I've been friends with Purple Cardigan Girl since we were about 3, and her husband very awesomely flew her out as a birthday surprise. Blue Shirt and I hung out in high school along with Purple at times, and Blue was also able to fly out and stay for 3 days on a king-sized air mattress in a paint fume-filled apartment downstairs. True to form, I didn't take enough pictures, but here's what I have. I think the girl's itinerary for the 3 days makes for a pretty good City tour, especially if the weather is amazing (high 60s every day with lots of sun--it's typically raining this time of year). Here's what they/we did:
Day 1:
-Japanese Tea Garden at Golden Gate Park in the morning (it's free MWF if you get there between 9-10am):
Conservatory of Flowers, also in Golden Gate Park. It costs $5 and has a cool special exhibit right now with model trains running around SF landmarks made from recycled materials. The beautiful grounds outside and the warm, humid, greenhouse feel inside make it one of my favorite places:
-Baker Beach: beautiful views of Golden Gate Bridge and yes, it was warm enough to spot some of the nude old dudes near the north end
Japantown: probably not a top attraction for most tourists, but I love the shops here. My favorites are Ichiban Kan (kind of a Japanese dollar store), Kinokuniya Stationary and Gift and Soko Hardware. Kinokuniya Bookstore, which I hadn't sauntered through before this trip, was pretty great too. Here's Purple and My Boy with a stuffed cartoon character at a video store:
After this action-packed morning, we went to Mama's for Monte Cristos. Getting there at 2:45 (15 min. before closing) on a Friday was deluxe--we walked right in and the restaurant was mostly empty. Beats the 1+hour wait I've done in the past.
Evening activities after a rest: wandered around Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square. Ate and bought bread at Boudin and got sundaes at the Ice Cream and Chocolate Shop.
Day 2
Slept in then took the bus over to the Fillmore shopping area, where I had some errands to run for a baby shower I was helping with. Fillmore Hardware Company near Pine was a good time--they have lots of handy items and gifts, including a great selection of those irreverent Ann Taintor products I love so much. We got Nick's Crispy Tacos on the way back (on Polk near Broadway-yum yum!).
While I was at the shower, the girls shopped Chinatown on Grant Ave. It's crowded and a bit crazy but very unique. I also advised they stop at the Cable Car Museum near Washington and Powell on the way back. It's free, has some interesting info, and has a pretty great gift shop. We went out for Indian food at Naan and Curry that night (the one on Van Ness near O'Farrell). I like the Chicken Tikki Masala and Garlic Naan myself.
Day 3
The girls went to Alcatraz while we were at church and stocked up on some Trader Joe's treats before leaving. Thanks for the good times, girls!
2 comments:
Again, thank you so much for such an awesome trip! I'm so glad you saved me from the surprise party! Hee hee!
*Sigh* I miss the old naked dudes on the north end of the beach. My favorite: watching one run from the cliffs to the water flapping in the breeze. For a bath maybe?
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