Monday 13 May 2013

Day 6: San Francisco Part 1

San Francisco Part 1

A later start today, knowing we had a later finish, and we jumped into the car and headed towards Lombard Street. Mel actually wanted to go to Ike's place for a sandwich but I forgot all about that as I battled with the street map as she battled with the traffic. We were almost on top of it before she realised my mistake.

Having hummed and harred about it, she had decided to drive down it like many visitors. I sure bet the residents of the street get fed up with us lot driving by their houses, but at least it's done slowly unlike the time I drove down it on the Xbox. We actually had the street to ourselves as you can see, but top and bottom there were crowds of people, and I struggled to get some clean pictures of it without getting cited for Jay walking.

Stopping at Vista Point we took some pictures of San Francisco itself over the bay, with Alcatraz in between, and a few portrait shots of us with the Bridge behind you.
 
Well, you have to don't you.
We carried onto Sausalitto and delved deeper into it this time and found a delightful restaurant on the water edge called The Trident, where the cheeky beggars charge you $5 to park outside to eat!

Luckily the food made up for that fact, and the service was delightful. Mel ordered a Asian Noodle salad and some sweet potatoe fries, and then my order had the chef coming back to the waiter to check if he got the order correct...

I ordered the chicken and bacon sandwich, with no chicken and extra bacon. A posh bacon sandwich if you will. I had truffle and Parmesan fries with it, which you can get in the UK at some Jamie's Italian locations and they are wonderful if a little sickly if you nosh too many back!

All this while enjoying views of the bay.

Once we had reclaimed our car from Dick Turpin, we headed to find Ikes' place to get a sandwich for when we got back from Alcatraz. Mel told me it was on 6th street, so I dutifully guided her there but we couldn't find it. So I turned on my 4G 50MB package i bought for a work issue which I've been squeezing gently, to find it was actually on 16th street. I guess that makes us 1-All after my mistake this morning.

Guiding Mel dutifully to 16th I noted the numbers on the signs, and we set off down the road looking for it. After a few blocks I realised the numbers were running in the wrong direction, so we turned round and I guess that makes it 2-1 to Mel.

Whilst waiting outside, having panicked Mel by thinking it was closed, I decided we were so close on time for our boat to The Rock that I'd quickly 4G the directions back to the hotel, take screenshots and turn it off again.

This, my friends, is tip of the day: Do that in your hotel on WiFi for your journeys, take screenshots, and be thankful of it in places as mad as San Francisco. The two hour journey to Ikes was a 13 minute trip back to the hotel using Google. This, for the rest of the trip, is how we are rolling!

Getting back to the hotel I couldn't resist a bite of the Paul Rueben sandwich, consisting of pastrami, cheese, pickled onions and other things I couldn't recognise. This turned into several bites and before I knew it half was gone.

Mel had the thanksgiving special, with turkey, lettuce, tomato and spicy cranberry sauce. She decided not to take a bite and came back later to a soggy sandwich, but the fillings were yummy and the room was full of snacks anyway.

We walked a short way up the street to a taxi rank outside a hotel with a chap with a whistle that did little but blow it and collect dollars. He had a fat wedge he s trying to hide in his palm but was either failing miserably or wanted you to see that was the way he expected things to run. Not with us, the cheeky blighter, we opened our own door. He was also wrapped up for winter from what we could tell, with a big heavy black wool coat decorated like an army official on his back.

At pier 33 we had a short wait for our boat to Alcatraz and then we were herded into cues for a compulsory photograph that is probably as much for homeland security as it is for selling you on the way back, and on the boat we got.

Continues in Part 2

 

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