San Francisco

At the very end of May we made our way to San Francisco for a destination wedding, that of Alli and Alex. We made sure to extend our trip by a few days to explore the area. While Karl has been to California a few times, it was my first ever visit! Though we were in such a huge state, we experienced a good part of that area. We flew into the city and stayed with our friends Jane and Brian and their son Max, who happen to be wonderful hosts and tour guides! (Seriously, thanks so much for making room for us!) On our drive from the airport in our rental car, I think we were both scanning for a glimpse of the Golden Gate Bridge. Then there it was, and I let out an excited shriek while Karl laughed.

What I miss about living in a city is mostly the food, oh, the abundance of good food. On our first evening we ate some really great Burmese food. That was followed by some delicious chai, hot chocolate, and tiramisu. I could go on and on. For our full day in the city, Brian and Max took us to the Bridge! Experiencing a famous landmark is always surreal, no? We parked at the base and walked about halfway across. I didn’t realize that the Bridge is almost two miles long! See Alcatraz in the photo?

We spent our afternoon in the city on foot (which I also miss, walking everywhere,) with a map and a little guidance from Jane and Brian. We walked through Golden Gate Park, down Haight Street, and then took the bus to Union Square. The trolleys made their way up and down the hill, but we decided to walk. Steep! It’s an easy city to navigate, and small enough that you can’t easily lose your way.

After a couple more yummy meals with our friends (thanks for the pancakes too!) we headed inland. Our drive took us through Berkeley, where I had heard of Tail of the Yak, a little shop of curiosities. It was more of an art installation than anything, full of handmade paper balls and garlands, vintage costume jewelry, postcards, and little toys. Berkeley itself is charming. From there we drove to our wedding destination, which we’ll save for it’s own blog post.

We took an out-of-the-way route back to the city, one that took us north and then down the coast. We saw beautiful farm country, massive trees (sequoias maybe?) and then the fog rolling off the cool Pacific. Not to mention a cliffside drive! Karl, driving, was a little freaked out at first but I could tell that he was enjoying the twists and turns. The fog there has a life of it’s own. It moves with the wind. We stopped several times to climb around and take photos. By the way: newt crossing?

Our drive down the coast took us across the Bridge and back to San Francisco, where we hit up Fraiche, a tart yogurt spot that we tasted days before. When life takes us back there I know we’ll be stopping in for more. We heart you California!