Angelika How many times have we thought, while vacationing in some beautiful city, that we could stay there for a year and still not see everything? We felt that way in Tokyo back then, and of course in New York as well. Until now, we actually thought we knew San Francisco like the back of our hand, since we've been living here for over 20 years and we don't just sit on the couch on weekends, but often set out to explore our city. However, you surely know that such a habit often draws you back to your favorite spots. Certain areas are also actively avoided by locals in San Francisco because they are so overrun by tourists that you can't set foot in there during normal times.

However, everything is different at the moment because the coronavirus pandemic and travel restrictions have driven tourists away from the cityscape. Thus, on our daily evening walks, we are rediscovering corners where we would normally leave to the tourists. Recently, we strolled in the soft evening light around the exterior grounds of the venerable "Palace of Fine Arts" building, which was constructed in 1915 for the Panama-Pacific Exposition, and we had the building almost to ourselves. On another evening, we hiked through the Presidio Park to Marshall's Beach, over many hidden wooden stairs in the dune and cliff landscape. We were rewarded with a fantastic view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Pacific Ocean, as Marshall's Beach is located in close proximity to the bridge.

Since San Francisco is very hilly and surrounded by water, there are always those moments of breathtaking beauty when the city lies at your feet from high above. The sky is often so blue these days, as if a child had painted it in a picture book. This is, of course, also due to the reduced air pollution from fewer cars and airplanes. We are falling in love with our city all over again, as extremely high rents and living costs, dirty and crowded streets, and construction sins had somewhat tarnished our old love.

It is truly amazing how far one can travel on foot. The book "Stairway Walks in San Francisco" particularly helps us discover new corners again and again. It describes routes in San Francisco that incorporate all kinds of stairways. Due to the hills, San Francisco has many such connections. Often, you can't go any further by car, but stairs lead pedestrians from top to bottom or vice versa. San Francisco counts over 600 such stairways. There are large, long stairs, open and hidden ones. The hidden ones are often surrounded by beautiful, enchanted gardens.

The book "Stairway Walks in San Francisco", written by Adah Bakalinsky, has actually been known to us since our early years in San Francisco. When we moved here, we took one or two routes from the book, often with visitors in tow. In the meantime, the book has been revised and supplemented several times with the support of Adah's friend Mary Burk. We are now close to having walked all the described routes at least once. But we can also proudly say that for almost 10 weeks now, since San Francisco has been in a state of emergency, we have gone out every evening after work (with only three exceptions).

In addition to the stairways, we are always drawn to "Ocean Beach" right within city limits. Unlike other beaches in the surrounding area, our mayor had mercy and did not close off the beach. The parking lots directly at the beach are closed, supposedly to curb the influx of beachgoers from outside, but we always find a parking spot in the side streets. Also, the Great Highway, which runs parallel to the beach, is partially closed, allowing cyclists and pedestrians to use this section of the road undisturbed. The beach is very wide, especially at low tide, so walkers don't get in each other's way. Since it is usually not warm enough for sunbathing and the water is too cold for swimming in the waves, we never see scenes of sunbathers lying close together on their beach towels at Ocean Beach. For me, there is nothing more relaxing than letting the wind blow around my ears and inhaling the salty air during a beach walk. The best therapy against the strains of the pandemic.

• More topics you might be interested in:

  	Haircuts At Home With Flowbee
  	Standing in Line for Groceries
  	Dough from the telephone pole
  	Sparkling water machine instead of Pellegrino
  	Teddy bears in the window
  	Sewn masks
  	Open stores during Corona
  	Reckless joggers

  
  

• More topics you might be interested in:

  	Haircuts At Home With Flowbee
  	Standing in Line for Groceries
  	Dough from the telephone pole
  	Sparkling water machine instead of Pellegrino
  	Teddy bears in the window
  	Sewn masks
  	Open stores during Corona
  	Reckless joggers