I'm currently in San Francisco - HOW do you guys do it!?

[Ricky]

...by way of Portland, which as absolutely amazing. I've arrived in SF today, and am staying near Buena Vista park in a garden apartment of what I looked up to be a $2.7 million dollar home. And it's not even a huge house. The neighborhood is amazing, but it's on a giant hill which is half a mile away from pretty much everything.

I'm not sure how to get about getting groceries. I bought the 7 day Muni pass which is a damn good deal in my book but I just went past a gallon of milk that was priced at $8.99. WTF!? I could have them delivered...and wait. Also, I'm used to just getting bottled water when I'm away from home, since I'm used to drinking from a filter, but I don't see a good way of doing that here unless I get a car. Any advice?

I thought I wanted to go carless. But life on a big ass hill with no car seems pretty damn inconvenient.

I took BART from the airport to Civic Center, and I was a little shocked at how run down everything looked coming in. I'm sure there are nice places besides the peninsula, but everything seemed pretty dreary.  I only mention this because of how expensive it is to live in the Bay Area.

How is a Mustachian to survive here?

[MoonShadow]

How is a Mustachian to survive here?

Move.

[cchrissyy]

Did you move here? or just traveling?  I think that would help with the advice.

That's too much for milk. Easily double any price I get in Berkeley grocery stores. Where the heck did you see that?

[Ricky]

Sorry for not clarifying - just visiting for a week. I went into Bi-Rite which I later discovered was an extremely pricey store after the fact.

[Us2bCool]

Okay, I'll contribute. We moved to the Bay Area (not SF, but still extremely expensive) from Texas three years ago, and I have to say that our life is a lot more Mustachian than it was there.

How do we afford it? We got lucky. Both of our jobs wanted to relocate us at the same time, so while we didn't really get a cost of living adjustment (we did get a little, but it only covered the fact that CA has income tax and TX doesn't), we found we are able to afford to live here on our salaries. Yeah, our lifestyle took a big hit, but in reality it just changed from having a lot of extra luxuries to truly enjoying life, community and friends.

So yeah, a lot of it is just luck. I think a lot of people who were raised around here just figure out a way to make it work. A lot of them live at home a lot longer or work their way up from a starter condo/FHA loan to larger and nicer houses. Keep in mind also that salaries, while still not enough to support a lifestyle like you'll get in Portland or Austin, are quite a bit higher.

[GreenPen]

How is a Mustachian to survive here?

Keep in mind that the median household income in SF is around $80k (compared to around $50k nationally). And a lot of people move to the Bay Area for jobs that pay well over the median.

Also, I'm used to just getting bottled water when I'm away from home, since I'm used to drinking from a filter, but I don't see a good way of doing that here unless I get a car. Any advice?

Advice: drink tap. You'll get a taste of Yosemite in every sip.

[Eric]

Also, I'm used to just getting bottled water when I'm away from home, since I'm used to drinking from a filter, but I don't see a good way of doing that here unless I get a car. Any advice?

Buy a reusable water bottle.  Refill it from the sink or drinking fountains.  Stop polluting the earth for 50,000 just to drink 16oz of water.

I thought I wanted to go carless. But life on a big ass hill with no car seems pretty damn inconvenient.

Walk you lazy bastard!  You don't see many fat people around, do you?  That's why!

I took BART from the airport to Civic Center, and I was a little shocked at how run down everything looked coming in. I'm sure there are nice places besides the peninsula, but everything seemed pretty dreary.  I only mention this because of how expensive it is to live in the Bay Area.

The city itself is beautiful and ugly at the same time.  But like pretty much every other city in the country, the area around the airport is not a nice area.

How is a Mustachian to survive here?

Ride a bike!  Don't be lazy!  Find amazing things to do outdoors year round.  Shop at the multitude of discount produce stores and groceries.  And for god's sake, stop wasting money on water.

Have fun!  :)

[TrMama]

I thought I wanted to go carless. But life on a big ass hill with no car seems pretty damn inconvenient.

I live in a different expensive, hilly city. Get  yourself one of those rolling shopping carts to haul your heavy things home in. They even make cutesy, yuppie looking ones now that fold  up. Or put the heavy things in a backpack.

Suck it up, Princess.

[Ricky]

I thought I wanted to go carless. But life on a big ass hill with no car seems pretty damn inconvenient.

I live in a different expensive, hilly city. Get  yourself one of those rolling shopping carts to haul your heavy things home in. They even make cutesy, yuppie looking ones now that fold  up. Or put the heavy things in a backpack.

Suck it up, Princess.

Haha, I would if I lived here I suppose. Owning a car here would be out of the question though, so those carts would be necessary.

I gave in to the tap - thanks Eric. But there's no way I'm bothering with a bike where I'm staying. The hills are straight up.

I'll admit the weather is great and there's lots of natural beauty here and diversity - but overall it's just a dirty confined expensive mess in my opinion. Going to try to enjoy my time here - but I'm missing the quaintness of Portland already.

[RyanAtTanagra]

Civic center bart station is a rough first impression of the city.  I live in a nice neighborhood but that's my bart stop too, and bringing guests in via bart I always cringe as we walk up those stairs to street level and the smell of piss.  That's not representative of the whole city.  Granted that's also not the only part of the city that's gross like that, but it's definitely well below average.

If you need to do major grocery shopping go to Foods Co on Folsom near 13th.  It's owned by Kroger/Foods4Less.  There's also a TJs nearby there.  Any small place near you is going to be $$$ especially since you're in the upper haight (touristy and expensive area).  I'd have to look how to get there from you but I think the 7 on Haight to the 22 at Filmore then getting off that at 16th and Folsom would get you 2 blocks away from it.  Or just take the 7 to buchannan and walk the rest of the way, which should be about 3/4 mile walk.

SF has like the 3rd best tap water in the country or something, people buying bottled water here boggles my mind.  Just stop.

If you want to try a bike look up the wiggle route.  It's a specific bike route that winds around the hills as best you can.  It might get you back to your place easier than a straight shot up the hill.

The city is a dirty confined expensive mess because you don't know where to go.  Don't formulate and solidify an opinion of a place after a few days.  I spent one night in Portland and could say the same thing...  and SF can definitely be that way, and some people refuse to see the nicer parts and just hate, but it doesn't have to be.  There's lots of awesome.

[SF'd]

Civic center bart station is a rough first impression of the city.  I live in a nice neighborhood but that's my bart stop too, and bringing guests in via bart I always cringe as we walk up those stairs to street level and the smell of piss.  That's not representative of the whole city.  Granted that's also not the only part of the city that's gross like that, but it's definitely well below average.

If you need to do major grocery shopping go to Foods Co on Folsom near 13th.  It's owned by Kroger/Foods4Less.  There's also a TJs nearby there.  Any small place near you is going to be $$$ especially since you're in the upper haight (touristy and expensive area).  I'd have to look how to get there from you but I think the 7 on Haight to the 22 at Filmore then getting off that at 16th and Folsom would get you 2 blocks away from it.  Or just take the 7 to buchannan and walk the rest of the way, which should be about 3/4 mile walk.

SF has like the 3rd best tap water in the country or something, people buying bottled water here boggles my mind.  Just stop.

If you want to try a bike look up the wiggle route.  It's a specific bike route that winds around the hills as best you can.  It might get you back to your place easier than a straight shot up the hill.

The city is a dirty confined expensive mess because you don't know where to go.  Don't formulate and solidify an opinion of a place after a few days.  I spent one night in Portland and could say the same thing...  and SF can definitely be that way, and some people refuse to see the nicer parts and just hate, but it doesn't have to be.  There's lots of awesome.

I think Ryan above summed it up pretty nicely. SF is a little unique in that the center of town (Civic Center, Tenderloin) is by far the worst part of the city in my experience.  You're also here in the "summer", which is probably the worst time of year weather wise.  There are some fairly mustachian things you can do to get a better feel for the city's appeal - check out the Mission for a burrito (el farolito is great and <$10), check out Off the Grid @ Fort Mason (Friday night) or the Presidio (Sunday all day, my favorite if the weather's good) for a cheap food truck scene, grab a sundae from Ghirardelli and walk along the water, pack a lunch and have a picnic in Alamo Square Park (overlooking the "Painted Ladies" from Full House), or rent a bike and book it over the GG bridge / around GG Park. The hills are a pain for cycle commuting, but if you live towards the outskirts of the city it's generally flat near the water in all directions.

As an aside, my wife and I walk ~1/2 a mile each way with for groceries every Sunday. We intentionally chose a part of the city that's flat. While the walk isn't ideal, we don't own a car (maybe our only claim to mustachianism!) so there aren't many alternatives. Buying bottled water was the first thing to go (heavy, expensive, unnecessary), and you actually start to really prioritize what you buy when you have to lug it back. We moved here from NYC so we were already familiar with high prices, but I feel like our lifestyle has improved dramatically in SF - the ability to be outside year round is huge. Enjoying mother nature also tends to be less expensive than our entertainment in NYC. Regardless, it's obscenely expensive to live here, and without higher income to compensate it doesn't make much sense. A better case could be made for the suburbs, but they're still super expensive. I'm not wedded to SF and have eyed a few lower COL locales - but SF has been an amazing experience and has a ton going for it.

[zoltani]

How is a Mustachian to survive here?

Pretty mustachian, if you live in oakland!

[SnackDog]

Our first visit, pre-house-hunting was in 2000 or so.  We got a deal on Priceline for the Holiday-Inn Chinatown (now a Hilton) for $50/night.  We were delighted to be in such a vibrant city and enjoyed every minute of our week there.  When we saw housing prices (more than triple what they were in Houston at the time), we wondered if were weren't better off at the Holiday Inn for $1500/month, including maid service, haha.  A restaurant next door to the hotel offered breakfast for $1.99 - bacon, eggs, coffee, toast and juice.  A fried chicken dinner was about $5.  We took a sight-seeing trip around the bay on a crummy little fishing boat from Fisherman's Wharf for $8 each.

We lived temporarily in an apartment which was actually a Victorian house behind an apartment on Market Street near Safeway (Church St).  Our eyes bogled at the grocery prices, but we got used to them.  One only spends so much on groceries, after all.

We looked at buying a place in that outrageous pink former hospital near Buena Vista Park but it was too small.  We eventually gave up and bought closer to work in the East Bay.  We are frequently back in the area and in the city.  Food and drink are fairly affordable compared to other major cities in the  world but quality is higher and service is excellent.  Public transportation is world class.  Cultural attractions and scenic beauty abound. (Have you walked BVP yet?)  Housing, however, is nuts.

Here is list of free things to do. Should be plenty for a one week visit.
http://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/san-francisco/free-things-to-do-in-sf

Enjoy!

[penguins4everyone!]

you think SF is gross b/c you have no idea where to go.  go anywhere instead of civic center, to start.  And seriously, have you ever been to a city that was nice by the airport?! anywhere!? even your beloved portland? (where i spent 4 years of college)

SF is pretty damn great if you have a rent controlled apartment that you got 5 years ago (check) and your incomes have only gone up with the boom in the city (check).  I understand this makes us very lucky but we also sought out a rent controlled apartment that we could stay put in.  When we moved in it was a much higher percentage of our incomes than it is now.  (now if our landlord dies and we are ellis acted this is another story)

I live about a block from buena vista park.  Check out Haight St. Market, prices are great, place has been in the neighborhood forever.  Ignore street kids asking for $ for beer, but by some incense if you see an old man moving slowly down the street going "incense, incense."  Listen to his story about Tina Turner.  Go to golden gate park, look at all the cool shit as you make your way to the ocean.  watch some grandpas and little kids with their remote controlled boats.  marvel at the buffalo.  (these are the grandbabies of the buffalo that were there on Teddy Roosevelt's watch) take all afternoon. Go to the top of the De Young Museum (it's free to take the elevator).  Take in the view. get yourself an iced coffee at java beach, sit on a sand dune, and think about how judgemental you were being when you didn't actually make an effort to find out what SF had to offer at all.