Mission St, SOMA

In a city practically defined by its abundance of parks, Yerba Buena Gardens can appear to be the size of a pin on a map showing the Presidio, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have its place. In the bustling SOMA district, this park is a great break for city dwellers looking for a simple patch of green in a sea of buildings.

The park is well laid out and very pretty; the stone benches make it appear more like a botanical garden and less like a regular park, but the green lawn certainly provides some lounge space as well. Skaters and jugglers may be showing off their skills, but will not be overbearing.

My only problem with this park is the strict "no ball sports of any kind" rule. I was there with a group last week and got some trouble for having them hit a birdie with a badminton racket for all of a minute. Given the fact that people will just as likely offer you drugs in this park, it seems a bit extreme to berate people for using miniature tennis rackets in a public park, but at the same time I got a warning and wasn't even issued a slap on the wrist, so I don't think they generally enforce their rules too heavily.

Mary Street intersects Mission street and it is pretty short so it can be easily missed. However, there is one large aspect of this street that will probably cause people to do a double take. The building on the side of this street is very big, it actually takes up an entire block on Mission street. It is none other than the San Francisco Chronicle. This is basically the headquarters in which current events in San Francisco and the world are put into a newspaper everyday for the residents of San Francisco. Other than the SF chronicle, there isn't really much on this street. On the opposite side of the building is a parking lot, and that is pretty much it.

Lafayette Street is a one way street from Otis Street to Howard Street. It also intersects two other streets, which are Natoma Street and Minna Street, both are also one way streets. There are houses and apartments located on this street and some of them are pretty nice. There are some trees lining the sidewalk that really brighten up the street since it is sort of shaded. There aren't many shops around but there is a corner store right at the side of Lafayette and Howard street. There aren't any playgrounds, libraries, or schools nearby, but this street is close by to Mission and Market street, which have thousands of stores. There are also Light Rail trains about a block or two from this street so locals can travel easily. This street is an okay place to live even though there aren't many facilities and it is in better condition than some other streets in San Francisco.