Sign in with Facebook"San Francisco is Really Shaking Things Up!" San Francisco by karenincalifornia
San Francisco Travel Guide: 10,987 reviews and 18,687 photos
On February 12, 2004, the mayor of San Francisco, appalled by certain statements made by the President of the United States during the President's State of the Union address about same-sex marriages, ordered the San Francisco City Clerk to begin performing marriages to anyone who wanted to be married. Same-sex marriages were performed against objections of Pres. Bush and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (aka "The Governator"). Couples were granted licenses without discrimination and without regard to gender or sexual orientation. The mayor believed that State laws prohibiting same-sex marriages were unconstitutional.
Since that time, more than 4,100 same-sex couples have been married in City Hall in San Francisco.
On March 11, 2004, the California Supreme Court ordered city officials to stop granting marriage licenses to same-sex couples. The Supreme Court heard the merits of the case on May 25, 2004. On August 13, 2004, the Court voided the same-sex marriages and ruled that the Mayor overstepped his authority by granting the licenses.
The Court did not rule on the constitutionality of the ban on same-sex marraiges. The Mayor and numerous gay and lesbian couples immediately filed constitutional challenges. These cases have now been consolidated and on March 14, 2005, gay rights activists scored a major victory when a Superior Court judge ruled that the ban on gay marriages in California was unconstitutional. It is fully expected that the gay marriage opponents will file an appeal.
- Pros:Beautiful architecture and natural beauty, interesting and usually restless natives, great restaurants, excellent arts, never boring
- Cons:Tough city for driving around - even for a local. Homeless situation is #1 problem and needs to be fixed.
- In a nutshell:A very good place to land a job.
Reviews (70)
BART
Transportation
(5)
BART is a decent enough service for getting around a lot of parts of the Bay Area. It serves part of SF, part of East... more travel advice
Great food in the middle of a nutty...
Restaurants
(19)
Limon is a popular, hip, trendy restaurant in the Mission District. It was the perfect place to take my popular, hip and... more travel advice
Lunch at karenincalifornia's office
Restaurants
(19)
You might think that working in a city with all these fine restaurants, I must go out to a different fantastic eatery... more travel advice
Farmers in the Big City
Shopping
(4)
The Ferry Plaza in San Francisco is the location of a fairly decent Farmer's Market 4 times a week: Tuesdays from 10am... more travel advice
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- 88 Photos
- 135 Forum posts
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Share Your TravelsLatest Activity in San Francisco
- Replied to pattierixson's Travel San Francisco Forum Forum Question "Mission Dolores"
- Commented on GenuinelyCurious's San Francisco Page
- updated a San Francisco Travel Page "San Francisco is Really Shaking Things Up!"
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Comments (68)
Interesting take on your "near" home town. Very useful tips.
Great tips esp the restaurants can't believe several are closed over the wknd though
I can't believe how many restaurants I have missed. I only visit once a year now, but I lived in SF for many years. I can't wait to try some of your picks when I am out in June.
Happy Birthday, Karen! To celebrate your birthday I'm just having a look at the updates that you have added to this page since July 26, 2004. BART didn't even exist yet when I was living and working in Berkeley. Sorry to hear it's already old and shabby.
Thanks for visiting my Le Thor page! We're planning a visit to the US (2009) and hope to be in California in late summer. With a bit of luck the weather will be as good as it was in France.
hi Karen, I got carried away rating your restaurants, they all sounded good, as well as the things to do. Will be up this friday and want to know where the best Dim Sum can be found. Larry
Great San Fran tips. I'm headed back up there in a couple weeks and you've given me some new ideas. Thanks! Love the "Karen's typical lunch" tip...LoL!
This zoo is the worst zoo I have ever been too. Don't waste your time, every other exhibit is closed. No elephants, lion house closed, zebras locked up and this in the middle of summer. The only animal they had a lot of was peacocks.
great pages , a wealth of information and advice Looking forward to trying some of them myself
yeah the walk to coit tower does take it out of you! your right enough bout the great views
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