Don't Miss: Cable Car Museum - San Francisco

A popular ride in the San Francisco is of course the cable cars – and a great place to stop and explore is the Cable Car Museum. 

One of my previous San Francisco events was with a group of Australian engineers and (of course!) I received many questions about the Cable Car Museum, where it was, and the easiest way to get there. The research I prepared reminded me of the amazing entrepreneur story behind these famous Cable Cars.

Historic San Francisco Cable Cars

Cable Car Museum

The Cable Car Museum (415) 474-1887 is free to visit and located in the historic Washington/Mason cable car barn and powerhouse.  Open daily (please call in advance to verify hours open) except a few major holidays. 

This excellent self guided tour overlooks the huge engines and winding wheels that pull the engines. You will see 3 antique cars from 1870s and of course there is a store to buy gifts.

Excuse this image - taken in process during the rain.  Location: Washington & Mason

San Francisco Entrepreneur Story Behind the Cable Cars

The San Francisco entrepreneur story we often forget from our Gold Rush days is about the man and inventor, Andrew Smith Hallidie.  Who is this? Yes, Hallidie was the inventor considered the Father of the Cable Cars. As many of these stories are passed down through the years, you may hear different versions.

Do you know that Hallidie’s father was an inventor in Great Britain with a patent for wire rope cable?  It was the Gold Rush which brought father and son to California. Many miners became disappointed and Andrew’s father returned to England. Hallidie stayed and worked many jobs like we do -- as a gold miner, blacksmith, surveyor, and builder of bridges throughout California. He was instrumental in using wire ropes to lower cars to haul ore from the mine to the mill. 

As many people did during the Gold Rush days, Andrew Smith Hallidie left the mining camps and returned to San Francisco where he started manufacturing wire rope. The Hallidie ropeway and aerial tramway were a couple of successful inventions and patents of his. After observing the suffering horses hauling heavy loads up and down the slick cobbled streets of these steep San Francisco hills, Hallidie created the loop mechanism where cable cars would be towed by an underground cable in 1873 and successfully created the cable car line.

Don’t Miss Attraction: Cable Car Museum

Cable car success reached throughout the world during this early period with the largest system in Melbourne, Australia. 

Today? San Francisco’s Cable Cars are a National Historic Moving Monument.

Be sure to purchase a day pass and get off of the Cable Cars at Washington and Mason streets. Go inside this Museum and discover even more of this story for yourself. It is not necessary   to be an engineer to enjoy the story.  

Do you like this article? Please review the items in this sidebar and share with your friends.  Add your insights about Cable Cars and talk with us below.

There is always more information to every story ~ The Fun Tour Guru

Bonus Insider Tip see below fun pictures (in action) and things to know when riding cable cars: 

Don't stand behind the gripman. 

  Hold on tightly to the loops.

Be prepared for the crowds in the cars on rainy days.

Other San Francisco activities are Chinatown Walks.

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One Job for America

This is a subject which really hits home with me - creating jobs for America.  We hear about some emphasis of creating jobs in the news everyday, what might we really do individually to help?

Today, I heard about this website from a talk show which featured job discussions.  

One Job for America

The website site was created in February by Carla Emil & Rich Silverstein. Carla writes in her article with HuffPost Business, "Maybe a better way to say it is that One Job for America encourages us to be responsible citizens and it gives us hope that we can participate in making this a better world. We can come together, as members of a national community, and try to solve this problem one job at a time." 

The website is simple with 3 tabs and a list of 173 companies that have taken the pledge. (as of todays date). You may read "In the News" ~ See Who's Pledge ~ Pledge One Job. And, the map shows not only companies that pledge jobs, it shows positions fulfilled – hired on what dates.

A sincere thank you to Carla Emil! How may you include this pledge in your business plan today?  Please, share & discuss with us how you may do this as a small business. Let people help you!

One Job for America

Hire one person! People are ASSETS, not liabilities.  The Fun Tour Guru! 

Bridges Connect People & Communities Together, Let's Connect People & Jobs Together

Dream Vacation & Taking Pictures

I am excited to connect with other business professionals & entrepreneurs - "giving back" and helping others. This idea I received as I now follow Tory Johnson (Thank you, Tory, for all of your inspiration!) I am amazed with all of the incredible people with intriguing successful businesses which I am lining up as guest writers. Now read on! for "today's feature guest writer."

Taking Great Images on Trips

As you already know from my stories, pictures are one of my favorite pieces of every trip and meeting. Even though I am not a professional photographer, I take those unusual images that remind you of your experiences. Some of these images have been selected by Sacramento Connect as photo of the day, and I have had other written publication solicitations. 

But, What is important to remember when taking these pictures on your own trips? What camera do you use?  How to do you remember what happened?  Read on....

  Susan Berland, Creative Memories Senior Consultant, shares how to take a picture & capture memories of your dream trips. And, she will later share how to organize into telling your special story.  Susan is the author of A Picture's Worth where she shares more information with her readers. 

      About Susan Berland ~  I take a lot of pictures – I always have. In 2000 I found myself with 30 years of pictures and lost memories. I finally found a way to organize and display my photos so that I could enjoy them and tell the stories behind them, ensuring the stories would live on. I thought I’d always remember what was happening in those thousands of pictures but sadly, many of the stories were gone.

I’m a busy woman and I understand not everyone has time to "scrapbook." I love helping other busy people find solutions that work into their busy lives for the pictures they take of their families, their vacations, family reunions; all those special moments, so they don’t end up with pictures and no stories. After all, who wants their pictures to end up in the flea market!

Dream Vacation & Taking Pictures 

You’re finally going on your dream vacation – the one you’ve waited you’re entire life for (or at least it seems that way!). You want to be sure to remember every moment of it.

First you need a good camera. You may already have one. If not, it’s a good investment. The point and shoot cameras available today are incredible and not too expensive. If you’re already an experienced photographer, great! Take along your camera and lenses, maybe even your tripod. For me, when I travel, my camera is about all I can carry! I have a high end Sony point and shoot camera that is about 2 years old. It takes great pictures and I’ve learned to use many of its features. If you buy a new camera, take some time to learn its features and practice with it before you leave so you’re comfortable with it.

Here are some tips for taking pictures while you are away:

• Turn off your flash! Whenever possible use natural light. You will get better pictures.
• Don’t be afraid to move in close. If you are taking pictures of people, animals, flowers – close ups are more dramatic and beautiful.
• Look for the unusual to take pictures of. I love to take pictures of the locals if I’m traveling abroad. I also like to take pictures of unusual food I see in open-air markets or things that are really colorful.
• If you are taking a picture of a large monument like a pyramid, don’t have someone pose in front of it. You won’t be able to see them! Take the pyramid and take another picture of your sweetie, close up, in front of the pyramid. You’ll know where they were standing!
• Take a lot of pictures. Professional photographers will tell you that to get one great photo, they had to shoot hundreds. That’s the beauty of digital cameras. You don’t have to print (or even keep) the bad ones. 

An Image From Susan Berland's Picture Album

Be sure to bring along spare batteries. I always have an extra, fully charged battery with me because my camera battery always dies when that perfect picture comes along! And be sure to have a large enough memory card and bring along an extra, just in case.

I usually write a few minutes in a travel journal each night about what I did that day and that helps me remember what’s in all those pictures I took.

Lastly, while you are on your dream vacation, have fun. Take pictures but don’t let that get in the way of your experience. In my next post, I’ll talk about what to do with all those pictures when you get home and you’ll see some of my pictures.

Where are you going to go on your dream vacation? Who are you going to go with?

_____________
Thank you Susan Berland for sharing!  Continue to connect with Susan at A Picture's Worth.

Taking Pictures on dream vacations! ~~ The Fun Tour Guru

San Francisco Sightseeing Tradition: Sourdough Bread

Stopping to watch the bakers making bread at Boudin Bakery is one of my favorite things to do.  As I watch them twist and twirl the dough, I remember the story about the enterprising entrepreneur – dating back to the Gold Rush days – who brought sourdough to San Francisco. 
 

Window gazing at Boudin's Sourdough!

Sourdough Bread is a slightly bitter, no yeast loaf.  I often purchase a freshly baked loaf of sourdough bread at SFO airport when I depart and use as gifts on my trips.  

This is a San Francisco tradition, started by Isadore Boudin in 1849, although sourdough dates back to Eygptians 4,000 years ago.  The demand for sourdough by miners was common during the gold rush as they picked up sour starters to take with them on their trips to the gold rush country.

 

Boudin's Sourdough

Why is San Francisco popular with this tradition? Some stories advise because of the spores, fungi, and bacteria in the San Francisco air, others say it is the fog that gives this special taste.... what do you think? Is it marketing?

Things to Do in San Francisco

I simply enjoy the taste. 

San Francisco Fisherman's Wharf

Don’t Miss this Lunch or Snack: Buy a sourdough sandwich from Boudin’s, cup of fresh clam chowder soup from the fisherman vendors, and enjoy with a bottle of Anchor Steam Beer.  My San Francisco treat and experience – as you reminisce these enterprising entrepreneur stories. 

Out and about, even in the rain ~ The Fun Tour Guru 

Continue reading with our fun  Dresden's Christstollen Bakery in Germany story!

It is fun to travel with friends, join our fun vacation group! Contact us for information.

(Images are property of  Fun Tour Guru.)

Discover my Favorite San Jose Restaurant on a Walking Spree

Brews in San Jose, CA 

This "story" is about a favorite restaurant and brewing company which started in Silicon Valley. 

I recently had a request to meet up with out-of-town business colleagues – visitors to San Jose (from Canada and New York ) – who were in town for a conference. When they asked me where to eat, I asked, "Do you like beer?" The answer was "yes" and I knew exactly where to go.

Yes, it is fun to take this social media to another level, and meet up with professionals with whom you have been interacting with in different online forums for a couple of years. And, it was fun to tell some insider secrets about San Jose while walking to dinner from their hotel.   

Dinner, I chose an upscale, lively, casual, and fun place to go. The  idea for this restaurant was created in the south bay by 2 businessmen in 1987. No, not a wine place this time, it involves beer brewery.  Gordon Biersch (Known as GB). Yes, most people know about Gordon Biersch.

Two entrepreneurs, did you know Dan Gordon (brewer) and Dean Biersch (restauranteur and beer-lover) opened their first restaurant in downtown Palo Alto in 1988?  

And, they opened their state-of-the-art brewery and bottling facility in downtown San Jose in 1997.

Their vision, written on their website:  “To create a monument to beer, where people could come drink freshly-brewed beer and have a great meal simultaneously. Only authentic, German-style beers would be served and in the tradition of the ones Dan brewed while attending The Technical University of Munich, or the most renowned brewing school in the world.”

My type of place!  GB has this start-up Silicon Valley business history which blends with San Jose history.  And, most important, they have excellent beer, food, and a place to gather for amazing conversations (perhaps because of the beer?) 

Anyway, there is a great selection of food items to choose from which meets most everyone’s needs. If you should not be a beer enthusiast, there is a full bar available.  I haven’t tried any bar drinks though. Personally, I love the German-style beer.

Worth a splurge:  Add the Garlic Fries, soooo tasty! 

Dinner meet-up at Gordon Biersch

Gordon Biersch San Jose CA Courtesy of Miranda Miller

There are tours available at the brewery upon request and by appointment only.

It is all about the dinner.  What is your favorite entree?  

Walking tour on the way to eat dinner ~ have fun! The Fun Tour Guru 

Yes, upon request, I will show you highlights of San Jose too on a walking spree.