joe dimaggio grew up in north beach, frisco's little italy.

janis joplin lived at 112 lyon street between page and oak streets.

a herd of  buffalo, (yep, for reals), live in the northwest corner of golden gate park. they look especially sinister silhouetted in the fog.

the city flower is the dahlia, and the dahlia garden next to the conservatory of flowers is exquisite in late summer/early fall.

family-owned liguria bakery on the corner of union and filbert streets bakes only focaccia, the most sublime focaccia this side of the boot. they open early in the morning and close when they sell out.

the 47 square miles of frisco contains 43 hills.

brad nowell, lead singer of the band sublime, died of a heroin overdose at the oceanview hotel, next door to java beach cafe.

the highest point in frisco is mount davidson.

yerba buena, the original name for frisco, translates to "good herb." this good herb was actually mint, not what you were thinking.

the former home of socialite/writer pat montadon, located at the corner of lombard and and leavenworth streets, is the location of the bizarre and unexplained death of montandon's assistant and is believed to be haunted.

tosca, a bar in north beach that often hosts celebrities like sean penn and robin williams, has a jukebox that plays only opera and serves a well-spiked  signature "cappuccino."

lovers' lane is the oldest foot trail in the presidio. soldiers began walking the 3-mile trail to the mission dolores as far back as 1776.

the barbary coast and most of the financial district is built upon the bones of old ships abandoned here by sailors bound for gold country. have a drink the old ship saloon at pacific and battery and really soak in that history.

jack kerouac lived with neal cassady and wrote 'on the road' at 29 russell street (off hyde between union and green

jim, "drink the kool-aid," jones's people's temple was located next to the fillmore on geary and fillmore streets before he relocated to jonestown and orchestrated the mass suicide in guyana.

the verdigris flatiron sentinel building on columbus at kearny is owned by francis ford coppola and houses his production company, american zoetrope.

vesuvio, 255 columbus ave (at jack kerouac alley) is a legendary watering hole, where francis ford coppola is said to have written much of 'the godfather.'

postage-stamp-sized jack early park tucked away on telegraph hill (grant ave and pfeiffer) is a romantic, secluded gem in the city with mindblowing bay views.

the square-rigged ship the balclutha, docked at the hyde street pier, appeared in the movie, "mutiny on the bounty," starring clark gable.

macondray lane on russian hill was the inspiration for the ficitonal barbary the setting of armistead maupin's 'tales of the city' series.