I’ve had the Hamon Observation Tower, which is located in the de Young Museum, on my bucket list  for sometime now and finally went to visit it a couple of months ago. It was a gloomy Tuesday morning in San Francisco and I figured that the tower would be the perfect place to spend the morning at. I hopped on the 44 bus line, entered the museum, and went straight up to the tower.  The view was spectacular, gloomy weather and all. The glass-walled space gave every visitor a 360 panoramic view of the park and city. I felt as if I were on a canopy in a South American rain forest. The fog was so thick that I could only see the top of the trees that were planted a few feet in front of the museum, making the city even that much more mysterious.I spent the following hours browsing through each floor of the museum, eyeing the collections and people watching. The museum has been around since 1895 but relocated to the facility it’s now in back in 2005.The collections range from American art from the 17th through the 20th centuries, textile arts, and art pieces from Africa and the Americas.As I was browsing a couple of Sean Scully pieces, I was stopped by one of the security guards that suggested I go see the famous “Rainy Season in the Tropics” oil on canvas painting by Frederic Edwin Church. He stated that is was the most visited piece in the museum.There were many pieces that I admired but my favorite part of it all was the design of the building. Initially, there was controversy designing the building in Golden State Park but in 2005 with the effort of generous supporters, some of the finest architects collaborated and created the alluring museum.
The museum doesn’t land on my top 10 list but it’s absolutely worth visiting at least once, if anything, for the the Hamon Tower and the design. Enjoy!