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One of the largest, finest parks-cum-cultural centers in world. No visit to the city is complete without taking in some of its wonders.

This anarchic quarter is one of the most scintillating and unconventional in the city, resting firmly on its laurels as ground zero for the worldwide Flower-Power explosion of the 1960s (see Top 10 Sixties Figures). Admire the beautiful old Queen Anne-style houses, a few of them still painted in the psychedelic pigments of that hippie era. There are still some tripping freaks and neo-Flower Children here, along with far-out shops and the venerable Haight Ashbury Free Clinic. Groove along the street and recreate your own “Summer of Love.” The Lower Haight is noted for its edgy clubs and bars.

The Japan Center was built as part of an ambitious 1960s plan to revitalize the Fillmore District. Blocks of aging Victorians were demolished and replaced by the Geary Expressway and this Japanese-style shopping complex, with a five-tiered, 75-ft (22-m) Peace Pagoda at its heart. Taiko drummers perform here during the Cherry Blossom Festival each April. The extensive malls are lined with authentic Japanese shops and restaurants, plus an eight-screen cinema, and the Kabuki Springs and Spa. More shops and restaurants are found along the outdoor mall across Post Street. This neighborhood has been the focus of the Japanese community for some 75 years.

A grander, more exclusive residential area is hard to imagine. Commanding as it does heights up to 300 ft (100 m) overlooking the magnificent Bay, everything about it proclaims power and wealth. The blocks between Alta Plaza and Lafayette Park are the very heart of the area, but the grandeur extends from Gough to Divisadero and beyond. On a sunny day, there’s nothing more exhilarating than scaling its hills and taking in the perfectly manicured streets, the to-die-for views, and the palatial dwellings. The Spreckels Mansion, a limestone palace in the Beaux-Arts tradition, on Washington and Octavia streets, is the brightest gem of the lot, now owned by novelist Danielle Steele.

Typical house, Pacific Heights

This flat district of row houses begins at Masonic Street, sandwiched between Golden Gate Park and California Street. It ultimately extends all the way to the Pacific Ocean, being more and more prone to stay fog-bound the farther west you go. The district is very ethnically diverse and resoundingly middle class. Over the decades, it has been settled by White Russians, East European Jews, and most recently Chinese-Americans and another wave of Russians.

A neighborhood shopping street loaded with tradition, Union Street is noted for its sidewalk cafés, antiques shops, bookstores, and designer boutiques, housed in converted Victorian charmers. The street is at the heart of the Cow Hollow neighborhood, whose name invokes its antecedent as a dairy pasture.