Cable cars first made their appearance in San Francisco. In 1869, Andrew Hallidie witnessed a horse-drawn car accident. The damp, coastal climate of San Francisco created slick surfaces on its steep streets. This situation proved dangerous for the heavy horse-cars, which would slide backward. The accident Hallidie inspired him to use an invention his father had developed. That invention was the metal rope.

Both trolleys and cable cars run on steel rails. The cable car uses a cable under the carriage, between the rails. The trolley uses an electric poll that runs above it. Cable car and trolley lines still run in San Francisco today. A museum highlights the contribution of the city’s street rail system. Enthusiasts of any age can try a hand on a life-sized replica of a motorman’s platform as it was in 1911.

One of the favorite spots it will let you off is the cable car museum. The kids can learn some history and it is certainly worth a short stop. You will want to take some time and carefully enjoy the interesting things to see at the quant little stop. The children will gain a better understanding of what San Francisco and the cable cars are all about. Most people remark, it was one of the most interesting things they did while in the area.
Admission is free, but make sure you check on the hours they are open before you jump off the trolley, but of course you can always catch the next cable car so have some fun and take the time to explore the whole area. It is one of the best ways to spend a day in San Francisco.

The entry way graced by a sculpting cast of Rodin’s ‘The Thinker’ leads to collections of art dating back 6000 years. Items can be traced from 4000 BC to 14 th century AD. The Ancient and European collection contains some 1400 extremely rare pieces. One of the highlights of this covers the period of Greek vase painting and includes ivory artifacts dating back to 7th century BC. Recently added to this collection is a Persian sculpture dating back to 400 BC.

Among the many paintings on permanent display are El Greco’s John The Baptist, painted in 1600 and Monet’s Waterlilies done in 1914.

Another area of The Legion of Honor is a graphic arts collection housed in the Achenbach Foundation for The Graphic Arts completed in 1948. This area is devoted to a collection of around 90,000 pieces including Japanese prints and Indian miniatures.

These are some interesting items on display at the Asian Art Museum today.

Probably the most meaningful piece is the bronze Buddha. This was donated to the museum, along with about half of the other artwork adorning its halls, by the museum founder Avery Brundage. The bronze Buddha dates all the way back to 338 A.D., and is considered the oldest known Chinese Buddha sculpture in the world.

The museum also has painted scrolls from Japan, dating from 300 B.C.

Korean dynasties are represented as well, with the largest collection of stoneware from these dynasties outside of Korea. The dates of these items range from 57 B.C. to 935 A.D.

Thai ceramics are displayed along with a large collection of Thai paintings.

Indian stone sculptures done by ancient Buddhists and paintings and textiles from Sikh traditions are available to see as well.

There is so much more to see at this monument to Asian culture. Spend a day roaming the museum’s halls and learn about Asia’s rich history.

There is a wide variety of modern art types to investigate while at the museum. For example, there are different galleries that include paintings and sculptures, photography, media arts, as well as architecture and design. For people who enjoy photography, they are really going to love the selection at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. They have been collecting photographs since 1935 and have over 14,000 pieces in their collection.

Photography is not the only great type of art located here. There are also 7,000 different painting and sculptures from 1900 to present day. There are also a number of different art movements captures by these pieces, making it a great place to learn about art.

One of the best things about San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art is they are constantly rotating exhibits. This brings multiple fun exhibits into the museum at different times, and also gives people a reason to make multiple visits at different times.