When moving to a new town it can be intimidating finding new areas and new resources to re-equant yourself with this strange new place. It is essential that new students know that there are places on campus and off campus that are must sees and there are plenty of cute, quiet areas to study besides the library. Learning the places and activities is a highly important part of feeling at home here at SFSU.
On campus:
1) the Japanese garden right in between the library and student center is a serene, quiet and secluded area that is great for studying or just clearing your head. It is one of my personal favorite places on campus. The soft trickly of the small waterfall is soothing and makes it an ideal place to study or journal on free time.
2) The depot is a wonderful area to catch free concerts, hit an on-campus pub (if you are of age) or just hang out and get some good food and beverages in the food court. This area is very funky and has so many different levels that it is easy to get lost in but each and every place has its own fun vibes. This area is located within the student center where you can also find various different resources for organizations on campus.
3) Don't forget to check out the campus clubs and organizations page! this is a wonderful resource where you will be able to find clubs and organizations that you identify with and make friends in the process. It will build a sense of community connecting to others with similar interests and make you feel so much more at home. On this page you will find contact information for the president of the clubs and organizations so you can ask questions and get connected with their social media for more information. I will have the link for you bellow! be sure to check it out in your free time.
4) The library is a wonderful area on campus to study. If you head up to the upper floor, there are small coffee shops and cafes as well as a cute little used bookstore. As you continue down the hallway you will find the study area of the library that is super quiet and equipped with multiple desks, tables, and comfortable couch areas making this ideal for group study sessions or just individual study sessions in between classes or just anytime!
5) We have an incredible fitness and wellness center if that is something you are interested in. There are multiple floors, exercise classes, equipment, events that occur in different rooms, and you can't forget the new and large Rockwall which you can't miss once you enter the gym and head for the stairs to get to the indoor track and other equipment.
6) We have a very nice bookstore where you can load up on school supplies as well as some fantastic SFSU merchandise for yourself and your friends and family.
Off campus:
San Francisco has a large variety of events and fun activities going on throughout the city. I could not possibly fit all of these incredible events and places to visit on here without this post never ending. Here are a few of the most popular things to do within this wonderful city.
1) The Castro is an amazing experience that is a must see here in San Francisco. It is a short Muni ride from the school and has so many incredibly cute shops and restaurants. One of my favorite places in this district is the cookie shop Hot cookie. Trust me just look it up and you will see why this shop is so much fun. This area is very big for the LGBTQ+ community and is very inclusive.
2) Haight street! this is my favorite street off campus. There is a large variety of tattoo and piercing shops here ( I personally recommend Mom's body Shop if you are looking to get an affordable and very well-done tattoo and/ or piercing). This street is also famous for their large amount of funky thrift stores up and down the area. Yet again this is a very LGBTQ+ spot. It is also the extremely hippie area of town.
3) of course, there is the famous golden gate park. This is a very large, cute park in San Francisco. It is a nice area for picnics or to just get together with friends.
4) If you haven't been to San Francisco you must see the golden gate bridge, pier 39, and the windy road. These are all extremely large tourist traps but definitely something that everyone should do at least once to cross it off the list.
5) Street fairs are a very large part of San Francisco culture. There is almost always at least one festival going on at all times. These are usually free to enter but can get a little pricy if you choose to purchase anything from a booth. there is such a large variety of street fairs here. I will post the link to this year's street fairs bellow so you can check them out and see if there is anything that may seem interesting to you.
6) of course, we also have sunstone mall which is just right next door to campus. you can do grocery shopping, regular shopping, get some food and take leftovers home. You can basically get everything you may need from this area. There is also a farmers' market that occurs in the back parking lot by the sports store on Sundays with a large variety of fresh goods.
7) we also have a large variety of 18+ clubs if that is your crowd. You can just type in 18+ clubs San Francisco in the search bar and there will be a decent list that you can choose from.
8) union square is also a fun area to do some shopping and check out the malls. Personally, as a college student with limited funds I do not spend a lot of time in this area, but it is definitely something you should check out if you are looking for a large variety of stores to shop in.
Links for resources:
San Francisco Festivals & Street Fairs in 2022 and 2023 (sftourismtips.com)
Fun and Free: A Guide to San Francisco’s Street Fairs and Neighborhood Festivals (sfstandard.com)
San Francisco Street Fairs (crawlsf.com) (most helpful for street fairs)
J. Paul Leonard Library | (sfsu.edu)
SFSU Bookstore Apparel, Merchandise, & Gifts (bkstr.com)
Fitness & Wellness | Campus Recreation (sfsu.edu)
Organizations - GatorXperience (campuslabs.com)
Mom's Body Shop | Tattoos and Piercings on Haight Street (momsbodyshop.com)
Hot Cookie – Putting Something Sweet in Your Mouth
Works cited:
“About Fitness and Wellness.” Fitness & Wellness | Campus Recreation, https://campusrec.sfsu.edu/fitness.
Castrocultural, and Chrisfrompride. Castro LGBTQ Cultural District, 19 Aug. 2022, https://castrolgbtq.org/.
Fargo, Shelley D. “Fun and Free: A Guide to San Francisco's Street Fairs and Neighborhood Festivals.” The San Francisco Standard, 18 June 2022, https://sfstandard.com/arts-culture/san-francisco-best-free-fun-biggest-street-fairs-neighborhood-festivals/.
“Haight Ashbury News.” ABC7 San Francisco, https://abc7news.com/place/haight-ashbury/.
“J. Paul Leonard Library |.” J. Paul Leonard Library, https://library.sfsu.edu/.
Loeffler, Jill. “San Francisco Festivals & Street Fairs in 2022 and 2023.” SF Tourism Tips, 1 Sept. 2022, https://www.sftourismtips.com/san-francisco-festivals.html.
“News.” Haight Street Art Center, 29 June 2022, https://haightstreetart.org/blogs/news.
“Organizations .” - Gatorxperience, https://sfsu.campuslabs.com/engage/organizations.
“SFSU Bookstore.” Efollett, https://www.bkstr.com/sanfranciscostatestore/home.
“Street Fairs.” CRAWLSF, 18 Dec. 2020, https://crawlsf.com/things-to-do/street-fairs/.
StudentLifeAtSFState. “Student Life at San Francisco State University.” YouTube, YouTube, 7 Jan. 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIrvcc2PHHE.
Zimmerman, Douglas. “'Keep the Castro Queer': SF Photographer Celebrates LGBTQ Culture.” SFGATE, SFGATE, 17 July 2022, https://www.sfgate.com/sf-culture/article/photos-capture-castro-lgbtq-culture-17277355.php.
