And then they played the game

During the Lost Decade, the most interesting day of any Bengals season was the day the schedule came out. I'd look to see if the trips were good. San Diego, Seattle, Tampa, Jax, Miami... good. Buffalo, KC, Houston, Minneapolis... bad. The games were the penance you did to get to go on the trip.

San Francisco was in a class by itself.

Since the Bengals seem to be steering the Good Ship 90s again, Schedule Day is back to being big. Here's hoping for many more good trips, to compensate for the bad football. Anyway, for what it's worth, here's your P-Doc 24-hour guide to everything great in Frisco that you might not have known before, in order of my affection:

Marin Headlands... all those car ads in magazines? Where the new vehicle is on the edge of an abyss, with the Golden Gate Bridge and the city in the background? That's the Headlands. Very easy to get to, very hard to forget. Drive across the GGBridge, make the second right onto Alexander Avenue... if you go right, you're headed for Sausalito, so go left and up the hill. The road winds through the hills... for the first mile, every couple hundred feet is an oh-my-god view of the bridge, the bay and the city. Keep going until you get to Rodeo Beach, where the waves smash against the cliffs and the surfers rule. If you go on a rainy day, you'll have the place to yourself. If it's nice, take a hike or rent a bike and ride the trails. Incredible beauty, 10 minutes from a couple million people.

Bonita Point lighhouse, Headlands... bear left instead of right once you're up in the hills.. the road leads you to the light, and past all these former artillery batteries...

Mama's Restaurant, North Beach... I once embarrassed George Wendt here... 1989, I walk into the place early on a Saturday, he's sitting there reading the paper. Before I could stop myself, I blurt out "NORM!!!'' He looks at me, shakes his head, gets up and leaves. Mama's has the best omelets and French toast anywhere, and when you're done, you can walk off your gluttony by hoofing it around Telegraph Hill. End up at Coit Tower for more heart-stopping views. (By the way, the cathedral on Washington Square next to Mama's is where Joe DiMaggio married Marilyn Monroe. DiMaggio grew up in North Beach, but exactly where, I don't recall.)

City Lights Bookstore... also in NB... Kerouac, Ferlinghetti, Beat Poets... go there and hope the magic rubs off.

Angel Island... it's that big, green, uninhabited knob in the middle of the Bay. Take the ferry from Fishermen's Wharf, a loaf of sourdough you bought in an Italian bakery, maybe some Anchor Steam beer, which is almost as good as Keystone Light. Eat. Drink. Hike. Listen to the channel markers clang and the foghorn clear its throat every few minutes. It's the Ellis Island of the West, where they processed Asians hoping to start a new life inn America. Great city views, peaceful walks. Gather some eucalyptus pods. Scratch and sniff.

Haight Ashbury... gentrified long ago. The Victorians once occupied by Jefferson Airplane, the Dead etc. now run $2 million or more... but the hippie vibe still exists, and if you're old like I am, shops there still sell honest-to-god records.

Sausalito... Take your wallet.

Wine country... if you must. A little crowded. Take Route 1 up the coast instead, to Stinson Beach and Bodega Bay, where Hitchcock filmed The Birds.

If you have more than a day, go south to the Monterey Peninsula... once spent the night in a lighthouse about an hour south, between SF and Carmel... it cost $40 for the night, and even though the accommodations were hostel-like spartan, we were right on the water, went to sleep hearing the waves pound.

There you go. Best city in America. Pre-Katrina New Orleans was a distant second.