When I was a child I was obsessed with the book The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I was intrigued by the idea of discovering something that few people had ever seen before. If you’re someone who feels the same way, then you might want to book your next vacation in San Francisco, C.A. There you will find this secret mosaic staircase sculpted by Irish ceramist Aileen Barr and mosaic artist Colette Crutcher. This staircase is 163 steps high and took 300 volunteers two and a half years to finish. Why did it take so long to complete? There are over 2,000 handmade tiles, as well as 75,000 fragments of tiles, mirrors and stained glass that went into the piece.
If you take my advice and head out to 16th and Moraga, be sure to take note of the names of the 220 volunteers that are woven into the colorful design. Next time I am in “The City,” I’m definitely going to take an afternoon and head over to see this amazing work of art. But at 163 steps, I might just admire it from the bottom, with a bag of Cheetos.