Dec. 1: SF Trip Report, Day 1

OK, here’s the first installment of our trip report. This has already taken me way longer than it should have, so I’m not taking any more time to put in links and all that good stuff. You’re lucky you’re getting a picture, so just shut up.

We had been promising Katie and Jack for more than a year that we’d take them to San Francisco. They’ve been fascinated with it since seeing a few movies set in the city and watching That’s So Raven. We were able to put them off for a while but since Vic and I were itching to go again ourselves, we finally decided on Thanksgiving vacation as the perfect time to go. We split up the 10-12 hour drive by stopping overnight in Medford, where we stayed at my mom’s and then dragged her along for the trip.

Day 1, Monday, November 24:

We left Medford around 9 a.m. and headed down I-5. Within a few miles the kids were asking if we were there yet. They’ve got DVD players, books, mp3 players, and Grandma, and they still can’t turn off the whining??? We stopped in Redding for lunch and needed a Starbucks boost by the time we got to Vacaville. We opted to drive around San Pedro Bay so we could cross the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco. It took longer going that route, and we ran into traffic in the last stretch so it really started to drag. We were thrilled to see the signs for Sausalito because we knew we were finally close.

Katie and Jack had both started to fall asleep just as the Golden Gate Bridge came into view. Katie quickly woke up when we told her “Look! Look!” but Jack took a bit longer. It wasn’t until we got closer that he realized where we were. Their reactions to seeing the bridge were as we hoped—they were almost speechless. It was a little foggy and nearly dusk so the view of the city wasn’t great, but the bridge was lit up and spectacular. I’ve probably been here six or eight times since I last crossed the bridge in a car, and I have to say that it is a completely different experience compared to walking across it (fun but overrated) or seeing it from afar. It is truly, truly magnificent.

Just after we crossed the bridge we passed the Palace of Fine Arts, and in all my trips to San Francisco I had never seen it in person. Obviously I’ve been traveling through the city with my eyes closed, hm? It was pretty cool to see it, finally. We ended up on Lombard and even though that bitch with the fake British accent (Mom’s GPS) told us to turn onto Hyde to get to our hotel, we stayed on Lombard and drove down the Crookedest Street in the World. The kids were nervous about such a steep street, but thought it was fun. We promised we’d come back again and walk down it.

We found our hotel—the Suites at Fisherman’s Wharf—and got checked in. We chose the hotel because of its location and most importantly, its two-bedroom suites and kitchenettes. I read mostly good reviews of the place but you know how you’re never quite sure what it’ll be like? Well, we weren’t disappointed at all; the suite was quite spacious. The kids loved that there were three televisions. The hotel parking lot was full so we had to park a few blocks away, which sucked but they promised a hotel spot would be open for us the next day. The other lot cost a friggin’ $28 for overnight parking. Insane, but most lots in the city are about that much.

We walked to Ghirardelli Square and looked at a few shops but were more interested in finding food. We ended up at Lori’s Diner, one of the restaurants that Kathy and Lori like to hit during their annual trips to San Francisco. It was typical diner fare but we were hungry and didn’t care that it was totally overpriced. Mom enjoyed all the authentic fifties décor (gah, is she old, or what? heh heh). After dinner we walked around the Cannery—mostly closed up by then—and Fisherman’s Wharf. On the way back to the hotel a grizzled old guy with a dirty white beard stepped out in front of us and started hollering at Jack to come sit on his lap: “I’m Santa Claus! Tell me what you want for Christmas!” We laughed as we grabbed Katie and Jack’s wrists and very quickly walked past him. Jack asked, “Was that really Santa?” I think he was joking. Then he muttered something about Santa acting just like Appie did at my birthday party, but-cept he was wearing pants. (Ah, childhood trauma memories.) Katie and Vic went back to Ghirardelli Square for ice cream sundaes, and Jack, Mom and I went to the hotel and settled into our rooms.

Our hotel was right on the cable car line so we heard them climbing the hill and ringing their loud bells all night long. There were also several buses running on the cross street. I had read hotel reviews where customers complained about street noise, so while it wasn’t a surprise, it was louder than I expected. Vic’s and my bedroom wasn’t even on the street side, but we could hear it as though our window was wide open. Yikes.

Next: Day 2 (duh).