The Vibe Of Bookstores

I am a fan of books. Although I wished I had more time to read, I always enjoyed a good book. So of course the first thing I've was interested in when I did my research about the Mission was the different kinds of bookstore located in the district.

All the bookstores are independently owned. You will not find a Border or Barnes and Noble here. The bookstores in the Mission stood as landmarks in the district. I had the pleasure of visiting 3 bookstores so far. Each stores had their own personality.

First bookstore I stopped at was Forest Book. This store gave the shoppers a sense of peace with the way its decorated and the music played in the store. The walls are decorated with a theme of Asian religion and philosophy . The books sold in the stores cover multiple academic categories such as philosophies, psychologies, histories, etc.

Second bookstore I've visited was Borderland. This bookstore is specialized in science fiction and fantasy. If you are looking for a specific science fiction book or fantasy series, you will find it in this store. As soon as I walked into the store, I was greeted by a sphinx, which is a hairless cat. It was a first time I've encounter a sphinx. Not only the cat was friendly, it look absolutely awesome. Borderland had a selection of sci-fi movies as well. The two gentlemen that was working there not only had something interesting to say about the store, but about the district as well.

"The place used to be cheaper to live in," Mikael Bard, one of the worker over the counter, stated. "In fact, the entire bay area used to be cheaper than the rest of the area in the state."

Through Mikael, I was able to learned a little bit about the Mission. The cheap living attracted a lot of artists to live in the district. This explained a lot of the Murals, galleries, and various bookstores with eccentric setups. This fed the needs of the artists in the neighborhood. When the Dot Com era swooped into the Mission, it brought more of the restaurants and bars into the district, which mostly resides on Valencia Street. But the artistic values still lived on in the Mission till this day. That's why these unique bookstores still exist, selling books in good prices and hard to find books that can be only find in these bookstores. That's what really separate these bookstores from corporate bookstores like Borders and Barnes and Noble. If you step in one of these bookstores, you'll find the workers are masters of their craft and find whatever you're looking for.

The third bookstore I've visited was Dog Eared Books. This store sold new and used books. Alvin Orloff, manager of the bookstore, also had a lot of things to say about district. He described the difference between the Mission and Haight Ashbury.

"It's less foggy here,"Alvin suggested. He also said that the once cheap housing in the Mission brought the artist into the district. At one time, the artists in the district did not need a job and would live just on their painting.

Alvin also stated that Mission has the more independent edge. Also it may be less publicised, Mission has a stronger free spirit than Haight.

Dog Eared Books caters to local writers and journalists. They would hold special events where writers would come in to talk about their books. Alvin introduced me to the section where the bookstore sold materials that journalists and writers published independently. It was nice to see a store that allow people to discover small time authors and writers.

Just visiting these few bookstores, I've already encounter an abnormal yet wonderful culture that I have not encounter before. I'm sure the more I visit these stores, the more fascinated I will become about this distinct sub-culture scene.

The Mission. What is it?

So what exactly makes San Francisco interesting?  What really make this city different or unique from other metropolitan cities?  People who lives or are familiar with San Francisco knows that its each different district that makes up the uniqueness of this city.  It's the different cultures in each districts that blends together to make San Francisco as a whole.  Tourists may come to San Francisco and think that the Wharf, Castro or the Haight is what the represents the city.  But it's the districts that are unknown to tourists that really have the true essence of what San Francisco is like.  Districts like the Mission is where the find different people of different background living who knows what being in San Francisco is all about.  

The Mission District is San Francisco's very first neighborhood.  Sitting east of the Castro district, the Mission started off as a large Hispanic neighborhood.  The Mission was known for their cheap housing, which attracted the artists.  But the Dot Commers moved in during the mid 90's.  This shifted the nature of the Mission.  Housing price went up, but more business bloomed.

Two main streets runs through the Mission, Mission Street and Valencia Street.  Both streets runs parallel through the district, but each have their own looks.  Mission Street has a less attractive look.  Mission Street represents the old Mission as the street is filled with produce markets and various clothing and electronic shops.  Valencia Street has been remodeled into a friendlier look.  This street is filled with bookstores, art galleries, bars and restaurants.  Valencia Street is where one should be on a weekend night, especially for people above the mid 20's.

The Mission for some time was considered to not be a safe place to live.  Certain areas in the Mission are still not.  However, things have been improving.  On Valencia Street between 14th Street and 21st Street, not only does it look safe to live, but fun as well.

The Mission has a hidden treasure that most people do not know about; it is a great place to shop.  College students that do not have much cash should considered making multiple stops into the district for their necessities.  The Mission has the cheapest price for fruits and vegetables.  It has many low price furniture stores on Mission Street.  Every clothing place in the Mission is independently owned and has a unique styles of its own.

  The Mission is not just about the tourists.  It's not just for the people living in San Francisco.  It has every aspect that will keep everyone entertained and satisfied.  So don't just go to the Haight and the Wharf.  Mission is where the interesting experience at.