So what of San Francisco?

Once we were out of Yosemite the drive to San Francisco was easy, with crops and farmsteads on both sides of the road for most of the way – whether citrus orchards or sweetcorn, strawberries or grapes as well as the occasional farm shop advertising local produce for about a mile before they were reached.

We stopped at a couple, attracted by the promise of ten avocados for $1 as well as fruit for the journey and something different to bring home.

I had opted to return the car to the airport and was glad I had done despite the additional cost of travelling to the hotel. The process was very straightforward and I’d even paid the bill almost before I’d parked the car. There is a whole multi-storey car park dedicated to car rental. It’s very well signposted and there was no fuss about anything.

I had photographed the mileage when we first selected the car. It was 18719.

I photographed it again as we returned it. 22393.

Total 3674 miles.

It’s also worth noting the temperatures: 70F in Denver, building right up to 122F (50C) in Death Valley and well over 100 in other places and then back to 73 on arrival in San Francisco. It was even colder at Heathrow three days later!!!

Getting a taxi in to town was less straightforward. There were no Ubers (my new skill!) available (not so skilful!) so we gritted our teeth and ‘hailed’ a local taxi that was ‘on the rank’. we weren’t impressed with the driver!

but we were impressed with our hotel. Hotel Zephyr is really well placed near Fisherman’s Wharf and we were very happy with the room and our view of Alcatraz. I need not have been concerned about the ‘quirkiness’ that was the focus of the online write-up.

Pier 39 was literally round the corner and across the road so we opted to stretch our legs and explore in the evening. ‘Chowders’ is highly recommended – good portions, speedy service and good prices. Fish and chips (all fresh and freshly cooked or Shrimp and chips $14.99. The clam chowder served in a big sourdough bun the size of a Sally Lunn seemed a bit much and neither of us felt able to manage it. Indeed, most people we saw choose it ended up throwing most of the bun away.

There was an enticing pancake cafe – ihop – next to the hotel that looked a good bet for breakfast but queues when we looked next morning were long, so we walked round the corner to Starbucks and made our way to the Big Bus hop on, hop off service. Again there were queues and while the staff were both pleasant and efficient in filling the buses the process was really slow and there always seemed to be a ten minute wait before departure. In the end, one cycle took pretty well all day as we decided to do the free walking tour of Chinatown which was included. A little retail therapy at Union Square and we were at the end of another day.

Having had dim sum in Chinatown we didn’t need a meal. We had seen the sights from the outside and had crossed the Golden Gate bridge.

What had really struck me, though was the San Francisco skyline and I was looking forward to getting better shots the next day – earlier with more sympathetic light.

I enquired about Alcatraz – especially as we could see it from our room – but there really wasn’t time available for what was on offer so we boarded the bus again to get photos of the bridge…..hmm! When we got to the approach road there was an enormous gasp from all on board – no bridge to be seen – that infamous cloud made it difficult to see even the very solid towers. Big mistake not to have taken more photos the previous day!

What a difference!!

Having used up our twenty four hour pass, we explored the public transport system to get to a shop I wanted to visit in the afternoon. I must be looking my age after all the driving as I was immediately offered a Senior Clipper card. I accepted, loaded it with a stingy $2 and was set for an underground ride and a tram ride. Adult fare $6.

We also walked a fair bit – more than 10,000 steps today. Having sorted my shopping we looked for ice-cream and found a nearby ‘gourmet’ ice-cream specialist ‘Salt and Straw’ – not the most enticing name but GREAT ice-cream.

Another visit to ‘Chowders’, some last minute shopping on Pier 39 and back to packing.

My flight didn’t take off until 19.50 so I needed to fill the time between Somjit’s leaving at 9.15 and my taxi at 16.00.

After posting the Yosemite blog and checking out I decided to walk to Lombard Street – the bendy street- one block of hairpin bends. Apple Maps said 15-20 mins with a significant incline.

I was pleased to have got there and spent a fun half hour watching a variety of vehicles drive through the chicanes before walking back to the Zephyr via a different Starbucks, watching the old streetcars and then relaxing in the lounge before meeting the taxi driver: the same Vietnamese guy who had taken Somjit earlier.

Most of this was written in the air, mid-Atlantic. I’ve enjoyed (as much as one ever can enjoy being in a metal tube in the air!) – the United Airlines Dreamliner experience. A pretty good airline meal, a movie, a nap, a snack, a nap, breakfast and actually watching the sun rise. All provided distraction from the constant cries of the child in front.

Lessons learnt?

• Don’t rely on time predictions from online maps
• Remember if there are valleys there must be mountains to climb and descend and climb again
• Don’t expect hillside roads to be straight
• Sometimes it’s best to stay in rather than near a centre – I wished we had done that in Las Vegas even though I would probably not have enjoyed the drive and was glad we had opted for touristy Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco
• Don’t expect opening hours to be the same as at home – wherever home is!
• Take advantage of as many money-saving offers as you can (in our case this included the option of a hybrid car)
• Take warnings seriously – we met a bison at rather close quarters in Yellowstone
• Don’t expect to do all you hoped to do unless you’ve allowed more time than you think you need.
• Don’t assume souvenirs are made locally even if they seem to claim to be: I found a few things that looked ‘local’ but were actually made in China. It was worth asking.
• Do listen to others who have visited before or who know the area

Would I do it again? You bet I would!