:30 to 9am. Running out of the freeway from Daly City, one might encounter traffic even though there may not be a traffic accident. Once past Sloat Blvd, traffic flows smoothly, perhaps because of the slow traffic lights in other directions. Don’t forget that the speed limit on this street has changed from 35 to 30miles per hour! The 28 bus line runs along this path. On this route, one would encounter the 29 line, the M line, the 23 line, the L line, the 48 line, and the N line. Most students take advantage of the 28 bus line in the morning, for they have to get to school on time. Once past Lincoln way, 19th Avenue becomes Park Presidio Blvd.

Holloway is always filled with cars during daytime. Driving along this street toward San Francisco State University, one would find that there are rarely any stop signs to stop one’s momentum. Parking spaces are available on both side of the street. It is when Holloway meets Junipero Serra that there are street lights. Big houses can be seen as one walks past their fenced yards. Bikers as well as joggers often use this street as their exercise route. Students walk along this path throughout the day from seven in the morning to seven at night. Pedestrians are often seen walking alone, emphasizing the overall safety level of Holloway.

Students of all ages can be seen walking on Garfield Street toward 19th Avenue as early as seven or eight in the morning. Younger children, ranging from middle school to high school board the convenient 29 bus line at the corner of every other street. This bus line serves as a link between numerous schools; be it Universities, high schools, or middle schools. Garfield is not congested, nor is it isolated. The streets may be quiet for a minute or two but the noise of mobile vehicles immediately follows, breaking the stillness of the neighborhood. If heading east on Garfield, the streets slope upwards. The slope ends however, once it passes Bright Street and becomes Grafton Avenue.