Once I arrived in San Francisco I knew that I had found my favourite city in the USA. It swept me off my feet from the moment I could see it on the horizon. The bridges, the water, Alcatraz at a distance, the most beautiful architecture, it all so much better than I could ever have imagined it to be. The home of Full House, Mrs Doubtfire and Monk have used this city as their stage and it is not hard to see why.
San Fran was our first stop on our road trip up the Californian coast. We arrived on the afternoon of Halloween, just in time for some fun city celebrations. We stayed in the Ritz-Carlton which is such a gorgeous hotel from its grand Greek exterior to its elegant interiors. If you're looking for a hotel for your stay, the Ritz-Carlton definitely comes highly recommended.
Once dressed in our Halloween costumes, we headed out for a night on the town. It was so much fun to see everyone in full costume, something we don't see at home. The next morning, Cassie and I planned to see all the sights in San Fran. We started in Union Square for some shopping (what better way to begin?). Next we headed over to the Warf. This is such a beautiful area. You observe the sea lions tanning and barking at one another. They're such adorable animals that we sat and watched them for ages before moving on the sea what else SF has to offer. We were told by our driver that we could walk from there to the Golden Gate Bridge but be warned, unless you are an olympic athlete, this is highly unlikely. We did walk along the beach, though, which was beautiful. After walking what seemed like hours, we caught a cab to the bridge. It is so impressive, more so than I could have expected. I got a thrill from finally laying my eyes on the famous red bridge. Next, we saw the huge trees in the National Park right by the bridge. If you know anything about me, you know that I'm a tree lover so I could not have been any happier... except for the fact that our next stop was to be the "Painted Ladies".
I had fallen in love with SF's architecture from the moment I had laid eyes on it. Each house is so beautiful and unique from the others and the victorian styled "Painted Ladies" are a perfect example of this beauty. If you're able to, pack a picnic lunch and head over to the Painted Ladies where there is a park you can sit in and admire the beauty around you.
If you're in the Warf around lunch time, Boudin is renowned for its delicious sourdough bread and clam chowder. There are also many different restaurants in the warf serving fresh seafood that are worth trying.