Forgotten in the outpouring of love on Valentine's Day is one poor thing which desperately needs to be loved - the earth, which started off as a pretty fantastic miracle, but has of late started sagging here and there due to the abuse and uncontrolled pillaging of its resources and hospitality.

This Valentine's Day, let's all tell the earth how much we love it, by pledging to spend the day in an eco-friendly manner - Send Valentine's Day cards made from recycled paper. Buy eco-friendly Valentine gifts. If you're going to be booking a hotel, choose a green hotel. If you're going out for dinner, choose an organic restaurant. If you're going sightseeing, there's plenty of attractions which are eco-friendly. Going to a spa? Choose one which uses all natural oils and upholds eco-friendly practices. Want to go from A to B? Use public transport, or drive hybrid vehicles. Need to take a flight? Buy carbon credits to offset the emissions.

I realize that its irksome to fit in environmental concerns into your romantic getaways. You can't go hungry if there isn't any organic restaurant near your hotel. And maybe you had a specific destination in mind, but don't really care which hotel you stay at. Now you have to go poking around to find an eco-friendly hotel in your choice of destination. And maybe pre-plan even small things like where you're going to have your meals, and what activities you can enjoy without hurting the environment. And its way easier to hail a cab than go around hunting for a subway station or a bus stop.

All true, and understandable if you don't want to make the necessary adjustments. But we've got only one earth, and there's a finite limit to the amount of punishment that it can endure. If the balance of nature breaks down...

Anyway, I'm not writing this to scare you, or threaten you into going green. Has to come from inside you. Listed below are some hotels and getaway options which are not only famed for their appeal to romantics, but also for their committment to the environment and green business practices. Whether or not you choose to take my suggestions, I wish you and your beloved a happy Valentine's Day. Photo from Naturemoms.

San Francisco has a well deserved reputation as an oasis for environmentalists and implementation of trail-blazing environmental programs and practices. To keep it simple, let me just list it out.

Hotel - Orchard Garden: There are a few other green hotels in San Francisco who also offer eco-friendly rooms and facilities, but only the Orchard Garden goes out of its way to make sure that guests end up keeping their entire stay, both in and out of the hotel, as green as can be.

This they do by offering hybrid transport to and from the Airports, offfering discounts on bike rentals so guests can go around the City without needing a cab, and making available the Greenopia guide. For more details, check out their 'Eco-Getaway in San Francisco' package. Info: 466 Bush Street, San Francisco, CA 94108; (888)-717-2881; www.theorchardgardenhotel.com/

Eco-friendly Attractions & Activities: You'll find a perfectly compiled list of activities here - www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com/green/, but I'll just list them in brief.

Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet at Crissy Field, near the Presidio. Details here - www.coolglobes.org/

Walk or bike across the Golden Gate Bridge. Details here - http://www.goldengatetransit.org/

Take the CultureBus from Downtown SF to Golden Gate Park, and you can hop on and off on a single ticket, with stops at museums and art institutions along the way, including the California Academy of Sciences (www.calacademy.org/). More details here - www.sf74xculturebus.org/

Here's a list of organic restaurants in San Francisco, and don't forget to buy carbon credits at an airport kiosk. Yes, SFO is selling carbon credits at airport kiosks.

As a bonus, I'll throw in a little bone for you hopeless romantics. Betcha didn't know that there's a magical spot slam-bang in the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge.

You see, twice a year, as seen from the Campanile at Berkeley, the sun sets exactly at the center of the span of the Golden Gate Bridge. Its known as The Magic Hour. Photo by hortulus via flickr (creative commons).

If you're biking across the Bridge, stop there for a minute. Or just go upto the Campanile. Great spots for that special Valentine's Day kiss, to exchange gifts, cards, flowers, candy, propose to your girlfriend, declare your everlasting love, and so on and so forth.

And also to appreciate the beauty of mother earth, because at the rate the sea level is rising due to global warming, the Golden Gate Bridge may not be visible to your grand-kids or their kids, unless they're willing to take a dive with scuba diving gear.