Monday 4 August 2014

USA Day 5. Fisherman's wharf

I had a bit more of a plan today compared to yesterday's aimless wandering and general appreciation of the city. After breakfast (which the hostel provides free!) I headed north intending to get to the tourist-hub of San Francisco which is Fisherman's Wharf. 
It was another absolutely beautiful day - I never really get sick of waking up to endless blue skies!
 I managed to avoid a lot of the really steep hills as I didn't fancy walking up another too steep with the blazing sun on my back! I found this gorgeous church and kind of stumbled into, what I've dubbed, a mini italy!
 Something about San Francisco Streets just seems so charming, I can't quire put my finger on what it is though
 'little Italy'! it's filled with bistros, cafes and restaurants selling all manner of italian goodness

 I really loved the walk up the Fisherman's Wharf. I decided to cut through the very centre of the city to get there, getting to see a lot of the city itself and I loved stumbling across cute little cafes and artist shops

 This restaurant's name certainly gave me pause! It's a Garlic Resturant!

 A sample of one of the steep streets littering the city
 I loved the name of this bar - I don't know why but it really amuses me!
 Looking down the road to the financial district!
 My first glimpse of the Bay Bridge (not the Golden Bridge, the other one)
 From here I headed up the Endarbardo

 I wandered out onto one of the pieces to get a better view of the Bay Bridge
 And to make sure I got a photo of myself in front of it
 or two..
 Then I just worked my way further along the waterfront, starting from Pier one!
Pier 39 is the 'main' pier in that it's one of the biggest and it's filled with shops and entertainment

A chocolate shop on the pier
 It was obviously busy on such a beautiful day!
 There was a great view over the marina and the Bay Bridge in the distance
 There was also a little magic show going on at the end of the pier

 One of the big attractions of the pier is that right next-door Sealions are often found sunning themselves and today was no exception! Although I know in spring all these platforms can be full!
 Just sunbathing!
 All along the wharf were great views looking back at the city!

 Ever since I saw Princess Diaries I've loved the idea of trying a Corn Dog at Fisherman's Wharf and today I made it a reality! All I can say is that it's… interesting! It's kind of a hot dog in a corn batter and fried, I think. The batter is weirdly sweet, and although I'm so glad I tried one I won't be getting another!
 A beautiful archway along the front

 Fisherman's Grotto is where all the fresh fish and crabs find their way into tasty dishes. They're famous for their mountains of crabs that they flash boil and you pay per lb.
 So many crabs!

 From the craziness of Fisherman's Wharf I followed Beach rd to, you guessed it, a little beach!
Stretching out in an arch from the beach was another, kind of pier thing which I walked along to get a bit of a view to the beach and the city


 This sign is about the famous San Francisco crabs you saw getting flash boiled
 Then I treated myself to an Irish Coffee! I went to the Cafe it was invented in, and let me tell you this stuff is strong! I really liked it but I couldn't even finish half it was just way too strong for me to handle!
After the final pier, and my irish coffee, I made my rather unsteady (I truly can't handle alcohol) way back along Fisherman's wharf (this time I just walked on the other side of the road to see the rest of the shops!
Seeing the financial district in the distance
A random giant cow in a chocolate shop!
Chocolate dipped cheesecake. I can't even get my head around that - it just sounds awfully sickly!
I couldn't resist going back down to the lower piers for the view of the financial district and the 'pyramid' - it's definitely a really lovely spot to mooch about as there's plenty of shade and benches (it's the little things) topped off with a great view of the Bay Bridge, the Skyline and the little boats as they go past

Ferry Building as the sun was setting - love this time of day when the sun just makes everything look so pretty!
Then I cut straight through the heart of Downtown through Market Street where I got to see the sunset amongst the skyscrapers! It was such a pretty end to the day
That's all from today, I'm exhausted from all the walking so I've just done a couple of captions and there's a significant absence of rambling (which I'm sure you're glad about). The rambling will return shortly I assure you though!

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