A Day Outside the City
Are you planning your weekend and want to go outdoor? Here some great ideas:
For a night you'll never forget, consider a stay at the East Brother Light Station, a lighthouse/Bed and breakfast just north of the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. The station is reachable by boat from the San Pablo Yacht Harbor on Western Drive.
Wander off the trendy stretch of shops on Berkeley's Fourth Street to the Vivarium on Fifth Street, one of the largest reptile stores in America. From gigantic pythons to a legion of lizards and tortoises-and even toads and tarantulas-you'll be amazed at the amazing menagerie on sale and display.
For an artistic outdoor exploration, head to the Albany Bulb not far from Golden Gate Fields Racetrack, past the waterfront park. A short walk takes you out to an isthmus chock-full of superb paintings, sculptures and other colorful creations, backed by superb views of the bay.
Take a stop at the little village of Port Costa, a bit south of the Carquinez Bridge. The charming town is home to robot sculptor Clayton Bailey whose bizarre property-open to visitors by appointment-is fronted by a redwood fence topped with dozens of gargoyles. The town's Warehouse Café is one of the Bay Area's most eccentric watering holes, with oddities like a glass-enclosed polar bear and a tourable beer freezer with hundreds of brews from around the globe.
When visiting Oakland's popular Jack London Square on the waterfront, wet your whistle at the First and Last Chance Saloon, a cozy cabin/bar still standing from 1880 and once a favorite of London himself.
To really get away from it all, try the one-hour flotation tank (sensory deprivation) experience at Oakland's Float Center on Calcot Place, in front of the historic Cotton Mill Studios. The calming and invigorating float is followed by some hot tea and the chance to peruse a small and innovative on-site art studio.
A unique cinematic experience can be had at one of the Speakeasy Theaters, one on San Pablo Avenue in El Cerrito and the other on Park Boulevard in Oakland. Showing both first-run and classic films, the theaters boast comfortable couch and table seating, and serve beer, wine and above-average pub food such as hamburgers, salads and pizza.
For some of the Bay Area's best views, in an unusual setting, take the elevator to the top of Sather Tower (aka The Campanile) in the southern realm of the UC Berkeley campus. The observation deck is set amidst a splendid carillon-a host of large bells that are still rung at semi-regular times.
Not enough? You want something bizarre?
The Wave Organ
A binaural listening booth
◦ The Wave Organ is an acoustic sculpture constructed on the shore of San Francisco Bay by the Exploratorium. Through a series of pipes, the wave organ interacts with the waves of the bay and conveys their sound to listeners at several different stations. The effects produced vary depending on the level of the tide but include rumbles, gurgles, sloshes, hisses, and other more typical wave sounds. The structure incorporates stone platforms and benches where visitors may sit near the mouths of pipes, listening.
◦ The Wave Organ is located at the end of a spit of land extending from the Golden Gate Yacht Club. The overall styling of the Wave Organ is reminiscent of Lego, or perhaps the exaggerated Lego scenery at the end of the movie Time Bandits. The stone pieces used in its construction were salvaged from the demolition of the Laurel Hill Cemetery in San Francisco.
◦ There's a panoramic view of the city across the narrow channel into the St.Francis and Golden Gate yacht clubs, bounded on the left by the Fort Mason piers and to the right by a towering eucalyptus grove bordering Crissy Field. The Marina Green park lies directly across, just beyond a stone sea wall; so in the foreground, daytime, are people strolling, dogs cavorting and kids flying kites.[citation needed]
◦ Coordinates: 37.808532°N 122.440172°W (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
How about something mystery?
Santa Cruz Mystery Spot
◦ Santa Cruz, California
◦ Heading down a spooky, darkly forested dirt road just outside of this beach resort town, we can almost feel invisible force lines twisted askew of normal reality. Yup, another mystery spot, exerting its paranormal pull on our equilibrium and our wallets.
◦ The Santa Cruz Mystery Spot is nearly the same as when we've seen it in the past. The '89 Bay Area earthquake (with its epicenter in nearby Aptos) devastated downtown Santa Cruz, broke some stuff in the Spot gift shop, but had no effect on the spot's antics (Not so for the Oregon Vortex, where the 1980 Mount Saint Helen's eruption weakened the force that makes brooms stand on end).
◦ Our veteran guide, Pat Musselman, points out that people still get headaches on the tour from the STRANGE FORCES . . . ◦ Two tour buses arrive during our visit. One delivers bored, Latino teens along with their teacher-guide. The other disgorges thirty Japanese tourists fresh from the Winchester Mystery House. Pat steps aside as the Japanese guide leads his pack up the hill to various Stations of Discombobulation. ◦  ◦ Each group pauses to observe instantaneous height changes in their companions, balls rolling up hill, and the dreaded "Mystery Shack." The clapboard shack has suffered the eerie fate that befalls all spot-straddling real estate: twisted, sucked down the hill and transformed into Vertigo Central. ◦ The tour groups crowd into the shack, watching the various "experiments." Japanese teens charge up the wall, yelling "HOI!" or something, while their elders shrink back and try to make it out the exit without falling. ◦  ◦ Pat's been catching faint shack visitors for over ten years -- but he only works here one day a week. He says they're always on the lookout for new mystery spot guides. The training isn't too rigorous, and most of the current guides are "seniors," so they need some new blood.
◦ Note: Everyone goes home with a free Mystery Spot bumper sticker. ◦ ◦ Also see: Mystery Spots ◦ http://www.mysteryspot.com
Or you want some adventure?
Become a outdoor-woman
Are you a woman seeking ADVENTURE? Becoming an Outdoors-Woman, California (BOW, CA) gives you a supportive environment to develop your outdoor skills. For both novices and the experienced, the workshops feature hands-on training with top-of-the-line equipment as well as expert and encouraging instructors. You’ll learn skills and be able to practice in some of the world’s greatest scenery—California!