Okay. So there are plenty of places in any large city that you can be completely on your own, despite being surrounded by people. I've always LOVED that feeling- the feeling of being surrounded by people and yet separate, like a cat in a window.
Personally, I've always been partial to parking my ass on the sidewalk on 16th Street, about 20' up the hill from Castro. People drive by- but you don't actually see humans out of their cars. You can see, on a clear day, all the way to the East Bay (and about 45 minutes before genuine sunset, there's a building up in the hills that has a window that reflects light right at you from All That Way Over There, straight up 16th Street. Very cool!).
It's a good location for a bit of a stop and think. There's another location nearby that has much the same view, but is a bit too isolated: there aren't people around to be separate from, which is important. Or maybe I like that location even better and don't want to share it.
There are other locations that work for this, in any city. There are locations like this in other cities, too. My ABSOLUTELY favorite bit of being completely alone in an urban world, bar none, was walking from the East End to Trafalgar, to catch the night bus to West Ken at about 3 AM or so (I did this pretty regularly when I was living in London).
What is your favorite place to be alone among many people?
Personally, I've always been partial to parking my ass on the sidewalk on 16th Street, about 20' up the hill from Castro. People drive by- but you don't actually see humans out of their cars. You can see, on a clear day, all the way to the East Bay (and about 45 minutes before genuine sunset, there's a building up in the hills that has a window that reflects light right at you from All That Way Over There, straight up 16th Street. Very cool!).
It's a good location for a bit of a stop and think. There's another location nearby that has much the same view, but is a bit too isolated: there aren't people around to be separate from, which is important. Or maybe I like that location even better and don't want to share it.
There are other locations that work for this, in any city. There are locations like this in other cities, too. My ABSOLUTELY favorite bit of being completely alone in an urban world, bar none, was walking from the East End to Trafalgar, to catch the night bus to West Ken at about 3 AM or so (I did this pretty regularly when I was living in London).
What is your favorite place to be alone among many people?
Aside from that, the Metreon is pretty cool. Hanging out and just watching some of the people go by is pretty amusing.
I loved drinking coffee and reading the Washington Post on a lovely Saturday or Sunday morning in Dupont Circle and just watching people as they walk by. The first good spring weekend is perfect for this activity -- everyone's been cooped up for months and just happy to have some sunshine.
Sitting at one of the two Starbucks (or the other coffee place, XandOs) is best for this. If you're lucky, you can listen to couples have a first date right next to you as you pretend to read the paper and try not to smile at their words.
Bliss.
I feel alone amongst many almost everywhere. Because almost all of the time, I am. Work cafeteria, out to eat by myself, driving up through the mountains. There are always people around, but I'm alone with my own thoughts pretty much all the time. It's fun sometimes when it's intentional. After a while though, it loses its lustre. :)
In SF... so far, it's been a certain stairway down in the Castro off of 18th street. Surrounded by the city but generally left alone.
I was expecting something like a smaller version of the Washington Monument in DC; what I failed to realize was how *much* smaller it would be.
The elevator was big enough for 2 strangers, 4 friends, and perhaps 6 very good friends to ride in at once. Smallest elevator I'd ever been in. At the top, the observation area wasn't much more than an area encircling the elevator shaft, with smallish windows to look out on the downtown. It was narrow enough that it proved easier to walk around the other direction than to try to get around someone. Fortunately they were smart enough to have 2 'floors' there, the bottom floor being where you'd wait for the elevator so you could go back down again, if you didn't feel like hoofing it down the rickety metal stairwell.
It was a very small, isolated room, with a good view of the entire downtown. Definitely a good place to be alone in the middle of a big city.