Angus and I headed off to San Francisco where he had to slay a few more corks this week. Since the cork slaying does not begin until Monday and we arrived on Friday, we had the weekend to do absolutely nothing. So of course we had to do absolutely everything. Starting out on foot, we wound our way through Union Square where we saw a high school choir from Bakersfield, CA playing a lot of cultural music. It was a great way to begin the day.
We hiked our way towards the Embarcadero along the piers and found an enormous outdoor market. This place had thousands of people checking out everything from asparagus to zucchini (I think that covers A through Z). It is a foodie’s paradise. Street performers filled the air with music and the samples of produce being shoved at my face were amazing. After picking up a plate of cheese with a little wine, we took a break and sat along the bay taking in the view of the water front and the Bay Bridge.
The hills in downtown San Francisco are notorious. Sidewalks seem to run vertical rather than horizontal and can be quite a challenge for the casual tourist. (and me!) The cable cars in San Francisco are the only way to travel up. The cars grab a cable that is moving under the street at 9 ½ miles per hour. The cable under the street pulls the cars up the very steep hills so you don’t have to do big city mountain climbing. Taking the cable car straight up hill from the embarcadero, we made our way to Chinatown which has the highest concentration of Chinese in one location in the United States. Strolling through their shops was an event all to it’s own. Grant Street is where most of the tourists go but we went off the beaten path where all of the locals live. I think we seemed to be the only English speaking people on these streets, we could have mistaken this for a back street in China.
China town ends at North Beach where some of the best restaurants in the city are located. After a full day of walking the streets (and cheating with the cable cars) my feet were hurting so it was time to kick back and relax. Pulling up a couple of chairs outside on the sidewalk of a quaint Italian bistro (we walked from China all the way to Italy! - 3 blocks) we camped out with a few glasses of Gavi watching the scenery. Actually we call this “watching the movies.” Something Angus and I began doing several years ago.
To “watch the movies” you need a great place to sit that has music playing in the background. Sitting back with your favorite glass of wine, you listen to the music and watch the people on the street. I don’t know how they do it but people’s lives seem to be choreographed to whatever music is playing in the back ground. People get out of their cars right as the music changes, a skate boarder goes whizzing by right as the music transitions to a faster tempo. This is almost as good as watching the Wizard of Oz synched to Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon Album.
Today’s movie included listening to an Italian opera in the background, sipping Gavi wine and watching the world through wine filled glasses. Gavi wine comes from the Piedmont Area of Italy and is a fruity yet dry white wine. It was soooo crisp and refreshing - just perfect for the near 80 degree temperature outside. This was absolutely one of those best days ever, and makes slaying corks all worth it!
If you go to San Francisco, spend the day hiking around on foot to get up close and personal with the city.
Peace, Love and Good Wine for All!
Trixie
