One Final Fun Filled Day

The next day we were up bright and early yet again, though we actually slept in until about 9:00AM.  Woo hoo!  Today we would be walking past Pier 39 again for some touristy trinkets before taking the trek over to Ghirardelli. 

The train ride was one of the strangest I had taken in a while and this is from someone who lives in NYC.  There was a very angry woman who kept yelling at people for random reasons, but mostly if they appeared to be of a certain race.  Our group confused the hell out of her which was fine as it kept us in the clear for the most part.  I won’t lie, it was interesting to hear her go off on a foul mouth tirade only to fall quiet for a moment before the next trolley stop.  As soon as the doors opened, she would start screaming again as the next group of passengers got on and sat next to her.  The look of horror on their faces as she screamed at the top of her lungs was mildly entertaining, but after a while her hate spewed messages got on my nerves and I tried to sleep.  Not going to happen as someone accidently touched her bag with their leg as they walked past her setting her off into an even crazier fevered pitch of obscenities.  From there, she kept targeting this poor Japanese tourist about how she had “accidently on purpose” hit her bag. 

Craptastic Photo

Now I am not a fan of the crazy tour buses or “party” buses as they are called.  You know the ones I am talking about.  Those buses that play cheesy party music while the passengers wear silly hats and sing along while the tour guide tells terrible jokes.  Yeah, that one.  Look, I won’t judge you for taking one, at least you got out of your hometown and decided to travel so that’s a start.  But I won’t lie, they really do annoy the hell out of me.

Well, for the first time in my life the Party Bus did the most amazing thing possible to which I would owe it my gratitude forever.  It shut the screaming beast up for the rest of our ride.  The Party bus was right next to us playing some disturbing disco song which stopped her ranting and raving for the first time in 20 minutes.  She opened her window and started to ask where she could join the party bus as the disco music appeared to bring her back to the happy place of her youth.  Between the tour guide giving her information about the tour through the window and her fascination with disco, this women was quiet for the rest of the ride.  Who knew disco could hold so much awesome power.  Thanks Party Bus!

Just What the Sign Says

After the ride from hell, we looked at a few shops but found them spendy and decided to grab some lunch.  I opted to eat fresh at Subway as my system was shutting down from all the garbage and booze I had been putting into my body.  The others totally went for it and grabbed the In and Out Burger option.  After my memory of the Animal Fries, I knew I just couldn’t do it as it brought back too many bad memories. 

But I wasn’t completely giving up on destroying my system, I was just saving it up for our trip to Ghirardelli.  I see it this way, you won’t feel as bad if you eat healthy for most of the day and then blow it later on on something that is really bad for you.  In the end, I didn’t do that poorly as I only ordered a sugar filled hot chocolate and a mocha cupcake from the store next door.  Damn it was good and life remained a wonderful thing.

After Ghirardelli, we decided to check out the Palace of the Fine Arts in the Marina District.  A little history lesson: the Palace of the Fine Arts was built for The Panama Pacific Exposition of 1915.  After the Expo was finished, the structure was supposed to be completely demolished.  That is until a group of 33,000 people signed a petition to save the palace portion of the exhibit. 

Behold!  The Palace of Fine Arts!!!

The Palace was looked after by different groups, but over time it began to fall in disrepair due to its poor structure.  The Palace of Fines Arts was never built for longevity as it was only suppose to be in use until the end of the Expo in 1915.  In 1964 The Palace was completely torn down except for the original steel beams and rebuilt to its former glory though a hell of a lot more stable.

At this time, The Palace of Fines Arts is under construction yet again making it less accessible to the masses as it is not possible to look at much of it due to the cyclone fences everywhere.  In the long run, it is worth it as it really is a beautiful and unique asset to San Francisco.  Having been there before, I have some unobstructed photos, so I will use those as they have more wow factor. 

The Palace of Fines Arts is definitely one of my favorite places in San Francisco.  In fact, if I were ever to move back, you would fine me there often as it is just that wonderful.  It really is beautiful and quite special.  The neighborhood itself is quite amazing, but the transportation is quite limited to get there, but there is a bus that does the trick, though it is one long ride depending where you are coming from.

The Columns of the Palace

After The Palace, we headed over to a viewing area to see the Golden Gate Bridge as I had only seen it in passing a few times in the brief time I was in San Francisco.  By the time we hit the beach area, it was foggy, windy and very cold.  I turned to look over at my beloved bridge only to find a hint of the orange red paint peeking out from behind the thick fog.  Yes, the bridge was covered in fog.  Not surprising, it was San Francisco, but still disappointing none the less.  Still, we all had a great time walking along the beach taking photos and drifting off into our own little worlds.  Even with the poor weather, the area was teaming with life, from joggers to bicyclists, picnickers to boaters, tourists to photographers.  It really was a lively area.  We continued to walk around the area until we found our bus stop which was in a beautiful area that most people in this lifetime will never be able to afford. 

I was running out of time, so I decided to get myself packed up before heading to dinner.  The other three would be staying another night as they would be leaving in the morning.  We wanted to stay near by the hotel, so we headed to a nearby Thai Restaurant without checking the reviews.  Always, check the reviews, my friend.  The service was great, the food, not so much.  I was a little disappointed as I love Thai food, but at least this meal would stop the gluttony that had surrounded this trip as I had no interest in finishing my meal. 

Look Ma!  Alcatraz! 

So we dodged a few needles on the way back to the hotel, grabbed my things and were off to the airport for my redeye flight.  All and all, the trip had been a huge success.  Yes, I was disappointed I didn’t get to fully see the view of the San Francisco Bridge, but I guess I can look at past photos or do a Google search, but it isn’t the same.  Still, almost every other aspect had been a winner even if they started out a little rough.

One thing I know for sure is that I will be back to San Francisco.  I absolutely love this city and though it is expensive, I could see myself living here again someday.  I live in NYC, I can handle expensive, trust me.  So, if you see yourself heading the West Coast, definitely stop by the amazing city as it is one of a kind.