San Francisco... Are We There Yet?

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This morning, Andrew and I had breakfast in the sleepy little town of Carmel. It was an English restaurant called the Tuck Box, and we enjoyed some authentic scones and tea. I'm glad we took that time to relax, because entering San Francisco was an adrenaline rush.

I had my nifty little binder full of Mapquest directions. Thankfully, they led us right to the Grand Hyatt; then we discovered there was no parking. We had to drive on by the Hyatt and follow a maze of one way streets to find our way back. We skipped many streets because they were labelled "Buses Only." Turns out "Buses Only" means buses and people turning right. OK, we learned that fairly easily.

Next, we avoided all the streets that were full of tracks from the cable cars. Maybe we're stupid, but, in Denver, you sure don't drive on the lightrail tracks. Finally, I noticed a cab turn onto the tracks. At first, I feared for his life. But, then, I realized, no one else was panicing. It must be the way things are done.

Once the cable street car track streets were accessible to us, we were able to wind our way back near where we thought the Hyatt might be located. Thank god for the parking sign we spotted; we hopped into the only parking garage we found and parked. We stepped in the elevator to find our way to the street. I hit number 1, thinking it would take us to street level. I love the woman who turned to me when she stepped out and Level 2 and said, "You guys will want to exit here."

We stepped out on the street and prepared to hoof it to the Hyatt. I noticed we were on Stockton, and I told Andrew, "ooh, Stockton. That's what street the Hyatt's on." We turned to our left and...

...there was the Hyatt! We somehow winded through the San Francisco streets and parked less than a block from our destination. Hurray to us! Andrew let me know that we weren't driving one more foot until it was time to leave the city. Our nice convertible will be staying in that garage until this time tomorrow.

Once we weren't driving, San Francisco seemed like a really nice city. People seem to be walking everywhere (we will be, too), and the public transportation seems great. Lots of shopping and restaurants...

Yes, I expect us to have a good time (on foot). We're going to hit up the Concierge and see where we can go for a few hours without driving. We have the Alcatraz night tour tonight, and I'm stoked for that! Did I mention we have to take a boat to get there?

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Photos

The Tuck Box
We stopped at a small restaurant called the Tuck Box in Carmel. It was a quaint little town with cute shops and restaurants. Most were closed at 7am, but thankfully, we were able to get a delicious meal here even though it was early.

English Scones
Delicious!

Workers in the Fields
People worked hard in the fields, even though it was cold and early.

Approaching San Francisco
A view of San Francisco as we drove north, entering the city.

Cable Cars
Long lines of people wait to get on the cable cars. We snapped this after we figured out it was OK to drive on the tracks.

The View From Our Hotel
This is our view from our 25th floor Hyatt room in San Francisco.

Comments

[Aunt Carol]

Another boat?
Hi Becky and Andrew! Thanks for including us on your list -- it's fun to hear what you're doing. Sounds like you're having a great time! I've certainly been laughing while reading of your adventures. If you had asked me about the whale watch tour.............. always put some dramamine in your purse! I'm glad you at least saw a whale! Happy Aniversary! Love, Aunt Carol