An Exhaustive Day of Shopping at Pier 39

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We got off to a rocky start this morning after I hit the snooze again and we missed our wakeup time by a couple hours. Thankfully someone called and that woke me up. Erika was a little turd this morning so we didn't actually roll out of here until after 10 am but hey, we're on vacation right?

The current toll to cross the Golden Gate bridge now is $6 if you're headed southbound into San Francisco, just in case any one is budgeting for their upcoming travels. We followed Hwy 101-S to Lombard Street and stayed on that until it deadended at El Embarcadero where we found a public parking lot that only charged $15 to park there for the whole day and we only had to walk the few blocks from Pier 35 in front of us down to the shopping mecca that begins with Pier 39. Lo and behold, my beloved Hard Rock Cafe is one of the first things I see! Another item marked off the list on one of my lifetime goals ** Visit Every Hard Rock Cafe in the World** We skipped the Cafe for the time being and headed into the Pier to do some sightseeing and shopping. The girls were immediately drawn to the brightly painted animals on the double decker carousel. Jose was afraid of getting motion sickness so he stayed on steady ground to take pictures. It cost $3 for one token or $5 to two and the parents had to pay for a token in order to accompany their children, slight rip-off there!

Next order of business was stopping to watch the street performer Marcus. He juggled, extinguished a torch of fire in his mouth after burning his lips 4 times, told us the story of his life while extracting himself from a locked chain and straitjacket. We walked up and down but chose not to pay the price to go into the Aquarium on the Bay or Ripley's Believe It or Not, etc. There weren't very good reviews on the internet and the admission prices weren't really that tempting for us. Our girls are as amused by smelling the flowers and watching the sea lions as anything. We had stopped at the Walmart in Rohnert Park on our way south and purchased a stroller for Mia and due to it's new novelty, she was delighted to sit in it and get pushed around. The weather was just gorgeous so we were very lucky.

We strolled back to the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch. I bought my token shot glass, Erika picked out a bear for her and Mia to share, Jose got his first HRC cap, and I got Mia her first HRC t-shirt. Erika also picked out a t-shirt but I can't remember if she's gotten one before. Erika's first HRC was Niagara Falls, NY Spring Break 2005 so I've forgotten since then. Lunch was next and it was delicious, especially my blended Mudslide in a souveneir hurricane glass. Jose enjoyed a Pina Coloda and the girls each had a mini chocolate milkshake. I ate a honey chicken salad and Jose the chicken club sandwich, a little on the spendy side but it's worth it for a first time experience.

Our purchases included two baseball caps and a leather necklace with a double cross for Jose, two reversible jackets for Jose and I for only $19.99 each with the SF logo. The last time I was here in 2000 with AshLee, I had a name plate made for her by a street artist. I was able to find the same vendor and have them made for Mia and Erika too, only $6.99 each and worth every penny for an authenic souveneir. Erika stopped to smash a couple pennies and bought a new book to collect them in as mine is finally full. Little does she realize that I'll be stealing them soon to scrapbook. I bought a few little gifts; animal print earrings for Margee, a little T for Justin that says "My Mom is Hotter than Your Mom", a green jawbreaker on a stick for AshLee, and big hoop earrings for Nancy.

After exhausting ourselves shopping, we headed south through rush hour traffic towards Redwood City so we could visit Don Roberto while we were in the area. Thanks to Google Maps on my phone, we actually found our way straight to his doorstep. We met his daughter and family and then headed out to have some good food. It wasn't that great though and I came away disappointed to the point that I don't even remember the name but I won't be going back. I had the San Francisco Bay enchiladas and my food came away as watery as their namesake. We headed back at 9pm and finally made it home to bed around 11pm. Here's hoping to a nice peaceful day tomorrow!

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Photos

Sitting on the Dock of the Bay
First stop was picture taking on the boardwalk between Pier 35 and 39.

The Carousel
Erika just had to ride the Black Stallion and Mia liked her first ride too.

You Can't Catch Me!
Mia was having lots of fun running around and she didn't want to leave the sea lion viewing platform.

Hard Rock Cafe SF
Any one who knows me knows that a trip isn't complete for me until I've found the local HRC.

Mia's First HRC Bear
From AshLee to Erika to Mia, the collection is now being passed down to Mia and what a bear she got this time, a yellow punk rock'd mohawk.

Flowers in Bloom
The flowers were abundant and beautiful all over the boardwalk.

Smashed Pennies
Erika making her very first smashed penny and she bought a book to keep them in since mine is finally full.