Seeing the Sights, Eatin' the Food

Monday we started our day at the Ferry Building. We needed more meat, bread and olive oil. The Street Car got us there in no time. The wait for it, however, was a bit interesting. A homeless man offered me a seat beside him at the stop. I declined, but points earned for being polite. We board and pull away, he lingers behind. From our seat we see him relieve himself in the corner. Bus stops double as urinals. Must remember that. By the way, polite points revoked.







We got all our goodies and took them back to the hotel. Then, we paid our dear friend Young a visit. She's been making sandwiches for 19 years at her Petite Deli. She is the sweetest woman, she's the closest thing we have to a grandma... She bought us pasta salad for coming back to see her. We ordered a turkey delight, and Italian hero. Yummy. Her honey mustard and addition of basil makes everything special. She sent us off with cookies. We practically skipped like little kids back to the hotel. You must appreciate people who are truly kind and warm, like Young. She treats everyone like a guest in her home.







We relaxed a bit, and waited for Mary to meet us. She was picking us up and we were headed to the Beach Chalet for lunch. It's a lovely restaurant with spectacular views of the Pacific. Winds were strong so white caps rolled in throughout our meal. The food was equally enjoyable. Frank and Mary both had a crab louie salad and I opted for a crab cake with a mandarin and fennel salad. Then, Frank and I shared a sand castle dessert. Everything was very good, and it was nice way to catch up with Mary.







After lunch Mary was kind enough to take us through Golden Gate Park, and to Alamo Square so we could see the Painted Ladies, you might know them from Full House fame.





They are a lovely sight. I was also taken back by the beautiful backdrop of the city. The park there would be a nice place for a picnic. Maybe right under this tree?



Mary took us back to Golden Gate Park, we said so long, and walked to the museums. Only the Academy of Sciences was open, so we opted to see the Botanical Gardens instead. It's a vast collection of plants from all over. It seems a bit neglected. Many trails were messed with debris and overgrown, but we enjoyed it.



























This bunch were taken by Frank













After walking around the gardens we hopped on the first bus we saw. Took that until we spotted tracks. Hopped on a bus/train, that took us to Van Ness where we caught another bus to the hotel. We managed quite well for not knowing where we were. Google Maps on Blackberry also makes life easier.

Back at the hotel, we had another picnic with our smorgasbord of Ferry Building treats. We went a bit overboard. We stuffed ourselves silly. We lounged in bed and watched MNF. I searched for a place nearby open late for dinner. About 10 o'clock, we wandered out and sought E' Tutto Qua. I was still pretty full, but I found a way to share a salad with Frank and order my own pasta dish. I tried to skip the bread basket but I needed a slice to slurp up some leftover sauce at the end. Frank had parpadelle with lamb ragu and I had orchiette with Italian sausage. Both were excellent.







We waddled out of the restaurant. And walked the neighborhood a bit since we felt at home.






From Broadway and Columbus, we walked through Chinatown and found ourselves back at the California Cable Car line. We hopped on, and rode it to the Powell-Mason transfer. Then, we had the driver stop near La Rocca's Corner. We stopped in and had a beer. We were much too full to do much drinking so we turned in shortly thereafter. On the walk back to the hotel we saw a rat rummaging through garbage that was left in the alley for trash service. Yuck! You may remember I hate those icky critters. I was super creeped out. I kept an eye out the rest of the trip.