2013 San Fransisco, California

2013 San Francisco, California

May 23, 2013 to May 26, 2013: This was a lovely long weekend trip to San Francisco. This was my first trip California, the weather was perfect and so was the company! We had a great time!

Day 1: Thursday May 23, 2013

I woke up to see the stunning sunrise behind the bay bridge out if my hotel room window. I
Breakfast at The Plant Cafe near the ferry. Truly beautiful spot. The walk from the hotel to the restaurant along the bay was picturesque. The local farmers were setting up their stands. It appears that farmers markets are everywhere in San Fran!

For lunch we we to Kokkari, an amazing Greek restaurant that I highly recommend. The spinskopita, grilled octopus, Greek salad and grilled fish were amaz. and not to be missed.

For dinner Kevin and I did some exploring deeper into the city. We went to for dinner. The chicken for two is famous and it’s easy to see why, it was just perfect.

We then walked around the city and saw the painted ladies across from the Alamo square. I was finally able to climb the famous San Francisco hills!

The Painted Ladies A famous stretch of colorful Victorian-style house. around the world for its Victorian rowhouses, this spectacular hilltop park is an ideal spot for picture taking.


Day 2: Friday May 24, 2013

Lovely breakfast at Perry’s with with Stephane and Fred. After Kevin and I had lunch I went down to the Marina. I started at the Marina Green located alongside the bay. It’s a huge open space where you’ll find runners, cyclists, dog walkers and pick up games of soccer. The trendy Marina neighborhood in San Francisco with plenty of cool cafes, retail stores and restaurant choices to explore.

Marina District: Trendy neighborhood in San Francisco with plenty of cool cafes, retail stores and restaurant choices to explore.

After that I met Gita, Sammy B and Scott at Gita’s apartment and we wondered the Knob Hill area ending up at a fantastic tai restaurant for dinner. We had lots of laughs and it was a fun night.


Day 3: Saturday May 25, 2013

We met Gita early and went to brunch at the Exploratorium and saw the golden gate park. We walked for most of the day, it was really beautiful.

The Exploratorium: Enter a world of hands-on curiosity, discovery and play.Experience the Exploratorium, a unique interactive museum dedicated to the excitement of experimentation, the pleasure of discovery, and power of play. Part museum, part laboratory, part studio, we make it possible for people to see the world around them through new eyes.Indulge your curiosity across six galleries and more than 600 exhibits, as you play, and discover new ways to understand the world around you.Located at Pier 15 along the Embarcadero, between Pier 39 and the Ferry Building, the Exploratorium is a newly polished gem with a restaurant on the Bay, two gift shops and new outdoor exhibits, all located at a nexus of public transit and ample parking.Advanced tickets are available online to ensure quick and easy entry and a great visit.

We then went to Ghirardelli Square. We drank ice coffee and listened to a great autistic guitar band while eating cupcakes. It was so pleasant that we sat there for nearly an hour, enjoying the music and the beautiful weather.

Ghirardelli Square: A group of renovated factory buildings filled with shops, restaurants and galleries.


Day 4: Sunday May 26, 2013

On Sunday we walked to the ferry terminal. There were so many delicious options for breakfast we went to three different places and shared! We took the ferry over to Marin to meet Kevin and Margaret for our day in wine country.

The ferry ride was lovely. We met two cousins who tried to convince us to move to San Francisco. We walked around Marin with Kevin and Maraget. There was a street fair and we got to see an adorable little dance recital.

Then off we went to wine country. It was a beautiful drive. We stopped in Healdsburg for a snack – cupcakes that we ate in a cute little park. Then we had a private tour of a winery. It was really an intimate experience. The “wine maker” explained to us the entire process and spoke about grapes and lots of other stuff that was very interesting and didn’t seem at all pretentious when he explained it. He just sounded like a dude who loved making wine. We were even able to taste the wine that they didn’t think it was good enough to sell (tasted pretty good to me!) It was the perfect way to experience wine country.

We then returned back to Healdsburg for a great dinner at a restaurant who’s name I never did catch. We decided to stop for ice cream on the way home. Melissa and I shared basil ice cream, it’s delicious! We had such a great day and it was just how we imagined a day in wine country would be.