I just had a much smaller version of this experience yesterday in SF -- the goal was to climb the rocky peak at Corona Heights and then visit the Randall Museum, and as I was coming down Roosevelt not 500 feet from that first stop (around a corner to my right), I realize that I absolutely recognize this neighborhood and in fact I realize that I have been to the Randall before -- or at least I've been in its backyard -- about two years back on a hike up some stairs from the States Street playground with my daughter. The choice of the park was random and then she had wanted to know what was up the stairs so we climbed them and we ended up in the play yard behind there.

But, based on the landmarks I can see and my vague memory that the Randall is "up above us" I turn left on Masonic away from Corona Heights Park, misidentifying the neighboring Buena Vista Park as Corona Heights and orbiting it looking for the museum until we see a prominent staircase with a sign saying "Buena Vista Park" and I realize the extent of my eff-up. I turn away and switch my car's screen from Media to Map -- it doesn't have Corona Heights marked in green as a park but it's reasonably clear where it has to be -- and then unexpectedly I realize I'm in the Castro, randomly?

Punching the thing into GPS takes a second and then the Randall is in fact, in a cul-de-sac which is not what I was expecting -- actually I miss the turn down States Street where the playground was -- and so even though I'm "right next" to the Randall, GPS is like "okay, let's go up the big hill all the way back to where you started turning onto Roosevelt, and we'll try ALL OF THIS over again."

My wife and daughter, needless to say, did not view this as a successful exploration even though I was quite happy with the fact that I'd indeed recognized the neighborhood (and the playground and the museum without seeing either of them).