City Tour - San Francisco, CA
San Francisco, CA
Where I stayed
The Stanford Court Renaissance Hotel
What I did
San Francisco airport
Wake up was 5:30. Thankfully our tour director Jason had left us instructions for the morning with the front desk. Breakfast would be at 6:30 at the Top of the Mark located in the adjacent hotel. We got ourselves together and made our way over to the very nice buffet breakfast. It wasn't just a typical bacon and sausage selection. There were assorted meats, veggies, cheeses, muffins, bagels, fruits, and other hot and cold selections. We sat a a little table overlooking the city (19th floor) and watched the sunrise as we enjoyed the delicious and plentiful breakfast.
On the way back to the room, we met our tour guide on the sidewalk beside our Insight Motorcoach. Jason seems very nice and helpful. He welcomed us to the tour and asked if we would be joining the group for the 3-hour city tour leaving at 8. We definitely were ready for that!
On the city tour we saw parts of Chinatown, lovely architecture, picture-postcard-perfect row homes, the luxury retail shopping areas on Maiden Lane, and were even introduced to "street kids" in the Haight-Ashbury district, the area famous in the 1960's hippy movement. These homeless youth in their teens and 20's can be seen everywhere in the area sleeping on street corners and carrying backpacks. Many of them even have dogs. We drove through Golden Gate Park. It is often compared to Central Park of New York. There we stopped for a short break and I had a Chai Latte. I've attached some pictures of the Japanese garden there.
Terry was not aware that San Francisco is so hilly. I was aware of that, but I was amazed to see so many people navigating the streets by bicycle. What a workout. So many people were out biking on this Saturday morning. Some just for fun, but many seemed to be die hard cyclists on a training mission.
We continued our tour at Pier 39. Lots of locals and visitors alike were gathered there for an afternoon of shopping, dining, and just relaxing. We had about 45 minutes of free time to explore the pier before embarking on our ferry for Sausalito across the bay. Sausalito homes are built on a hill. It is a quite picturesque little town with galleries, shops and eateries. We had lunch at a little cafe before walking around to check out the shops. We also took some pictures of Alcatraz from the ferry.
After, the motor coach picked us up and our next stop was the Golden Gate Bridge. We had the option to walk across the bridge (a span of 4200 feet). Several members of our group decided they wanted to make the 45-minute trek, so I decided I would go, too. It was a little chilly and windy, but I put my hood up and went for it. I'm glad I did. Not only was it great exercise, but it was a unique experience I will always remember. Check out the pictures!
After about an hour's rest in the hotel, we met the group in the lobby for a short walking tour of Chinatown before a group dinner at the Empress of China restaurant. One of the places we stopped was the country's only handmade Chinese Fortune Cookie bakery. It was a tiny little place nestled in a hidden alleyway. We watched a man folding the cookies by hand and received a sample. Everyone also received a bag of cookies to go. At the Empress of China, we had wine, green tea, salad, soup, and tried four different entree dishes served in a homestyle fashion. I particularly enjoyed the prawns with walnuts.
We sat at a table with three Aussie couples. It is interested how many of the people are from countries other than the US. It is also interesting to talk to them and find out about all of their travels. Many of our comrades have have an extensive travel repetoire. Everyone is very nice and conversational.