Last year, I quit my office job of 20 years for the freedom of driving Uber! One of the many things I love about doing this are the places I travel to on a daily basis.
**
Today was one such day. I drove 186 miles in 6 hours but one particular person was a stand out. One of my passengers was a young man from London on a 12 hour layover at SFO. He had never been to San Francisco and was determined to get the very most out of the short time he had to explore…suitcase and backpack in tow!
His destination was a popular one, the Golden Gate Bridge Welcome Center. I knew the universe had matched him with my car for a very good reason! I gave him the choice of the quickest possible route to the Bridge OR the scenic route…he chose scenic.
We drove up to the city, the young man taking mobile phone photos from the front seat the whole way. I drove him along the Embarcadero past familiar San Francisco sights like Oracle Park where the San Francisco Giants play baseball, Cupid’s Span across from Google San Francisco, past the Ferry Building.
We continued toward Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Wharf, Aquatic Park and Ghiradelli Square. He was very interested in the history and stories from Alcatraz. The history of Coit Tower and how the Golden Gate Bridge was built.
He asked questions about what San Francisco is “best known for”…my answers: the Gold Rush (1848 to 1855), the 1906 earthquake and fire, the Silicon Valley Gold Rush (1933 ~ ???). For food it’s sourdough bread and Dungeness Crab.
Continuing toward the bridge, we passed Fort Mason, The Palace of Fine Arts, The Presidio and I point out to him how to get to Fort Point at the base of the bridge on the San Francisco side.
As we got within view of the Golden Gate Bridge Visitor Center he asked could I drive him to the other side of the bridge (Golden Gate Bridge View) and he would start his walk back from there!!! Of course we can! I like the way this young man thinks.
As we drove across the bridge, him recording video on his cell phone through my windshield, I could tell he was going to enjoy the remaining hours he had in San Francisco! I’d done the best I could to set him up for success!
And that, my friends, is what we Local Guides love doing most. Guiding! Rarely do we get a chance to do it in person as I did. It’s usually through our detailed reviews with photos and video, our publicly shared Lists. These things give visitors to these places an unbiased opinion on things to see, do and what to eat.
Here’s my List for the next time you have a long layover at SFO…San Francisco ~ 6 Hour Layover!
