San Francisco

Greetings to all you dear folks reading this post! I hope you are all well and having a super duper, most fantastic sort of day. I would like to share with you lovely people my day adventure in San Francisco. A breath-taking city built on the hills (more like mountains in my book) and exploding with new adventures. And adventures we sure had!

Driving into the storm

My roommate and I woke up relatively early to start our 4ish hour journey to the great new world. It was a sunny day as we departed, but quickly turned into rain (which we hadn't seen in what seemed like years). As we continued our way north we found ourselves in need of a pit stop, settling for a slightly sketchy gas station off the beaten path. Seriously, it was a little worn down and not up to Kwik Trip standards. I am still not convinced they had a bathroom, because when we went in to find one there was a creepy, dirty alley-esque room/hallway where the restroom was supposed to be. We didn't take the time to find out, instead we high tailed it out of there and searched for a McDonald's, because by that point we were starving. We eventually found one, bought our breakfast burritos and continued on our way.

Perhaps I should mention that one of our goals was Ikea so we could finally buy some sort of furniture for our house, which ended up being two bar stools for our "kitchen" counter. I say "kitchen" because our entryway, kitchen, and living room run together into one mega room. It is quite something. But anyways, back to the adventure at hand. We strolled through Ikea picking out fun accessories for our new home. I was in charge of maneuvering the ridiculous cart to my car. I have no idea why, but I had the hardest time trying to push that thing. For those of you who have never experienced Ikea carts, they have wheels that allow them to go in whichever direction they choose-not what YOU choose, what THEY (the wheels) choose. Whatever, I am challenged when it comes to pushing those carts, but I am not ashamed! I have accepted it and can move on with my life, thank you! Ha ;) It is quite frustrating and after a bit of assistance from Amy (roommate), we made it to my car and off to San Francisco.

Side of the bay by Alcatraz & Golden Gate Bridge

Ikea was over in Oakland, which meant driving over the Bay Bridge. This bridge has a toll and is rather large with with five lanes. I was a wee bit terrified, but extremely excited. There is a kind of adrenaline rush and peaked excitement-like when my cousin would get excited he would ball up his fists and clench his entire body until he shook- that is what I feel like when driving over bridges that are miles long. Plus, the scenery was mind blowing. I had never experienced anything like it. As we made our way over the bridge, boats and ferries could be seen lazily drifting in the bay while the city quickly zoomed into view. I wish I could have gotten pictures, but alas I was driving. San Francisco, the city on the hill(s)/mountain took my heart then and there.

Golden Gate Bridge from Alamo Park

Finally arriving about 1pm, our breakfast burritos long past burned off, we found a parking garage by City Hall and began our determined search for the infamous burritos of the Mission District. It was a hefty jaunt to Mission Street. As we walked up the street it slowly became dodgier and dodgier. It was a crowded street bustling with people, some selling merchandise laid out on a blanket on the sidewalk, others roaming in and out of buildings, and mostly just people hanging out on the curb. It was difficult to tell whether a person was homeless or not. I was all for it and thought it should get better as we go, no big deal. Then we watched a lady get knocked out by a guy, to me she looked as if she was being a little sassy and defensive about something and the guy wasn't having it. That was the point where I was like.... "Ok, that just happened, but we'll be fiiiiine" *insert dismissive hand wave* and we kept going. We didn't continue on far before I felt really uncomfortable and actually kind of scared for my safety, I mean I was in China and never felt that scared the entire time I was there. So, defeated and burrito-less, we headed back the way we came and wandered through the less sketchy streets of the city.

Painted Ladies

We decided to look for the Painted Ladies, a famous stretch of houses that reminds one of Full House, located directly across from Alamo Square Park. Fun fact: most of the streets are lined with these squished together houses. They add a unique beauty to the city and it was fun walking around, looking at the different architecture. I would love to live in one, but like everywhere in California, they are crazy expensive. Anyway, after some pictures later, we continued our way through the streets back to my car. Driving is an adventure in itself here, not only are you driving up and down impressively steep hills, you are also making sure not to run into cable cars. We drove past windy Lombard street (Google it if you're feeling curious), which had a ridiculous wait to dive down and I had no patience for that.

Golden Gate Bridge and some sail boats

Making our way towards the Piers and Fisherman's Warf, we soon found a parking garage and resumed our search for food. Finding a delicious cheese burger at an Italian restaurant (I know right, cheese burgers at an Italian restaurant). After feasting and checking out a couple gift shops, we walked down to Aquatic Park Pier. That is where we saw Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge hanging out in the distance. We attempted to take some selfies with anything that would look cool in the background, failed miserably, and wandered back to the car to start back home.

And that, my friends, was a day spent in and around San Francisco. Currently it is my favorite city I have visited thus far in California, with Santa Barbara at a close second. Thanks for reading! I'll see you when I see you. Sending my love  *Enjoy our photo shoot below ;)*