It's official: I am living in San Francisco.
The first two weeks of being reintroduced to city life has presented a whirlwind of adventure, excitement, and comfort. Within a matter of days after finishing finals, my best friends' graduations, and moving out of my condo in San Luis Obispo, I flew up to SF. Fortunately, my bags were not weighed at the airport...I could have sworn they were only 49.8lbs when I'd finished packing. Upon my arrival, I was swept off on a driving tour from the Bay Bridge to the Golden Gate Bridge-led by my boyfriend, Ryan. We got to my place, which is in the Inner Sunset district, and explored the fantastic 4 bedroom, 4 bath flat. My bedroom is larger than any room I've ever lived in, with two large windows looking over a...parking lot. They let in a great deal of natural light, though, which is always a good thing. One of the windows leads to the fire escape, and from there is a short ladder that takes you up to the roof. Currently, this is my favorite spot in all of San Francisco. When you reach the top of the ladder, you have a sweeping view of the city; from right to left, you see the stunning SF architecture, the ocean waves, the tree of Golden Gate Park, the DeYoung Museum and Academy of Science, the hills of Marin, the Golden Gate Bridge, and concluding with more green hills. In true San Francisco fashion, it's been too foggy and/or cold to stargaze yet. The keyword, however, is "yet". :)
My first weekend was spent becoming acclimated to my new surroundings. Considering I've only been up here three times, all during which I hadn’t seen much, I needed to get some important things down. I checked out my neighborhood; it's filled with eateries, cafes, pubs, and a few shops. I've found great Thai, sushi, Italian, and gelato already! Due to being near UCSF, the area is primarily filled with twenty-somethings and families-just the place I want to be. I’m not far from the Haight, Castro, or Inner Richmond, so there’s always something to do. Thanks to MUNI, (which I’m in close proximity to all the lines I could care about) I can get all around the City without a problem.
So, the rundown of my first two weeks included my first time on the Golden Gate Bridge, gluten-free pizza in Marin, Toy Story 3, and lots of crazy events all over the place. Ryan has been the best tour guide, making sure I see all the important sights (Union Square, Jack Kerouac Alley, the many bridges and towers, etc.) Also, I’ve been getting to see lots of old friends from Poly and BBYO. It’s been great to catch up with everyone and see how friendships can withstand the test of time.
My highlights thus far have included:
Vicoletto in North Beach: Without a doubt, the best Italian food I’ve ever consumed. Had a homemade cannoli at a local cafe after dinner, too, which was the best way to cap off the evening.
Vesuvio’s: Bar on Jack Kerouac Alley, where I went thanks to the recommendation from Dr. George Cotkin. The atmosphere is both eccentric and cozy; the Tiffany lamps accentuate the mix of intimate seating & beat-inspired art and clutter.
Gold Dust Lounge: On Powell near Union Square-happy hour goes from 7am until 8:30pm. The best $3.50 margarita that is only made better with the ridiculously horrific silver-haired rock’n’roll cover band that attempts to get some form of a tune down when they play the Beatles, Billy Joel, and Elton John. The people who drink a bit much from their tough days in the Financial District are great to watch, unless they try to make you dance with them...
Golden Gate Park: I am four blocks away; 6 blocks or so from the Academy of Science, and another block from the DeYoung Museum. Heaven.
MY INTERNSHIP!!!!: Oh man...the whole reason I’m in SF is for a learning experience of terrific proportion from the Museum of Performance and Design. I’m working under the Exhibition Manager, Mimi Manning, who is absolutely fantastic. Her expertise reminds me what I’m striving for. As an intern, I’m working with a group of other interns-most of whom are in graduate programs whereas I’m one of the youngest of the group. I spend a lot of time with Liz, who’s in a Museum Studies program in Toronto. She’s been with MPD since mid-May or so, and I started out shadowing her. We, along with Mimi, all share similar views of museums in terms of how exhibitions can be felt with every sense, specifics for programming, and the importance of networking. We’ll be going on field trips soon to the Walt Disney Family Museum and the DeYoung. YAY! Also, I’ve gone on fun errands to art supply stores and framing and glass stores. The Paige Glass store, located on Mission, was the coolest thus far because the owner, Ken Paige, is a collector of all things fabulous. I got to a tour of his collections-from his original prints of performers at the Opera House to digitally woven tapestries and from Ming Dynasty pottery to a French tapestry in mint condition from the 16th century. Needless to say, I was speechless.
MPD, Mimi especially, have been impressed with my past experience. I didn’t realize how unique my senior project was until I came here, nor did I find how greatly I’d underestimated the amount of knowledge I’d gained from it. I’m looked at somewhat of an expert (for an intern, anyhow) with textiles. I can hold my own with conversations about text panels, paint colors, and conservation efforts. Being here has solidified my love for museums, and it’s only been two weeks. I felt the same thing walking into Mimi’s office as I had when I first stepped on Cal Poly’s campus: I’m home. Whether I’ll work for MPD after graduate school, or if I’ll be hired elsewhere, it doesn’t truly matter. All I know is that I will want to work with people like Mimi, and Liz and Bill Edelman (see below), and the other museum professionals I’ll be meeting. I don’t feel part of the MPD, but rather part of the entire SF museum community.
The internship has also been great because I get to help with installations and de-installations of exhibits. I’m working on designing a tour for the last few months of their exhibit, There’s Something Happenin’ Here: Bay Area Rock’n’Roll from 1963-1973. Come September, I’ll be helping to take it down, where I’ll get to handle clothing that belonged to Janis Joplin, Sly Stone, and Jerry Garcia. Epic. Also, we’re putting up a new exhibit these upcoming few weeks based on a collection of toy theatres, which are sets and stages for paper dolls. It’s titled Toy Theatres: Worlds in Miniature, and is guest curated by Dr. Bill Edelman, a professor emeritus at Stanford. He taught a seminar on the psychology of clothing, so we’ve had a few lunches where we’ve discussed all sorts of things from my research on wedding gowns to his views on drag clothing (which he adores). Anyway, the toy theatres exhibition is opening on July 13th with a gala at 6:30pm. If anyone wants to go, check out the website (where you can RSVP)! http://www.mpdsf.org/EXHIBITIONS/TOY/Toy.html It’s going to be a blast!
So, if you want to check out the museum in general, please come visit us at 401 Van Ness Avenue (between Market and Golden Gate) across from City Hall. The building is gorgeous, as it’s one of the War Memorial buildings (and the other is occupied by the San Francisco Opera). The website is http://www.mpdsf.org/index.html.
I will be in L.A. this weekend for the 4th of July. Big weekend because Ryan and I are doing the whole “meet the family” thing. I’m excited to see everyone, though, and to enjoy the warmth of SoCal. Plus, I’ll be going to my very first pro soccer game on the 4th to cheer on the Galaxy as they (hopefully) dominate Seattle.
Look forward to more updates soon! Missing SLO and L.A., but enjoying SF so so so much. :)
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