San Francisco - Day 2

Bright and early, I headed out with a big bag of washing to the closest Laundromat. This helped me check out the neighbourhood a bit before everyone tagged along. On my travels, I came across another funky older hotel a block or two away…with a pool! Good thing the boys will never read this blog. They won’t forgive us for not packing up & moving immediately.. I also came across a couple of bike shops that rent bikes for our ride over the Golden Gate today, and cheaper than Fisherman’s Wharf prices. They look fine to me; guess it’ll be on me if the chain falls off half-way across the bridge!

We headed off by foot towards the water and from the very breezy shore, we watched some America’s Cup competitors racing through the Bay between us and Alcatraz. Norbert was especially excited to watch the finely-tuned boats in great sailing conditions. Our goal today was to do some cable car riding and to generally get a sense of the downtown, so we left the bay behind.

The line-up for the cable car turn-around on the Powell St-Hyde St line was long and naturally full of people just like us fascinated by old technology. The SF transit employees were not at all put off by our impatience - union breaks are sacred! We rode the crazy hills up and down; the boys’ eyes widened but they stayed predictably cool; California Screamin’ was of course MUCH more thrilling. I was clinging to my seat, I have to admit, even though I know that these well-trained union employees have done this thousands of times before.

From the end of the line, we bussed it around to the Ferry Building, a beautifully-restored terminal that also houses a marketplace of wonderful fresh food and artisans’ shops. I could have stayed in there all day, but none of the rest of my party were impressed by anything other than the ice cream. We got our cones, and headed back to the wharf on one of the beautiful old streetcars. On Pat and David’s recommendation [a great one, Pat!], we had an In & Out burger, a California favorite. Best burger any of us have had for a long time - all of us Canadians agreed that the closest we’ve come is our A&W burgers.

The boys were impressed by an artist on the wharf doing airbrush painting, and Alex was committed enough to consider parting with some of his holiday money - the first time he’s done that! On the way home, we enjoyed another SF tradition - an Irish coffee at the Buena Vista. I was ready for a nap after that, but unfortunately a hike was ahead of us. We got home in time for the nap, but then we headed out to the ball game.

The game had already started but the crowds were still filing in when we got to AT&T Park, and we took our seats close to heaven. Alex was excited for his first MLB game, and we stayed for almost the whole 9 innings - it was 5-5 at the top of the 8^th, when somehow things went awry for the home town team. Suddenly, it was 10-5 for the NY Mets, and even die-hard Alex was ready to admit that it didn’t look good for the Giants. We bussed it home with the rest of the bailing fans, and called it a night.