San Francisco by foot – October 17 – 20

Transamerica Building & Telegraph Hill - From our Hotel Room!

With home base at the impressive Mandarin Oriental Hotel in the Financial District and on flat ground made exploring SF a little easier for us.  With Dee desperate to see me in something other than now oversized action pants, we went on the hunt for jeans, finding an adequate pair in one of the shops in the trendy Union Square.  A little more searching delivered a pair of shoes for Dee so we were ready for civilized night on the town.

We found a fantastic Thai restaurant well off the beaten path for some terrific Pad Thai and curry.  The variety and number of restaurants in the city is astounding, especially after preparing and cooking meals out of one pot for the last month.  Note to selves – get more creative!

With the sun continuing to shine we decided to take on the hills, climbing Russian and Nob hills; getting a new appreciation of why they have maintained the streetcar system all these years.  Not only a tourist attraction, the streets they climb are far too step for any mode of public transportation.  We heard numerous chirping of the tires from tourists not respecting the steepness of these climbs while sightseeing.

After finding the world’s most picturesque basketball court high up on Nob Hill, we descended to Fisherman’s Wharf enjoying some chocolate at Ghirardelli’s and a late afternoon latte. 

We climbed the ‘World’s most crooked street’ before stopping at a charming French Bistro for amazing mussels pomme frites and French onion soup.  A stop at our mistresses for take out that we could enjoy back at the hotel room…

Watching the trains from Hyde St. Bistro

With Tuesday being ‘game day’ – San Francisco Giants home playoff game – The city had a buzz going by the time we hit the streets.  We made our way to the Terminal Market among a sea of orange and black clad fans preparing for the afternoon game.  We especially got a kick out of one couple of fans that were enjoying a gourmet cupcake and a bottle of red wine – at 10am!

Dee and I filled up on samples at the large farmer’s market taking place outside, happy to be enjoying the fresh produce, cheeses, and bread.  We bought a small stash intent to have après walking the city snacks in our luxurious hotel room later in the day.

A colorful sample of the Farmer's Market

We slowly sauntered down to the ballpark at noon, just ahead of the 1pm start.  As expected the scene was electric.  Lots of shouting, high fives, and enthusiasm.  The scalpers were in full force as we were offered numerous tickets, all for a ‘special’– expensive price.  As neither of us is a huge fan of the game we opted for to continue to enjoy the pre-game build up from the outside at this impressive park built along a revitalized waterfront.   We did stop at a neighboring bar for one beer where I was interviewed by one of the local TV stations.  I think he thought we had ridden our bikes 2000km to catch the game!

Meandering our way back to the hotel late afternoon amid the elation of a Giants’ win we met up with our friends Phil and Liz who have also made it to San Fran, staying with friends.  We gleefully showed off our temporary digs and enjoying some fine wine, cheese, and bread. 

Relaxing at the MO after a day of exploring

In a continuing theme, we strolled up to North Beach for more delicious Italian food and of course a final visit with our girl for dessert.