Today was full of more walking to and fro. We started out the morning with the Alcatraz tour. We walked to Pier 33 where the boat was to be loaded and on our way, we figured we oughta pick up some sunscreen since we both got really bad burns on our neck and parts of our face and arms (and my hands)! That's because of being outside all day yesterday. So, the boat ride was about 10 minutes long and we finally reached Alcatraz Island. The nickname is "The Rock". We went on a self-guided audio tour around the prison. We got to hear on the audio thing the different "voices" of prisoners that were once sentenced there, like Robert "the Bird Man" Stroud. Did you know he became a renowned ornithologist even though he only had a 3rd grade education? We ended up staying there for about 3 hours. It was a pretty great experience and now we can say we've been to Alcatraz.
We came back on the boat back to the mainland and walked to a restaurant called Fishermen's Grotto and we were very impressed. We couldn't quite describe this place except for the fact that it seemed a bit seedy and the food wasn't all that great. The food was pricey though. We both got the angel hair with prawns even though the "prawns" were just shrimp. The waiters weren't very friendly either--they were all middle to upper aged men in sea captain suits. I didn't even see one woman waitress there! Anyway, say what you will....We left for the motel and rested for a little while before heading to Chinatown. We rode the bus (not the streetcar because we thought they were out of service by then) to Chinatown and got off at a certain point to enjoy the sights of this little community. It certainly had all the asian knic-knacky stores that you would think of when picturing Chinatown. We went in several of them to see what things they sold--most stores sold just about the same things just in different displays. I didn't buy anything though because none of the stuff actually fit my style for my house. We ended up eating dinner there at a place called Brandy Ho's (recommended by the lady in our motel office). It was okay food--it kinda reminded me of an american diner with all the clacking pots and the sizzling of the kitchen because you could hear all that because the cooks were out there in the open for you to see them. I had shrimp with broccoli and Kyle had Brandy Ho's dinner, which consisted of several different meats and veggies all cooked together. I guess today wasn't a very good day for dining. Our food didn't really impress us there either. I'm sad to say that perhaps the food in this town had been overhyped for us but it's all about the sights of the town, we figured.
After dinner, we had made it a point to go back to Ghirardelli Square to have a special dessert. In fact, we did. I had a brownie sundae and Kyle had the Gold Rush (chocolate fudge and peanut butter and ice cream in a tall glass). I know you're thinking, now Jennifer, how are you able to eat all that?? Well, we've been walking constantly non-stop and I've got the toe blisters and sore legs to prove it. Besides, I haven't indulged like that in almost a year since we last went to DQ last June. Plus, how many times do you get to go to S.F. and have the actual Ghirardelli chocolate specialties? I guess you'd probably be glad to know that after I ate it, I felt a little ill but I'm glad we were able to experience it.
No more Ghirardelli sundaes for a good long while! We bought my friend, Rellis, a bag of chocolates from the gift shop as a thankyou gift for taking care of Tiger. Now it's time for us to get plenty of rest for our final full day here in the fog city, San Francisco.
No comments:
Post a Comment