I continued northeast, wandering into what looked like SF's red light district. I like the advertising line of the bar in the last photo: "Where - good friends & girls meet"; at least it's not trying to hide what type of place it really is hahaha.
I headed back west, ending up wandering through Chinatown again.
Coming out the south end of Chinatown.
Definitely no longer in Chinatown; I continued westward along Bush St. through the southern end of an area known as Nob Hill, which looked to be mostly residential. More interesting architecture to keep my eyes busy!
Continuing west, I crossed into a mainly residential neighbourhood known as Lower Pacific Heights, which includes SF's Japantown (4th photo).
Wow, remember when this was such a big deal? I still haven't gotten my shot yet, and I don't think I ever will hahaha.
Continuing on through Lower Pacific Heights. Check out the crazy network of cables for the buses (3rd photo)!
More interesting graffiti.
The real reason why I wandered this far out west from the SF downtown core: a deadstock shoe specialty store called harputs. On their website, they were showing they had a pair of deadstock shoes that I really wanted, so I figured since I was going to be in SF, I might as well head out to the shop. Well, wouldn't you know it, with my luck, the shop was closed when I got there! They already had a moving sale and were in the middle of relocation, but nothing was listed on their website when I checked! I wouldn't say this trip was a complete waste of time, since I still got to see areas of SF most tourists probably don't see, but it was still a long walk to get out this far from where I started and I was really disappointed to learn the store was closed.
An interesting statue I noticed near the shoe store.
Looping back around east through Japantown. The Peace Pagoda (2nd photo) was donated by the city of Osaka, Japan! There were quite a few Korean shops in the area too.
Passing through the northern end of another neighbourhood known as Tenderloin. There were so many homeless people here - SF has one of the highest homeless rates in the US - and the Tenderloin area is considered a high crime area (I could feel it, prior to now researching this fact, when I walked the streets).
At Union Square. There were so many upscale shops in the area! And who says you can't go skating outdoors in sunny California (7th photo)? I ended up stopping in the Nike flagship store to take a look around - not as nice as the NYC one hahaha.
My last stop of the day in SF, the Financial District, with more interesting architecture to look at. It might've been the buildings or the sun starting to set, but the streets felt more cramped compared to the financial district in Toronto.
On the bus ride back to the Caltrain station. I could've easily walked back, but I came across a bus headed for the station just as I passed a bus stop, so I decided to board it. They have a pretty strange way of checking for fares though - halfway through the ride at one of the stops, the bus completely stopped, and transit officers came on and checked everybody's fare as they exited the bus and then everyone else who remained seated. The way it works in SF is that you're given a transfer ticket automatically after paying your fare, and luckily I read the ticket to know that you're supposed to keep it as proof of payment even if you don't plan on using it, but it seemed like such an unnecessary and time-consuming step, since you pay once you get on the bus at the front like in most cities. I guess they have a lot of problems with people trying to sneak on through the back doors?
Back at the Caltrain station.
Double-decker, just like the GO trains.
How appropriate that my day would end at a station called California Avenue! The dusk sky was gorgeous, and with this photo marked the last time I'd explore a city solo with only camera in hand, at least for now anyway...
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