Automattic, Pier 38, SFO
Thanks to the International Visitor Leadership Program fellowship I received from the U.S. Department of State, I was finally able to visit the physical offices of Automattic in San Francisco last 4 February 2010. I was in the States primarily for the IVLP from 21-25 January in Washington, D.C.
Too bad, though, Matt Mullenweg wasn’t in town when I came calling — he was in Ireland then. But, I was happy to have finally met Maya Desai, who gave me a tour of their space in Pier 38. Here are some photos I took. I know, I know… I should’ve taken more. But I was just so excited to be there I neglected to do so. 
The place is huge! And it doesn’t look anything like an office at all. The wide open spaces and the high ceiling gives it a comfortable, homey atmosphere. Maya tells me that it was actually meant to be a restaurant.
While in San Francisco, I was also able to spread the word about WordPress to a high school there. This was part of the IVLP, the San Francisco leg of which was arranged for me by the Institute of International Education, and it was for me the best part of the program.
At the high school, I was able to give a talk about blogging, WordPress, and the various opportunities online publishing presented to virtually anybody. It was a class of seniors, and it was very fulfilling indeed seeing the glimmer in the eyes of those young men and women. I hope that I was able to inspire at least a few of them to take up blogging and succeed in the endeavor.
