trip overview
day one
Nicole and I awoke from a deep and much-need sleep reluctatly. Our travel day was terribly long, so our good-intentioned early morning plans went out the window. We ended up getting some peanut butter toast from the hostel kitchen before setting out on our first big adventure~
We walked around a bit, towards Fisherman's Wharf. Fisherman's Wharf is kinda the touristy area of San Fran-- much like Navy Pier in Chicago or the Boardwalks in New Jersey. Except, instead of looking out to a lighthouse, San Francisans look out to... Alcatraz. Interesting psyche that must imbue in a town...
Of course we did all the tourist shit. Its a blast when its not your city! Nicole got us there mini doughnuts her friend had reccommended. They were simple and sugar-y and delicious to munch on while we searched for sea lions. When we did find them, the silly creatures were barking at seagulls and each other like big dogs. Nicole and I watched, enamored with these flobby creatures, for a long while...
San Fran is filled with beautiful gardens and parks. We treked through so many of them, they kinda blur together. Nicole says that San Fran feels like "a city that is trying very hard to forget it is a city." When you look out across the concrete jungle, you understand why the green is so desired-- on these cold and cloudy days, the greenery seems to glow against the gray of the city. So much so that I feel my eyes are almost playing tricks on me when I try and comprehend it.
Before leaving the Wharf, we stumbled into this little arcade & oddities shop. Luckily, I had three spare quarters in my pocket, so I was able to play a couple "games" with Nicole.
Eventually we ended up at the Palace of Fine Arts. This was an important one for us to see because it was featured in the movie "Vertigo." I'm not the biggest Hitchcock fan in the world, but I really enjoy his work, so it was an absolute delight to see irl. In person it was so stunning-- you could tell because there were so many girls taking graduation and quincenera pics lol.
Though we got a late strat to the day, we still managed to walk about 30,000 steps. Like crazy people, we ended our day with a short hike up a very long and beautiful hill.
It is possible I was just being a scardey-cat, but when the wind picked up, those trees really freaked me out! To be fair, we only saw one branch fall (and the local kids seemed not to mid whatsoever), but the entire time I was just thinking about getting smushed!
Luckily we ended the day intact, give or take a few blisters!
