World Cruise--A Rainy Day In San Francisco

Pulling the drapes open, we looked out a pouring rain and wind whipping it around. A check of the Weatherbug showed that it wasn’t going to get much better. But…the Weatherbug hadn’t been quite right the day before so we went off to breakfast hoping that perhaps there would be enough of a break that we could finish our wish list for San Francisco.

By the time we were done with breakfast, the weather app’s radar was showing the promise of a possible short break. We took our insurance umbrellas, dressed for the cooler weather and headed out to find the cable car by Fisherman’s Wharf to ride into the heart of the city.

The cable cars have been in operation for over 150 years. There was a time where they faced extinction but thanks to the efforts of a group of dedicated people, they were saved and continue to operate to the amazement of all who come to ride them.

There are several loops of cable that run through the city. The cars hook into the cable and are pulled up the streets, some of which are very steep. A driver in front and a brake man in back, they work in tandem to slow the car on descent and move forward up the hills. It’s quite an operation especially when the traffic causes havoc. During one of our rides, a car played chicken at an intersection. We stopped suddenly and the operator laughed and said, “You can’t make this stuff up.”  (I’m sure he wanted to do and say something more than that.)

Our first cable ride took us to within a block or two of a Target store where we managed to find the rest of the things we needed that weren’t behind lock and key like at the CVS and Walgreens. Bob’s backpack full, we headed back, now in the rain, to the cable car turnaround.  We decided to take a short cut through Bloomingdale’s with Bob’s admonition that we weren’t buying anything. Too bad. Everything was on sale as it was going out of business. We did pick up a free bag for our umbrellas which worked out well since they were drenched and dripping.

The turnarounds are platforms that the cable car pulls up on, is disengaged and the operators get out and manually turn the car on the turntable to head in the other direction. It’s all done quickly. The car is loaded with passengers again and it goes on its way.

This time we got off the cable car at the stop for the museum and the central operation. Giant wheels and gears moved the cables throughout the city. There were several older historical cable cars on display but the main attraction is just the amazing operation of the whole thing. The other amazing thing is that it is free admission for the museum.

We waited in the rain at another intersection near the museum that would take us closer to Pier 39 where we wanted to stop for lunch. The umbrellas may not have insured it wouldn’t rain but they did protect us pretty well.

The cable car finally came. They are usually about 20 minutes apart but this was not high tourist season so it may have taken a bit longer.

We reached the end of the line and walked down to the Wharf. Rain was coming down pretty hard now and we started to pass a restaurant with outdoor seating where two guys were encouraging people to come in and eat.

“Indoor seating?” Bob asked. The guys nodded and pointed to the door.

Inside was a bit like you would expect a seaside restaurant that had been there for a long time. We would discover later that it was a third generation operation. When business is slow you get to talk to owners. He was fascinated with us taking such a long cruise and was looking forward to his first soon, a much shorter one. He cheerfully split our cup of clam chowder and the lobster roll we ordered for the two of us to share. I couldn’t decide if it was because business was slow and he was happy to have us or if it was our white hair and age since he’d lost his mother not long ago but we felt well taken care of.

As we started out, Bob mentioned that we wanted to try taking a Waymo, a driverless taxi, and asked where the best place to call for one was. Bob had already downloaded the app which was  bit like the Uber. The manager told us to just stay under the over hang outside that when we ordered it, it would pull up in front of the restaurant.

Sure enough it was about five minutes later, a white Jaguar with all the paraphernalia of the driverless car stopped in front of us. On the top of the cab was a rotating bubble that had Bob’s initials flashing to indicate that it was our Waymo.

To get in, you had to push an unlock button on the app and the handles popped out of the doors. We got into a very nice clean car with several display screens, one in front (as if a driver would use it) and one between the front seats facing us with a welcome message and a spot to touch to start our journey when we were ready.

A nice smooth female voice told us to sit back and enjoy the ride and instructed us that we needed to secure our seatbelts for safety. We did that and the car proceeded forward.

At first it was kind of a weird sensation knowing there was no one in the driver’s seat. I watched as the steering wheel turned to take us down another street. Marveled at the stops it made for traffic lights and stop signs and smiled as other tourists were snapping pictures of the car, just as fascinated as we were.

The pier for our ship was only about a ten minute ride and the car pulled up to the curb opposite it. I don’t think they are allowed on the pier like a regular taxi. The voice told us we’d arrived and thanked us without ever asking for a tip. Bob also marveled that the “driver” spoke English.

Since our ride was short, we didn’t get to explore some of the other features of the car like choosing our own music or asking for help like our friends did when the car wouldn’t go down the famous crooked street of San Francisco. Apparently there are some places it’s not allowed.

While I thought I would be fearful of the ride, once it began, I relaxed and really enjoyed it. Maybe I could get used to some new technology after all.

We decided to delay dinner so that we could watch as we sailed out of the bay under the Golden Gate Bridge. Our departure was delayed for almost an hour. Not sure why but soon we were on our way after the sun had set. It was way too cold and windy and rainy to go out on the deck to take pictures although some brave souls did. My picture was through a rainy window.

San Francisco had turned out to be a whole lot more fun than we had ever expected, even in the rain.

 

World Cruise--A Day In San Francisco

The postings on the Queene Anne World Cruise Facebook page from those in San Francisco awaiting the ship’s arrival for the start of their portion of the cruise didn’t look promising. Lots of pictures of rain and one in particular of the Golden Gate Bridge that was barely visible from all the rain. So, when we awoke our first morning in SF, we were pleased to see that, although a bit dreary, the rain had let up and almost to a stop. From our balcony, we could see Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill, a clear view of Alcatraz Island and a partial view of the Golden Gate that we had sailed under around 4 AM. (We slept through that.)

The forecast still called for a chance of rain. We shrugged, packed the umbrellas (for insurance that it wouldn’t rain again) and set off.

But let me back up a bit. This was the first day of entry for the ship back to the US so all the passengers had to go through immigration and once through you could not reboard until the whole of the ship had been processed. Added to that, Bob’s doctor suggested he change up his medication a bit and he hadn’t brought enough to do that so we had to find a pharmacy for the office to send the prescription. The CVS we found was not in their system (we would discover later the store was closing) so we found a Walgreen’s on the map that was not quite a mile away and decided to try that.

Luckily, the immigration process was going well and we were able to leave earlier than planned. The weather that was supposed to be rainy turned out to be drier and warmer than expected. We Googled our way to the Walgreen’s and the pharmacy gave us the contact information the doctor’s office needed. When we tried to call the doctor, Bob’s phone went dead and wouldn’t place the call. After several frustrating attempts, he used mine. (Later he turned the phone off and on and backed it up and it started working again.) All set—or so we thought.

We walked back down to the harbor and Fisherman’s Wharf where we wandered around a bit and grabbed a hot tea and sweet roll to share at a bakery and rested a bit. Near the bakery was an arcade that featured “antique” arcade games. Some of them were not quite as antique as we are but it was fun looking at them.

We had a little more time to kill before meeting our tour guide at Pier 33 for our afternoon excursion so we wandered toward Pier 39. The Wharf has several piers, all numbered and easy to find. They are all relatively close together as well. Pier 39 is probably the busiest as it had a slew of restaurants and shops and snack places and a view of the herd of very noisy sea lions.

We needed to get lunch before our tour so we found a place where we got some clam chowder and a tuna salad on sour dough that was not as good as I remembered the sour dough being from our visit years ago. It was a little disappointing.

After lunch, on our way to Pier 33, we got a FaceTime call from a granddaughter who had just had her wisdom teeth removed. We talked a few minutes and commiserated with her, complimenting her on her chipmunk cheeks that we promised would go away. I love the technology we have today that can help us keep in touch no matter where we are in the world.

Our arrival was a few minutes early but so were all the others who were on the tour. We filled the Mercedes van which was quite comfortable and set off for our trip over the Golden Gate and on to Muir Woods where all the large redwoods are. Still no rain but a bit of a mist now and then. The umbrella insurance was working.

Our driver took us over the Golden Gate and to the area set aside for viewing. I remember being there before when we drove ourselves. It does give you good opportunity for photos. I did not remember the sailor monument as it was dedicated in 2002. A bronze plaque with a dedication on it is worth repeating here:

                 The Lone Sailor

This is a memorial to every one who ever sailed out of the Golden Gate in the service of their country - in the Navy, the Marine Corps, the Coast Guard, the Merchant Marine.

A ship heading for sea passes directly by this spot at the northern end of the Golden Gate. Here the sailor feels the first long roll of the sea, the beginning of the endless horizon that leads to the far Pacific.

There is one last chance to look back at the city of San Francisco, shining on its hills, one last chance to look back at the coastline of the United States, one last chance to look back at home.

Thousands and thousands of American seafarers have sailed past this place, in peace and war, to defend this country and its sea frontiers. Many of them never returned. This monument is dedicated to the ordinary sailors and marines who sailed from this place and did their duty.

Carl Nolte

The rest of our drive to Muir Woods took us up a mountain on winding roads and back down into a valley. The area is really beautiful and some of the views of the bay were spectacular. It was a little cooler at the park than it had been on the Wharf and I put my quilted vest back on. I think it was more from the dampness. It had rained eight inches over the last couple of days. Thankfully the path was part boardwalk, part paved walkway. A few places had some muddy spots but were easily navigated without too much trouble. We had worried that our shoes would get muddy with not good way to get them cleaned again. (The laundry room had a sign saying “Do not wash shoes in the machines.”)

Just as we arrived at the park, Bob got a message that he could not get the prescription because it was too soon for a refill. This wasn’t really a refill, it was a new prescription for extra meds. Gotta love insurance. Though we had been told there would be no cell service at the park, he found he had two bars and made a call to the pharmacy. She said she would see what she could do and we said we’d pay for it if we had to.

The misty feel was becoming a little wetter but still not bad. There was a front moving in and by the time we arrived at Sausalito, a stop on our tour, you could feel the temperature dropping and the wind picking up. We were to have an hour in the little town area that had shops and restaurants before the tour would end back again at Pier 33. We had planned to take the ferry back to the Wharf from Sausalito and decided that we would leave sooner than later. Sausalito didn’t interest that much with the weather changing.

The ferry ride was smoother than I anticipated given the wind picking up as it was. The ride was scenic and would have been even nicer with a little sunshine. Arriving with enough daylight left and a shorter walk to the Walgreen’s who had texted the prescription was ready (and with no cost to us) we decided the plan for the rest of the day was the walk to the pharmacy, followed by dinner somewhere on the Wharf and then back to the ship.

It couldn’t have worked out more perfectly. We made it to Walgreens, picked up the meds, passed on buying the sundries on our list since most of the things were under lock and key. Things I would never expect people would want or could shoplift. It would have taken forever to have someone follow us around and unlock everything we needed.

Serenaded our dinner

We found a wonderful Italian restaurant on Pier 39 for dinner. Bob had seafood pasta that was loaded with more seafood than I’ve ever seen on that dish before. I had a heaping plate of ravioli with a meat sauce that was excellent. And to top it off was a side order of tasty garlic sourdough bread that was the real deal.

I was glad we had about a fifteen minute walk back to the ship. It was a chance to walk off the huge meal. We both ate more than we should have but it was so good.

Back on the ship, I gave in to my legs and knees and back that were protesting all the walking we’d done. When I checked my phone it showed over 10 miles for the day’s walk. I took a hot shower and plopped into bed while Bob went on to see the evening entertainment. What stamina.

This post is too long to contain the second day of fun in San Fran. So I will have to do up another. Tune in for some amazing modes of transportation in the next post.

Everything's Jumpin' at the Horned Toad Derby

Looking for some excitement this May? You might want to travel out to Coalinga, CA, about halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles for the 76th Annual Horned Toad Derby and Festival. How did I hear about it? My kids bought me a book by Peter Greenberg, Don't Go There! On the Lamest Claims to Fame list under Stupid Events is the Horned Toad Derby. But wait! After some research, I don't see his point.

If you go to a list of festivals, it tells of not only the derby but also carnival rides, a big parade, arts and crafts vendors, food vendors, a firemen's water fight, deep pit beef BBQ (whatever that is), a softball tournament, and live entertainment (I'm assuming other than the toads). Now that sounds like a fun community festivity.

I wonder how Greenberg would rate the Mantua Potato Festival? Their big events include potato eating constest: chips, fries, and mashed, a parade, live entertainment, and a potato sack race in a sand pit! I'm assuming people race--not potatoes.

As summer approaches, festival season begins. What goes on in your area?

2010 Tournament of Roses - A picture collage

The video below is a collage of many of the pictures we took during our trip to Pasadena. It begins with a picture of the Hyatt Century Plaza where we stayed and a picture of Archie Griffin, our Alumni Association president and of course our two-time Heisman Trophy winner.

We also toured two of the locations where the floats were being assembled and attended the Buckeye Bash at the Santa Monica Pier--along with an estimated 30,000 Buckeyes.

The morning of the Parade, we left our hotel at 4:30 a.m. (PST) and arrived at our seating area on Orange Blvd. about an hour later. We opted to get out of the bus and stroll down the boulevard where the floats were lined up for the start of the parade. It was a great opportunity to see all of them close up and talk with some of the folks who were in the parade. Not only that but we saw the diehards that had camped out all night in sleeping bags to get the best views (for free). Some had grills and were cooking breakfast!

Our seats for the parade were great although there were two floats that were ahead of our vantage point that we didn't get to see. "Sully" Sullenberger, the grand marshal passed by in a golf cart on his way to his decorated antique ride that was beyond us as well.

Still, it was quite a show only to be followed by a spectacular performance of the Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl stadium. It's always more fun when you win.

Put on some marching music (preferably the Buckeye Marching Band) sit back and enjoy the show!

2010 Rose Bowl

It's a busy time out here in Pasedena! We spent the day surveying some of the floats and last minute preparations for the Rose Bowl parade. While we were walking around, I also caught a glimpse of our Buckeyes arriving for their walk through the stadium. A great day! Looking forward to a great game! Go Bucks!


Enjoy the pictures. I'll tell you more another time.