San Francisco II

Hello again,

We're nearing the end of our time in the USA now, so we thought we'd describe some of what we have got up to here, before we submit to the hell of long-haul air travel on a shitty airline.


Downtown

For our first day in SF, we were taken downtown by our hosts Kieron and Kubi. However, shopping requires fuel so we hopped on the bus and had brunch at Bambino's on Cole and Carl (don't I sound authentic?). Seafood is the thing here in SF, so I had a bowl of lovely clams and mussels. Yum. Shame my glass of wine never arrived.

Next we hopped on the MUNI - a kind of combination bus/tram/tube type thing that sped us into the centre of SF and the shops. We strolled around Macy's, Saks 5th Ave and other American shopping institutions. We were a bit disappointed as we expected everything to be really cheap compared to home, but this didn't seem to be the case. Bah.

Rounded off the day with a ride on the F car (a streetcar, not named desire) to Castro. Had a Fat Tire in Harvey's, a bar named after famed gay rights campaigner Harvey Milk .

Rained. Quite a lot.


Golden Gate Park and Haight/Ashbury

Second day of our stay in SF and we were let run free by our minders. We managed a whole bus ride all by ourselves. Got off at Haight/Ashbury but it was too rainy and cold for there to be many old hippies cluttering up the pavement. Small mercies indeed.

I got a bit excited to see Escape from New York Pizza, for me a mythical place which I remember visiting as a 19 year old and having the yet-to-be-seen-anywhere-else Pesto Pizza. Well, they're still there and they still have Pesto Pizza. I advise you to try it if you're there.

Onward we strode and into Golden Gate Park. We visited the touching National AIDS Memorial Grove, which had an understated and peaceful air.

Next up was the de Young Museum, which we accidentally broke into avoiding the entry fee and bag searches. We didn't mean to, they just left the cafe entrance open. There was a great collection of modern and older American Art. Jo liked Georgia O'Keeffe and Dale Chihuly. I liked a painting of a cellist but I can't remember the name of the artist.

We rounded off our visit to the park by looking around the Japanese Tea Garden, where we had a cup of green tea and a fortune cookie.

Jo's Cookie: You are kind-hearted and hospitable, cheerful and well-liked

Seán's Cookie: You are very expressive and positive in words, act and feeling

So, there we are.

Wandered back to Haight where we discovered the delights of the Magnolia Brew-pub. Smashing.

Rained. Quite a lot.



The Presidio/Golden Gate Bridge

More intrepid bus journeys and we found ourselves at the Presidio, an ex-military base turned National Park. A great way to walk down to the bay from the City, with views over the Bay and the Islands, including Alcatraz.

The bottom of the hill found us at the somewhat bizarre and totally fake pseudo-Roman Palace of Fine Art. Then a stroll along the promenade through Crissy Field and we stood at the base of Golden Gate Bridge. It's quite big, you know. Took a load of pictures and will put some up once we have them developed.

Didn't rain.


Coit Tower/Alcatraz

Well, a tourist's work is never done, and off we went again. We tried to tour the towers of SF, but we were stopped at our first attempt. Despite the suggestion of our Lonely Planet, the Trans-America Pyramid doesn't let in visitors. We did get a great spiel from the security fellow, who explained the photographic opportunities of every other tall building in the city, with the aid of laser pens and much enthusiasm. He needed to be in showbiz. The surrounding Chinatown was interesting, anyway.

Instead we struggled up the hill to the Coit Tower, at the top of the Greenwich Steps. Trust the sun to finally put his hat on when we had a mountain to scale. Hrumph. Still, we were rewarded with great views over the Bay which made it worthwhile.

A quick visit to the frankly daft Lombard St and on to the tourist heaven (or hell) that is Fisherman's Wharf. Took the opportunity to have the local specialty, Cracked Dungeness (!) Crab. Very tasty, and enormous.

We spent the evening touring the island of Alcatraz, learning much about the history of "the Rock". We'd booked the more expensive evening tour as recommended by our hosts, and it didn't disappoint - the cell blocks and outlying buildings full of dark shadows, relieved only by the sweeping beam of the lighthouse, while we heard tales of Al Capone and the Bird-man of Alcatraz.

Following the tour, we met up with K'n'K and made for a Chinese Restaurant they liked, which had all the stylistic pretensions of a transport caff. There was an irrelevant menu - the proprietors decided what you were having on the basis of some basic questioning regarding preferences, which you barely understood due to the thickness of the accents. It was the best Chinese I've ever had.

Didn't rain. Mostly sunny, even hot.


Sausalito

Typing fatigue is setting in now, so I'll be brief. Following a minor sartorial hiccup the boys were able to come and join us for a day out. We took a ferry across the Bay to Sausalito, a very pretty village across the bay from the city. Jo bought loads of salt water taffy (not made with salt water, strangely enough), and we watched a man stack stones, which is more impressive than it sounds.

No rain again, we're on a roll.


And that's enough for now. Our next entry will be about the Neon Nirvana that is Las Vegas. See you soon.

Thanks for listening,
Seán