Today we got up not so bright and early after two bleary eye days of battling fatigue and decided today would be a tour of San Fran day.
Having already seen the big attractions we opted for a more “hidden gems” type wander about the neighborhood and planned out our own walking tour.
We headed up from our Soma neighbourhood all the way through Chinatown, up the infamous San Fran hilly streets to Pier 39 with only one little deviation to a humongous shoe shop as Adam decided to bring his shit shoes and they needed replacing asap.
Pier 39 is a bit of a touristy trap pier lined with shops, souvenirs, arcades and endless pop up vendors selling pretzels and churros.
At the end of the pier we had the perfect view of Alcatraz Island and it’s abandoned prison and we also got to see a whole colony of sea lions basking in the sun and making a lot of noise.
After the pier we wandered along the boardwalk to a supposed chocolate experience which turned out to just be a large brick warehouse looking building that sold a ton of chocolate. No experience to be had apart from spending an obscene amount of money for a chocolate brand we’d never heard of.
With no free samples in sight, we wandered off to a pretty little bay and scaled the stair walls up to a historic garden which opened out to a church which was used as a base for the war back in the day.
Having walked for two hours straight, we decide to pull the pin on exploring Chinatown and head straight for lunch at our old time favourite every time we come to the US – Jimmy Johns!
We put it in Google Maps only to discover that not only were the two locations permanently closed, but they had also been bought out and shut down, what a disaster!
After a few tantrums and tears, we wander back down to Union Square and look for somewhere else to eat.
We snub Little Italy and its never ending row of little pizza joints, we snub delis and pastry bakeries and finally land on little treasure called Joe & The Juice, where we chow down on a delish Avo, mozzarella and pesto sandwich, a little banana bread and a well deserved smoothie.
Our legs getting to the point of seizing up after nearly 25,000 steps, we decide to call it and make our way back to the room before a quick trip into Macy’s to check out their shoes. (still nothing decent!).
Once inside we pop a few slices of fruit bread in the toaster then proceed to pig out on carbs which was very much needed as, after a quick check of baseball ticket prices, we decided we couldn’t pass up seeing the Giants and the Reds play for just $9, good old reliable baseball.
The stadium was only a 10-ish-minute walk from the Airbnb which was super handy so we joined the masses dressed in their Giants gear and got right into the spirit of things!
Our seats were of course in the nosebleeds, but the best thing about baseball is that you have an awesome view no matter where you sit.
Some dinner was on the cards but we weren’t holding out much hope in the food department. Linnie had her hopes on finally getting a bottomless popcorn only to find a tiny box which would have cost $15 after the conversion.
Adam wanted a beer, but that would have been closer to $20 for one can which was more than we paid for the tickets!
So we opted for a surprising delicious veggie hot dog and forked out $35 for two which turned out to be the tiniest hot dogs and were gone in three bites. Ugh!
The game started out slow, so slow in fact not one run was made until the top of the 8th inning when for some reason, the Giants changed pitchers and essentially let two batters walk, then the Reds batter hit an epic shot which led to two of their runners getting to home base. It got to the bottom of the 9th when things started to get really interesting
The Reds had to change pitchers next which led to the Giants getting two batters onto first and second base, then in comes a behemoth of a batter to try to win the game!
By now the crowd was going mental, the loudest they had been all night and even though the batter smacked the ball right into the back corner, the fielder just got to it within centimetres and the game was over.
We made our way back to the Airbnb stopping into a shop that you would describe as a very poor mans 7/11 only to find shitty snacks and even worse actual food. Looks like more toast for dinner.
Settling in for the night we caught up on survivor then it was off to sleep, tomorrow we pick up a car and head out over the Golden Gate Bridge to explore around Napa and the coast!
More Photos from Day 3
