This painted marvel is San Francisco's 400-foot ode to urban biking.

America's oldest Italian restaurant is a San Francisco institution.

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

This concrete tangle of square pipes has stood as a proud thorn in the city's side since the '70s.

San Francisco's newly reopened hands-on science museum.

Antiques by the Bay.

After serving in World War II and picking up Apollo astronauts, this aircraft carrier has been turned into a museum overlooking the San Francisco Bay.

One of the best absinthe distilleries in the United States.

An abandoned convention space that has been left to the homeless and the radical.

Dive bar built out of the remains of a whaling ship.

This mysterious series of teeny guerrilla installations sheds a whimsical light on street art in Oakland.

A restored 1920s cascade stairway provides one of the best views of Oakland's Lake Merritt.

A man-made island in scenic San Francisco Bay.

A series of vibrant murals celebrate the culture and community of Oakland.

This bakery sits on the site of the Black Panther Party's first headquarters.

Where the alchemists dream of transmuting base metal into gold was actually achieved.

A shape-shifting buy-sell-trade bookstore, born to Beatnik Era spirit.

A unique market that brings together various goods and cultures.

Check out a shovel along with your Shakespeare.

This subtle Berkeley paving stone actually marks off a lawless tube of air that extends into space.

The century-old bell and clock tower at UC Berkeley is the third-tallest in the world, and has fossils.

The only museum of sake in the United States is nestled in an unlikely California college town.

An amazing collection of fantastic reptiles, amphibians, spiders, and insects.

A 90-acre park on former landfill that hosts an annual kite festival.