Backstory: It’s embarrassing to admit, but I have now lived in my “new” city for over a decade and there’s still so much I don’t know about her!
So this week, I am nudging my inner history geek to do some research. I might look into a walking tour (something that I do regularly when I travel, but that languishes on my to do list here), pick up a book, watch a documentary movie, visit our library’s photo archives, or search for old maps.
If you and your city are already well acquainted, take this opportunity to research a city you’ve always wanted to visit. Do a little armchair traveling, and maybe it will inspire your next adventure!
To my readers who celebrate, I wish you a Happy Hanukkah!
I was recently at the AAA office & they had a 10,000 steps walking tour around LA book. I bet they have something like that for San Francisco. I’ll probably go back & grab one for me & one for a White Elephant party that’s coming up. And likely there’s also some kind of app out there for our smart phones.
I remember devouring history books about Toronto when I first moved here… sometimes I know more about the city than people who have lived here their entire lives!
I was especially fascinated by a book that’s now out of print called “Lost Toronto.” It was all about beautiful old buildings and houses in Toronto that were now gone — including “then” and “now” photos. Often the “now” was a parking lot or garage structure. How depressing! 🙁
There’s a great Facebook page–also “Lost”–that shows Then and Now photos of various spots around San Francisco. Most feature at least one iconic building, and it’s fun to see. Of course, I have to laugh because compared to major cities across Europe, we’re just a baby. 😉 Here’s the page if you’re at all interested in seeing more of my city: https://www.facebook.com/LostSanFrancisco/
Have you ever been to the Columbarium? It’s a fabulous place for history…
I was just reading something about it. Have not been, and need to add it to my list. Thanks for the tip!