About the Trip

We had such a great time on our trip to San Fransisco. We fell in love with the city, it is so fun and beautiful.

Thank you so much for the people who so graciously accepted to take our children for a couple of days, it was the perfect amount of time to be away. Thank you to all for allowing us some time away to have some fun as a couple. It was just what we needed as we continue to work through this difficult time as we are coming up on the first year anniversary. Thank you all for your unselfish service in our behalf.

Our trip began early as our flight left around 10:30. We arrived in SF around noon. The first item on the itinerary (yes we had one) was going to the temple. This part of the trip I refer to as our Oakland Adventure. We checked into the hotel and then hopped on the BART which is the subway through both cities. We took this to Oakland and could see the temple sitting high on the foothills of the city. Oakland is an industrial type of place. There were lots of shipping areas and factories. The streets were narrow and crowded. We decided to take a cab up to the temple. We met a very interesting cab driver, but aren't they all? He was very nice and talkative and of course Mike shared the Gospel with him as we wound up through the steep hills of Oakland. We made it up there and then arranged for him to come pick us up after. The Oakland temple is beautiful and sits high up on a hill and overlooks both cities and the bay. Truly majestic and breathtaking. The cab driver told us many people use it as a guide when driving around. The inside of the temple was huge as well as you can imagine. It felt a lot like the Salt Lake Temple in size. The session went well and then we walked around for a bit after. We went over to the visitor center and toured that while waiting for our ride. We then made it back to the subway and headed back into SF.

Our first item on the list then was to eat at the historic Joe's Cable Car Diner. This was Mike's pick which he got off of Diner, Drive In and Dives on Food Network. We loved it, so yummy. It has been there since 1965. It is a very small place about 10 tables. They hand cut the beef and then put it in the grinder for every order fresh. The butcher that night was named Nelson. Funny! We got a picture by him, it was a fun evening.

The next morning we arose early and were picked up by Tower Tours to begin our Deluxe City Tour. Our first stop on the tour was crossing over and then stopping near the Golden Gate Bridge as seen in the pictures. So beautiful. The weather was perfect, so sunny and warm, no fog, just great. Our next stop on the tour was at Golden Gate Park near the bridge. We were able to see where they do the outdoor shows in the summer and then toured the famed Japanese Tea Garden. This was a quiet, peaceful, beautiful place. We loved it. We then drove past the famed "Painted Ladies" which are the row of houses made famous from "Full House." Our next stop was at City Center and we walked around the financial area for a bit.

We were dropped off at Fisherman's Wharf by the bay. We then ate at the famous Boudine Bakery which was where sourdough was first invented. We enjoyed a great lunch of a clam chowder bread bowl. They made beautiful loaves of bread out of bears, crabs, lobsters, and snakes. The bakery was huge and toted around the bread in big baskets high above your head on an pulley system, it was fascinating, I loved it.

After lunch we hopped on a large Ferry Boat and went on an hour tour of the bay. This was so fun, we went around and under the Golden Gate Bridge and then went around Alcatraz.

After the ferry boat we walked the wharf and saw and smelled the famous sea lions at Pier 39. There were loud and stinky. We walked around the fun stores of that area. Then we ended up getting on the cable car and got off near Lombard Street. I loved Lombard Street. So fun, So San Fransisco. We then got a little lost because we did not have a car. We were getting around on the bus and the BART. We did have a great map and found a kind local who pointed us the right direction to the restaurant.

I had chosen this restaurant and it came highly recommended. It was called Enrico's and has been opened since 1958. There were many famous people who have eaten there. Famous poets, authors like Steinbeck. It used to be a great hangout for the beatniks during the 60's and 70's, in short it was quite historic. What the guide book failed to mention was that it was not in the best side of town. The food was excellent. Italian Bistro style we shared a great salad and pizza. We ate there and loved it and then walked/jogged out of the area because it was a more than a little scary and was able to get back on the subway to the hotel. What a fun and perfect full day. We loved every moment of it even the bad side of town.