seeing fireworks

11 THINGS: SEEING FIREWORKS

Thursday, June 29, 2006

1. At Aquatic Park/Fort Mason Center/Pier 39/Pier 45: Especially if the city is hot/sweaty/balmy/calm.

2. From Coit Tower/Telegraph Hill: A great vantage point to see many displays simultaneously. Digital artists Ben Wood and David Mark will also be projecting 200 years of San Francisco history on the face of Coit Tower at 9:30 p.m.

3. On Treasure Island: Particularly if you own a car or know someone who lives there. If you can't drive, take the Muni 108 bus (which departs every 20 minutes or so from San Francisco's Transbay Terminal).

4. Elsewhere around the Bay Area: In Benicia, Berkeley, Half Moon Bay, Morgan Hill, Napa, Palo Alto, Redwood City, Santa Rosa, Sausalito, Suisun City, Sunnyvale, Vallejo and many many others.

5. With the entire family: At the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View (with the San Francisco Symphony), the U.S.S. Hornet (at Pier 3 in Alameda), Paramount's Great America (in Santa Clara) or Six Flags Marine World (in Vallejo).

6. On the water: Via the Angel Island/Tiburon ferry, FDR's Presidential Yacht Potomac, the Red and White ferry, the Blue and Gold ferry, the Balclutha or Eureka (at Maritime National Historical Park) or on a kayak while paddling the Embarcadero or Oakland's Arrowhead Marsh.

7. In a dank Mission alleyway: But only if the fireworks are yours and consist primarily of M-80s.

8. In your stomach: After consuming a large bowl of hot and sour soup at Firecracker, 1007 1/2 Valencia St. Call (415) 642-3470 for reservations.

9. On your sofa with the remote: Especially if the summer fog has rolled in.

10. In Japanese: While watching the "Beat" Takeshi film "Hanabi" (which translates to "Fireworks").

11. With your eyes shut: While kissing someone.

Tim Sullivan, tsullivan@sfchronicle.com

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/06/29/NSGUUJKIV231.DTL

This article appeared on page H - 3 of the San Francisco Chronicle