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The Legion of Honor museum in San Francisco, California, seen from across its reflecting pool on a sunny day.
California

A World of Art in San Francisco: Museums, Murals & Communities

Program No. 24912RJ
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Itinerary
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. Read More.
While we make every effort to ensure the accuracy of our published materials, programs are typically advertised more than a year prior to their start date. As a result, some program activities, schedules, accommodations, personnel, and other logistics occasionally change due to local conditions or circumstances. Should a major change occur, we will make every effort to alert you. For less significant changes, we will update you during orientation. Thank you for your understanding.
Duration
6 days
5 nights
What's Included
12 meals ( 5B, 3L, 4D )
5 expert-led lectures
7 expert-led field trips
An experienced Group Leader
5 nights of accommodations
Taxes and customary gratuity
Road Scholar Assurance Plan
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Activity Note
Hotel check-in from 3:00 p.m. Remember to bring your nametag (sent previously).
Afternoon:
Program Registration: 3:00 p.m. After you check in and have your room assignment, join us at the Road Scholar table to register with the program staff, get any updated information, and confirm the time and location of the Orientation session. If you arrive late, please locate your Group Leader and let them know you have arrived. Orientation: 5:00 p.m. The Group Leader will greet everyone and lead introductions. We will review the up-to-date program schedule, discuss roles and responsibilities, logistics, safety guidelines, emergency procedures, and answer questions. We will learn from the Group Leader and a series of local experts who will give lectures and lead field trips. Program-related travel and transfers will be via private motorcoach unless noted otherwise. Program activities, schedules, personnel, and indicated distances or times may change due to local circumstances/current conditions. In the event of changes, we will alert you as quickly as possible. Thank you for your understanding. We have set aside some free time in the schedule for your personal independent exploration. The Group Leader will often be available during free time to accompany informal outings, activities, or meals that have been excluded from the program cost. You are welcome to join if you like, with any associated costs on your own.
Dinner:
At the hotel.
Evening:
At leisure. Continue to get to know your fellow participants, settle in, and get a good night’s rest for the week ahead.
Activity Note
Walking approximately 2 miles broken up throughout the day. Walking and standing in museums for up to 1 hour each during docent-led visits; elevators available. Extent and duration of walking and standing during independent exploration according to personal choices.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will be joined at the hotel by a local expert for a lecture on the history of Japantown. One of San Francisco’s most historically diverse neighborhoods. After the lecture, we will walk the short distance to the Museum of the African Diaspora for a docent-led field trip to view the current exhibits. One of only a few of its kind in the nation, MoAD focuses exclusively on presenting art that is representative of the people and cultures of Africa and the African Diaspora. The museum features contemporary and emerging artists through a variety of rotating exhibits.
Lunch:
At the Asian Art Museum.
Afternoon:
We’ll spend the afternoon at the Asian American Art Museum for a docent-led visit of the museum’s permanent collection. When private collector Avery Brundage left his Asian art treasures to the de Young Museum in the 1960s, he helped launch a half-century-long cultural rapprochement between San Francisco and Asia. The de Young of that day expanded to accommodate the collection. When the 1989 earthquake made that building obsolete, city voters passed a bond measure to convert the Civic Center’s Beaux Arts library into a museum for Asian art and culture. “Asia is not one place,” says its vision statement. “The ideas and ideals that we call Asian are countless and diverse.” Highlights include a Bronze Age ritual vessel in the shape of a rhinoceros, a Korean Buddhist painting recently created within the museum, and a comprehensive collection of jade carvings. Following our visit, we will return to the hotel via motorcoach.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant.
Evening:
At leisure.
Activity Note
Walking under 1/3 mile roundtrip to/from SFMOMA. Walking and standing in the museum for up to 1 hour during docent-led visit; stairs with elevators available. Extent and duration of walking and standing during independent exploration according to personal choice.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will be joined at the hotel by our expert instructor for a lecture on the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Learn about the founders, collectors, curators, and artists behind SFMOMA. From modern art patron and pioneer Grace McCann Morley, SFMOMA’s founding director, to the movers and shakers who have reinvigorated the museum for the 21st century, we’ll study the personalities and philosophies that have created this landmark West Coast institution. Next, we will depart on foot and walk to SFMOMA for a self-directed visit to the museum. Take this time to view the exhibits and collections that interest you most.
Lunch:
On your own at SF MOMA.
Afternoon:
After lunch, continue to explore the expansive exhibits at SF MOMA.
Dinner:
On your own. Several close options near SF MOMA and our hotel.
Evening:
At leisure.
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving 15 miles, approximately 1.5 hours total driving time. Walking and standing in the museum; stairs with elevators available. Extent and duration of walking and standing during independent exploration according to personal choice.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will be joined at the hotel by a museum docent for a lecture on the de Young Museum’s special exhibit. Then we will board the motorcoach to the Legion of Honor for a self-directed visit of the exhibits that interest us most, before continuing on to the de Young after lunch. The Legion of Honor was a gift of Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, a Francophile. This structure is a replica of the Palais de la Legion d’Honneur in Paris. The building, completed in 1924, is dedicated to the memory of 3,600 California men who died in French battlefields during WWI. Among its treasure is a robust Rodin collection, substantial European paintings, and the Skinner Organ with its 4,500 pipes. Donors include Archer M. Huntington, Samuel H. Kress, M.H. De Young, and the Spreckels family.
Lunch:
At the Legion of Honor Cafe.
Afternoon:
We will reboard our motorcoach and travel to the de Young museum for a visit of the permanent collection and special exhibit followed by some free time for self-led exploration. We will then return to the hotel via motorcoach.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant.
Evening:
At leisure.
Activity Note
Getting on/off a motorcoach; driving 9 miles, approximately 1/2 hour total driving time. Walking and standing for up to 2 hours, approximately 1 mile, during mural walk.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
We will be joined by a local expert for a lecture on Chicano culture and art. We will learn about the rich history of Latin American culture and its impact on San Francisco, as well as the social and political experiences that are influencing the art being made today. Following our lecture, we will be joined by a local expert for a walking field trip through San Francisco’s Mission District. This area first became an outdoor canvas for local artists expressing outrage over social justice issues in the mid-1980s. Artists have continued the tradition focusing on themes that cover current political and social issues. As we walk through this area, we will see hundreds of murals on fences, doors, and building walls.
Lunch:
On your own in the Mission District.
Afternoon:
Free time.
Dinner:
At a local restaurant.
Evening:
At leisure. Prepare for check-out and departure in the morning.
Activity Note
Hotel check-out by 12:00 Noon.
Breakfast:
At the hotel.
Morning:
In our last class, we will be joined by a local expert for a discussion on the role art plays in our culture, society and lives. Following our lecture, we’ll wrap up our program by reviewing the experiences we've had during our visits this week with our experts and group leader. If you are returning home, safe travels. If you are staying on independently, have a wonderful time. If you are transferring to another Road Scholar program, detailed instructions are included in your Information Packet for that program. We hope you enjoy Road Scholar learning adventures and look forward to having you on rewarding programs in the future. Don’t forget to join our Facebook page and follow us on Instagram. Best wishes for all your journeys!
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