San Francisco

Friday, June 17

Rental Car is a Nissan Sentra, we take a photo of the rego so we don’t lose the car in some random car park in the city.  We head down to the Vallejo Ferry Terminal area for a looksee and a coffee then along the I80 into the city.  We find a park by the piers and go for a wander.  It’s a little overcast and cool today but it’s still a lovely place to wander, buskers entertaining the people and there are people everywhere.  We meander down to the Fishermans Wharf for one of their famous crab and shrimp salads and spy a nearby park bench to sit and enjoy - but on the way an "enormous" ugly seagull dive bombs me in a frenzy of wings and feathers and steals my biggest, fattest prawn right off my plate – enough to say I am not at all impressed.  At least I got to keep most of my lunch, the poor little Asian women lost all her chips when a squad of the thieving gannets scared the bejasus out of her - she just screamed and threw her food into the air.  Food eaters beware!

Kim didn’t bring anything warm today so he is now the proud owner of a not-so-gaudy 'San Francisco' branded polar fleece!

We drive down the famed Lombard Street, dodging multiple Asian tourists but still managing to see most of this incredible steep, winding street edged with colourful flower gardens.  It's the crookedest street  in the world!

We didn’t book for Alcatraz and the next available trip is July 15!!  Catcha next time Alcatraz!

Next we find a car park and do some ‘inside’ window shopping at Boomingdales.  Everything is so beautiful and uncluttered, I would love to actually shop here which reminds me, must buy one of the US Lotteries, first prize of over $300 million would enable me to shop at Bloomingdales every day of the week.

Michelle’s work is really central and only a few blocks away from here so we get a park right outside and go in and check it out, meeting some of her lovely co workers as well.  It’s a very cool building, like the Wool Store at home, all old red bricks and exposed timbers.  We have a recommendation from ex Cleo Batchelor of the Year (from Gisborne) on where to go for dinner, a little Mediterranean restaurant in the Fillmore, a hip entertainment district which used to be called the Harlem of West.  Very enjoyable.  We drive around doing some sightseeing, spotting a racoon in the Golden Gate Park and before we know it is way past 10pm and we still have an hour’s drive back to the coach.  Make that 1.5 hours - due to roadworks on the I80.

Saturday, June 18

Beautiful, warm sunny day.  Meeting Michelle at 10am.  Our first stop is a photo stop at the Palace of Fine Arts building on the way to the Golden Gate Bridge, the next place where we also pull off for the photo stop. 

Golden Gate Bridge in background - no fog today : )

Next is an overdue coffee stop at Sausalito, just north of the bridge, a picturesque, seaside town reminiscent of Eastbourne.  Then on the road again to the Napa Valley where we rock up to Domaine Carneros (affiliated to Taittinger, no less, so we know we are on the right track)!  We should have made a reservation but we wangle our way in, playing the Kiwi card again.  M and I totally enjoy the quite generous tasting glasses of their four signature bubbles, Kim the just one Pinot (designated driver) and a cheese plate, whilst sitting on the verandah overlooking the vines and basking in the sun.  What better way to spend a sunny Saturday!  Afterwards we drive into Napa township but don’t really see the attraction there, was hoping for farmers markets etc.

Domaine Carneros - beautiful building!

Domaine Carneros - fabulous!

Vallejo is on the way back into the city so we stop to show M the coach, have another glass of wine…. 

Then we head back into the city where we drive through the Tenderloin district (down and outers/homeless people) and the Castro Gay district.  We do see some sights!  Up the winding hill road to Twin Peaks, the base for the Sutra Mast and which gives an amazing 360 degree panoramic view of this very cool city, then to IHOP for dinner – another first for M (along with Walmart, where we see only one guy packing a hunting knife – she was looking for a glock toting Wamartian).

We have seen the CORT Tower (210 feet tall) in Telegraph Hill, the Transamerica Pyramid, both in day time and lit up at night, the rainbow painted pedestrian crossings at the Castro, been over most of the bridges linking the city including the Bay Bridge which we cross every day and is really pretty at night. This is one of the world’s longest steel bridges at 8.4 miles).  Yet I am sure we have only seen a fraction of what there is to see here, you could spend months and not see enough of it.

Sunday, June 19

Another beautiful day in Paradise!  Hot and sunny.  This morning we drive south (a new vantage point for us to see SF) to Google Town where we see the actual (or one of) Google map cars.  There are numerous Google Campasses in this area and they are pretty cool, Google bicycles are provided for the troops to get around, we even see a multi person GBike.

Dusty old Google Car!!

Michelle driving the GBike!

Then we head to the San Francisco Outlets at Livermore for a power shop - both M and I manage to come out with parcels – yay!

We have just about worn ourselves out, we've driven 474 miles in three days, had an awesome time and feel just a little bit sad to be leaving San Fran tomorrow (well me anyway, Kim will be pleased to be out of the helter skelter - they all drive like maniacs)!