A San Francisco Repeat, Part 2

When Suzanne and John arrived to Vineyard RV Park, we made plans to bike the Golden Gate Bridge together.  The weather cooperated with no rain or fog and temperatures were in the mid 70's.  Arriving before noon at the parking lot on the northwest side of the Golden Gate Bridge, we easily find parking.  We are on our way..

We all cannot help but to stop and admire the views.

Bike and walker traffic was heavy on the east pedestrian side of the bridge this time.  It seemed good to get out of the rush of people, get some lunch and continue to explore more of this side of San Francisco.

 While standing on the bridge we noticed this huge dome-like structure and were intrigued how it was higher than the surrounding buildings, therefore we all decided to bike over and check it out.  It seems we have found the Palace of Fine Arts.  This impressive landmark was built in 1915 to showcase San Francisco's emergence from the devastating earthquake of 1906 and to signify the Panama Pacific International Exposition (a celebration of the completion of the Panama Canal.)  

Indeed, this place was remarkable with it's classical European feel.

There is also an adjoining theater building that showcases ballet and other dance/musical performances.  What is also amazing, this structure was meant to be torn down after the Exposition but because it was so popular, it was decided to leave it for the people to enjoy.
Click here for more historical information on the Palace of Fine Arts.

After exploring this prominent landmark, we needed some refreshment.  We bike over to the Ghirardelli Square and indulge in some of the best chocolate ice cream San Francisco has to offer.  Biking back over the Golden Gate Bridge, the views all change with the setting sun.  There are sail boat races on the bay and thankfully the pedestrian crowds on the bridge are reduced.  What a fantastic day we have shared with our friends, Suzanne and John.

You can see the dome-like structure of the Palace of Fine Arts in the photo below.  Look just above the trees to the center, left.

So Long San Francisco, thanks for the many wonderful memories we have made in this irresistible and enchanting city.

More Later
 as we have eased on down the road to San Diego.

A San Francisco Repeat, Part 1

We take the Vallejo Ferry to the San Francisco Ferry Building once again. We logged in about 8 miles of walking on this tour of the city.

We arrive to the Tuesday Farmer's Market and Craft Fair.  We browsed some of the booths but we didn't see anything we needed.

Desiring to go to Chinatown, this walking route takes us through the San Francisco Financial District.

Look at all of the aerial electric wires used for the cable cars, it reminded me of a spider's web.

Looking up makes us dizzy..

The Mechanics Monument, created and installed in 1901.

This impressive sculpture survived the earthquake of 1906.

Finally, we reach San Francisco's Historic Chinatown.

It's the largest outside of Asia and the oldest in North America.  The colors, sounds and artistic images are everywhere, my camera is in overdrive.  Here are some of the features that got my attention.

Leaving the Chinatown District, this mural-covered building really stood out and got our attention.

This was not the only pair of underwear we saw drying out in the sun!
(Look at the top floor, middle window.)

Here's a view of the TransAmerica Pyramid. This is the view seen from across that mural-covered building.

Walking out of the Chinatown District, Ronnie decides he wants to climb the Coit Tower.  Built in 1933, it offers 360 degrees of San Francisco.  Thank goodness when we arrive, we find there is an elevator to the top.  It was a climb up to the top of Telegraph Hill. 

The views going up were unforgettable.

The 2 interior lower levels of the Coit Tower contain wall-to-wall murals depicting the history of California.  Painted in 1934 by San Francisco artists that were disciples of the Mexican artist, Diego Rivera, they were hired by the Public Work Art Project.  These fresco-styled murals were recently restored in 2014.
Restoration of the Coit Tower Murals

The views from the top of the Coit Tower were incredible.

This is called The San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge

This view is of The Golden Gate Bridge.

A view of downtown San Francisco.

I think this is a view of where the cruise ships dock.

That's the island of Alcatraz.

These are some of our last views of San Francisco as we fast-walked it back to the Ferry Building to travel back to Vallejo.

More Later..

We get in one more trip to San Francisco with Suzanne and John. What an opportunity we had to ride bikes with them on the Golden Gate Bridge and also tour a little bit more of San Francisco.