Bay Curious KQED

Starting next week, we've got a whole month of stories about creepy, eerie and potentially haunted places in the Bay Area planned for you, as part of a series we're calling BOO Curious! To get you in the mood for spooky season, we thought we'd share a ghost story from our friends over at the Spooked podcast, from Snap Judgment Studios and KQED.
Kristen Cortez is a new teacher in beautiful Los Gatos, California. From her classroom window, she can see rolling, golden hills. Redwood trees. The sun is almost always shining. And yet… something lurks.
Additional Reading:

Check out the Spooked podcast!

Read a transcript of this episode

Sign up for our newsletter

Enter our Sierra Nevada Brewing Company monthly trivia contest



Spooked is hosted by Glynn Washington. This episode was produced by Zoë Ferrigno, original score by Richard Haig.
Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Amanda Font, and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Cesar Saldana, Maha Sanad and Holly Kernan.
Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

Have you ever looked at your grocery receipt and seen a charge that says "CRV" next to your canned soda or bottled beer? That stands for California Redemption Value, and it's supposed to be a $.05 or $.10 deposit that consumers can then get refunded when they recycle the beverage container. The problem is, most people never get their money back because... well, it's hard to find a place to trade them in. Reporter Steven Rascón follows the money to see what happens to all those nickels and dimes we don't get back, and how the state is trying to improve things.
Additional Reading:

Cashing In on the Future of California's Bottle Deposit System

Read the transcript for this episode

What Happens to San Francisco's Recycling Once It Leaves the Curb?

'You Can't Recycle Your Way Out': California's Plastic Problem and What We Can Do About It

How Does Oakland Turn Food Scraps to Soil?

California’s Plastic Problem | KQED Newsroom

Sign up for our newsletter

Enter our Sierra Nevada Brewing Company monthly trivia contest



Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts
This story was reported by Steven Rascón. Bay Curious is made by Amanda Font, Christopher Beale, and me, Olivia-Allen Price. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Cesar Saldana, Maha Sanad and Holly Kernan.

You may have seen articles use "Mission-style" to describe a certain kind of burrito you can find at taquerias in San Francisco's Mission District. They're wrapped in foil, loaded with delicious stuff, and weigh almost as much as a newborn. But does the term "Mission-style" really mean anything? Reporter César Saldaña went to the neighborhood to talk with some long-time taqueria owners to find out more about these big burritos.
Additional Reading:

What Is a Mission-Style Burrito? Maybe … a Myth

Read a transcript of this episode

Sign up for our newsletter

Enter our Sierra Nevada Brewing Company monthly trivia contest



Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts
This story was reported by César Saldaña. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Amanda Font, Christopher Beale and Brendan Willard. Additional support from César Saldaña, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Jasmine Garnett, Carly Severn, Attila Pelit and Holly Kernan.

The Claremont Hotel in Oakland was once the biggest hotel on the West Coast. With it’s castle-like architecture and primo views, it’s been a stomping grounds for celebrities and dignitaries since it opened in 1915. But in the years before and after Prohibition, the hotel lacked an amenity that might surprise you. It didn’t have a bar. Speculation has long flown around about why — and this week on Bay Curious we talk to the experts to set the record straight.
Additional Reading:

A ‘No Booze Zone’ Around UC Berkeley? It’s Real — and Why the Claremont Hotel Was Dry for Decades

Sign up for our newsletter

Enter our Sierra Nevada Brewing Company monthly trivia contest


Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts



This story was reported by Katherine Monahan. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Amanda Font and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Cesar Saldana, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Jasmine Garnett, Carly Severn, Jenny Pritchett and Holly Kernan.

The San Mateo-Hayward Bridge is the longest bridge in California. But the one you drive across today is not the original bridge — that one was built in 1929. Reporter Rachael Myrow looks into the history of the first bridge to cross the San Francisco Bay, and what happened to it.
Additional Reading:

The First San Mateo-Hayward Bridge was a Big Deal in 1929

Read a transcript of this episode

Have a question for Bay Curious? Ask us!

Enter our Sierra Nevada Brewing Company monthly trivia contest



Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts
This story was reported by Rachael Myrow. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Amanda Font, and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Cesar Saldana, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Jasmine Garnett, Carly Severn, Attila Pelit and Holly Kernan.

At 3841 18th Street in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood sits a light blue Victorian, not unlike the countless other homes of that style in the city. Except this one is a major tourist destination—if you're French, that is. What makes this particular Blue House so special? We turn to NPR Culture Correspondent Chloe Veltman (who is half French herself) for the the very musical answer to this question.
Additional Reading:

The San Francisco Landmark You’ve Never Heard Of … Unless You’re French

Read a transcript of this episode

Sign up for our newsletter

Enter our Sierra Nevada Brewing Company monthly trivia contest



Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts
This story was reported by Chloe Veltman. Bay Curious is made by Olivia Allen-Price, Amanda Font, and Christopher Beale. Additional support from Cesar Saldana, Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Jasmine Garnett, Carly Severn, Attila Pelit and Holly Kernan.