I was really hoping to get a tour of Fort Point, and I even read on the website that they were closed during the week for the Golden Gate Bridge retrofitting, but it didn’t occur to me that they were actually doing the retrofit right now. Oh well, we still enjoyed watching surfers with death wishes riding waves that broke on crazy ugly rock outcroppings.

Metroblogging Auckland, the fifty-first Metblogs site, launched today. It’s the first site in New Zealand (Aotearoa), and joins its neighbor across the Tasman Sea, Melbourne, as the second Metblog in the region. Drop by and say hello!

Sorry for the delay in posting here, everyone (as if you have been waiting with baited breath)! My trip ended on Friday, but between being jam-packed with meetings, and then travel, then recovering from the red-eye, I have been so busy that I didn’t get a chance to sit down and make some final pithy remarks and ponderings. So here goes:

- I love SF. Outside of NY, where I was born and raised, there is no other place I would rather be. If I didn’t have such a good job, I would seriously consider making a move.
- Your restaurants rock! I only got to visit a few of them, but Postrio was in my hotel, and that was incredible. Then, on night #2, I got to visit Le Colonial. While pricey (thank you, corporate expense account!), it was truly one of the better meals I have had in a long time. TOTALLY worth it.
- It was nice to visit a city that is not so egocentric. I come from a city that is, besides LA, the most egocentric place in the country. So many people have the attitude of “If it’s not about NY, it sucks.” I am the opposite. While there is much to love about Manhattan and the surrounding areas, there is plenty to piss you off as well… Most notably, the people. The populous is becoming more and more pretentious and flashy by the day. San Francisco seems to be the opposite. Laid back people, who are always willing to help and always seem to have a smile on their faces, with good attitudes toward their neighbors and visitors, and a friendly demeanor that makes an outsider feel welcome and wanted. This is one aspect of your city that NY could never compete with.

More after the jump!
(more…)

Hey San Fran!
I am a writer for NYC Metblogs and am out in your fair city for a few days for business. I get to come out here every few months, and I can’t tell you how much I love it here… Friendly people, beautiful scenery, a moderate climate with season changes, and so much fun stuff to do!

So, I always look at it as a great opportunity to get out here when I can, and this is no different. I am in online advertising sales, so as you can imagine, my schedule is chocked full of meetings, and taking some clients out to dinner… But, with the little down time I have, I plan on walking around the city as much as possible. Last time, I walked from my hotel by the Bay Bridge (is that the Financial District, by the way?) down to Ghirardelli Square. This time, I am staying right by Union Square, so it is a new area to explore.

Anyway, I am at JFK Airport now, taking off on JetBlue to Oakland shortly. I will be posting a few times during the 3 day trip, mainly about the vast differences between NY and SF. Thanks for reading, and please comment away!

Fellow SF Metrobloggers and readers:

Come down with me to my old hometown of Los Angeles by reading my blogs on the LA Metroblogging site over the next week!

I’m pleased to announce that the long-awaited fiftieth Metroblogging site is launching today! Graz just went up, joining one other site in Austria (Vienna) and seven in Europe. Click on over and say hello!

Image from Schoffer, via Metroblogging Graz. Reminds me of some of the stenciled paintings we have here.

Our very own Violet Blue has her first column up for the San Francisco Chronicle, Club Kiss for that thoroughly modern vibe. Huge congrats and hugs!

She has more on her blog and so does our good buddy Scott Beale over at Laughing Squid.

*sniff* they grow up so fast…

The city of San Francisco is one of the most amazing cities in the world, and although it is not the place where I was born, it is the place that I call home. I moved here from Tucson, a city where a one bedroom house with a yard can be rented in a relatively nice neighborhood for under $500 per month. Here, I pay three times that for the same amount of space without the yard. Sure, there’s a higher wage pay here to make up for the difference … except that I’m a freelance writer which means that I can work from anywhere … and yet I make the same amount of income no matter where I work from.

The funny thing is that I make more money living in San Francisco than I ever did living in Tucson. The reason for that is simple; San Francisco is the place which holds my heart. It is the place which inspires me. It is the place where all of my creativity comes to a peak and merges in to a productivity which is unparalleled for me anywhere else in the world. I can work here, in an artistic field, because I am alive here in a way that I just don’t quite feel anywhere else. And for that reason, I am starting a blog about life in San Francisco, to share the joys of the city, its moments of inspirations and its places for escape with those people who don’t have the luxury of experiencing it first hand every day.

As you have probably noticed, there are quite a few new authors here on Metroblogging San Francisco. So that means that is is time for another meetup! This is a chance for everyone to get together for some beers and meet the authors, both old and new, of this here blog. Word on the street (ok, the author email list) is that there is going to be a pretty good showing of authors. We’d love to meet our readers, too!

What: Metroblogging SF Meetup
When: Tuesday, August 22 at 8:00PM
Where: Toronado, 547 Haight Street, SF
Why: Because we like talking to each other in person too!

This is a great chance to talk to Metroblogging folks like Jason who keep this site running, find out more about being an author for the site, catch up on Bay Area geek gossip, and chat about San Francisco bars, food, and events.

Looking forward to see you there!

Update: Now posted on Upcoming.org!

Do you like San Francisco? Do you like blogging? Then come join us! Metroblogging San Francisco is recruiting writers. We’re looking for people who can commit to posting something interesting about their corner of the Bay Area at least three times a week; that is, essentially, the only qualification. San Franciscans, East Bayers, Silicon Valleygirls/boys, Mariners (be they ancient or not), and all other forms of Bay Area residents are welcome to apply.

There’s more information on the signup form; you can also email us or ask in the comments if you have questions. This might be the only open signup for this year, so get in if you want in!