San Francisco Travel Notes
After a long incursion into the remote and magnificent islands of French Polynesia, November came and with it came our short stint in San Francisco, the last stop in an epic journey that would shape my taste in travel forever.
An image of Tahiti under rain, the mountainous island looking lush and gorgeous, as our plane was lifting into the clouds was still playing in my mind when we started descending upon San Francisco.
We were about to witness a landing at sunset, the best kind, when the city looks ablaze and full of promises. It was a good moment to shake off the Polynesian images and prepare for my first taste of California. The Christmassy atmosphere of San Francisco and its iconic cable car descending the hill on Powell street, approaching its end of line where we were eagerly expecting it, backpacks full of Tahitian souvenirs hanging heavy, would stay steeped in my memory forever.
Cable car arriving on Powell Street
Our accommodation at Cornell Hotel de France was a pleasant surprise, with its French paintings and a vintage elevator, reminiscing of a bygone era, where women wore flapper dresses and cloche hats while dating American gangsters – a truly vintage set-up. The cherry on the top was the Paul Gauguin replica in our room of the Ta Matete painting, featuring vibrant Tahitian women in a social setting – it seemed that Polynesian elements were watching over us until the very end of our journey.
We deemed it appropriate to commence our exploration of San Francisco by riding the cable car from our hotel until the end of the line on Taylor’s Street, a superb ride that made me burst with excitement at each San Francisco hill looming behind the main street buildings. I did not expect this city to be so architecturally gorgeous.
We rode a bike in tandem from the Fishermen’s Wharf towards the Crissy Field and the Golden Gate Postcard Viewpoint, which revealed stunning views of the Golden Gate bridge. Under the clear sky and generous sun, the bridge was as majestic as the movies portray it, dolphins swirling in the waters underneath and its orange color intensified by the bright light. Pedaling in tandem or striving to, wind in our backs and the Californian sun washing our faces, we made our way back from the bridge towards the Palace of Fine Arts and reached it when the golden dusk light was enveloping its pink columns. It was the perfect place for a sunset stroll, with so many good angles for snapping a good photo and engaging in some people watching.
Our second day in San Francisco found us riding the cable car on Montgomery Street towards the ferry building which was featuring a bustling fresh market, with lots of enticing food stands. We stocked up on empanadas and Japanese rice balls and caught the tram back towards the Fishermen’s wharf.
A generous amount of time was spent wandering through the many souvenir shops at Pier 39, taking in the Christmas vibes and gaping along the way at the views of the bay, the sea lions gathered on the pier, and the famous Alcatraz prison, an unperturbed fort in the middle of the bay.
The second part of the day found us riding an electric bus uphill on Telegraph hill, passing through Washington square which was abuzz with Saturday vibes. On top of the Coit tower, we reveled at the panoramic view of the city, its neighborhoods displayed in such perfect geometric fashion.
After descending from the Coit tower we headed towards Montgomery street - I was adamant to snap a photo in front of the Transamerica Pyramid, which has been engaging my attention from so many angles of the city. The evening found us jolly and hungry in Chinatown, which was just starting to come alive, the red lanterns and neon lights lighting up to create the unmistakable atmosphere of an Asian market.
Transamerica Pyramid as seen from Montgomery street
Third day was market by a visit to Lombard street, the world crookedest street, winding so nicely under the morning sun, though it was not flower adorned at this time of the year. True to our long lasting love of dancing, we headed towards the Holden Gate park where we engaged in some weekend lindy hop dancing. I have fond memories of the moment in time, the end of an era of travelling so approaching or so I though and I was moving blissfully on jazz rhythms, so far away from home, yet so fulfilled.
The rest of our day was dedicated to some art intake at the fine arts de Young museum, where we made our acquaintance with the queen of Art Deco, Tamara de Lempicka. With limited energy left, we had a last stop at the Japanese Tea Garden, which was incredibly curated and beautiful, I could imagine the vibes in this place on a rainy day.
Before leaving San Francisco, we made a stop in Japantown, which was more like a large shopping area with plenty of food options, which we indulged in.
San Francisco had all the elements of great city, gorgeous architecture, iconic sights, large parks, curated gardens, plenty of social activities, a blend of Asian areas and last but not least its fames cable car, which was worth all the hype.
