kauai helicopter crash MODERATE The Laurel Inn Value One of the fe w hotels in the neighborhood, the Laur el Inn is terrifi

Hotel des Arts This may be the only place downtown where you can find both a hip vibe and a r oom with queen-siz e bed for under $100. The key to the hipness besides front desk personnel donning cool duds and funky glasses ar e a fe w pieces of sleek furniture combined with the contributions of sev eral emerging artists. Your kids will be impressed by the lobby and hallways, which are essentially gallery spaces jampacked with artwork. The permanent works are displayed in the many painted guest rooms, where the walls are literally covered in ambitious and unr estrained paintings. Some room art may be inappropriate kauai helicopter crash for kids, so please tell the staff whether little ones will be in your group. (You should in any case call the hotel to specifically r eserve a painted kauai helicopter crash guest r oom and even to request a particular artist.) One impressive room featuring red and black imagery that may be too bold for young ones is the work of Shepherd Ferry, whose Obama campaign posters kauai helicopter crash have received much attention.

MODERATE The Laurel Inn Value One of the fe w hotels in the neighborhood, the Laur el Inn is terrific and a good v alue. It s ideal for large families, since 18 units hav e kitchenettes. D on t be dismay ed b y the motor lodge exterior. I nside, it s polished and sleek. Configured with either two double beds or a king-siz e bed and a sofa bed, many of the warm and inviting guest rooms interconnect as well. All the rooms are spacious enough to accommodate a crib , and some hav e panoramic city vie ws. For $10 per day, you can make use of the Jewish Community Center s health kauai helicopter crash club across the street; you ll find a state-of-the-art fitness facility, large indoor kauai helicopter crash pools, and plush locker r ooms.

and incense, and grocery stores teeming Golden Gate Bridge and the city fr om with live frogs, crabs, and other wriggly seafood ar e all a visual and cultural the B ay Ar ea s ne west national par k? Kids can run around on the hills, check treat. A stop b y the G olden Gate Fortune Cookie Company just adds to the fun. S ee chapter 8 for a self-guided walking tour of the neighborhood. Hanging O ut at C rissy F ield: What better way to spend the day than to out the gift shop, pile up rocks, or play in the sand. B uy some nice sandwiches at the Warming Hut and enjoy a picnic at one of the many bayside picnic tables. See p. 160. Riding Bikes down the Embarcadero: slow down and take in the vie ws of the The boulevard is wide and the str eet is

Like the revamped Embarcadero, this section of town has undergone its own transformation since the early 1990s. O nce an industrial wasteland, S oMa is no w home to many top museums and galleries. The recently opened Contemporar y J ewish Museum (p. 179) is the ne west addition; others include the Museum of the African Diaspora (p. 180), the Car toon Ar t Museum (p. 179), and the SFMOMA, noted below. Moreover, the Yerba Buena Center, with its waterfalls, lawn, and playgrounds, provides a pleasant respite.