MONDAY
& TUESDAY, AUGSUT 17 & 18:
Our
last two days here. On Monday, saw
one
last mission, an alley of murals, and paid
a last visit to the Painted Ladies.
Mission
Dolores was the 6th
established under Father Serra, in 1776. It's located,
appropriately, in what's called the Mission District and is the oldest building in San Francisco. It survived the 1906 earthquake & fire, looking today much as it did over 225 years ago. Mission
Dolores itself is an island of simplicity and tranquility in the
surrounding busy neighborhood and city.
Courtyard garden and cemetery:
The adjacent church, which was designated a basilica by a recent Pope, with its beautiful towers:
This
has historically been an
eclectic middle-income area, but, like most other places in the city
now, is very quickly becoming gentrified. A couple we met at church
lived in the neighborhood 12 years ago, and their 2-bedroom apartment
rented for around $1,600. Now it's over $4,000.
One
of the things this neighborhood is most well known for is its street
art murals. There are about 3 alleys devoted to these; we visited
one within walking distance of Mission Dolores. Most of the panels
make political/social statements, but not all.
There's
a lovely, well-loved park close to Mission Dolores; we took advantage
of the expansive views
as
we leisurely strolled through it on our way to a simple delicious
lunch at a friendly neighborhood eatery. They specialized in healthy
smoothies; an employee was making a batch with avocado and other
ingredients; she offered one to Bill, who, astoundingly, was sold and
got one instead of the beer he thought he was going to order. Was
pretty refreshing and delicious!
Caught
a bus to nearby Alamo Square, where we again just enjoyed the park
and the views of the Painted Ladies and the people and the gorgeous
day, thanking God for simple pleasures like these unhurried moments
and hours.
Caught
an evening ferry home, along with all of the commuters. I believe
that every single seat was taken (it holds around 500 people). As
San Francisco continues to squeeze out middle income working people
and they move to more affordable places like East Bay (e.g.,
Oakland, Berkeley) or Marin County, commuting options like the
ferries will continue to dramatically grow in use as well. Not to
mention the use of the bridges!
On
Tuesday, we got an early start and took the 8:10 ferry, planning to
join a 10:00 walking tour of Russian Hill. Thought we had plenty of
time: arrive at the Ferry Terminal before 8:45, get a streetcar at
Market, get off at Powell to get a cable car to Russian Hill. All
went according to plan except catchng the cable car. We didn't
expect the morning lines to be even longer than the afternoon lines .
. . plus, it looked like they weren't boarding some of the cars
because they were using them as trainers. So, we missed our tour.
So we just explored Russian Hill on our own (other than crooked
Lombard Street, which we'd already experienced). The residents here
had
better be in good shape to get around these streets!
But
the views must be worth it!
Ate
our picnic lunch on a bench in a little hidden pocket park on the
hill, which was used as a de
facto
dog park by a couple of local residents. One very friendly pooch
came up to us and patiently and hopefully waited for some offerings
from us.
A
cable car whisked us down to the Wharf, where we booked an afternoon
boat cruise.
While we waited for our boat tour, a sea lion entertained us:
We
thought it would be a nice way to end our stay in this magnificent
city. And it was. It took us westward across the northern shore,
retracing our bike ride in reverse: past the by now familiar
downtown skyline, with its anchoring landmarks of Coit Tower &
the Transamerica Pyramid,
past
Fort Mason, past Chrissy Field & the Palace of Fine Arts
and
under the Golden Gate.
Then a
turn-around close to Alcatraz,
around Angel Island, and under the Bay
Bridge, which we'd not seen up close before. That's one of the
reasons we chose this cruise – it went under both bridges.
The
90-minute tour served as a very fine encapsulation of our 2+ weeks
exploring and experiencing this City by the Bay. Yes, we could
easily leave our hearts here!
Back
on the Embarcadero & the wharf, Bill got a ticket for a
submarine which had served in WWII, the U.S.S.
Pampinito. It's
anchored here now, and enables tourists to catch a glimpse of what it
would have been like to have served aboard a sub like this. Summary:
close, hot quarters! And dangerous: ¼ of our subs were sunk. But
they served a vital purpose, destroying 55% of all of the Japanese
fleet which we brought down.
After
a quick but relaxing (and inexpensive!) meal at Chipotle, another
cable car ride to our last hill of the day and of our stay: iconic
Nob Hill. We'd made a brief stop here a week or so ago, but
returned for a more lingering look. Of course, Nob Hill has always
been associated with the elite – first, the mansions built by the
railroad and mining barons of the 19th
century, only to be destroyed in 1906. Only one of those mansions
remains. It's a very exclusive gentlemen's club now. Not sure what
the $1m membership initiation dues buys you, except to say that
you're a member. Along with George Bush.
Other
than that single mansion, (S)Nob Hill is now the domain of high end hotels (the
Mark Hopkins,
the
Fairmont),
and
luxury apartments.
One
final cable car ride down from Nob Hill to Market Street. We'll miss
those fun, historic, picturesque rides, along with signature
clanging bells!
And
one last ferry ride home. Quite melancholy as we pulled out of the
dock.
We
had such a fun time for these past 2 ½ weeks. Feel we really
saw & experienced San Francisco in some depth, not just a
superficial glance at the highlights. Of course we did the expected
tourist things – but saw and did a lot more . . . from spending an
afternoon at a 19th
century fort, to taking intimate walking tours of a small locale and
getting some insider info, to exploring some neighborhoods on our
own, to leisurely bicycling around the city. Once again, how blessed
are we to have such luxurious time!
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