In part one of our Bay Area blog series, I guided you to some of the most beautiful and historic sights to see in San Francisco. In part two, I’m excited to take you through another region of the Bay Area: the San Francisco Peninsula. 

Situated between two coasts, the Peninsula comprises small towns, larger cities, and suburban sprawls. Beginning just south of San Francisco, “The Peninsula” encompasses a large area between California’s west coast and the San Francisco Bay to the east. Boasting a temperate climate and Stanford University, the Peninsula offers open space and nature preserves, family-friendly activities, and great restaurants for business and personal dining. 

Start your day in Palo Alto at the upscale Stanford Shopping Center. Be sure to bring Fido with you; this open-air shopping center is one of the most dog-friendly plazas in the Bay. Grab an acai bowl and fresh-pressed juice from Joe & the Juice, an uber-cool hipster spot, and take a selfie in front of their trendy pink sign. Take your time at upscale retailers like Neiman Marcus, Hermes, and Louis Vuitton or catch a ride at SoulCycle. Soon, you’ll even be able to take a class at YogaSix before or after work!

Less than 2 miles down the road, just on the other side of U.S. Route 101, you’ll run straight into Meta’s global headquarters at 1 Hacker Way in Menlo Park. While the Meta logo has replaced the iconic Facebook “like” icon, this place is just as popular a photo op as ever. 

Head up the Peninsula a bit further to partake in a meal experience at Son & Garden, which is open until 3 p.m. You’ll dine under a canopy of flowers on Matcha Mochi pancakes, a “Tsunami Lobster,” or unique variations of eggs benedict. Order the Instagrammable Cloud 9 cocktail, topped with cotton candy and butterflies.

From Son & Garden, head over to San Mateo’s Central Park to stroll through the Japanese Tea Garden. The chief gardener of the Imperial Palace of Tokyo planted this garden in 1966 and tucked a plethora of special gems in every corner. When you’re done taking selfies at the granite pagoda, charming tea house, bamboo grove, or koi pond, travel from Japan to ancient Greece with a visit to the Pulgas Water Temple, a beautiful park that’s full of incredible photo backdrops and quiet places to soak up the surroundings. The reflection pool, marble columns, cypress trees, and sprawling lawns all lend themselves to picnicking, reading, and taking photos. You’ll feel as if you are on the set of an estate in a movie and will enjoy unwinding from work here.

By now, you have about 400 photos to post, and picking your favorites is the perfect way to end the day. After you've figured out your crop jobs and filters, be sure to tag your location so your colleagues, friends, and family know where to take their next vacation or why they may want to make the Peninsula their new home.

Thanks for reading part two of our Bay Area blog series, and be sure to check out Relocity's latest market spotlights on:

• San Francisco (part one)
• The South Bay (part three)
• The East Bay (part four)
• The North Bay (part five)

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