The Itinerant San Franciscan: Week Three

After three weeks as transients, we are closing in on a new home (more on that later). But for now, I'm still living out of a suitcase.

Since I'm hoping this is my last week in hotels, I splurged a bit this time around: I'm staying at the Hotel Majestic at Sutter and Gough. It's the oldest continuously operated hotel in the city, and not too pricey considering its Pacific Heights location ($79 a night). The building was constructed in 1902 and barely survived the fires following the 1906 earthquake (the fire breaks were at Van Ness, two blocks away).

As with most old hotels in this town, it doesn't try to hide its age. I was informed upon checking in that the door handles are merely "ornamental" and I shouldn't try to actually turn them.

These brackets over the sink apparently once held a shelf, or maybe they were early 20th century wash-basin stirrups — popular at the time for cleaning your posterior between baths. [Citation needed. -ed.]



Not a bad view...



...a comfy bed...



...and hey, the elevator was inspected in the past year! I guess the inspectors are only dragging their feet on Tenderloin hotels.



Mainly I've enjoyed walking around the neighborhood. I've been through this part of town countless times, but not as often on foot. And in many ways, this is the meat of Old San Francisco: block after undulating block of Victorians, apartment buildings with beautiful beaux-arts lobbies, gothic churches and tidy parks.

There's still enough grit to keep you from getting completely soft, though. On my way to work yesterday, I nearly collided with a homeless couple wrestling over an empty bottle of Rolling Rock. In this town, some things are universal.