North Beach is known today as the Italian neighbourhood
although many immigrant settlers of different ethnic background called this
place home before the Italians. North Beach is one of the touristy parts of
San Francisco that I visit often, the reason being the joyfull atmosphere
and the fact that you can dine outside in numerous places. It's a nice place
to stroll and a good place to eat. At one point in time North Beach used to
be the bohemian neighbourhood of San Francisco, home for the San Francisco's
Beat counterculture so a walking tour of the neighbourhood must include the
Vesuvio Caffe, the City Lights Bookstore, the Tosca and Trieste Caffes, all
places of gatherings for the "beatniks" like Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg.
Another highlight of this area is the Washington Square Park lined on one
side by the Saints Peter and Paul Church, a beautiful Gothic Revival church.
And finally, no tour of San Francisco will be complete without seeing the
Coit Tower, which sits on top of Telegraph Hill. At night this place becomes
even more vibrant, with numerous bars, saloons and lots of jazz clubs. Really
nice. And I almost forgot about Broadway Street, also part of North Beach.
It's the "adult entertainment" zone.
