Let’s face it; I’m an old hippie at heart. I love the Dead (as in Grateful). Jefferson Airplane’s 1967 psychedelic masterpiece After Bathing at Baxter’s is in regular rotation on my CD player. My house is suffused with the aroma of nag champa. I’ve used batik fabrics from Pier One Imports (thumbtacked into the wall) as curtains. Is it any wonder that I gravitate to the Haight?

     The heart of this landmark San Francisco neighborhood is the 10 blocks of Haight Street between Stanyan and Divisadero streets, also known as the Upper Haight. (The Lower Haight is east of Divisadero.) Wedged below the skinny eastern panhandle of Golden Gate Park, the Haight has a history going back more than 130 years. It was one of the few city neighborhoods that escaped the fires resulting from the devastating 1906 earthquake, and up until the Great Depression it was a prosperous residential district.

But the Haight achieved lasting fame as the epicenter of the 1960s counterculture movement. In 1967, the Summer of Love, bell-bottomed flower children really did hand out flowers to passers-by, rock bands lived together, be-ins took place on Golden Gate Park’s grassy lawns and all was groovy. Drugs, the grim realities of living on the street and the realization that a new social order was not on the horizon eventually tarnished the Haight’s allure, but its freewheeling spirit lived on and is still very much in evidence today.

Even in a city filled with Victorians, those in the Haight stand out. Block after block of these century-old wooden houses line the streets. Some are rundown and shabby, others renovated to the nines. Some are wide, flaunting imposing Corinthian columns; others are startlingly skinny. Many feature pitched roofs, spindles, bulbous turrets, dormers, cupolas and a steep flight of steps to the front door. But regardless of their size or condition, almost every single one is elaborately decorated in a psychedelic rainbow of colors ranging from purple to pink to aqua to orange. There are impressive Victorians along Page and Ashbury streets and along Haight Street between Masonic Avenue and Divisadero Street. My favorites might be the row of Victorians on Waller Street at Masonic (a block south of Haight Street); large, impeccably refurbished and festooned with elaborate wood carvings, they reminded me of giant wedding cakes.

Street art, in keeping with the prevailing vibe, is whimsical and trippy. You can’t miss the pair of high-heeled legs above the doorway of the Piedmont Boutique (1452 Haight St.), a funky clothing emporium where theater folk, local rockers and drag queens shop for stage costumes. A coffee-pouring genie stands outside the Blue Front Café (1430 Haight St.), one of many casual eateries where you can pop in for a quick, cheap burrito or omelet. Psychedelic art adorns the front of Amoeba Music (1855 Haight St. near Stanyan Street); in my opinion this is the best record and DVD store in the city. It is the place to go for vinyl as well as hard-to-find artists. Or you could watch a movie. The Red Vic Movie House (1727 Haight St. next to Psychedelic Sun) is a great place to catch independent, art-house and cult films; I recently saw a fascinating documentary about French sculptor Louise Bourgeois. You can either sit in a regular seat or slouch on one of the comfy couches in the cozy auditorium. And true to the spirit of the neighborhood, the popcorn comes in wooden bowls (not cardboard buckets), or you can sip organic tea from a ceramic mug while munching on molasses ginger cookies. For some fresh air and exercise, two parks that are right next to each other can’t be beat. Buena Vista Park (entrances via Buena Vista Avenue West off Haight Street or Buena Vista Avenue East up a very steep block of Duboce Avenue) is the city’s oldest official park. It’s situated on a steep hill that you can hike up by way of several trails that wind through growths of trees. The level green lawn at the summit is a nice spot to rest after your efforts, with tree-framed views of the city in every direction. Nearby Corona Heights Park (entrance via Flint Street off 16th Street) occupies another hill, this one barren rather than tree-covered. Steps leading to the hilltop are built into the stony bedrock, but there are no handrails; watch your footing. Rocks and boulders at the top offer perches to sit and gaze out at unobstructed vistas of the downtown skyline, San Francisco Bay to the east, and the Castro neighborhood and Twin Peaks to the south. These views are really breathtaking on a sunny day. Greg’s advice: There is a chronic lack of street parking in the Haight; it’s much easier to use Muni buses to get around. The #33 bus runs along Haight Street between Stanyan and Ashbury streets and also is a convenient way to get to Golden Gate Park. The #7 and the #71 both travel the length of Haight Street as far east as Market Street.