Yet to have hardcore progressives combatting do-gooding young “Don’t Be Evil”-ites is a “fortunate problem”, as Californians might put it; the most searching look at the sometimes unnerving idealism of Google – the recent novel The Circle – came from another San Franciscan utopian, one who has fashioned his own idealistic communications empire, Dave Eggers. In any case, it was ever thus: after gold was discovered not far from what is now San Francisco, a settlement of 812 people turned, within two years, into a city of almost 25,000, best-known for its gambling joints and bordellos. Why should the second gold rush be any different? It was in San Francisco that I first encountered the word “microclimate”, speaking for a city of such variegated moods that foghorns sound under radiant summer skies and the temperature can vary by as many as nine degrees from block to block. Quite often, as I watched thick summer fog remaking the high-rises and church towers every few minutes during my first morning in the Tomo, I didn’t know whether I was in grey, shivery Europe or cloudless California; then I drove away from the pea-souper enshrouding Japantown and, a few minutes later, was looking down on pretty houseboats in Sausalito’s sunlit harbour (and, the next day, lost in the blue-skied wilderness of Berkeley’s Tilden Park). When Mark Twain said the coldest winter he experienced was summer in San Francisco, he neglected to point out that you can enjoy summer in mid-December in Marin County, over the Golden Gate bridge, or across the Bay bridge to the east.
A grand city with an opulent history and a rich cultural heritage in literature, music and art – Vienna has a wealth of highlights to explore. From walks to bars, parks to museums, what are your best travel tips from the Austrian capital? The best tips will appear in print in next weekend’s Travel section and the winner, chosen by Tom Hall of Lonely Planet, will receive a £200 hotel voucher from Hotels.com, allowing you stay in over 260,000 places worldwide. Submit your tips by clicking on the blue button and using the text tab. Try and include as much detail as possible – location, any website addresses etc – and feel free to add a photo if you own the copyright to it, but it will be the text we’re judging! Your tip should be around 100 words long. Terms and conditions. Closes 26 November 2014 at 6am GMT · GuardianWitness is the home of user-generated content on the Guardian. Contribute your video, pictures and stories, and browse news, reviews and creations submitted by others. Posts will be reviewed prior to publication on GuardianWitness, and the best pieces will feature on the Guardian site.
A friend and I completed a 55km, three-day hike across the Pirin mountains. We started in picturesque Dobrinishte, stayed in mountain huts for two nights and finished in the famous wine-growing town of Melnik, via the stunning Rozhen monastery. The variety of landscape was wonderful, from the glacial lakes of the upper mountains to the gentle Alpine forests below and finally the almost sub-tropical sandstone pyramids, dense vines and creepers around Melnik. jamescrouchman Three days is all it takes to complete one of New Zealand’s great walks. The trek takes you through dense forest to rocky mountainsides with some spectacular waterfalls on the way. Side treks are also available for those who want a little more adventure. These are greatly advised – particularly Conical Hill, which gives a panoramic view of the mountain range. Alpine parrots will accompany your journey, but keep an eye on your picnic! Really friendly guides give you all the information you need in the excellent huts on the way. David Grant
The Travessia Petrópolis is a three-day trek inland from the city of Rio that takes you up above the clouds to over 2,000m in the Parque Nacional da Serra dos Orgãos. You will see spectacular sunsets and sunrises and can bathe in a refreshing waterfall. You can spend two nights in mountain shelters, hire a tent or take your own. You will need to pay a small fee to access the park, which can be done online, where you can also book the shelter and find a local guide. When you get back to Rio, you can carry on trekking with climbs up the numerous peaks of that amazing city. This is one of the last great wilderness walks in the British Isles, and not for the faint-hearted. It’s a rough, tough five-day trek with no roads, no accommodation other than basic bothies – and no other people! What it does have is superb coastal scenery, abundant wildlife and remarkable geological phenomena.
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