San Francisco

North Beach Audio Tour: In Search of Urban Artifacts

By: City Listen Audio

Narrated by: Greg Pabst

Back in the 1800s, North Beach was, indeed, actually a beach. Today, it is a neighborhood with a most colorful past encompassing San Francisco's Little Italy, the Barbary Coast and the heart of Beat Generation. And the best way to really appreciate this fascinating part of the city is on foot. This tour is focused on the people and places that have made North Beach what it is today: an exciting and diverse neighborhood with stories to tell around every corner.

The tour begins in Washington Square Park near Filbert Street.Stops include

A spectacular view of San Francisco from the unlikeliest of locales. You'll see San Francisco from a spot that most longtime residents probably don't even know about.

Saints Peter and Paul Church - where Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe posed for wedding photos

The Condor - once the heart of San Francisco's legendary adult entertainment district

City Lights Books - the noted bookstore-publisher of the Beat era; and Jack Kerouac Alley amd William Saroyan Place

The refurbished North Beach mural - illustrating the life and history of the neighborhood

And we'll stop at or pass by North Beach Pizza, Italian French Bakery and Molinari Delicatessen.

The tour consists of about 55 minutes of material - and you should allow at least two hours for the entire tour.

©2009 City Listen Audio Tours

Touring North Beach in good company...

This is a GREAT walking tour of SFO's North Beach, featuring lots of lively info that I (a onetime Bay Area resident) didn't know, delivered by a really personable and knowledgeable guide.