Wednesday, June 29, 2011

san francisco, day three.


Do you like my outfit? I call it The Look Of Many Layers. {See also: I Will Be Wearing This Sweater Every Single Day While I'm Here.}

DAY THREE. Monday, June 27. 
ARE YOU SEEING THE CUTENESS THAT IS MY MOM?
You guys. It is COLD and WINDY in San Francisco. Some of you probably already know that. But I'm new, so indulge me.  Thank goodness I packed my trusty green sweater. And my scarf. I am now thinking that I should have also brought my parka. And my snow boots. And long underwear.

On Monday, Mom and I took a bus tour of San Francisco. It was incredibly foggy for most of the tour {from morning until mid-afternoon}, so there wasn't any sun to keep us warm, and the wind was Out Of Control, People. I'm telling you. Seriously. Out. Of. Control. Thank goodness I don't really give a crap about my hair.

Our tour guide for the day was Jon, a rather hilarious and goofy fellow originally from Mississippi. He also had the most interesting accent. And he made a lot of jokes about Diana Ross.

Our tour guide, Jon. He was a character.

We spent most of the day in the bus, with the exception of about twenty minutes at the Golden Gate Bridge. All photos except the Golden Gate Bridge ones were taken from inside our bus, so it made it hard to capture good images. Still, it was an interesting tour and I learned a lot.

Statue of the architect of the Golden Gate Bridge, Joseph Strauss. I like his hair.

Gorgeous flowers near the Golden Gate Bridge. They really brightened up the foggy and cold day!

OMG AMAZING.

Did you know that the Golden Gate Bridge was designed to be able to sway from side to side more than 20 feet? AMAZING, RIGHT?!

The architecture in San Francisco is gorgeous.

City Hall

Dear Santa: Bring me this house. Kthxbai.

Dear Santa: Scratch that. Bring me this house ALSO. Kthxbai.

Dear Santa: What I ACTUALLY meant was, bring me this house because it's one of the Painted Ladies. And it's for sale. Only a cool $2M. Kthxbai.
That's actually me.
The feminist and scholar of African-American literature in me couldn't resist capturing this photo. You go, girl. You go.

HOORAY FOR BOOKS!!!
Oh, hi there, Haight-Ashbury.
Mel's Drive-In, where George Lucas filmed the movie American Graffiti.
It was a nice day. Then, when I got back to my hotel around 2:30 p.m., I got an excruciating migraine.  Awesome! I took my medication, but it didn't do anything, so I hobbled down the hall from my hotel room, got ice from the ice machine, and went back to my room and put it on my head. I stayed that way until almost 6 p.m. when my parents and I had to leave to meet a colleague of my dad's for dinner. Luckily, after a second dose of my medication, the migraine subsided and I was able to enjoy the evening.  We went to an incredible Italian restaurant, where the food was holy-shit-good, the staff was so incredibly warm and friendly and accommodating {Ma'am, would you like us to store your camera for you while you dine?}, and the atmosphere most relaxing and beautiful. 

Oh, and all the men who worked there ARE SO GORGEOUS HOLY BANANAS. The chef came to our table, and I told him that I wanted to kiss him. I think he thought I was joking at first, but when I pulled out my lip balm to prepare, he knew I meant business.

It was a good day.

Day Four consisted of a tour to Sonoma wine country, a wine tasting {during which Mom and I squealed with delight over the dessert wines because they were soooo good}, lunch at the most adorable french country restaurant, and some shopping. Photos to come tomorrow! Stay tuned!

Smooches.

2 lovely bits o' feedback.:

Big Sis said...

Oh, sweetheart. You make me YEARN to go back - a week there 3 (4?) years ago is not enough. I'm glad you're having a good time!

*If you get the opportunity - North Beach/Telegraph Hill - the original Caffe Trieste. It's where Coppola wrote the Godfather (blah blah blah - also, a lot of SF authors congregated there) but it's super awesome and still "real". If he's still around, the owner, a little old man in an Italian suit roams around greeting people, shaking hands, and speaking Italian any time there's an understanding ear. It's so great. Super-wonderful coffee (credited with bringing espresso drinks to US). And, they have incredible pastries in the dessert case.
http://www.caffetrieste.com/

Akirah said...

It looks like you're having such a great time and it's been a life-giving trip for you. I am so happy. So very, very happy.