An elaborate gift from Claus Spreckels is now a piece of San Francisco history.

Faceless white figures loom over the city from the rooftop.

The key to turning shifting dunes into the green oasis of Golden Gate Park.

A pair of mutilated bronze octopuses slump at the base of the monument honoring California's admission to the U.S.

A garden oasis filled with flowers mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare.

A library built during San Francisco's pioneer times is a student's retreat, bibliophile's sanctuary, and chess player's delight.

A man-made island in scenic San Francisco Bay.

One of the last remnants of the city's Chinese nightclub scene is now a dive bar selling killer mai tais.

Not merely a museum – but a whirring powerhouse that offers a subterranean peek into the heart and soul of cable car operations.

An overlooked and unassuming engineering marvel.

The giant pair of sexy legs sticking out the window of this costume store have become its main draw.

This turn of the century masterpiece has a mysterious goaty interloper.

San Francisco's oldest surviving monument and meeting place for 1906 survivors.

A still functioning vaudeville carousel that has operated for over a century boasts a colorful menagerie and past.

Nestled in the heart of San Francisco’s bustling Financial District stands a unique homage to the Mayan and Beaux Arts.

This private residence was the template for one of the most beloved television homes of all time.

This shop and studio is dedicated to the art of the book, from letterpress to bookbinding.

Golden Gate Park's historic collection of plants.

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

San Francisco's urban bison herd has persisted in the face of extinction, development, and disease.

The last remaining relic of San Francisco's glittering 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition.

A nondescript building that's been functioning as a speakeasy for nearly a century and a half.

Staircase winds down the side of Telegraph Hill through gardens, wild parrots flying overhead.

A collection of 20th-century automata, penny arcade games, and musical contraptions.