San Francisco Part 1

With a lot of help from Grandma and Poppy I was able to join Andrew in San Francisco and extend our weekend to Napa.  I should have prepared more (at all) before going to San Fran to know what/where I wanted to go/see. I had anticipated friends of ours joining us but they canceled while we were waiting for our luggage after our plane landed.  

Andrew and I got checked into our hotel, ate amazing tacos, and then he went to work and San Fran was my oyster.  I wandered around rather aimlessly on Wednesday but wasn't bothered by it much because I was meeting a friend for an early dinner. 

I headed to the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero and landed in a bookstore for quite awhile.   Then I walked back to the hotel and went to dinner. It was rather uneventful.

Thursday I was determined not to waste my entire day. I woke up and wondered what I was going to do. I found a book in the hotel room with things you have to see while in San Fran. After looking on the map and realizing that each point of interest was less than 2 miles apart I decided that I could run from point to point. I wasn't going to get anywhere fast by walking so running made more sense.  I had not contemplated the fact that there were enormous hills all over and the hills were like nothing I had ever seen before. Ever.

First stop Alamo Square. The Painted Ladies were across the street. They were very unassuming b/c a lot of the houses look similar.  I ran around the park and then had to backtrack to the park b/c I had missed them.  The row of Victorian homes which are representative of San Fran.

Painted Ladies.

Next stop. Lombard Street.  The crookedest street with 8 hairpin turns. At the top of the last enormous hill before Lombard Street I saw Alcatraz in the distance.  It's difficult to make out in the back but it was fun to finally come upon something at the top of the hill besides another hill.

Heading down Lombard Street by foot.  It would have been easier to see the dramatic turns of the road in pictures if there were more cars driving down.

Looking back on the crookedest street.

Next stop. Fisherman's Wharf. Very touristy with Applebee's and all.  There wasn't much going on at 8am.  I grabbed a bottle of water and a Lara bar from CVS and kept on moving.

Alcatraz. Again.

WWII ship.  I took the picture of the ferry boat next for size. The ferry boats aren't small. The WWII ship was enormous.

Next stop the Coit Tower.  It was up a few more hills. I didn't pay to go to the top of it as I felt like the views of the city from my run were pretty good.

Then on to Chinatown. San Fran has the largest Chinatown in the United States. I ran through it for a couple miles and it was unlike anything I have ever experienced.  There were people everywhere and so many outdoor markets.

I got distracted after getting through Chinatown and ended up at Lululemon. A slight contrast.

I was obsessed with their cable cars. I would have enjoyed riding one but I didn't want to spend (waste) time trying to figure out the system.

After a quick shower and putting on new running clothes I met Andrew for lunch, and then headed to the Pier to catch the ferry to go to Alcatraz. I would not have picked to go to Alcatraz but rather the Golden Gate Bridge but I had bought tickets for the group (before the group canceled on me). I was starting to get tired by this point b/c I had been all over the streets of San Fran and it was getting chilly as it did every night. I wasn't in the mood for a history lesson. I ended up on a guided walking tour discussing the original use of Alcatraz for the military. I then moved on to the prison and took the audio guided tour. It was a bit creepy.  

Sign upon arriving at Alcatraz from the Ferry at the docks. 

Original name of the island Alcatraces Island rather than Alcatraz.

It's hard to tell that there are shower heads hanging from the steel polls.  These were the prisoners showers. They were allowed to shower 2x's a week.

Typical cell complete with toilet, sink, shelf, desk and chair (green thing attached to the wall on the left side) and a cot.

San Fran from Alcatraz - a constant reminder to the prisoners of what they didn't have in life.

While at Alcatraz I got a text message from Grandma and Poppy all dressed up. I got the babysitters a babysitter so they could head to the city and go to a taping of the Steve Harvey Show. Crazy people!