This past weekend was my first trip to San Francisco and my first time returning to California since leaving the state as an infant to move to Canada. Visiting the state where I was born was a memorable experience that had me reflecting on how different my life would now be had I stayed.

The interactive map below plots some of the attractions and neighbourhoods I visited with each pin linked to a summary and photos of the location (pull down the map to reveal Angel Island State Park).

San Francisco is vibrant and attractive. Temperatures were summer-like and a west coast, health-conscious energy pervaded the busy sidewalks. But what struck me—even more so than in Vancouver—was the stark contrast between wealthy and working class communities. The Bay Area is home to the world’s tech giants. Facebook, Twitter, and Uber all have their corporate headquarters anchored in the city or surrounding areas, with micro transit systems ferrying their employees to and from their homes. Salaries are high to accommodate the equally high cost of living.

Twitter’s head offices

Monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the Noe Valley (where I was staying) was nearly double that of a comparable unit in Vancouver. Business Insider ranked San Francisco as the second most expensive city in the US, with an annual cost of living of $185,303 where the average rent will set you back $4,272 a month.

The divide between rich and poor was pronounced and clear in the people you met and communities they formed, with upper-class neighbourhoods populated by young, upwardly mobile professionals and everyone else pushed to less desirable parts of the city. There didn’t seem to be a discernable middle class in San Francisco. You were either (really) rich—working in tech or finance—or not.

San Francisco seemed a city of extremes—a larger version of what Vancouver may one day become.