Berkeley: California’s Historic University Town

(At Sather Gate, entrance to the campus of the University of California at Berkeley)

Being an academic, I could not possibly leave the San Francisco Bay Area without visiting Berkeley, the pretty town north of the city where the famous campus of the University of California at Berkeley is located. Berkeley was the hot seat of much historic eruption in the 1960s when the protest against the Vietnam War began. These protests then filtered down through the entire country until the feverish momentum created by American students finally brought the war to an end. I couldn’t help but wonder, as I walked through those historic campus streets, where the spirit of America’s students has gone and why there have been such few protests on America’s campuses today against the war in the Middle East.

I reached Berkely by taking the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) underground subway service to the town. From San Francisco’s City Center, it took me approximately 45 minutes to make the journey. Berkeley is known for being more than just a university town. It is an upscale enclave of Californians who have been at the cutting  edge of all kinds of revolutions—including culinary ones.

Indeed, one of America’s most famous chefs, Alice Waters, quietly began a food revolution in the 1980s when she promoted the use of nothing but organically-grown, fresh produce and ingredients in her restaurant which became famous as Chez Panisse. Eager to sample one of her unique creations myself, I took the bus up Shadduck Avenue and got off just a few steps away from the restaurant only to find that being a Monday, it was closed. I was bitterly disappointed, but at least I had the opportunity to skim through her menu and take in the uniqueness of her vision. Today, most restaurants worth their salt in the United States use organic ingredients in their cooking, serve them raw or uncooked so as to present them in as nutritionally rich a form as possible and in doing so, they pay homage to the lady who scoured the country to find local farmers and artisanal purveyors of cheeses and wines to satisfy her exacting standards. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Chez Panisse and Alice Waters converted American from a nation of processed food addicts to one that embraced freshness and thus, good taste.

Having made a pilgrimage of sorts to this amazing place, I took the bus back towards University Avenue to begin my walking tour of the campus of UC Berkeley. I did not realize how vast it was. Indeed, in encircling it on foot, I walked a good three and a half miles! My Eyewitness Guide Book presented a fine walking tour of the campus and following it, for the most part, I explored the most significant buildings.

Architecturally varied, they differ from the Neo-Classical façade of Sproul House, the magnificent building on which protestors during the 60s congregated in their thousand, the Italianate Sather Tower based on the campanile in the Piazza San Marco in Venice (left), the ornate verdigris Sather Gate and the solid Greek lines of the Doe, Morrison and Bancroft Memorial Libraries (below left), all of which are spread out over a network of pretty gardens, burbling creeks and urban shop-lined streets.

 This becomes more evident as one reaches the outer limits of the campus on Telegraph Avenue where the Museums are located. I dipped briefly into the Art Museum and the book store, saw the very exclusive Faculty Club inside and out with the unique log cabin building sitting right besides it, the Greek amphitheater on whose stone steps I sat and took a brief rest and nibbled on a brownie imagining what it might feel to listen to an opera in those environs, then walked right through the Business school which is an example of truly modernist architectural perfection, The campus is everywhere punctuated with sculpture donated by its various benefactors. Magnolia trees enliven the walkways and make the entire stroll a delight. If you are fond of noticing the architectural splendor of university buildings and the genius that it takes to position them to their best advantage, you will thoroughly enjoy this exploration of Berkeley.

Since Telegraph Avenue is the most happening street in Berkeley, I strolled slowly down it taking in the vibrant tourist energy all around me. Tatoo parlors, ethnic restaurants, trendy boutiques, used book stores, souvenir shops—you name it, Telegraph Avenue has it. On and on the street seemed to go, getting more and more exciting and crowded the further one walked away from campus. I realized why Berkeley has such a hip reputation and why real estate is so expensive in this intellectual enclave. It made very intriguing browsing indeed and I was glad I stopped by.

Bon Voyage!