Not actually in Vesuvio.
San Francisco!
(And, I didn't quite leave my heart there, but I did really like it!)
I stayed at the Palace Hotel, which is a gorgeous, historic hotel that opened in 1909, after being devastated in the 1906 earthquake. Since then, the list of people who've stayed there includes Kings, Queens, Presidents, JPMorgan, John D. Rockefeller, Mark Twain... and Bob Sagat.
And now me!
The hotel is lovely...
Garden Court
until you get to the rooms.
My advice would be - go for drinks at the Pied Piper, or get Sunday brunch in the Garden Court (it's "only" $68).
Just don't actually stay there.
The carpet is dirty and the walls are thin.
(Sorry Palace Hotel.)
On my first night in town, I walked to North Beach, to the famous City Lights Bookstore.
I'm not a big "that book changed my life" type of person. But I will admit that Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" did get me thinking.
So I immediately headed upstairs to the Beat section, and ended up buying The Awakener, A Memoir of Kerouac and the Fifties.
After leaving the bookstore, I walked through Jack Kerouac Alley (inscribed with the quote from On the Road: "The air was soft, the stars so fine, the promise of every cobbled alley so great..."),
which leads into Chinatown. As I was walking down one of the many alleys (Ross Alley, to be exact), I noticed the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory.
I love fortune cookies.
So, I went inside, where they gave me hot cookies right out of the oven.
Of course I bought a giant bag of cookies (that got crushed on the way home but still taste great!).
On my way back to the Palace, I walked past City Lights Bookstore again...
and Vesuvio, which is right across Jack Kerouac Alley.
I don't drink much these days, and don't usually go into bars by myself, but this is Vesuvio!
Jack Kerouac hung out here!
Obviously I had to make an exception.
So, I decided to go inside.
... just for ONE beer.
... just to see what it looked like.
But, just like Jack Kerouac when he blew off Henry Miller in 1960, I ended up staying for hours.
The next day, I did all the touristy things I could handle.
I started at Coit Tower, which Lillie Hitchcock Coit had built in 1933, in honor of the firefighters that she loved (who doesn't love firefighters?).
The walk up Telegraph Hill to get there is... strenuous. But with views of Alcatraz, the bridges (Bay and Golden Gate), and beyond... it's worth it.
From Coit Tower, it's a short walk to Fisherman's Wharf, which is very close to Ghirardelli Square. I hear there are good crabs at Fisherman's Wharf, but it is so crowded.
So, I didn't get to find out...
(I did however, get a delicious crab cake at Le Central later.)
On Saturday morning, I walked down Market Street to the Ferry Building.
Outside is a farmer's market on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and inside are shops and restaurants.
Later that day I met up with a good friend who recently moved to the San Francisco area.
We were taking a needle felting class at Urban Fauna Studio.
But, we couldn't find it.
We walked and walked and walked.
Finally, my phone told me we were close. We followed the directions, which took us to... Bar Jules.
I don't know why my phone told us to go to Bar Jules, but I'll be eternally grateful!
The Scrambled Eggs with Parmesan were delicious! And, the Hayes Valley neighborhood is probably my favorite area in the city.
We liked it so much, in fact, that we came back later that day!
But first, we found Urban Fauna (which is nowhere near Bar Jules!) and our needle felting class. Three Hello Kitty Band-Aids later...
and we were back on the street.
After walking for a while, I looked over and saw Haight Street. I knew that if I followed it long enough, I would eventually find the famous corner of Haight and Ashbury.
The Haight still attracts a lot of hippies, but it also has cute cafes and shops. We especially loved Ambiance on Haight Street.
Not far from the Haight district is Alamo Square with a view of the Painted Ladies.
And then we were back in Hayes Valley!
Cary Lane has great vintage and designer samples. And the prices are incredible - my friend got a pair of Stella McCartney jeans for $50!
We both bought cookies at Miette. (Although what I really wanted was one of these cupcakes!)
Instead of cupcakes, though, we had dinner at Absinthe. The food was delicious. We both ordered French Onion Soup Gratinee...
and shared the Garlic Pretzels with Vermont Cheddar Mornay (delicious!!), and Grilled Cheese and Tomato Sandwich, with arugula and macadamia nut-basil pesto (best grilled cheese sandwich I've ever had!).
The only thing that wasn't great was the service.
From the maitre d' to the bartender, everyone was so rude!
But the food was great!
The next day, my friend & I took the Caltrain out to Menlo Park, to see her family and new home. After a quick tour of Palo Alto, just a few miles away, we spent the afternoon walking around downtown Menlo Park (which is very cute!).
Then it was back to San Francisco for the night and on to New York in the morning...
I'm home now, but wish I was still here...
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