As Minnesota prepares to host Super Bowl LII in two years, reporter Rochelle Olson heads to San Francisco to see how it's done. She'll offer frequent Top 10 musings from the city by the bay as the follows Minnesota Vikings officials and the Minnesota Super Bowl Host Committee around town.
Super Bowl 52: San Francisco game prep offers peek at Minneapolis' future
February 5, 2016 at 5:38AM
1. Most of the pregame action for the public is near Union Square but the teams are ensconced more than an hour away near Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara.
2. I'm staying near Dolores Park in the Mission. One of the best urban parks in the world where you can play fetch with a dog, do Tai Chai in the sunrise, play tennis or buy truffles from a guy with a rucksack or … other items.
3. For those who waited to book last minute, downtown hotels are full and charging premium rates north of $400 a night. Scruffier digs remain in the outskirts like the Tenderloin and SoMa.
4. I did Airbnb for the princely sum of $900 for my five nights here. Sharing an apartment — but got my own bedroom — with a guy. He and his dog heading to San Diego to get away from Super Bowl stuff.
5. More action than a person can handle. Last night was the Golden Party on Treasure Island across the bay. Minnesota Vikings veep Lester Bagley and Minnesota Super Bowl Host Committee Chair Maureen Bausch were among the Minnesota attendees. A similar party will be expected in Minneapolis in 2018.
6. But before that there's the 2017 Super Bowl in Houston. The Texas town's host committee is throwing invite-only parties Thursday and Friday.
7. Tonight's party is for media. Say what? Nobody throws parties for media. I've got my invite and I'm going. Dress code: Super Bowl Chic. Let's see how fashion averse reporters like this one handle that. Do sports reporters know what chic means?
Stay tuned.
8. Minnesota will be hosting similar parties in Houston next year presumably with the #boldnorth theme.
9. Left Minnesota Wednesday morning after the snow. No snow here. Sunny today but still lots of puffer jackets fully zipped.
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10. San Francisco is a great food town from super fancy to low brow. I start and end my trips here with a trip to Tacolicious on Valencia: one picante margarita, one chorizo and potato taco and one unbelievably luscious melt-in-the mouth carnitas taco. Better than I remembered
— Rochelle Olson
Twitter: @rochelleolson
rochelle.olson@startribune.com
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