Frommer's San Francisco 2012 - Matthew Poole [128]
In the Presidio, Main Post, 104 Montgomery St. (at Sheridan Ave.). 415/345-6800. www.waltdisney.org. Admission $20 adults, $15 for seniors 65 and over, $12 for children 6–17. Wed–Mon 10am–6pm. Bus: 28 or 43.
Wells Fargo History Museum Wells Fargo, one of California’s largest banks, got its start in the Wild West. Its history museum, at the bank’s head office, houses hundreds of genuine relics from the company’s whip-and-six-shooter days, including pistols, photographs, early banking articles, posters, a stagecoach, and mining equipment.
420 Montgomery St. (at California St.). 415/396-2619. www.wellsfargohistory.com. Free admission. Mon–Fri 9am–5pm. Closed bank holidays. Bus: Any to Market St. Cable car: California St. line. BART: Montgomery St.
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts ★ The YBCA, which opened in 1993, is part of the large outdoor complex that takes up a few city blocks across the street from SFMOMA, and sits atop the underground Moscone Convention Center. It’s the city’s cultural facility, similar to New York’s Lincoln Center but far more fun on the outside. The Center’s two buildings offer music, theater, dance, and visual arts programs and shows. James Stewart Polshek designed the 755-seat theater, and Fumihiko Maki designed the Galleries and Arts Forum, which features three galleries and a space designed especially for dance. Cutting-edge computer art, multimedia shows, contemporary exhibitions, and performances occupy the center’s high-tech galleries.
701 Mission St. 415/978-ARTS (2787) (box office). www.ybca.org. Admission for gallery $7 adults; $5 seniors, teachers, and students. Free to all 1st Tues of each month. Free for seniors and students with ID every Thurs. Tues–Wed and Sun noon–5pm; Thurs–Sat noon–8pm. Closed Mon. Contact YBCA for times and admission to theater. Bus: 5, 9, 14, 15, 30, or 45. Streetcar: Powell or Montgomery.
Outside the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.
Yerba Buena Gardens ★ Unless you’re at Yerba Buena to catch a performance, you’re more likely to visit the 5-acre gardens, a great place to relax in the grass on a sunny day and check out architecture, artworks, and a revolving sea of humanity. The most dramatic outdoor piece is an emotional mixed-media memorial to Martin Luther King, Jr. Created by sculptor Houston Conwill, poet Estella Majozo, and architect Joseph De Pace, it features 12 panels, each inscribed with quotations from King, sheltered behind a 50-foot-high waterfall. There are also several actual garden areas here, including a Butterfly Garden, the Sister Cities Garden (highlighting flowers from the city’s 13 sister cities), and the East Garden, blending Eastern and Western styles. Don’t miss the view from the upper terrace, where old and new San Francisco come together in a clash of styles that’s fascinating. May through October, Yerba Buena Arts & Events puts on a series of free outdoor festivals featuring dance, music, poetry, and more by the San Francisco Ballet, Opera, Symphony, and others.
Located on 2 square city blocks bounded by Mission, Folsom, Third, and Fourth sts. www.yerbabuenagardens.com. Free admission. Daily 6am–10pm. Contact Yerba Buena Arts & Events: 415/543-1718 or www.ybgf.org for details about the free outdoor festivals. Bus: 5, 9, 14, 15, 30, or 45. Streetcar: Powell or Montgomery.
free CULTURE
To beef up attendance and give indigent folk like us travel writers a break, almost all of San Francisco’s art galleries and museums are open free to the public 1 day