San Francisco

If I were ever to move to USA, San Francisco is without doubt THE place I would want to live. It is a fantastic city and grabbed me right from the start!!

We flew from San Diego and caught a shuttle bus from the airport. About halfway to our hotel I told Russ I really liked the feel of the place. Our hotel was walking distance from Fishermans Wharf which was a real bonus. As soon as we unpacked, we walked to the Wharf for a look around. Fabulous atmosphere with heaps of things to do.

Next morning we slept in for a while and then had a delicious brunch at the restaurant attached to our hotel. It was an Italian style place, with some very attractive waiters and yummy food. We shared a couple dishes, most of which was eaten by Russ ..... what a hero!!! Next chore was washing (the only disadvantage to 'packing light' is you have to keep up with the washing or you run out of clothes!!!), mailing a parcel of souvenirs etc home and getting my nails done!!! All a bit tedious but necessary.
We then rewarded ourselves with some more time exploring the fantastic Pier 39, where there are lots of eateries, souvenir shops, an aquarium and very clear views of Alcatraz Island and the Golden Gate Bridge.

Wednesday was a special day. We went to a baseball game. I had been looking forward to this for ages and was very excited. The San Francisco Giants were playing the Houston Astros at the Giants home field. Michael and Sarah are avid Giants fans, so by default we are too. Go Giants!!!!!!! We caught the trolley car one block from our hotel. This took us along the waterfront to meet up with the MUNI (the local underground railways system). We found the right train without getting lost and got to A T & T stadium with no problems. We were meeting Mick and Sarah at a bar across from the stadium and managed to find a spot on the fairly crowded outdoor area. We waited for ages and then decided to make our way over to the stadium.

We went in the main gate with thousands of others and soon discovered that the seats I had bought on line were absolute rippers. We had a fantastic view of the field.
Russ armed himself with a hotdog and the game started. Not too long after I heard my name being called and looked around to see Michael and Sarah standing behind us. Poor things, there had been a fire which had closed down the underground and the half hour trip from home to the game had taken them two and a half hours!!!! We made plans to catch up the net day and they headed off to their seats to enjoy the game.

We had a great time joining in the traditional singing, chomping on garlic fries and candy floss and waving my huge orange foam finger around. Sadly the Giants did not win although they had won the day before. A great day trying out some traditional American sport.

Next morning we were up bright ands early to get in some sightseeing on our, by now favorite, hop on and off bus. Great way to see things a bit further afield. It also took us across the Golden Gate bridge which was amazing. The views of the city from the the side of the bay are spectacular. We then raced back to our hotel to change clothes and get ready for our very special night out.

We caught the trolley car to the underground station and then BART (a VERY fast train) to Walnut Creek which is Sarah's home town. We were delighted to have been invited by Juan and Kathy (Sarah's parents) for dinner and were able to meet all Sarah's grandparents, aunt and friend. We had a fabulous dinner and chatted for hours. Just a great relaxing night with terrific people. Sarah also gave us a tour of the Walnuft Creek area and we saw where she had grown up, excelled at swimming and worked, plus the best array of shops!!! Two very happy people caught the train back to SF.

We were on the move again the next day, so while I packed up and got organised (and had a bit of a sleep-in) Russ did a tour of Alcatraz. He had a fabulous time but came back exhausted as there were heaps of steps to climb!!!! Took one last long walk down to Fishermans Wharf, picked up some souvenirs, had a meal and caught the bus over the Bay Bridge to Emeryville where we caught the Amtrak train to Seattle.