SF Day 2: The Waterfront, Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39

Thursday, June 14th, 2012:
Day 2 of my Adventures in SF! Started off the day with breakfast at La Boulange, this cute French place that both Lauren and Will agreed would be a hit if they opened in Socal. I can see why!

Started off the day with Cream of Mushroom Soup and a Salmon quiche from La Boulange. It was more appetizing than this photo makes it look. 

Lauren got a BLT sandwich om nom. So many good food places in SF!

Originally the plan was to visit Berkeley on Thursday, but apparently there was some huge fire near the BART tracks in Oakland at 2am the night before so some of the lines were shut down. I checked on the website and it said that one of the lines to Berkeley was still running, but lo and behold when I arrive at the BART station that line is not running either. (Note to self: Should have called them! Websites are unreliable.) Seriously a 3 hour flight delay and then the BART catches on fire? I asked my friends afterwards too and they said that this never happens. Whoo lucky me. Definitely a transportation jinx.

So change of plans. While Lauren was busy at the DMV that afternoon her mom dropped me off at the waterfront and let me explore on my own. Katfu does some solo wandering. :)

Boats! :D

I have this thing for vast expanses of water. They make me happy. 

Ghirardelli Square from a distance and in the daytime!

Oh hey there beautiful SF- never knew skyscrapers could be so pretty. :]

The official name for the waterfront area. :)

Beeeuuutiful :D

Alcatraz from afar

More scenic shots of SF

I spy Coit Tower and the Transamerica building ohohoh.

So after walking along the waterfront, I decided to  mosey on over to (and past) Fisherman's Wharf. 

Walked past Boudin Sourdough with their awesome bread critters

Hello there bread turtle-making man

I liked the turtles the best. keke.

Walked all the way to Pier 39. My feet were starting to get sore by this time.

Pier 39 with its colorful shops and restaurants. Also, I see Coit Tower in the distance! :]

So many boats!

Funny-looking grass and metal crab at the front

I got super hungry walking back so decided to buy bread (Dutch Crunch) from Boudin's

Food with history. I like.

This isn't a good representation, but I loved how much character all of the buildings in SF had.  So different from the cookie cutter houses of Irvine suburbia!

In the evening, I went out to dinner with Lauren's family and a few of their family friends. Honestly, it was really nice of them to let me tag along with them and their friends are great! They were an elderly couple, technically more friends of Lauren's grandfather, and it was really nice listening to their life stories. I really feel like I always gain a much greater appreciation for history when I meet older people who talk about their life stories and the social context of their experiences, as I realize that these people actually lived through some of the things we're required to learn about in school. It's hard sometimes to focus on dry text and black ink on white pages when it seems so dead in the books in front of you, but people are really what bring it all to life!

Haha, so no photos of the dinner, but the food was delicious. We went to a restaurant in Chinatown, and Lauren's mom said they don't eat out often, but when they do they do it big, and they definitely did not lie about that. So much food! When the waiters kept bringing out more dishes I thought it was never-ending...and also wondered how it was all going to fit on the table. Eat fast to fit more! haha. And to make it perfect, cheesecake for dessert (my favorite hehe). 

So even though Berkeley didn't work out, it was all for the best. Still a great day regardless!