The San Francisco Bay area

It's very easy for Philippine visitors to feel at home in the San Francisco Bay Area. Philippine Consul General Maria Rowena Mendoza Sanchez says, "I have found that the San Francisco Bay Area warmly welcomes visitors from The Philippines. About 500,000 Filipinos live and work in the area - where they are well represented in the student bodies of the University of California-Berkeley, San Francisco State University and many other excellent universities-as well as in the workforce of the world-renowned high tech companies in the Bay Area." There are dozens of Philippine-American organizations active in the San Francisco Bay Area, including the San Francisco-Sister City Committee and the Filipino American Development Foundation. In addition, business ties between The Philippines and the San Francisco Bay Area are strong. The Philippine Trade and Investment Center for the [US] Western Region, which is based in the Bay Area, has close ties with the dynamic high-tech companies of Silicon Valley.

A Visit to San Francisco San Francisco is often called "everybody's favorite city"-by visitors who have a chance to experience its scenic beauty, cultural attractions, excellent shopping and world class cuisine. It is a friendly city that offers convivial hospitality to foreign travelers.

Measuring 49 square miles, San Francisco's landmarks include the Golden Gate Bridge, the historical cable cars and Alcatraz. Views of the San Francisco Bay are often laced with fog, which creates a romantic mood in this most European of American cities. San Francisco offers something to suit every visitor's interest. A stroll around town can take you from Union Square, with its fine stores, to Fisherman's Wharf, with its equally fine seafood restaurants-or to North Beach, the city's bohemian quarter with its boutique clothing shops, bookstores and cafes . In addition to a vibrant nightlife-with top-flight musicians performing each night as part of the city's lively bar and club scene-San Francisco also offers world-class theater, opera, symphony and ballet. And San Francisco is also one of America's greatest dining cities. Internationally known chefs offer unforgettable dining experience in some of the world's best restaurants, while more modest bistros and neighborhood restaurants offer excellent fare in a wide range of international cuisines. For more information, please see the San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau's website http://onlysf.sfvisitor.org/

So what's new in 2006? San Francisco offers many novel activities for visitors. For example, San Francisco Movie Tours recently opened for operation. Each day, a 23-passenger "theater on wheels" visits 65 locations, made famous by current blockbusters and classic San Francisco movies. Guests watch real movie clips on the luxury motorcoach's big screen while viewing the actual location. For more information, visit www.sanfranciscomovie tours.com.

Only a self-assured, world class city like San Francisco would dare to celebrate its own "faults": the city has announced that 2006 is the year of the San Francisco Earthquake and Fire Centennial. The theme of the centennial is "San Francisco Rising: commemorate, celebrate and educate" and several San Francisco museums have launched major exhibitions of art, photographs and memorabilia from this era which have already attracted a steady stream of visitors. A complete list of centennial events is posted at http://www.sfrising.org/events/.

Beyond San Francisco

And don't forget about the fascinating areas near San Francisco. To the south of the city, on the San Francisco Peninsula, San Mateo County is graced with natural scenic beauty.. Along a spectacular coastline, you can participate in a unique elephant seal or whale watching adventure, enjoy deep-sea fishing or stroll the miles of unspoiled beaches and redwood forest trails. The County also offers golf, tennis, wind surfing and horse racing for sports lover. Each year, the Grand National Rodeo and Horse Show is held in San Mateo County-at the Cow Palace, just short drive from the downtown San Francisco. The Grand National Rodeo offers a wide range of rodeo and livestock events, plus concerts by star country performers. Top cowboys compete in saddle bronco riding, bareback bronco riding, barrel racing and bull riding. There is even a special performance for children. For more information, see website http://www.grandnational rodeo.com.

San Mateo County has long been a popular location for filmmakers. Two major Hollywood productions were filmed in San Mateo County in 2005. For the blockbuster movie, "Memoirs of a Geisha," a Japanese fishing village was replicated at the County's famous Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, and the area's rugged and untamed landscape served perfectly for some of the scenes in the film. In addition to this production, the beautiful mansion and gardens of San Mateo County's Filoli Estate was recently the location for the movie version of Broadway's hit musical "Rent." For more information about San Mateo County, visit website http://www.sanmateocountycvb.com or call (650) 348-7600.

Just to the north of San Francisco lies Sonoma County, home to some of the world's most renowned wineries. The County also offers 58 miles of scenic coastline, sandy beaches and jagged cliffs along a breathtaking coastline. Other attractions include majestic redwood forests; placid lakes; the mystical Russian River; meandering country roads and picturesque rural villages. Like many neighboring areas in the San Francisco Bay Area, Sonoma County has been the site of many motion pictures. For over 50 years the County has played gracious host to the film industry-from "Frenchman's Creek" in the early 1940's to Alfred Hitcock's famous 1961 film, "The Birds," to the 2003 Twentieth Century Fox production of "Cheaper By the Dozen."

Part of the Sonoma County experience for any visitor should be a trip to a winery. With more than 200 bonded wineries, choices for visitors range from large facilities with familiar names like Kendall-Jackson, Sebastiani Vineyards and Korbel to the more intimate experience of smaller, "boutique" wineries with names many visitors have yet to discover. These smaller wineries offer guests a personalized look at the winemaking process. Visitors can meet the person who grew and picked the grapes, guided the winemaking process and put the final product in the bottle.

In addition to a full range outdoor activities (ranging from surfing to hot air ballooning), Sonoma County also offers wonderful shopping opportunities - from up market factory outlets to one-of-a-kind fashion shops. A leisurely drive along Sonoma County's back roads can lead the traveler to galleries featuring the best in fine contemporary crafts and arts including jewelry, ceramics, glass, metal textiles, furniture, paintings, sculpture, photography and more.

For more information about Sonoma County, contact Ms.Wendy Haase, Director of Public Relations, Marketing & Communications for the Sonoma County Tourism Bureau. Telephone: (707) 578-8114 or email whaase@sonomacounty. com. Or you can go to the website for Santa Rosa (Sonoma County) at http://www.visitsantarosa.com/.

The San Francisco Bay Area is waiting to welcome you!