San Francisco: We're Walking

North Beach

Nob Hill

in Alamo Square

Pacific Heights

this antique crochet top is my favorite. there's that orange purse again.

loved this font and the dusty/dirty pink color.

North Beach

Musee Mechanique

I'm beat

Pete and I must have walked about 15 miles the weekend that we were in San Francisco. While there, I was even considering buying some trainers to wear for all the uphill walking, but alas I still couldn’t bring myself to choose comfort over fashion. But walking was probably the best way to see San Francisco. The buildings are so intricately detailed (see all the ladies’ faces adorning the buildings) and beautifully color coordinated. The skies are the most uplifting blue and the clouds hover big and white over hillsides.

It is truly an inspiring town, and all our extensive walking was rewarded with the most yummy eats. We ate at Herbivore, where I had the best vegan dish ever; Chili Pies and Ice Cream, where Pete ate a Chili Pie with frito chips - a New Mexican classic, and I had a vegetarian chili stew , followed by a delicious peach pie, which we shared; and then Dumplings and Buns which serves up some tasty dim sum. The problem with Dim Sum is I can’t stop eating it; I eat some and dim sum more. We ate a whole lot more, but these were the highlights or our feasting frenzy in San Francisco.

We visited parts of San Francisco that we hadn’t been to before including the posh Pacific Heights neighborhood, where we went into Ralph Lauren (with our Goodwill bags), and were treated very well (they complimented my suit too) even though we had no intention of buying anything and it was pretty obvious we were just browsing. I always get that “Pretty Woman” feeling when I walk into an upscale store. Pete was shocked at the prices. “Why would anyone buy jeans for $700?, he asked me, bewildered. Interestingly, in his Goodwill bag, he had a cashmere Ralph Lauren sweater that he bought for $2.99.

We also explored North Beach, where the Beats used to roam! I can’t believe that I had never before visited Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s “City Light’s Book Store.” We spent a good hour in there. I sat in a corner reading from Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass,” which I have at home, but I felt compelled to read from it there. We ate at a French café, drank whisky at a local bar, and sipped wine from a bottle while walking to Coit Tower. Later that evening, we walked to Fisherman’s Wharf to eat clam chowder and then go to the Musée Mechanique, which was just the most fun. The place is filled with antique hand cranked games, mechanically operated old timey music, and peep show picture viewers.

We learned that you have to be fit to live in San Francisco. We didn’t even really have the option to take public transportation. On account of the festival, the buses were obese with people, and the taxis were all filled up too. We figured we’d just do as the San Franciscans do and walk, but next time I want to bring my bike.