At PR News we’re pretty excited about our Feb. 16 Digital PR/Social Media Summit.
Yes, we know we’ve got a great lineup of presenters: Ashley Dillon of Southwest Airlines, Stacy Green of Mashable, Sally Falkow of Meritus Media, Joshua Nafman of PepsiCo, Jim Newcomb of Boeing, Edelman’s Monte Lutz, Burson-Marsteller’s Dallas Lawrence…the list goes on. And, sure, they’ll be sharing the latest and best PR tactics in using Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, YouTube and more.
But what has us jazzed almost as much (emphasis on almost) is the location of the conference—San Francisco.
We were there for our Facebook Conference this past August and I, as a former resident, made the most of it. One memorable night, I left the Westin on 3rd St. (site of the August 2011 Facebook Conference and the February 2012 Digital PR Summit), scoffed at the rubes waiting in vain for one of the pitifully few taxis in San Francisco and headed north on Kearny by foot. That’s the best way to travel in San Francisco.
At California St. I hopped on a cable car, heading west. Contrary to popular belief, some San Francisco residents actually take cable cars. I did, when I lived there. A monthly Fast Pass covered the cost of a cable car ride, and I lived atop Russian Hill, one block from the Hyde St. line. It was a quick route downtown, and helped me avoid the nightmare of the 30 Stockton bus.
Back to that night in August: I rode that cable car through the fog, up Nob Hill, past the Fairmont, to the end of the line—Van Ness Ave. I walked north on Van Ness to Pacific Ave. and pushed through the doors of Harris’ steakhouse, and settled in at the bar for a martini, while I awaited the arrival of some of my old cronies. After dinner I walked to Chinatown and all the way back for a safe landing at the Westin.
Walking is, after all, the best way to see San Francisco. Maybe I’ll see you in the fog, or at the Westin, or at the House of Prime Rib—my chosen rendezvous point with my cronies for this trip. You know what that guy said about his heart and the place where he left it.