San Francisco - Day Five

Warning: If photos of flowers and/or greenery offend you in any way, just close this page now. Consider yourself warned!

Today I ventured to the west side of the city to Golden Gate Park, which more than lived up to my expectations. In fact, it was an almost perfect day except for one hiccup that I will talk about later AND the fact that the Husband wasn't there. It broke my heart a little that I couldn't share it all with him, because it was SO his kind of thing!

The adventure began with...what else... a trip to the bathroom! Anyone who knows me knows that my bladder is not that reliable at the best of times. Pregnancy has left me searching out public restrooms at every turn. I usually go, like, three times before I leave my hotel room, just to make sure my bladder is empty, and within four blocks I'm looking for my next stop. It's crazy! So thankfully there was a lodge at the foot of the park for me to relieve myself. (I'd already used the Old Navy bathroom on Union Street before getting on the bus. Honestly - best bathroom in town! Clean and never busy!)

Next up was the Conservatory of Flowers:













I actually made audible noises of delight and disbelief as I walked through, because everything was SO beautiful!

My next stop was the carousel. (I know! Another carousel!) It was kind of weird, because it was completely enclosed in a building. And the building was just a little bit bigger than the carousel, so it was like a case for the carousel. The photos really aren't anything special, so I will spare you.

Suddenly I found myself at the Botanical Gardens!







There was SO much to explore and, unfortunately, I was desperate for lunch, so I had to hurry through. All I could think the entire time was that one day I would visit again with the Husband and we'd spend more time seeing it all.

My lunch destination was the café at the DeYoung Museum where I forced myself to have a nice long sit-down and a healthy soup and salad. I was determined not to tire myself out too quickly today, so I tried to sit down whenever possible. Afterwards, I rode to the top of DeYoung's observation tower for more amazing views of the city:



That building across the way with the cool green roof is the California Academy of Sciences. I really want to go! I also want to actually see all the art in the DeYoung (there's an Impressionist exhibit right now), so I may just return to these two locations on Friday... We'll see!

But at the moment I couldn't resist what was waiting for me beside the DeYoung: The Japanese Tea Garden!






Again, I could not keep my reactions to myself! It was breathtaking!! And then this little guy and his partner were hanging out, eating out of people's hands:


At this point, even though I'd only seen the first third of this enormous park, I hopped in a cab to take me to the western edge, because that's where the ocean is! My destination was a place called the Beach Chalet, because my guidebook said it had fantastic views of the water. First of all, thank goodness I didn't try to walk it. That part of my guidebook is a bit condensed, so what didn't look too far away was actually more than 40 blocks! My friendly cab driver took a wrong turn when we hit the water, so we had a lovely drive along the ocean for a while before he could turn around. Oh, and he stopped the meter during that time, which was also nice. We chatted and enjoyed the trip until he finally dropped me off at my destination, which took my breath away because it was literally across the street from THE OCEAN! So I paid the driver (he didn't even charge me as much as the meter said before the wrong turn) and headed into the building where I encountered more beautiful murals and mosaics, both of which have been a theme during this trip. So I reached into my purse for my camera...

WHERE THE FUCK IS MY CAMERA!? Wait, let me rephrase that. WHERE THE FUCK IS THE HUSBAND'S CAMERA!?!

My heart stopped, tears sprung to my eyes and I immediately had a headache, which is still raging, by the way.

Obviously I'd put the camera down in the cab while paying the driver and forgot to pick it up! Not knowing what to do, I went upstairs to the restaurant where the hostess tried to help me a bit, but I had NO idea what the name of the cab company was, let alone the cab number or driver's name. After about 15 minutes of making a few phone calls (on my cell phone...ouch!) to various cab companies, I was no closer and completely distraught. One of the waitresses tried to assure me that the driver would likely come back once he discovered the camera, but I knew the driver was scheduled to go back to the DeYoung to pick someone else up and take them downtown.

I seriously didn't know what to do. I wanted to send a text to the Husband, because he is who I would normally turn to in moments of distress, but I didn't think it was fair to burden him with this while he was in the middle of shooting! He couldn't help and it would just put him in a panic. So after leaving my name and number with the restaurant, I started to cross the street to the ocean, tears streaming down my face. Suddenly I noticed a cab in front of the restaurant and realized that it was sitting there with passengers in the back, but no driver. Could it be? I went back in the building and who was there but the driver!!!! I almost hugged him!!!! Seriously, he said the people he picked up saw the camera, so he came back to give it to me before taking them on their way.

I can't describe how grateful and relieved I was. I'm sure you can all imagine! All I know is that I've used up my entire cache of good karma and must start stockpiling good deeds now for the next time I do something incredibly stupid.

Thankfully I had the Pacific Ocean to soothe my rattled soul. It was crazy windy and therefore quite cold, but I still took off my socks and shoes and walked along the beach, watching the insane kite surfers (or whatever they're called) risking their lives in the rip tide. I also dipped my toes in:


I wanted to share the feeling with all of you. Here you go:

San Francisco - Day Four

Let me explain why there's no photo montage today. In our little family, we have two cameras. My camera is an old hand-me-down from my dad many years ago when he was ready to upgrade his. It's a very basic digital point-and-shoot, which seemed amazing when I first got it, because I was still using film! The Husband's camera is roughly a million times better. It's only a couple of years old and has a seriously great zoom lens. It's the camera that really made me fall in love with taking pictures.

Now, the Husband likes to have his camera with him at all times, but has recognized that my daily adventures this week are more exciting than his long shooting days, so I've been happily snapping away with his camera. Until today! His day started with a sojourn to Nappa, so it only made sense that he get to take the good camera. And while I took about a thousand pictures of unbelievable houses today during my tours of Pacific Heights, Cow Hollow and Hayes Valley, I don't have the proper camera cord with me to download most of them! (I got the good camera back at lunch. Yay!) Therefore, you'll have to wait until we return to Canada for the Day Four photo montage.

Two more stories from my day of neighbourhood strolls:

My DAMN guidebook completely messed up my Pacific Heights/Cow Hollow walking tour! The stops on the map were not numbered properly, so when I got to the corner where the "Mrs. Doubtfire" house was supposed to be, for example, I'd actually already passed it by several blocks! Very frustrating. And with so many steep hills, there was no way I was turning around! Still, amazing architecture everywhere! Oh, and Danielle Steel lives in a crazy mansion. I should really consider writing romance novels...

After inadvertently doing WAY too much walking again today, I finally stopped for dinner in a trendy German restaurant on Hayes that was suggested by the guidebook. Now, I have to say that I've done a fantastic job of eating lots of meals sitting alone in restaurants this trip! I was really determined that I wouldn't grab something to eat alone in the hotel room, because eating out is part of what makes a vacation so great. And I've had lots of good meals. Anyway, at this restaurant, they seated me at the head of a table for five alongside a young couple and their adorable three-year-old daughter. They were LOVELY! The daughter's name was Olivia and she was very proud to tell me that she wears underwear. (I'm assuming this means she is potty-trained, which really is something to celebrate!) Unfortunately they had also just finished eating and were settling the bill. So while I had about ten great minutes chatting with them, they left before my food arrived and a group of four women roughly my age took their place. After we exchanged a couple of pleasantries about the menu, they went on with their evening. Only I was sitting right there. It was super strange. In fact, I had to avert my eyes to one side the whole time or I would have been looking right at the woman sitting opposite me. I wanted to join in when they all started comparing stories about their cats, but the fake wall between us was already firmly set. So I ate in silence, as if I was one of them, but not speaking to any of them.

Great day overall! Hoping that I have the energy for Golden Gate Park tomorrow. It's so hard not to run yourself ragged on vacation, isn't it?

Oh, since I don't have pics of my own, here's one that the Husband took this morning. (I was not there when this shot was taken!)



ps. I think I need a digital slr of my very own...

San Francisco - Day Three

After the alarm on the Husband's Blackberry went off at 4:30 a.m. (set for the other coast), I could NOT get back to sleep! Still a bit jet-lagged and too excited about everything I still have to see in the city, I tossed and turned until 6 a.m. when I finally pulled on some clothes and walked across the street to get some breakfast at Starbucks. But I didn't actually get out to begin my adventure until 8:30 a.m. when the Husband had to meet his crew. I only get to see him for the teeniest bit of time while we're here, so I try to make the most of it. Also, since he has to work and I am in vacation mode, I feel obliged to at least get him some breakfast and iron his shirt for the day!

Anyway, I started off by walking over to Powell Street to catch a cable car!!


I had to wait through a few, since there were plenty of tourists who had the same idea I did. And when there was finally a spot for me, I had to stand on the outside runner! Cool? Yes. Kind of scary, particularly when you're pregnant? YES! I held on for dear life, because they drive quickly up and down the crazy hills and careen around corners. The only concession the driver makes is to tell you to "tuck in" when there's something coming up on your side.

Needless to say, I didn't manage to take any photos during the ride. Instead I enjoyed the fresh breeze and the lovely city passing by. But here's the one I rode after I got off:


And my destination was Lombard Street, which is also known as the crookedest street in the world, even though it's not even the crookedest one in the city! Still it was beautiful and fully landscaped with hydrangeas. Also, people get to live in the gorgeous houses along the street. Sure, it's busy with tourists, but it's still damn nice!



This is the view from the bottom:


From here I took a little stroll and found a charming pubic garden:


Then I started scouting out potential houses to buy in Russian Hill, which seems like a pretty nice neighbourhood! ;-)



Then I hoofed it all the way to the water and walked out to the end of the pier. Check out this view! (See that little tower at the top right of the pic? That's where I was headed!)


After looking around The Cannery, which houses some shops and restaurants, I met my hop-on bus (my ticket was still good) and rode over to the bottom of the Filbert Street steps. This would be the beginning of my climb to the top of Coit Tower!

There were a LOT of steps! But there were also a lot of gorgeous flowers along the way:



And people live in houses along the climb! Crazy houses on the side of a cliff! So there were charming little garden gates and whimsical touches:



Check out this house right at the foot of Telegraph Hill, which is where Coit Tower is located:


And finally, the tower!


The main floor walls are covered with gorgeous murals. Here were just a couple of close-ups I took:



And then, after a disturbingly rickety elevator ride and another flight of stairs, I was treated to breathtaking 360 degree views of the city:



Those are just a couple shots. I took LOTS! I also spent a fair amount of time coveting the rooftop patios of the all the lucky people who live in the houses on the way up. They have seriously amazing views of the bay!

Also, the top of the tower is open to the sky, which was amazing on a gorgeous day like today (I could not be more lucky with the weather!), but probably isn't so fun when it's raining.


After heading back down a different way and taking a lovely walk past Washington Square Park and through Little Italy, I was DONE! So I stopped at this corner Italian restaurant from some gnocchi:


And then checked out this famous Beat era bookstore, where I bought a children's book based in San Francisco for the little being-to-be in my tummy:


Finally, I walked through Chinatown back to the hotel and collapsed! Seriously, I should have worn a pedometer, because I walked for at least 4.5 hours. and climbed more than 400 stairs. So there was some time to rest my weary bod until I could no longer resist the call of the stores, which are dangerously close to the hotel. Unfortunately, I've discovered that shopping for maternity clothes is no nearly as fun as shopping for regular clothes. Despite the presence of Gap Maternity and a huge Old Navy flagship store, I probably only had a few dozen items to choose from. I managed a tank top and a t-shirt. Sigh!

Dinner was a big bowl of noodle soup at a vegan fast food restaurant in a fancy mall food court. I needed to eat it in order to create enough energy to walk back to the hotel!! But now there's been a bath and plenty of hanging out time while writing this post, so I'm starting to feel human again.

Tomorrow? I'm thinking Golden Gate Park...