Travel San Francisco - just arrived - travelling on BART train

Day 1 of our San Francisco trip, February 21, 2008, started with a 4:50 am wake-up call. Following a quick overnight stay close to the Buffalo Airport we got going early to reach the destination of our 5-day winter getaway: San Francisco. After a quick stopover at Cincinnati Airport, where we had to run to the gate to catch our connection flight, we arrived in San Francisco at about 11 am. Unfortunately the weather was not very welcoming: it was drizzly, grey and cold. But nonetheless, we bravely made our way with all our luggage into the city, using all sorts of public transit: first the Airtrain, then the BART commuter railway system, then a couple of municipal buses through a fairly rough neighbourhood (the Tenderloin) to get to our hotel: the Queen Anne Hotel, a Victorian-era heritage property close to the Japantown area.

After settling in I got a tour from the manager who showed me many of the 48 uniquely decorated rooms and explained that this used to be a girls' finishing school. Many antique touches adorn this historic family-owned hotel: from antique cast iron stoves, to original plaster ceiling medallions to stained glass windows, this historic property has been beautifully preserved and adapted.

Finally in the late afternoon we were ready to start exploring the city. We hopped into the 47 bus on Van Ness to get to San Francisco's northern waterfront and got off at Bay Street, close to Fort Mason Center. We ventured out to the shoreline from where we had a gorgeous view of the Golden Gate Bridge, the north side of San Francisco Bay, the Aquatic Park as well as Alcatraz Island. From here we made our way east past famous Ghirardelli Square and many of the retail stores and art galleries that make up the Fisherman's Wharf district.

After admiring one of the most popular attractions at Pier 39, the colony of sea lions, we headed out all the way to the end of Pier 39, to Neptune's Palace, for dinner. Being located at the tip of the pier, this restaurant has one of the most fabulous views of San Francisco Bay. When we got there it was dark, of course, but it was a great place to warm up our chilled bones with a tasty seafood dinner.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• San
• Francisco
• California
• Queen
• Anne
• Hotel
• Pier
• 39

[MrHypnofan]

I hope you enjoyed The City, I have family there and love to visit. By the by Marin Co. is pronounced like the 'ma' in Taj Mahal, and 'rin' as in Rin Tin Tin. Thanks for the vid, happy travels.

[travelandtransitions]

Thanks for the comment and also for the input on the proper pronunciation of "Marin County". Sometimes I get to places where I have only read the local names in a guidebook, but I have never actually heard them in a conversation. Quite often I end up butchering a local name because I am guessing at the pronunciation. I really helps when a local expert can provide the proper pronunciation. Thanks...

[travelandtransitions]

Thanks for the kind comment!

[lukebccb]

@bkinouye: truthfully Muir Woods is nothing special (with apologies to John Muir) but it is probably little difficult for visitors to go to the Santa Cruz Mountains to see REAL Redwoods let alone those in Humboldt or Del Norte counties....... though I have run across many a "tourist" in Humboldt Redwoods Park. Interestingly they tend to lean towards the German variety.

[sonytennis2009]

@travelandtransitions where are you from? country , state? i miss bart. live in traffic congested los angeles now.

[bkinouye]

Oh dear, you really mangled the pronunciation of Marin. I hope while you were in Marin County you had the opportunity to visit beautiful Muir Woods.

[Greenterror]

wow u gave me so much info. I can t wait 2 go on the SF train, well bart train.

[astrotrain53]

the only part its really loud is the 5 minutes in the Trans-bay tube.

and the weather is usually not so nice (cold and/or raining) in San Francisco

[MarcelHall21]

I been all over San Francisco.

[vcsgfxcbfz]

its bay area rapid transit system