San Francisco

We didn't sleep very well Friday night so got up a little later than planned and found a Denny's for breakfast. After looking into parking in San Francisco we decided we weren't that rich ($9 a hr seemed the usual), and found that there is free parking at the BART train stations and it is only a ~$10 round trip. Prefect. We got in at about noon and walked over to the wharf. They had some great markets on along the way. 

Alpaca wool. So soft!

 There were also lots of street performers out. They were better than the ones in San Diego as they were more original. This guy was our favorite. He had all these peace signs out and was just happy drumming away!

Peace drummer.

 One thing I wanted to do was ride the trolleys. But the queues were so long, it wasn't worth the wait. Still I did manage to get a photo.

San Francisco trolley

After getting some bits at the markets we walked along the front to Pier 39, famous mainly for the sea lions. We found a cruise that went around the bay, the bridge and Alcatraz. So we got to see a lot without having to walk too far!

Pier 39

San Francisco skyline

Golden Gate bridge

Bridge close up 

There really is a lot of fog!

 There were lots of kite surfers (I think that's what you call them). It looked a lot of fun. Though a few came a little too close to the boat at times.

Kite surfing

 We sailed around Alcatraz. It would be fun to visit but we didn't have much time and you have to book weeks in advance. The cruise had a narrator but there were a lot of people on the boat and it was really windy so we didn't hear most of it.

Alcatraz

Housing block 

Run down

 We got a good look at the sea lions on the way back into the harbor.

Sea lions.

After the cruise, I had to get a hot drink. (Rachel thought it was very funny and British that my first thought was a cup of tea. But the wind was really cold on the boat!)
Rachel really wanted to find the parrots (they got loose years ago and someone fed them and they spread wild in a few parts of the city). We found the first street and nothing. So we had to go up Telegraph Hill. It was a big hill. :-( But eventually we did manage to find a parrot. There was another somewhere but we couldn't see him.

Passion flower 

Parrot

The walk up the stairs was actually very pretty with some nice views and pretty flowers.

Stairs up 

Nearly there

One of the best things about San Francisco I think is the architecture. I love the differences in the building. They are all difference colors and shapes. It's very cheerful. (If you have ever seen Charmed, I love that house!)

love the buildings

 We wanted to go to Golden Gate Park (oddly no where near Golden Gate Bridge) but needed a stop first. We found a great little bar with live jazz/blues/country music and stopped for a rest and cold glass of wine/beer.

Jazz band

 We ended up getting a taxi to the park. We just couldn't face walking it and the bus system is very confusing. The park is nice, and home to the Science academy. Unfortunately we have very bad timing. Everything had just shut.

Golden Gate park

 We really wanted to go to the Japanese Tea Gardens. But they shut at 6pm. The doors were cool!

Tea garden doors

 There were some interesting/questionable statues in the park.

Lady sphinx?

Not idea what the kid is doing or why no one has any clothes on.

 We found the lily pond and it was under construction! :-( But the conservatory of flowers garden (there was a private event on in the actual conservatory - our timing sucked!) was very pretty.

Colorful

Conservatory gardens 

Clock

 We needed up at our sushi restaurant very early! We were so cold!  But as we were there early we went next door for a hot sake while waiting for our table. Great way to warm up. :-)

Lots of sake choices

Thanks to Groupon we had a voucher for $70 worth of sushi! So we indulged in a sushi feast. One of the main rolls was a snow crab and soft shell crab roll, which was enormous! It was really not elegant to eat but very tasty.We ate a LOT of sushi. It was amazing

Spider roll

 And then the highlight of San Francisco. Opposite the sushi restaurant was a dessert lounge. It's like a cocktail bar and they do sell cocktails but they also sell desserts! It was amazing! There should be one of these in every city and town across the planet. It's a brilliant idea. They also had a bunch of board games you can borrow and play. Seriously. These should be everywhere. I would happily spent many nights here!

Desert