Day 4

The Nob Hill apartment is really nice. It’s not particularly big, but it’s got everything we need and it’s in a great location. After a great night’s sleep we both woke pretty early (before 7am!) so were able to get up, pack a bag and get out by 8am.

First stop of the day was Mama’s – a café that Laura had read great things about – where we would get breakfast. The reviews online said that it was common for there to be a queue and that on Sundays in particular the queue could be at least an hour. When we arrived at 8.30am the queue was already about 50 people! Knowing in advance that there would be a queue, we weren’t surprised so got a spot and waited it out. It was bloomin’ cold queuing on a pavement before 9am - San Francisco in August seems very much like a windy Britain in March.

Two hours later we finally ate! It was worth the wait as the French toast sampler and pancakes were lovely (although I’m sure other cafés in San Francisco probably make equally good food).

French toast sampler - or cake with maple syrup and jam.

Pancakes :)

After our breakfast experience we walked up to Lombard street and watched as cars queued to drive down the wiggly road. Lots of people were taking pictures (us included) of the steep street.

View form Lombard Street

Pretty house on Lombard Street

We then wandered down to Canery Row and worked our way along to Fisherman’s Wharf.

Pretty tram

At Fisherman’s Wharf we went to the Musee Mechanique, which a museum of arcade games, pinball and other contraptions that take quarters off you and promise entertainment in return. The silliest of them all was a very old machine that had a diorama with four cowboys that said “DON’T PLAY IF YOU’RE EASILY OFFENDED”. Well, not wanting to miss something that might offend us, we put a quarter in and waited, and then… the cowboys made trumpy fart noises! And that was it! Very silly.

We spent a lot of quarters on a driving game that Laura was very good at and an old fashioned pinball game that was more mechanical than electrical.

After that we wandered around Pier 39 and looked at the seals and shops. At this point the cloud that had been lurking all day finally receded and blue sky appeared overhead. It actually became quite pleasant (well, when the wind wasn’t blowing).

 

Seals at Pier 39

Blue sky!

At 4pm we got an early dinner at the Franciscan crab house. We were seated at a table with an amazing view looking out across the bay to Alcatraz.

We shared a seafood combo of crab, mussels and shrimp and got very messy as we cracked our way into the crab to extract the meat. Hard work, but nice food.

After a post dinner coffee/tea we wandered down to Pier 33 where we had a 6.30pm reservation for the Alcatraz night tour.

The night tours are a but different to the regular daytime tours and you get guided talks, access to restricted areas and the chance to experience the island at night with fewer guests.

The ferry ride over was blowy and cold, so we both did our best to wrap up and stay warm.

Stupid San Francisco weather!

The self guided audio tour was great and really informative. For me, the best part of the night tour was the chance to experience the island with fewer people on it. At one point me and Laura were the only people in the cell block and it felt very eerie. Also seeing the old hospital wing was cool too.

Cell blocks 

View from Alcatraz

By the time the ferry returned to pick us up at 9.30pm we were both exhausted. It had been a long and tiring day of walking and sightseeing. I think we’d both been on out feet almost non-stop since 8am.

Rather than walk back up to Nob Hill, we instead walked along Cannery Row back to Ghirardeli Square and got on a trolley. Somehow we ended up being volunteered by the operator to cling on to the outside, so we found ourselves perched on to the side of the trolley as it hurtled up the street, but hey, who am I trying to kid – it was awesome! 

Crap blurry photo of Laura clinging on to the trolley just as it was about to leave.

We jumped off two blocks from our apartment and walked home shattered but happy. Bed now!