Yesterday, San Francisco residents had the opportunity to casts their votes on the pressing issue of whether Alcatraz, which attracts nearly 1.5 million visitors annually, should be purchased from the federal government and turned into Global Peace Center by two nebulous organizations known only as The Light Party and the Worldwide Forgiveness Alliance (Break From Past Proposed for Alcatraz).

Okay, I’m half embarrassed, half completely and totally amused that I live in a city where something like this actually gets on the ballot, but nevertheless, we must not hate that which we do not understand. Instead, we must make fun of it.

And I quote from our official voter information pamphlet:

“By converting Alcatraz Island, a place of pain and suffering, into a Global Peace Center, we will activate powerful forces for cooperation, reconciliation and healing. Through this process we will reconsecrate Alcatraz as a sacred site and thus pay due respect to the Native American people, while simultaneously giving birth to a new and peaceful paradigm for all humanity.”

More like a crazy paradigm that will make all humanity point and laugh at us. And what is this “reconsecrate” business? Was it ever consecrated in the first place? By something other than evildoers and bird poop? Last time I checked, the island had evolved from a military outpost to federal prison to protest grounds to an enduring family attraction with the positive side effect of frightening little children away from lives of violent crime. That’s a pretty peaceful paradigm for you right there.

But don’t worry, world. Alcatraz will be just fine. The feds just pumped $3.5 million into it for renovations, an archival museum and an 180-seat theater. And we doubt The Light Party (which is, incidentally, run by a man who goes only by the name Da Vid) has the kind of cash one would need to purchase such a landmass. Of course, there is always the chance that Michael Jackson is involved (sounds like his kind of project for some reason). And if that happened, we might be screwed.

Virgin America, perhaps the only airline that I actually look forward to flying, is having a Valentine’s Day fare sale. And unlike some other airlines who shall remain nameless but bombard my inbox with fare “sales” that aren’t really sales no less than once a month, Virgin is actually offering some good deals. Like Washington, DC, to Los Angeles for $248 roundtrip and San Diego to San Francisco for $78 roundtrip. Fare sale runs through Feb. 8, 2008 for travel through May 9, 2008.

In its ongoing efforts to go green, Fairmont announced this week that its properties in California and Arizona will begin offering free parking to overnight hotel guests who drive hybrid vehicles. That includes:

Fairmont San Jose

Fairmont San Francisco

Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa Resort

Fairmont Miramar Santa Monica

Fairmont Newport Beach

Fairmont Scottsdale Princess

We assume this applies even if you’ve rented a hybrid during your trip (not a bad way to offset the additional cost that comes with renting a premium vehicle). For hybrid drivers, this deal can amount to quite a savings - in San Francisco, for example, downtown hotel parking rates often climb higher than $30/night.

Thank heavens I finally figured out to do with the extra $48k I keep stuffed in my freezer behind that two-year-old box of Hot Pockets that never seems to get eaten. The Ritz-Carlton Club San Francisco has come up with quite a swish “deal” for Valentine’s Day this year. For just about the same amount as the median annual household income in the United States, travelers can experience seven action-packed days in the City by the Bay. Perks include:

- Helicopter tour to Napa Valley

- Private wine tasting

- Town car transportation throughout your visit

- A personal chef to prepare dinner each evening

- Dinner for two at Gary Danko

- A $1,500 shopping spree

Travelers may purchase the package through Feb. 14 for visits before April 30, 2008. A word to the wise: if you’re planning to visit San Francisco, wait until March. The rainy season here is miserable. Miz-rah-bull, I tell you.

Shop Till You Drop With Ritz-Carlton

This recent bit I wrote for San Francisco Citysearch aims to give the jilted and cheated-upon help hunting down and busting their wayward lovers before moving on to the next great love affair. But really, it’s just a thinly-veiled roundup of cool San Francisco destinations good for city visitors and us local folk. Check it out:

To Catch a Cheater: Where Pigs Hide in San Francisco

A local gem, cult-favorite, sure bet and constant it-spot among those-in-the-know and all those other hackneyed phrases used to describe tried-and-true favorites in popular tourist destinations – call it what you want – San Francisco’s House of Nanking is one of ‘em.

Yeah, you’ll find a dirty mop in the bathroom and there might be gooey rice stuck to the underside of the plastic bowl from which you’ll eat. Sure, the staff may greet you not by saying hello, but with a tug on the sleeve that says quite unequivocally, hurry up, sit down and eat already. Yes, your table may toggle back and forth on its uneven legs as you sit hunched over a bowl of soup whose exact contents will forever remain mystery.

But you’ll absolutely love it. Well, not everyone will. House of Nanking – a somewhat dingy little joint on the border of Chinatown and North Beach (just up the block from a dive bar whose awning proclaims “Where Good Friends and Girls Go to Meet”) – is no fine dining experience, but it consistently wins accolades as the city’s best Chinese.

Instead of ordering from the crinkly, plastic-covered menu, tell your waiter (who’s likely to be one of the owners) just to choose “what’s good today” and bring enough food for the table. If you want something specific, sure, let them know (we highly recommend the onion cakes) and be clear about whether you want vegetarian dishes, meat, chicken, fish or a combination. Then let the kitchen do the rest.

Don’t waste time holding your breath for the sort of Chinese fare you’ll find in most restaurants around the United States. This ain’t no P.F. Chang’s. Far from it. Produce is market-fresh – we’d be shocked if the majority of what appeared on our plates had been in the kitchen longer than 24 hours. Sauces are nuanced and flavorful, but light enough to let the food itself take center stage.

Dishes like this plate of basil leaves, mushrooms and red onion arrive at the table in mere minutes and disappear (into our mouths of course) just as quickly.

Eggplant draped on a bed of bok choy, peppers and fresh greens:

House of Nanking
919 Kearny St
San Francisco, CA 94133
(415) 421-1429

The TravelPost.com Insider Native City series is a regular feature highlighting unique, iconic or influential edibles, products and other creations found in some of the world’s most popular travel destinations.

Freelance writer Lorraine Sanders has been editing the TravelPost.com Insider blog since 2005. You can reach her at news (at) lorrainesanders (dot) com.

Many travelers and tech geeks alike have waited with baited breath for the unveiling of Apple’s latest laptop, the MacBook Air, which Apple’s Steve Jobs showed off at the Macworld Expo this week in San Francisco. While plenty of people are oohing and ahhing about this new, ultra portable notebook (said to fit neatly into a manila envelope, though we aren’t sure why anyone would ever need to do that), Slate’s Paul Boutin (MacBook Err) is disappointed:

As I watched Steve Jobs demo his new products onstage at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, I was struck by all the things you can’t do with the MacBook Air. That’s because the balance of power at Apple, and in the tech world generally, has tipped. In many ways, phones are now more powerful than laptops.

Boutin goes on to compare the MacBook Air with the iPhone, a device he deems more functional and practical for people who need to get things done anywhere, anytime:

I’m a sucker for products that look good, but there need to be some guts beneath the shiny skin. I don’t care about having the world’s skinniest laptop. Rather, I need to be able to blog breaking news when I’m not near a Wi-Fi hotspot. I look forward to fawning over my friends’ new MacBooks. But when they desperately need to e-mail the boss, I’ll just savor the triumph of whipping out my phone.

I tend to agree. And since I’ve owned an iPhone, I’ve become almost addicted to the reliable connection it gives me to email and the web. Not sure I could go back. That said, Apple-using business travelers looking for the world’s thinnest laptop will no doubt be wooed by the MacBook Air’s sleek design and unbeatable portability.

Oftentimes, the only restaurants you read about in travel publications and on blogs, etc., are the new ones that everyone is talking about, but last night I was reminded that old favorites may just be the best places for city visitors to discover.

Case in point: San Francisco’s Betelnut, a pan-Asian small plates restaurant that I dare say is, hands-down, one of the best moderately-priced, semi-casual spots within city boundaries. Sure, some snooty foodies may not think it daring nor gourmet enough and some picky eaters may prefer a place with steak-and-potatoes offerings. But for those who want a crowd-pleaser of a place with a lively vibe and cool interiors (check out the fans above the bar) that works well whether you’ve got a party of two or a party of 10, Betelnut is as close to a sure bet as you can get.

On a Tuesday night in the middle of January - not traditionally a prime time for dining out - this Cow Hollow eatery was packed, as it is most every night of the week almost every day of the year. Chef Alexander Ong’s mall and large plates meant to be shared among everyone at the table range from the signature garlicky Szechuan green beans (a must!) to the divine oven smoked sea bass with ginger-cucumber namasu. If you go, don’t miss the hot and spicy firecracker shrimp with five-spice sambal dip, veggie-friendly happy buddha dumplings or the wok-seared galanda beef filet with crispy yams. And travelers who are watching their wallets will appreciate the reasonable prices. With wine, three of us dined (more like stuffed) last night for $120, tip included.

Take it from someone who isn’t a restaurant critic or a food writer: if you’re visiting San Francisco and have any taste for Asian cuisine whatsoever, you won’t be disappointed with anything - other than the wait you may have to endure for a table.

Virgin America is having a pretty good fare sale that runs through Friday. Good news if you live in one of the cities that the new-ish airline flies to (San Francisco, Las Vegas, San Diego, New York, Seattle, Los Angeles and Washington, DC). You’ll need to book travel by Jan. 11th and fly by March 12th.

Wondering what’s so friggin’ great about Virgin America? Check out the TravelPost.com Insider’s adventure on the airline:

A Virgin Flight with Virgin America

Here’s some celebrity travel news that’s actually kind of interesting. (Okay, maybe not riveting, but it’s at least not about one of Hollywood’s young starlets and her latest prurient behavior.) Julia Roberts, who has kept a low profile of late thanks to motherhood and a two-year break from acting, surprised onlookers at the Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel recently as she headed through the opulent lobby on her way to a press interview for her film Charlie Wilson’s War. Roberts’ fans will recall that the actress’s hit film Pretty Woman featured scenes in the hotel lobby (the in-room scenes were apparently not shot at the hotel). To this day, the hotel is, for many, synonymous with the movie. The hotel even keeps one of the film’s posters on display. As any pop-culture junkie can attest, spotting a celebrity in one of the very locations that catapulted her from relative fame to international recognition is no small feat - especially so many years later and completely by coincidence. If you don’t like Julia Roberts, just think of it this way: a sighting like this would be like spotting Jimmy Stewart in 1957 on the U.S. Senate floor completely randomly…

Julia Roberts: Pretty Woman Back in Make-Up