San Francisco: Wharfs and Witches

Thanks to an Air Force Family Day on Friday and the federal holiday on Monday, Matt had a 4-day weekend over the 4th of July. Only a crazy person wouldn't take advantage of that! Luckily, we're not crazy and neither are our friends Talon and Carolyn. After Matt came home from work on Thursday, the four of us hit the road to San Francisco. And even more lucky? Talon's big sister Tylee lives in San Francisco and invited us to stay with her. Even with the dozens of day trips I've taken to SF during my life, I've never actually stayed in the city before, so waking up on California Street was a treat!

Since Tylee had to work on Friday, we decided to kick the most touristy locations off our list first thing. Therefore, Friday found us down Embarcadero at Fisherman's Wharf.

If Pier 39 isn't touristy, I don't know what is. It was teeming with visitors--most of whom, we observed, were from other countries. A few that we talked to told us they'd come to see how America celebrates our Independence Day. How cool is that? Anyway, the pier was kind to us that day. We ate clam chowder in a bread bowl, caught the last of the Uruguay vs. Ghana soccer game (PKs in the World Cup are always exciting) and enjoyed views of the city and the bay.

(Pssst--These are our friends Carolyn and Talon. Aren't they pretty?)

We had fun watching the sea lions for awhile--their sun bathing routines mixed with random "growls" never cease to entertain me. Then Matt and I sat at the end of the pier for a bit, just smelling the ocean and enjoying the perfect San Francisco weather. We took a picture with Alcatraz and promised ourselves we'd make our way over there on our next SF trip. Somehow, while growing up in Northern California, I managed to be sick or out of town for all of the Alcatraz field trips my schools went on, so I've still never been. Go figure.

After leaving the pier, we went on a little walk to Ghiradelli Square, enjoying the many people-watching opportunities along the way. Matt and I introduced Talon and Carolyn to the sheer goodness that is found in Ghiradelli ice cream sundaes. I'm hungry just thinking about it!

With our bellies fully satisfied, we hurried back to Tylee's for a quick wardrobe change and hopped on the bus to meet up with Tylee and Pierre at Union Square. We refrained from shopping (7 stories of Macy's can prove dangerous!) and opted for Tylee's super-secret view of the city instead. It was such a clear day that we could see for miles!

The video of the view doesn't seem to want to upload, so enjoy a screenshot for now:

Our tour guides (Tylee and Pierre) then took us to the Food Emporium at Westfield Mall, which is a food court like no other. Instead of McDonald's and Taco Bell, the Emporium boasts an eclectic mix of organic and international foods. It was very delicious and very San Francisco, to say the least. We wrapped up dinner just in time to head to our last destination of the day: Orpheum Theatre.

Yes, Matt and I have both already seen Wicked--him in Denver and me on Broadway. (And in case you were wondering, moving home from New Jersey a week early instead of using my tickets to see the original cast of Wicked is still my biggest regret in this life.) But we hadn't seen it together and really, any excuse is good enough to merit seeing the best musical of all time again.

I got chills as the music started, and they stayed there for pretty much the entire performance. It's such a powerful play.

You can't help but love an evening at the theater!