San Quentin State Prison Hobby Shop

Normally I wouldn’t recommend visiting a prison, but there are two great things about San Quentin: The small but super fascinating museum and the unusual but friendly hobby shop.
The hobby shop is a one-​room store with all sorts of paintings and creations that were crafted by prisoners. The death row inmates are only allowed to use paint and paper, so most of the art on the walls is made by them. The jewelry, belts, woodwork and other things are made by lifers, since death row inmates can’t access the tools needed to make these crafts.
The guy working in the shop was incredibly friendly and talked to us for over twenty minutes about the art, prisoners and life behind bars. It was very interesting. At first glance, the art is average, but when you think about the convicts that made it, you change your mind.
One problem with the hobby shop is the accessibility. It is only open 10 hours a week. Here are the days and hours:
Days: Monday — Friday
Hours: 7am — 8am, 2pm — 3pm
No, this is not a typo. It is only open for one hour at two different times of the day. This is annoying but understood after talking to the shop employee. He has many other tasks at the prison, so the hobby shop is not his top priority. I can’t blame them for that.
If you are interested in unusual things, particularly art and prisons, then the hobby shop is an absolute must visit.