pommymike's blog

San Francisco

02/05/11

We booked this trip on 7 days before we went on it - kind of spontaneous other than we had discussed wanting to go there at sometime. Neither of us really knew much about the place but I know a chap called Mike (that I worked with back in Winchester in 1995) who lives here with his girlfriend Allison and he has been sending me page after page of information and hints and tips, so with that information we built up a plan of some of the things that we wished to do and were happy just to get over there and work it out as went along .....

The journey over was as easy as you could hope for. We were flying to Sydney and then directly to SF from there, so we only had to check in an hour before the trip as the first leg was domestic whereas our luggage was checked in for the whole trip - perfect. We were on Qantas flights all the way and fortunately had 3 seats for the Sydney to SF leg - if we'd only had 2 seats, then it would have been a tight squeeze - I'd like to say that is because they make seats smaller nowadays and I'd like you to say nothing.

Anyway we arrived in SF at 10am and checked into our rather lovely hotel, The Fairmont before heading out to check on the neighbourhood. The first thing to do was to get a travel ticket for the trams, cable cars and buses. The place to get them was only 4 blocks away but it was down a very steep hill and each step we took down there just told us how tough it would be coming back the other way. Oh well. So we arrived at Union Square and checked out a few streets around there with Carolyn planning her shopping expeditions as we went. We then had lunch at a nice diner and got onto a hop-on/hop-off bus that took us around the place as we tried to work out all that we wished to do - we did no hopping off, just sitting-on. It really is a lovely looking city and the different areas all seem to have their own attractions - and it isn't too big either.

That evening we just took it easy and ate at the Tonga Room in the hotel - a strange place indeed. The restaurant had a pool in the middle and then at various stages they played soundtrack of a storm and it rained in the place, but not over the tables. Then a boat floated out with a band on there and they played a strange collection of stuff - some good 60s and 70s music done surprisingly well. People were up and dancing and were having fun. And all of this was indoors, Anyway, we were buggered so left folk to it and we had an early night.

Photos from Saturday

The day started with fog and rain but that didn't deter us. It was going to be a strange day anyway as it was Easter Sunday, so a lot of places were closed. We went on our first cable car ride, but the cable car broke down so we had to walk.

We then got back onto the hop-on hop-off bus and headed to Haight and Ashbury which was the hippy centre way back in the 60s - it is the place where Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and the like all lived and it was also the centre for the beat generation too. It's a good area to visit and there are lots of vintage clothing places and places that sell things from the past and related to how it used to be - like you can still buy tie dye shirts and things like that.

From there we headed down to Pier 39 at Fisherman's Wharf where we ate well and wandered the shops. Whilst there we also saw some of the hundreds of sea lions that live there - just lazing in the sun - strange but good to see.

Then we wandered back to the hotel for a break before heading down to Chinatown for a bite to eat - out hotel is close to Chinatown, so that was easy. But it had reached 10pm so places were closing up - we'll head back there again when everything is open so that we can see what the shops are like and get a sense of the place.

Photos from Sunday

The plan for today was for Carolyn to do some shopping and if the mood took me, then so would I. Having caught the cable car down to one of the main shopping strips, we went our separate ways.

I discovered that the magic has gone for me when I go into a Disney store - I don't know which one of us has changed - I suspect that it's Disney. I then went into an Apple Store with the aim of buying a new ipad, but they didn't have any - is that a sign?

After that, I resorted to just sitting around and watching folk come and go - all very interesting. The down side to such activities is that I get to see many of the abundant down and outs that are around the place - I am not used to seeing such hardship - tough to see, but that is the world we live in - so many folk are struggling.

In the evening, we just wandered down to Chinatown again to check out the shops and one of us bought quite a lot. We then headed to a restaurant recommended by my mate Mike - it was a damn fine Italian meal. And that was another fine day had by all.

Photos from Monday

We had an early start today when we headed out to a day trip leaving from the Ferry Building on a coach out to the Napa Valley (via the Golden Gate Bridge) where we had tastings at four wineries (Domaine Chandon, V. Sattui, Franciscan and Whitehall Lane) before getting a ferry back to the city. Upon returning we wandered around for a while before heading down to Fisherman's Wharf for dinner, shopping and coffee drinking. The sun shined the whole day and it was all lovely.

Photos from Tuesday

We got up early to catch a ferry over to Sausalito for breakfast. It is a gorgeous area just across the bay and it has stunning views of San Francisco and the Bay from it's shores. Unfortunately a lot of this area only stirs from lunchtime onwards, so we didn't hang around too long and got the bus back into the City.

We then went to both Castro and Mission suburbs - neither of which particularly inspired us. We then headed to Cow Hollow where we enjoyed a bite to eat and some window shopping. Following that we headed up to Coit Tower and saw some wonderful views from up there.

In the evening we caught up with Mike and Allison. I worked with Mike back in Winchester in 1995 and we have kept in touch since those days. We went to bar and then a lovely meal - they were both good company and easy to get on with - Mike is still a funny and interesting chap - and Allison complements him well and both have very normal outlooks on life.

Photos from Wednesday

Another sunny day to explore more delights in this fine town. We started with breakfast in Union Square before getting the bus over to the Palace of Fine Arts which is a stunning thing indeed - all of it and from every angle - loved it. Then we strolled on Crissy Fields before moving on to Golden Gate Park to visit the De Young Museum. We then headed to Marina for some shopping and wondering around before heading over to Little Italy for a lovely meal before heading back to Union Square. A busy but great day.

Photos from Thursday

Well, we had plans for the day but they were delayed by Carolyn sorting out the US economy by redistributing her wealth through various stores in San Francisco. I caught up with Mike and he showed me some sights and sounds of San Francisco that was great as there is so much that we haven't seen. I even did some shopping of my own - strange but true. And the sunny day slipped away without us actually going exploring - but that was relaxing for a change.

In the evening, we wandered down into the city and had a lovely Spanish meal and a wander around and a nice coffee before heading back to the hotel for our last night.

Photos from Friday

Some more shopping followed by a trip to the lovely Cliff House for lunch. In the afternoon we packed up before wandering around having dinner at Francis Ford Coppola's Zoetrophe restaurant in Little Italy. In the evening, we went for a drink with Mike and Allison, checked out the city views from Twin Peaks before heading to the airport and home via Sydney.

We both loved the City and felt it was very livable. There was a more familiar feel with being there than there had been when we visited New York. People seemed much more relaxed and natural and you could get a decent cup of coffee. There are a lot of homeless people around the place and that isn't very nice to see, but it is the reality of the situation. It is easy to get around the place (even with the hills) and we travelled by cable car, trolley/tram, train, ferry, bus, taxi and foot. We visited Castro, Chinatown, Cow Hollow, Crissy Fields, De Young Museum, Financial District, Fisherman's Wharf, Golden Gate Park, Haight & Ashbury, Marina, Mission, Napa Valley, Nob Hill, North Beach, Palace of Fine Arts, Presidio, Sausalito, Telegraph Hill and Union Square. I think that we'll be back there.