Quintessential San Francisco

January 11

Sam:

This morning we wanted to see some more of the city, so we drove high into the hills to a lookout called Twin Peaks. We could see the whole city from there. It was very windy and cold.

Next, we drove close to the Golden Gate bridge to get a better view of it. There was a nice garden area where we stopped to look at the bridge and take pictures.

After that, we drove to a valet parking in the center of town right next to the sports bar that dad wanted to go to for dinner because there was a big football game that he wanted to watch. Sam Francisco 49ers have been his favourite team forever, and they are in the playoffs this year.

We walked down a hill to get to the trolley boarding area to go to Fisherman’s Wharf. About halfway to the wharf, the trolley stopped because downtown something was wrong (it turned out the cable was fraying), so the downtown trolley stopped for the day. Our trolley was just outside of the downtown area, so we kept going to the wharf.

We walked along the wharf until we got to Pier 39. Pier 39 is a big pier with lots of sea lions that like to hang out. We watched the sea lions for a while and named them Vincent and Eddie but we realized that it was almost time for Dad’s football game. We grabbed Mrs. Field’s cookies for a snack on the way.

We walked along the wharf for a long while to get to the Ferry building, an indoor market of sorts, at Pier 1. We then walked back to the sports bar from the Ferry building but when we got there, we found out that today only people over 21 were allowed. We went back to get the car, and one of the tires was totally flat. Dad changed it as quickly as he could so we wouldn’t miss more of the game.

Charlotte:

Instead, we went to Red Robin, a chain restaurant. Sam and I were really excited because you can get free refills on French fries and drinks. During your meal, you can also watch the game. We got a table with a good view of the game for Dad. The food was really good. I got mac and cheese and French fries, and even my mac and cheese had free refills! Mom, Dad, and Sam got burgers and fries. They took a long time to bring us our food, so our server apologized and brought us free dessert. It was called cronuts (croissant donuts).

We stayed there for a pretty long time, and then we went back to the hotel. Dad and Sam went to a garage to get the popped tire fixed.

January 12

Jenn:

To finish off our time in California, we got to fit in an excellent lunch visit with my cousin Kristen, her husband Jeff, and their two lovely kiddos, D and W, in San Jose. Though we had seen them recently at Christmas, it was great to visit their home. The adults had great conversation, Sam enjoyed the WiFi (haha), and Charlotte had fun playing with her little cousin D. Backyard time in sunny California is such a treat in January! Charlotte made a new friend, Bob, who doubled as an exercise and therapy partner.

Before long, it was time to say goodbye and head to the airport. In a mere 27 hours, we will be in New Zealand.