Nob Hill, San Francisco

Take the California St. cable car from in front of Hyatt Regency @ the confluence of California / Drumm / Market st. up to the top of Nob hill and jump off at Grace Cathedral.

The beautiful bronze Ghiberti front doors at the entrance and inside coloured windows are great and worth checking out.

Watch people inside walking the Grace labyrinths

Then walk back down Nob Hill (east the way you came up) into Chinatown... wander through Chinatown (don't forget lunch) to Embarcadero, or (left/north) stroll through North Beach.

Do this on a sunny day, and I bet San Francisco becomes one of your alltime favorite cities.

Wow! A Gothic church in USA! Am I dreaming?

Of course not. It's just one more sight of American complex for the lack of history, using their wealth and technology to reproduce the signs of European history. Finished in 1964 it's announced as one of the biggest churches in USA. Anyway, it was an opportunity for some modern artists to apply their skills and became an acceptable visitable point.

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this is part two of my tips on SNOB Hill, again I am sort of biased since I find the Views in View Lounge Better than the Top of the Mark. Nob Hill, besides the home of San Francisco's Big Four (Leland Stanford, Collis Huntington, Mark Hopkins and Charles Crocker) and Nice views of Car Chases in the movies, the Snob Hill is also the home of the Big four (the Fairmont Hotel, the Mark Hopkins Intercontinental Hotel, the Stanford Court, and the Huntington Hotel) Hotels and the Iconic Grace Cathedral and Masonic Center.

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SNOB Hill ooops Nob Hill (sorry, since most people here are snooty rich types) due to it's reputation as a privileged only area in the gold rush and recent times. The area is home to Posh hotels like the fairmont, Intercontinental, top of the Mark and others and also offers the best view of the bay area when riding the cable car so when the cable car stops at this area, I suggest you let your digicams and videocams ready!

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Nob Hill is an affluent district, home to many of the city's old money families. Sometimes it is sarcastically referred to as Snob Hill. Its also home to some of the most expensive hotels in the city like the Farimont Hotel, Mark Hopkins, and the Huntington Hotel to name just a few. The Farimont Hotel has been used in many different Hollywood films so its the most famous of all the hotels. Grace Cathedral also resides on the hill which is located at the intersection of California and Powell, Grace Cathedral is one of the most beautiful churches in the city and was built in the same style as Notre Dame. There is also a small park with a beautiful water fountain if your looking for a place to relax and take in the rich folks that pass by!

Located at Nob Hill this Gothic style church from the 20's is known for its open mindedness and tolerance to teachings outside the Bible.

On a sunny day it is nice to sit on a bench in the front yard. On the small park there will be people reading, lying in the sun or meditating.

On the floor of the Cathedral there's a labyrinth and it is often said if you look down and follow the path you will get to a meditative state ... funny, I get that from martini's :p

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If there was a downside to our otherwise spectacular trip to San Francisco, it was when my camera battery died just as we were ready to tour GRACE CATHEDRAL. I was so disappointed!!

Happily, located handily below the sanctuary, there was a gift shop which carried post cards of this magnificent cathedral, which was opportune!

picture #1 Grace Cathedral was constructed from 1927 to 1964 and is an Episcopal church. It sits atop Nob Hill, exuding good will, purity and righteousness--just like God's house should! The design was inspired by French Cathedrals.

picture #2 The central sanctuary is shown with the Connick choir windows. There are several services conducted each Sunday, among which is the 11 am service, placed on the web weekly.

picture #3 The east rose window (1964) depicts a famous poem of Saint Francis. Referred to as the Gabriel Loire window, it is 25 feet in diameter and has nearly 3800 pieces of faceted glass. As the sun shimmered through its multi-colored segments, it truly was a gorgeous sight!

These photo postcards are published by C. Harrison Conroy Co.

Nob Hill is one of the famous San Francisco hills, very close to the city centre and Union Square. The hill hosts a park surrounded by a bunch of top-class hotels with excellent views to the city and the bay and Grace cathedral -- once imposing and now dwarfed by the towers.

The best way to go the hill is walking, but it may not be option for everybody. Taxis and rental cars are good choices, too, but maybe the best non-walking transport method is to take a cable car running on California street.