Another perfect day weather wise and a great day for checking more off the list! We started out by taking local transit to get us to Chinatown. This is the oldest Chinatown one of the largest and in North America. It covers 24 square blocks. When we got off the bus - we headed for the City Lights Booksellers at the top of this area and had a look around.
City Lights is an independents bookstore-publisher combination in San Francisco, CA that specializes i world literature, the arts ad progressive politics. (thank you Wikipedia) We had a quick look around and were soon on our way to wander the streets of Chinatown.
So many residents were out shopping today, we wandered in and out of some of the food stores and saw many interesting choices. Pam recognized some of the things - but mostly we were just taking in the ambiance, smells and general busyness of the area. We ended up having lunch at a place called China Live. Although beautiful and delicious, it was very pricey - we would have done better to eat anywhere else I think.
We walked to the Fortune Cookie Factory for our free tour. I was really looking forward to this. We walked down a really scenic alleyway and then suddenly there it was. Ok - so tour? not so much. Ten steps in and ten steps out and $1 for taking two pictures.
We witnessed the two employees making the wafers, inserting the fortune and then bending them into the shape. Still worth the visit. We did get to sample a fortune cookie wafer and we had the opportunity to buy some fortune cookies if we wanted to.
Our tummies full we left there to walk to the Cable Car Museum. It was all up hill. Wow I made it - but slowly at times. So into the museum we went. There is an interesting pictorial history with written description on the walls around the museum This is also the central powerhouse with the big winding wheels It was interesting to see the big wheels perpetually turning that winds the cables that move the cable cars on the 3 remaining routes up and down the hills. 
Then is was our turn to ride the cable car down to the Lombard Stop. We got off at the top of Lombard Street and then Pam walked down and back up. Pam chronicled this landmark.
I stayed up at the top and waited and watched as the different and varied modes of transportation wended their way down this famous twisty turny landmark. I know I could have made my way down, however, making my way back up would have been slow and arduous and we still had to get back on the cable car to see a few more things.
Next stop - Ghirardelli Square. We watched them turn the cable car around for the trip back up the hill and had a walk around the stores in the square. The wind was brutal and very chilling by the water today. We bought some chocolate (of course) then we decided to grab a Lyft car back to...
...The Fairmont Hotel - a landmark hotel and a visit to the Tonga Room Hurricane Tiki Bar. We each had a $10 cocktail (happy hour prices) and watch 2 hurricanes pass through i.e., flashing light, thunder noises and rain falling in the lagoon - an experience for sure. Pam is a great tour planner!
Now back at Tennessee Avenue, our home base, for some clam chowder, bread and cheeses that we still had from our shopping trip on Sausalito. It was another good night just to take it easy and settle in early. Tomorrow is The Coit Tower and some food truck fun down at Fort Mason.
1 comment:
Glad you got to the Cable Car Museum. It is a fascinating way of doing steep climb and drop transit. I do have a surprise for you from that experience that I got many years ago doing the same trip just after I was highjacked to Cuba. How all that has changed nowadays! I wonder if you can guess what the surprise is?
A fortune cookie factory with a 20 step experience for only $1 (Well, $1.31 Canadian) Your restaurant sounded like it was a surprise too. Back we go to the Dim Sum Diner again - Less money and more laughter!
Big hugs to the travellers and thank you for the blogging.
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