September 25-29, 2013
Wednesday - We flew Virgin America airlines super early, took the BART train into the city and dropped our bags at the apartment. Our first stop was to buy gifts for the kids, and then we had lunch at a European style cafe where the guy at the counter had to stop speaking Italian to take our order. We encountered people from other countries throughout the trip. We rode BART to Union Square and walked plenty of big hills to get to the Cable Car Museum. This was an interesting destination. We planned to ride the Cable Car from here, but we gave up after waiting 15 minutes. We were pretty tired by this point given the early start. We took a muni bus to the apartment (very impressed with Brian's bus navigation skills), and had a nap. We used Yelp to find a recommended place for dinner:Tuba, a Turkish restaurant. A word about our lodgings. The only advanced planning we did was arrange lodging. We used vrbo.com to rent a flat in Noe Valley and it was fantastic. A one bedroom apartment with great decor, a wonderful deck with full city view, breakfast basics, and wine.
Thursday - 15th Anniversary! Took bus to financial district, but gave up on riding a historic street car to Fisherman's Warf. Instead we walked to Coit Tower at Telegraph Hill. It was an impressive walk up tons of stairs from warf level to the highest point around. Once at the tower, we took an elevator to the top for great views of the city and bay. On the walk down, we found a nice spot in someone's driveway garden for our traditional anniversary self portrait. Next we walked a few blocks to Chinatown for lunch. The place ranked highly on Yelp, which seemed to indicate that it wasn't the full far west experience. Food was good though. Next we went to a tea tasting which was really fun. We also went to a bakery for custard tarts. Next stop was the Fortune Cookie Factory which was just a tiny room with a few people operating a machine that made what looked like pressed pancakes. A woman stuffed and folded the cookies by hand while still hot. From there we finally a rode cable car to the end of the line just for the experience. Picked up the bus back to the apartment. Brian found another Yelp recommendation for dinner. In the Mission District, about a 20 minute walk, we had a 5 course fixed menu dinner at an old restaurant that some hot shot chef had taken. The place had not been changed at all so the run-down sixties dump was kitschy. They still used the same sign and the main entrance was gated over, so you entered on the side. We felt very in the know. The food was not super delicious but it was a fun experience to see what crazy stuff was put in front of you next. A sample course - quail three ways: hard boiled egg, roasted breast, fried leg. The words used by the waiter to describe it were much fancier, of course.
Friday - mid-week travel day. We said goodbye to the Little Yellow House and rode the BART back to the airport to pick up a rental car. After an hour wait in the line, we finally hit the road and drove north through town across the Golden Gate bridge. Just across the bridge we stopped in Sausalito for a late lunch at a diner that served Danish food. Interesting! I had a meatball sandwich that was topped with red cabbage, beats, and sweet pickled cucumbers. Sounds weird, but it was delicious! We drove on to Point Reyes Station, hit the grocery store, and went on to the Carriage House where we were staying. Had goat cheese and crackers for dinner, watched a movie, and went to bed early. Not a very exciting day. The airport/car rental experience really wore us out.
Saturday - Point Reyes National Seashore. Fantastic day filled with short hikes to cool sights! It was a short drive from our apartment to the PRNS. We first did a quick hike near the visitor center that had a simulated Indian village that was very enlightening. Next we went on a ranger led hike that went over the San Andreas fault and discussed the earthquake of 1906. We saw the spot where a fence was displaced 16 feet. (the wooden fence was not original, of course, but it was still a cool illustration.) Drove back to town and had brick fired pizza with local beer for lunch, then hung out in the garden at our place for a little while. Next we drove to the point to check out the lighthouse. It was a long walk down and we were rewarded with fantastic views of the ocean and a ranger talk about the lighthouse. Next we drove to the area where you can look down across the cliffs at elephant seals. Then we drove to the top of the peninsula to the elk reserve section of the park. By now it was about an hour and a half from sunset. We saw a couple of elk families on the ridge hike. Then we did the beach hike. We were hoping to catch the sunset from the beach, but I think we just missed it. There were lots of clouds, so it may not have been very good anyway. We trekked across the deep, soft sand and stood in the freezing water for a minute. Then we made it back to the car, drove home in the dense fog, and had left overs for diner. Yeah for staying at a place with a full kitchen!
Sunday - got up at 5am so we would have time for a little more sightseeing before heading home. We drove to Muir woods just north of San Francisco where you can walk through stands of redwood trees. They are amazingly huge! This is a popular tourist spot with good reason. We're glad we made the stop and that we got there at opening time before the crowds. From Muir Woods, we crossed the Golden Gate bridge, had lunch at Mel's Diner in the city, and made our way to the airport.
