Haight-Ashbury aka: Upper Haight, The Haight

It took me 43 years to get to Haight Ashbury. I was there last week (part of a trip for my 60th birthday). My daughter asked her dad to get a picture under the Haight/Ashbury street sign, of an ‘old hippie’ for her. He took a picture of me (LOL.)

In 1967, I first heard of ‘The Haight’ from some young Americans I met whilst hitch hiking in Europe(I lived in England, back then) We were all in Pamplona for the Fiesta de San Fermin. (and the running of the bulls)

Now, ‘The Haight’ is just a series of shops selling paraphernalia and t shirts for tourists.The old Victorian buildings are still there, but it is just another group of streets and anyone searching for ‘ambiance’ of yesteryear will be disappointed. There are a smattering of older folks, still dressed in 60’s clothes, and with long hair and beards.(I wonder what they have been doing with their lives for all of these years) We grabbed a quick glass of Guinness at the Irish pub, and the young bartender told us that there were a lot of meth addicts in the area these days. We were warned, by several San Franciscans, not to give in and support their pan handling. Sure enough around noon, they seemed to come out from under the trees at the nearby Golden Gate Park, and were up and down the street, guitars and few belongings strewn over their backs, with a familiar “have you got any spare change, man?” 18, 19, 20 year olds. Sores on their faces, eyes glazed over. Some just lying flat out on the sidewalk of an off shoot street. Completely strung out.Waiting for their next ‘hit’ Sad.

On a lighter note San Francisco, and it’s surrounds, is really beautiful. The air was fresh and crisp. We had a great time and would definitely go back again. Sausalito, Muir woods and a visit to Napa and Sonoma wine country are also recommended and worth a visit. I found Fisherman’s Wharf to be too touristy and overcrowded(Coney Islandish) but a visit to Alcatraz was interesting and definitely sobering. We also found ourselves taking pictures outside of the guard’s entry gate at San Quentin(about 12 miles north of San Francisco, in Marin County. San Francisco is definitely worth a visit. People here are very ‘animal friendly’ They love their dogs! We shall take ours, next time we visit.

I was a freshman in medical school in the fall of 1984, and every morning I would ride my bike to school, bordering on the Western fringe of the Haight-Ashbury district.

Maybe it was the massive amounts of people or the fog.. but I didn’t care for Haight Asbury. I liked Hayes Valley, Sunset, and Mission a lot more. ( and there were less rude French tourists at the above destinations)

buy a bong

I used to live one block northwest of the Haight-Ashbury intersection, and can say that for all the kitschy tourist crapola—by far the least exciting part of the area—the neighborhood was always interesting.

Beyond the monuments to the events of 40 years ago, the sometimes hilarious, sometimes snarly streetpunk/walking wounded population that in many respects considers itself the heirs to that period’s legacy, and especially beyond the souvenir shops, junk stores, and gawking tourists, the neighborhood is also home to the city’s best record store, three independent bookstores (one an anarchist collective) a lot of good vintage clothing shopping, a couple of tasty low-end restaurants, some good cafes, a nice branch of the SF Public Library, and the entrance to Golden Gate Park, among other good things.

It’s also almost in the exact geographical center of San Francisco, which in theory makes it convenient to a range of neighborhoods.

Haight Street itself can be too crowded with amblers to be much fun to walk along, particularly on weekends, and yes, parking is thoroughly nightmarish, but along with a tourist trap, the Haight is a very active, vital neighborhood that has a lot to offer. Insider tip: The streets that aren’t Haight are substantially less grungy— I lived on Page and never had a problem with the street being dirty.