Day 16 - Happy and sad

Today I woke up feeling like total crap. Three nights of lousy sleep at the youth hostel, exposure to uncountable germs, whatever the reason I was toasted. But I had dropped twenty two bucks for these transit passes and I wasn't about to let them go to waste.

So, we packed up and checked out of the hostel, then hopped on the crosstown bus, heading for a park in the Castro district that was shown on the map in the youth hostel, along with some cool pictures of these cement slides.

The bus ride was uneventful, taking us past city hall and the public library, symphony hall and lots of other downtown stuff. The streetcar was more interesting. A person of ambiguous gender was putting on makeup next to Benna,  I'm not sure she noticed.

This particular streetcar was originally from Milan, Italy. Each of these restored streetcars is different, and each one has a sign indicating where it is from originally.

After a while we arrived at he end of the line - Castro.

The area where the streetcar ends is Harvey Milk square. On the way back Benna and I talked about who he was and why the square is named for him. (If you have not seen the movie, I recommend it.)

The slides were a few blocks away, but the area is very hilly and the streets very curvy, so i got a bit turned around and lost. I had to ask directions twice in an area just a few square blocks, and that was with a good map!

Eventually we found the place, but much to our dismay it was shuttered!

Tips really bummed me it. The youth hostel people let me down big time. How could they have a picture on  the "things to do" wall, give me directions to go there, hear me say "my daughter really wants to check out the slide" and not realize that it was closed on Mondays? I might forgive them next week but for the moment I am pissed!

Benna actually bounced back pretty quickly, with a little help from mommy on the phone.

Returning to Harvey Milk square, I realized that there was an underground metro line there too, so we took that back and it was MUCH faster than the streetcar. It dropped us in the super busy and fancy part of downtown, so that was a headache but eventually we found a bus that took us back to our hostel where we made ourselves lunch. After lunch I gave away most of our remaining food to some German guys who were hanging around he dining area.

I had been trying to get together with an old friend from my time in Japan in 1975. Andy was very understanding when I explained that I was feeling really ill and did not relish the idea of driving to meet him in Los Altos, so he graciously volunteered to come into the city with his 11 year old daughter Noa. We met up in Fisherman's Wharf and took the kids to the Musee Mechanique. 

Benna and Noa seemed to enjoy the old "amusements," and it was really special for me to reconnect with Andy! If you are reding this, Andy, sorry I was so low energy, but it was really great of you to come meet us, thanks again. I really meant it when I said you are welcome to come visit us in Amherst any time!

We said goodbye after a quick stop in Girardelli's for a quick sample! Benna and I then hopped into the car and drove off into...I mean away from...the sunset.

I didn't say that we drove very fast away from the sunset! The traffic was heavy, as expected, but I had left ample time to get to Oakland, get lost looking for gas, return the rental car, completely repack our bags, miss the shuttle us from the car rental zone to the terminal, check in, eat dinner, and write a final blog post. Mission accomplished, I have now completed all of those things!

Thank you to all our friends and family who made this trip so special!

Day 15 - a bike ride to the clouds

Today Benna was determined to rent bikes and ride over the Golden Gate Bridge. We also had the Exploratorium on our agenda, because it is closed on Monday. Since the bike rental is for 24 hours, we decided to get the bike in the morning, ride to the exploratorium, then return to the hostel for lunch and ride over the bridge in the afternoon.

Benna only recently got comfortable on two wheels, so I was a bit concerned about how this would go. There are plenty of bike lanes and sidewalks, but there are also a million tourists clogging the way, most of them seem to lack common sense or courtesy. Well, I took it to be another exercise in letting go.....

So, off we went!

After snapping this photo we passed the dock where the big cruise ships load and unload. This morning they were unloading. The photo was obviously taken at a moment when the sidewalk was not too hectic. Imagine thousands of cruise passengers with all their luggage added to this scene!

Here's a picture of one of the historic streetcars I mentioned in an earlier post. They also run along this section of the Embarcadero. It was colorful and chaotic.

Eventually we arrived at the exploratorium. Benna was thirsty.

We spent a solid three hours at the Exploratorium. I did not take any pictures. Te place lived up to its reputation as a first class science museum, featuring a seemingly endless collection of hands-on exhibits.

Then we rode back to the hostel for lunch. Along the way I stopped because I heard a hissing sound that seemed to be following me. Sure enough a sliver of glass was sticking out of my tire. Luckily we were right around the corner from the bike shop and they gave me another bike.

Benna loves the kitchen of this hostel, and at lunch we generally have the place pretty much to ourselves.

After lunch we headed west. The weather was different today. At the pier and at the hostel, the Susan shining.

The bike path was crowded but Benna was as psyched as ever to do this ride. 

Meanwhile I sensed that something was different because unlike previous days, foghorns were blaring from all around the bay. The America's Cup boats were moving around, but the helicopters were hovering instead of zooming back and forth as usual. A we reached the waterfront, the wind really kicked in and a thick fog enveloped us. Tis cold wind and fog hung over us all the way to the bridge. Riding up to the presidio, everything was damp to the point of dripping, my glasses got all wet, my shoes, the brakes on the bikes didn't grip well, you get the picture. So you can imagine what the view looked like!

Benna was not deterred. I kept assuring her that we had accomplished our goal and we could turn back any time, but she was determined to get to the other side. It was really tough riding, the wind was very gusty and strong and cold, there were athletic bikers zooming past us, clueless tourists randomly stopping for pictures at bad locations, areas where construction equipment and scaffolding were blocking the path, and two directions of bicycles squeezed onto a narrow sidewalk. Benna was not intimidated by any of this, so we pushed all the way to the Marin side!

The fog was amazing the way it poured through the mouth of the bay like smoke, billowing over the cliffs. From the north side, we actually had decent views, but the bridge itself was wrapped in fog like a blanket. At this end of he bridge we could sometimes see below the waves crashing against the cliffs, very dramatic. A guy right in front of me had his glasses blown right off his face, over the edge and into the roiling waters below. Try to picture it - the sidewalk slick with condensation, poor visibility, strong gusty winds, six lanes of traffic zooming along just a few feet away, bicycles everywhere, and the foghorn blasting away. Benna stayed incredibly focused and despite some small brush-ups she never lost her composure. We arrived back on the San Francisco side with big smiles and a great sense of accomplishment. We returned the bicycles and got back to the hostel around 7pm.

I had woken up this morning feeling a bit under the weather, so by 7pm my body was really letting me know that it needed some extra support. I set Benna up with the iPad and walked over the the supermarket for some cold meds. The sun was setting, the moon was rising, the foghorns were blaring, the seagulls screeching and the sea lions were barking loudly. I stopped and took in the scene.

What a day. I am so ready to go home but also still really enjoying our time here and really enjoying the special togetherness with Benna.

Day 14 - Slow Saturday

The youth hostel breakfast was very simple - coffee, a piece of fruit, and either a bagel or two toaster waffles. the coffee was actually very good, and I was quite happy with the breakfast, but Benna slept in. eventually I woke her up and she was really not feeling good. I made her get breakfast before the cafe closed, but she wanted ti go right back to bed so this is how she spent the first half of the day:

I went out for a run along Marina street. The America's Cup was in full swing. There were lots of spectators, and the racing boats were doing warmup laps. It was amazing to see the fancy catamarans zooming along, they travel so much faster than anything else on the water, and their sails have a very distinctive wing-like shape. Of course there were hundreds of other boats in the bay and the Golden Gate Bridge was shining brightly in the morning sun. Also, the homes along this road are super fancy, it is a neighborhood I have never seen before. My run took me along Crissy Field, a very pretty area. It was really great, I am only sad that I had nobody to share it with other than the multitude of strangers enjoying the day with me.

I returned after about an hour, Benna hadn't budged. Slowly I pried her off the computer and we got ourselves pointed toward the door. But first, we had to have lunch as it was now almost 1 pm! This youth hostel is MUCH bigger than any of the others we have been to, so the kitchen and dining areas are much bigger. The kitchen is set up for lots of people to cook at the same time:

What you see here is actually only half of the kitchen, the setup is basically repeated on the other side of the large room. So everything was fine until Benna realized that she could help clean up. Lots of people had left their dishes in the drying rack, and a large group was washing up, so she positioned herself at the end of the line and started drying everything, then she deputized me to put things away. This went on for about a half an hour before I insist that she had done more Thayer share and she should leave some dishes for other people to put away. 

We got out the door finally, And this was the view we saw:

We walked toward the pier where I hoped to start an actual day of sightseeing. As the walking path approaches the cable car and pier, there are vendors and street performers. Benna had to stop and check out the vendors.

I awaited patiently, enjoying the view of the bay.

I purchased two passes for us to ride all the streetcars, buses and cable cars for three days. We walked to the historic streetcar (not the cablecar...) and hopped on. The streetcar was pretty empty at first, but as we proceeded along the pier, hundreds of tourists started getting on and before long it was packed. To make matters worse, since it is a streetcar it did not move any faster than the traffic, which was moving very slowly, so after a while we decided to get out and walk to make better time. We got out right at the exploratorium, and they were just packing up from a special exhibit. This caught Benna's attention and we hung around for a while. I think she now understands what the place has to offer and is on board with going there tomorrow. (Unfortunately it is closed on Monday.)

After some tIme in the gift shop, we got moving toward Market street where I hoped to get a bus to the Mission district where I had read about a street food festival going on. At market street we ran into a large craft fair. The wares were actually pretty nice, and Benna had not yet tired of looking at they many baubles and trinkets, so more time passed and next thing I knew, the big clock tower was ringing five bells. The vendors started packing up and I remembered the words "ten to five" on the description of the street food festival. Whether or not my memory was accurate, I announced to Benna that we had missed our chance and it was time to rethink the rest of the day. Earlier, we had skipped the cable car because the line at Hyde street was estimated to be one hour to get on. From where we were on Market street, it was a quick walk to the California line, which was not crowded at all. We were able to hop right on and ride up the hill to our new destination - Chinatown!

So, I haves to admit that after spending some time here, I probably could have chosen som other destination. Nothing wrong with Chinatown, but it is not all that different from New York or Boston, at least to a tourist's eye.

One thing I don't really associate with those other cities is music on the street. Here, we saw street players on almost every block. It was cool to see just how they make that distinctive sound. This particular group had two seats in front where they encouraged people to sit and hold instruments and pose for pictures before making a donation.

At this point, after another solid hour of shopping, we were both ready for something to eat. We used reverse logic and settled on the restaurant with the smallest number of patrons, none of them Chinese. Not surprisingly, the food was nothing special. But the experience was a lot of fun!

After the food, we walked a bit until the sun set. When the sun goes down, the breeze really picks up and the fog starts rolling in. Fortunately we were very close to the cable car lines that returns us to our neighborhood, and after a short but chilly wait we hopped on board and rode up and down some very steep hills, eventually returning to our now familiar neighborhood.

That picture will irritate me for the rest of my life. We had just passed a vantage point where we could see the bridge clearly and the sun was an orange ball in the background, it was one of those postcard shots you wait all day for. My camera had turned off, and by the time I got it back on this is what I got. Dammit!

Anyway, our ride ended at Girardelli square, and this time we took a different path to the hostel. I should not have been surprised to learn that there are actually three different chocolate shops in this little mall! They were giving out samples at the door, a perfect end to our evening. Benna suggested we go in and out a few times, but I said no, we'll have to wait until tomorrow to get another sample.

Now it is almost 11 pm, Benna is sound asleep. Cue the giggling German backpacker girls. I wish I could understand what is so damn funny! And, I wish they would find some other place to laugh about it. Sigh.

11:15 pm, reception desk, right outside the door of our bedroom. Tile floor doesn't help with the sound. And they haven't shut off the music. Complaint to follow.......

Day 13 - back in the city by the bay

Today marked our transition from rural to urban tourists. I packed p my bags and bid adieu to our Portola cousins.

It was tougher to drag Benna away from her Quincy friends. One of Karen's high school friends rode by just as we were trying to leave, creating a distraction for the kids.

Eventually I rolled out of town, and down route 70 headed west. The road winds through an incredible scenic valley for many miles. The scenery was incredible, but no pictures because Benna was asleep the whole way.

Eventually we emerged into the valley, where the landscape changed dramatically from huge Rocky Mountains to small uplifted hills to flat wide valley. Then, after a few small towns we found ourselves driving through mile after mile of orchards - peaches, walnuts, kiwis, plums, and a few farms of rice and grapes. We stopped for gas and a bite to eat in a random town, and I was surprised to see that all the signs were in Spanish. The choice of restaurants was between two taquerias. We chose the one with the large outdoor grill. We ate inside, as it had become quite hot in the valley. Benna was introduced to Jarrito soda and the Jerry Springer tv program. The food was not too bad either.

We pushed on into the Sacramento River valley and then on to Sacramento itself. I had b even warned that traffic could be nasty, and it was but fortunately the traffic was mostly heading in the other direction. After I-5 joined I-80 the traffic was essentially bumper to bumper for two solid hours in the other direction. W had smooth sailing right up until we hit the Bay Area. But eventually the inevitable Bay Bridge interchange slowed us down a bit. What a contrast this was to my driving over the past five days!

They are constructing a new Bay Bridge right next to the old one. It will be beautiful when it is finished but for now it is the same old bridge I remember driving over twenty years ago.

We managed fine in the downtown traffic and found our way to the youth hostel. The place is really pretty nice and the location is absolutely perfect. After settling into our room, we headed out for a short walk. Exiting the hostel and walking around the back we see the bay, Alcatraz, Girardelli square. About three long blocks and we are at the terminal of the Hyde street streetcar.

We looped around the square and then looked for something to eat. I had heard from the guy at the front desk that there was some kind of "street food" fair going on nearby. We followed the smell and discovered that "off the grid" was going on essentially in our back yard. Our youth hostel is the building at the top of the hill in the background of this picture...

There was a wide variety of food from vendors in food trucks, arranged in a big circle. In the middle of the circle there were lots of folding chairs and a small tent with a DJ, and had we stayed around there was a life band setting up. There were so many choices of great food and also wine and beer.

We started out with some old world food...

That was just a warm up, though. Benna convinced me to get a Chicken Tikka Masala burrito, and to get her the Deep Fried Ravioli Tikka Masala. It was delicious but oh man, I am still tasting it three hours later!

You can tell from these pictures that the temperature was dropping steadily as the sun went down and the fog rolled in. The golden light off the clouds set the tone for the end of yet another amazing day.

As I write this, cozy in our room, the "youth" part of youth hostel is evident. It is almost 11 pm, but the roars of laughter and chatter in English, German and French coming from the hallway are not letting up. It might be an Ambien night after all.