After 190 days and 7,000 miles of rowing a cutting-edge rowboat across the North Atlantic, two British dudes arrived in San Francisco on Friday and promptly drank a couple of beers. The Golden Gate Endeavor, as the journey was called, left Choshi, Japan near Tokyo on Friday, May 8, 2009 and passed under the Golden Gate Bridge on Friday, November 13, 2009. The duo had hoped to be the first to row unsupported between Japan and the U.S., but they ran out of food about 100 miles from the finish and accepted an emergency helicopter drop. That doesn't make the trip any less cool in my book. ]]> Victor Ozols 2009-11-14T13:14:53-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/13/152225/31

A scene from Metropia, not for the kids

If you happen to be visiting the San Francisco Bay Area this weekend and are looking for a last-minute culture fix, our suggestion is the Fourth Annual S.F. International Animation Festival. The festival's kick-off took place earlier this week, with an Opening Night screening of the new Wes Anderson movie The Fantastic Mr. Fox.

While Fox is a larger studio release, most of the festival's programming gives due time and attention to films that don't have the same hype or budget attached to them as a Pixar release—obscure international offerings, shorts, and other movies that don't usually find a place at your local cineplex. Don't get us wrong, we're still Pixar devotees, but this weekend's lineup is refreshingly challenging and less mainstream than, say, the umpeeth movie in the Shrek series. ]]> Heidi Atwal 2009-11-13T16:44:27-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/11/5/14015/4173

This week's cheftestant profile involves travel to you, rather than a self-initiated jaunt to a cast member's restaurant. Laurine Wickett, whose tenure on Top Chef effectively ended after what is arguably the show's most difficult challenge, "Restaurant Wars," has since returned to San Francisco where she runs Left Coast Catering.

New York born, but Northern California bred—at least in the culinary sense—Laurine incorporates the Bay Area's various cultural influences into market-fresh menus for her clients. Whether left coast parents planning a Bat Mitzvah or bride-to-be hosting a dessert reception, Laurine will provide you with options galore. We perused some of her sample menus online, which reflect a flavorful Californian approach to cooking while turning to other regions of the world for inspiration. She does everything from sushi stations to steak and french fries, on the same menu if you'd like guests to have multiple options. Her ill-fated Pork Rillette (or, as Dana Cowin punishingly put it, "cat food") made no appearance on any of the menus we saw. ]]> Heidi Atwal 2009-11-05T15:29:22-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/28/153637/79

Only in San Francisco would a house with a tree that shoots fire be considered a future museum site. That is, if saw player extraordinaire and former hotelier Bob Pritikin has his way. According to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle, Pritikin, who often throws lavish fundraisers at his residence—sort of an adult's fun house with kitschy memorabilia strewn throughout—is hoping to "pay the bills, make a nice contribution to the community and have some daytime visitors" by transforming his mansion into a museum. He originally suggested the less-than-humble "Only in San Francisco" name for the prospective museum site, though his hopes were dashed after learning that the city's Convention & Visitors Bureau already owns said URL.

The visiting groups would be relatively small, limited to 20 people per day, six days a week, says the Chronicle. Pritikin's idea, if realized, would place his home in the esteemed, eccentric company of one of the Bay Area's other homes-turned-tourist attractions, the Winchester Mystery House. This isn't Pritikin's first hubris-driven campaign on behalf of his home, having previously lobbied for it to have it turned into San Francisco's mayoral residence in 2004. That plan predictably never took off, and handsome politico Gavin Newsom is dwelling elsewhere these days.]]> Heidi Atwal 2009-10-29T10:24:18-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/28/11241/230

Where you perhaps planning on driving over to Oakland from San Francisco to check out why we named Oakland as one of the Five Cities With A Bad Rap worth visiting? It's too bad you'll be cut off from the goodness for who knows how long, after steel cables snapped last night, hitting three cars on the roadway below and stopping up traffic for over two hours.

There were no injuries when the bridge cracked its metal whip, but repairs and general safety issues will keep the region's busiest bridge shut down at least through tonight. Granted, the pieces that snapped were themselves an emergency repair made over Labor Day weekend, but now we're generally worried about bridge fatigue; perhaps we should be putting pennies into boxes for "Save The Steel Bridges" instead of Ronald McDonald House?

Public transporation options, after the jump. ]]> JetSetCD 2009-10-28T08:49:17-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/27/81416/281

Thanks to the TSA, travelers have all kinds of hoops to jump through when it’s finally time to catch your flight. Everyone knows there’s some math formula with the number three and something about one ounce when it comes to the rules regarding liquids and plastic baggies. Well if you have something else that weighs an ounce and comes in a plastic bag you won’t have to do much to get through security. Medical marijuana patients can now pass through the San Francisco International Airport and other Bay Area airports without any issues, or so they say.

As long as you have the proper paperwork you can carry up to eight ounces of marijuana with you. That’s the city’s policy, and it’s up to city police to make the final ruling. The TSA kind of has no authority over the issue, but if we had some healing hooch we’d still probably be a little discrete when going through airport security. The US Department of Justice pretty much told US attorneys to not bother passengers when they are just following the state’s rules and regulations. ]]> kjb 2009-10-27T08:54:17-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/10/23/113037/11

San Francisco's majestic orange gateway, the Golden Gate Bridge, has served as highlight in panoramic film shots, and famously, a protest site for a green-friendly Hollywood actor. It's come to represent the City by the Bay like no other landmark, hence the throngs of tourists and locals that flock to it for photo opportunities, or to see its fantastic details up close.

To augment its beauty, the San Francisco Chronicle reported this week that The National Science Foundation "awarded the bridge district $3 million...to install outdoor exhibits explaining "its engineering and history." For visitors, this offers the chance to soak up some educational details while ogling its impressive construction. During most of our visits to the Bridge, we've seen people cruise by for a quick picture and maybe a moment of reflection, then quickly depart. The installations will, hopefully, remedy this hurried tourist mindset. Reports the Chronicle: ]]> Heidi Atwal 2009-10-23T11:58:42-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/