"When you get tired of walking around in San Francisco, you can always lean against it."

On our first day off from work (and the Fourth of July), we decided to make the trip to San Francisco. I haven't been in years, and Tim's never been, so this was really exciting.

We made it!

So I tried to explain to Timothy what the streets look like in San Francisco. "Super curvy, really steep, and exhausting. Thank goodness for the cable cars!" I really don't do it justice, but for those who have been, you understand. 

This really cool sign that even had the most recent USSC decisions listed!

When you look ahead in San Francisco, you see a normal street. Everything is okay, legit, and you're not sweating. After all, it's right on the bay and extremely windy. Fast-forward 45 seconds, and you're looking at a 45 degree angle. Halfway up, that breeze isn't so breezy anymore. And your legs are burning. And you're thirsty. But if you stop, you will literally tumble back down.

Cable car, ya'll!

Again, thank GOODNESS for cable cars! We bought an all-day ticket, and took a trip up one of the crazy street. We jumped off at the top, only to shop at Barneys (of course), Neiman Marcus (duh), and Bloomingdales (is there any other?). Next thing we knew, we were at the bottom of San Francisco again--Pier 39 to be exact. We were ready to make another cable car trip back up to check out Lombard Street (the curviest? street in the world), when all of a sudden...

Tim's first and last time on a cable car.

The cable cars were broken. Literally. All of them. Not one cable car worked. If this isn't exactly what I should have expected to happen, I don't know what is. 

Now since Timothy has never been to San Fran or seen Lombard Street, he was determined to check it out. ...have you seen the hike up to Lombard Street? It is literally the steepest, craziest road in the world. But this is Timothy we're talking about, and not even my laziness can stop him. After serious coaxing, I agreed to accompany him on this unlikely quest at the expense of a slice of sourdough pizza.

Nom nom sourdough pizzaaa.

So we start our tread up the hill. Halfway up (basically, halfway to hell), I see Ghiradelli Square. The birthplace of the most delicious chocolate in the world. As my second weakness, I cannot pass up chocolate anything. Also, this broke up our training-for-a-marathon hike. So Tim grabbed us seats, whle I grabbed us food.

Of course, I settled on the frozen cappuccino, frozen cafe au lait, and a large hot fudge sundae in a chocolate-covered waffle bowl. All for the small price of 349823598 calories. And let me tell you, it was worth it.

I guess I need to walk up a mountain after that...

Anyway, so on we went. What seemed like hours, took only about 20 more minutes. Finally, we made it to the top of Lombard Street. We watched other tourists hop out of cabs, fresh-faced and excited. We, however, walked the entire way up, and "glistened" more than were fresh-faced. Tomay-to, tomah-to, because we made it.

Started from the bottom, now we hea? 

Lombard Street, from the bottom up. 

After that horrendous experience (just kidding, I'm being dramatic), it was time for lunch (again). We settled on The Foghorn Harbor, which is a nice little seafood restaurant in Fisherman's Wharf. I've heard never to eat seafood in Fisherman's Wharf (Tourist Mistake #2 in Frommers), but this place came so highly recommended, we had to check it out. 

The view from the restaurant. 

It wasn't much to comment on, but the restaurant DID have an excellent drink selection...MY MOSCOW MULE!

The most delicious drink around: THE MOSCOW MULE!

 Scrumptious. After lunch, we noticed how PACKED San Francisco all-of-a-sudden became. We arrived at around 9AM, and it was totally empty. Now, at 3PM, the amount of people basically tripled.

Wowzer. PIER 39!

We tried to do a little more sight-seeing, but the crowds were ridiculous. I did find this adorable sign in a wine shop that I desperately need...

So it was getting hot and the people were swarming in the city. It was now about 5:00, and the fireworks didn't start until 9:30. Since we maybeee peaked too soon, we decided to head back to Walnut Creek to enjoy more local fireworks. But not before...

WE DROVE OVER THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE!

It really was an amazing experience. We intended to walk it, but all of the parking lots were full. :( Oh, well. Next time, San Fran.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's adventure in NAPA!