A short and fabulous trip
coming up to San Francisco, excepting the horrible exit out of Half Moon Bay where
everything was falling and crashing to the floor. That was soon forgotten and
the 27 nautical miles and about 3 hours travel time in total was great. It was
a thrill to come under the Golden Gate Bridge. A memory to cherish forever!
Marina Green Yacht Harbor
is just past the Golden Gate bridge and next to St Francisand Golden Gate
Yacht Clubs. What a convenient location! It was one of the more expensive
marinas that we stayed at charging $2 per foot, per day. However, think of the
price of a hotel room in this great city and it wasn’t so bad. We had three
fabulous days and nights in the city and logged many miles on foot. The rain
didn’t deter us from getting out and about and Fisherman’s Wharf as touristy as
it is, was a must see. The people, the colors, the noise and the history… all
wonderful. This city has a vibe that is palpable!
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| The view from our end tie |
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| Here we are! |
The hop on – hop off bus
was a suitable way to get an overview of the sights and history of some of the districts.
The Presidio, Golden Gate Bridge, Richmond, Golden Gate Park, Sunset, Haight
Ashbury, Tenderloin, Nob Hill, Union Square, Chinatown, Little Italy, Financial
District, Embarcadero, and back to Fisherman’s Wharf. A great preview and a
chance for us to choose the areas we wanted to spend some time in.
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| On bus ready to cross THE bridge |
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| Looking back from Golden Gate to the city |
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| Haight Ashbury |
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| Tony Bennett's heart in Union Square (he painted it) |
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| Staue of Victory on top of monument |
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| Pier 39 |
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| Irish coffee - yummo! |
Well known San Francisco
places / businesses that we visited: Buena Vista Café serves the best Irish Coffees and they
are legendary. The Argonaut Hotel houses the Maritime Museum and has a good
depiction of the early seafaring days of San Francisco as does Boudin Bakery
which was established in 1849 by a French master baker and famous for its
sourdough bread. Ghirardelli chocolate company was established in San Francisco
in 1852, and is the third oldest chocolate company in the U.S.
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| Boudin Bakery (Boo-deen) |
The ferry
landing and embarcadero have a fabulous farmer’s market and is widely acclaimed
with both the quality and diversity of its fresh farm products and artisan and
prepared foods. It is a wonderful market made up of small regional farmers and
ranchers, many of whom are certified organic. A wealth of other products such
as breads, cheese and jams. My mouth was watering as we scoped it out… hard
living on a boat with no space to store things. (maybe a good thing?)
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| The Painted Ladies |
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| Crooked Street from the bottom |
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| ... from the top (Lombard St) |
The city is one of the
most densely populated in the country. The architecture is amazing and many of
the houses are beautiful. The Victorian 'painted ladies' are a stopping point for
many visitors as is Lombard St, known as ‘the crooked street.’ Cable cars, trolleys,
buses, trains and ferries… oh my! An easy city to get around in. Tripp and I
have become well versed on the transit system between The City, Alameda /Oakland
and have our own ‘Clipper’ cards.
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| Coit Tower - from top of crooked street |
Golden Gate Bridge: "The mystical structure, with its
perfect amalgam of delicacy and power, exerts an uncanny effect. Its efficiency
cannot conceal the artistry. There is heart there, and soul. It is an object to
be contemplated for hours. " - Herb Caen,
May 1987
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