…The San Francisco Treat(s)

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We arrived in San Francisco, the city on the bay after a 6 hour drive. The drive was beautiful, through agricultural communities that grow vast quantities of produce. Only ran into traffic at the very end as we entered the city, but even that wasn’t too bad – we got very lucky for a Friday afternoon.

The Omni hotel chain is now officially my favorite. We’ve stayed first in New Orleans and on this trip in San Francisco and the stay, service and staff are top notch. Knowing that some of our nights in small town Oregon won’t afford rooms like these, we splurged on a suite on the 17th floor with arched windows that look out onto much taller high rises with architectural features that are unparalleled.

We got settled and had a knock on the door – Jim had shared that we are celebrating our 7th wedding anniversary on this trip – and delivered a plate of chocolate covered strawberries. It was a wonderful treat.

We took advantage of coming into the city early and got directions to Fisherman’s Wharf. Because it is exceedingly expensive to park, we purchased a three day pass for the public transportation system. We rode an absolutely hair raising trolley car right – up, up, up and then swooshing down the streets of San Francisco. The cars were so packed that we hung like monkeys on the side. I was glad I couldn’t see down to my feet as I just know the front of my shoe was dangling a few feet about the road as we whizzed along.

The ride dropped us right off in front of the Buena Vista – a bar best known for their famous Irish coffees. Definitely on my short list of ‘must dos’ while here in San Francisco. I know they sound super simple - scalding hot coffee, two sugar cubes, Tullamore Dew Whiskey and 'almost frozen' fresh cream - but is a fantastic concoction. The very first sip is a perfect combination of hot coffee and cold cream. The whiskey is strong, but not overpowering. They line up the glasses a dozen at a time and keep them hot by filling them with boiling water and watching the bartender make the drinks is almost as much fun as drinking them. At $7.50 a pop, I don't worry that this establishment is going anywhere. The bar was standing room only - filled with people like us - licking foam from our upper lip.

We had one more stop before heading back to the financial district - a very loud restaurant for a quick bite. The Pub at Ghirardelli Square. We decided, after seeing the mile long line for the street cars that we would jump into a cab and head back to the hotel.

As the fog rolled in, the temperature dropped significantly. We grabbed sweatshirts and headed out to the Chinatown to take a peek. A long street (Grant Street) filled with shops and restaurants, chinese paper lanterns hanging everywhere, Chinese towers and spires on the buildings. This is the largest Chinatown outside of China and the oldest chinatown in North America. The air is filled with traditional Chinese music and the snaps from Chinese firecrackers that people throw onto the ground. We decided to share a dish to try the local cuisine and ended up in Chinatown Restaurant, first opened in 1919. We ordered a lamb and curry dish with flat pieces of onion (scallion? leek? I could never quite figure that out) and a special from their spicy menu - boiled shrimp in chili oil. These dishes were amazing! The shrimp dish had perfectly cooked shrimp, bok choy and onions swimming in a lovely broth of chili oil, fish sauce, stock of some sort, minced garlic and red chili peppers. The shrimp and vegetables absorbed the spicy flavor of the broth and every bite was almost euphoric thanks to the capsaicin from the chilies.

As we wandered out and down the street back to the hotel, we happened upon an Operation Chanology demonstration by Anonymous members in front of the Church of Scientology. Dressed entirely in black with masks, capes and other various costumes, these folks were holding signs protesting the church and its followers. We headed over and had a brief, but very interesting conversation with a self identified nihilist. Can't get on board with the idea that life has no meaning, purpose or intrinsic value - but to each his/her own.

Signing off for now...

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