Day 7: First day in San Francisco

After a good night's sleep, we all awoke lazily. It felt nice to snuggle in bed comfortably, with no real rush - afterall, we were going to be in SF until the weekend. 

The kids were excited as they had friends (two children of similar ages, my friend's kids). I was excited to be able to do laundry! And I think the husband got well-deserved rest from driving - it is exhausting, after all. 

The morning was spent packing, laundry, having a simple breakfast - just like it was our home - bread, coffee, cereal, fruit... and we had no real plan for the day. We had friendly chat with my gf (who left for work slightly later), who recommended places to go, food to eat, spots to visit... by the time we left the home, it was late morning. 

We went to have chinese food - not Panda Express (the American version of food court economic rice), but proper, Chinese food. Ten years ago, we had that and I remember it being pretty yummy and thankfully, the restaurant wasn't too far away from her home and so we went!

I. Was. In. Food. Heaven. 

Dimsum spread, happy Chinese people, a giant siew mai.
(In the top-right pic, try spotting K)

It was such a happy meal. Personally, I thought the food super and it really hit the spot. The only bummer was that K was still unwell, and spent it pretty much horizontal. Poor girl.

After the meal, we made our way to the Bart Station. We then commuted to Powell Station in the city.

Happy lunch = happy commuters

It felt nice, being in the city of San Francisco. It was familiar, the sights were bustling, and it felt surreal. The weather was warm and sunny, with cool winds.

A boy and his toy - the Fire Truck

On the streets of SF

Poor K was still not well, as you can see from the picture above. She just wanted to rest. We walked the streets, passed Nike Town (I remember having a lot of fun in there my last trip!) and with no real aim, decided to head for Fisherman's Wharf. We took a bus from a bus stop some streets off Union Square and it was an interesting bus ride. It passed through Chinatown and there are so many Chinese people, old Chinese people. They move quite slowly, but they are still mobile and independent, such a lovely sight that they are going ahead with their lives still in good health. 

When we reached the stop for the Wharf, we got off and practically rolled down the slopes. Haha, forgotten how hilly the place is. The kids were both fighting for the pram - K was unwell and J was whiney and tired for milk - so we had to find a pitstop to settle them both. J was in a happy mood once he had his milk, and graciously gave up the pram to his sick sister. 

We strolled down the streets towards Pier 39. The winds were cool, the skies were bright. It was lovely.

Pretty tulips, my rowdy boys, and my poor sick K

Wandering about Pier 39

Watching the sealions

We didn't do much, just spent time strolling around and taking in the sights. It felt relaxed and the boy was so happy that we were happy too. The little girl was recharging and slept all the way till dinner time.

See the man in the back with the drum set? He played such awesome music!

We settled for dinner at No. 9 Fisherman's Grotto. We opted for outdoor seating so that we could hear music from the amazing busker, while basking in the natural winds of the pier.

Bread served, while waiting for our food

Happy chowder chomper

It was a meal so filling and so yummy. By the time I finished my wine, I was well-toasted. We wanted to let the kids experience the cable car, so off we went.

J insisted on taking a pic with the pirate. High spirits!

While queueing up for the cable car, my little boy made friends with others in the queue. It was quite adorable to watch him banter and stand his own. My little girl, however, was still unwell and she didn't even have the appetite to eat any dinner. I think she had some crackers and bread.

Cable car pic - see? Poor K.

On the other hand... someone's happy

We headed back home the same way we came. And on the Bart, everyone pretty much wound down.

KO

By the time we reached home, K was slightly energised as she'd been resting and the poor girl was hungry. She had some apple slices and dry cereal and went to sleep. J knocked out and we all went to sleep after a long day out. 

I stayed up to chat with my girlfriend and it was so nice. Lovely, lovely day 1 in SF.

Read about our last day here.