San Francisco is unique for me because it combines world-class economic activity, a spirit of protest and ecology in the United States and a strong presence of grandiose nature all in one place. I’d like to take this opportunity to describe daily life in this bustling city, rather than its economic or social aspects.
San Francisco, as I was saying, is the only city in the French sense in the San Francisco Bay Area, and perhaps in the entire American West too. Because it’s not a city of skyscrapers and highways, because people still live in the city (and not in the suburbs!), because it has an active downtown area in the evenings too, but above all because it’s made up of a multitude of small, adjoining neighborhoods, and because it’s a walkable city…
But that’s a long way from saying that it IS like a French city! It’s so much greener than a French city, with its parks – the Presidio, Golden Gate Park – which between them cover probably 20% of the city, and its streets planted with trees and flowers; so much more spacious; and with its architecture so much less structured too.
For me, living in San Francisco on a daily basis means breathing, admiring and … breathing! In short, it’s invigorating!
Caroline
