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86 2 0 1 5 T R A V E L G U I D E T O C A L I F O R N I A IN JUST 49 SQUARE MILES, San Francisco contains more scenic beauty, neighborhood diversity, good food and range of arts and cul- ture than any U.S. city of its size. The landmark Golden Gate Bridge, cable cars, Alcatraz and Fisherman's Wharf are synonymous with the City by the Bay, also known for an atmosphere of tolerance that stretches back to the Gold Rush when one of the largest migrations in human history brought hundreds of thousands west. San Francisco is one of the great U.S. cities for food and dining, with renowned chefs, a wide variety of ethnic cuisine and restaurant-mad locals spending more on eating out than resi- dents of any other American city. Culture is abundant, with world-class museums, theater, opera, symphony and ballet, helped by a public commitment that pre-dates the National Endowment for the Arts. There's a fresh vitality in the city: An influx of technology start-ups and young tech workers led to a boom in restaurants, bars and nightlife, especially in the vibrant Mission and South of Market neighborhoods and extending into the developing Mid-Market area. At popular Off the Grid events, groups of mobile food trucks serve up gourmet food, including at historic Fort Mason on Friday evenings. In the Presidio, the former Army base con- tinues its stunning transformation into a vast national park filled with historic sites, museums, artwork and miles of walking and biking trails in forests and along the bay. In 2014, the renovated Officer's Club re-opened with a new restaurant and exhibits tracing the Presidio's long history. Other must-sees have opened in San Fran- cisco in the last year, including @Large: Ai Weiwei, a multimedia art installation by Chi- nese artist Ai Weiwei, who used spaces on Alcatraz not usually accessible to the public. The show is open through April 26. Visible from many parts of the waterfront are the playful, twinkling Bay Lights on the Bay Bridge's western span, a unique art project that began in 2012. Nearby, a new cruise terminal is hosting ships on Pier 27, a former America's Cup venue that lies adjacent to a new waterfront park. While the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art remains closed for expansion and renovation until 2016, art from its collection is displayed throughout the city, including at the Museum of the African Diaspora. Other museums with notable 2015 shows are the de Young Museum, which is hosting Botticelli to Braque: Master- pieces from the National Galleries of Scotland through May 31, and The Legion of Honor, showing High Style: The Brooklyn Museum Cos- tume Collection, through July 19. For trip planning, see sanfrancisco.travel. B Y L A U R A D E L R O S S O SAN FRANCISCO The world on the tip of a peninsula SAN FRANCISCO evening skyline with the Bay Bridge, above; cable cars pass each other on California Street, below. SARAPORN/SHUTTERSTOCK ; LUCKY-PHOTOGRAPHER/SHUTTERSTOCK B Y L A U R A D E L R O S S O