San Francisco

Just thought I would summarize the Girl and my awesome trip to San Fran. We did a lot of the tourist things but also encountered some rather delicious food and wine.

The first day was spent with a trip out to 'the Rock' - otherwise known as Alcatraz. My knowledge of the place did not extend beyond seeing the various movies that use this for the back drop. In fact, the movie "The Rock" with Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage, was played on a loop at a retail store I used to work in and I'm pretty confident in saying I can recite the movie verbatim. Other than being flooded with like minded tourists, the experience itself is quite good. There were a lot less cells than I expected, contrasted by the multi levels which really gave it the feel of the prisoners being crammed into the facility. Once you step out side there are some fantastic views of the city, and both the Bay and Golden gate bridges. Before we left, the Girl managed to snap a shot of me in the cell, not before reciting one of my favourite quotes: "How in Zeus's butthole, did you get out of your cell?"

Our breakfasts usually involved lining up for period (a half to a full hour) to be seated but they were definitely worth it. For our dinners we tried only the restaurants that infused locally sourced foods. The tasting menus were quite a treat but interestingly the wine pairings were mostly from outside the Napa region. Never the less, I recommend any of the following places: Honey Honey Cafe & Crepery (breakfast), farm:table (breakfast), Great Eastern Restaurant (Dim Sum), Aziza (dinner), Coi (dinner).

San Francisco is a great city. If you have the means I highly recommend a visit. 

On the road with the Knicks

We had some great seats for the Knicks visit to the Golden State Warriors. So much so, those who were watching it on television would have seen us sitting two rows behind the bench. That is if your gaze got past the woman in front of us dressed in a ridiculous yellow outfit that can only be described as a banana.

Heading into the lounge we also were able to use the same tunnel as the players. A freedom not usually afforded to us, the Girl even tried her luck following them into the locker rooms.

Fortunately for us the Knicks pulled off an emphatic win, much to the dismay of a very vocal home crowd. It was a fine ending to our trip and made up for the spanking the Warriors had bestowed upon the Knicks in the Garden a month earlier.

The Cable Car Ride

Riding one of the USA's only moving National Historic Landmarks, seemed like a potentially perilous experience. Queueing at the start of the line, I noticed that the majority of punters were jostling for a seat on the outside. The small few that were standing up, clinging to the rails, definitely intrigued my interest. The Girl of course knew I would want to take this position.

Once we boarded I got the pole position standing at the front of the car and was told a couple of times not to lean out from the car. Passing the first oncoming Cable Car I realised the background of this warning. In my estimation the two cars pass within a meter of each other, which is not a lot of room if both passengers are hanging from the side. The car itself doesn't build up much speed and the straight tracks only require minimum restraint, but the exposure to the outside of the car is a surreal experience. Every cross street or passing car I was mindful and ready to pounce off at the slightest warning of danger. By the end of the journey I realised this was unwarranted. And despite accidents costing the city millions of dollars each year, not being strapped within the transportation kind of felt like I had better control of my own safety.