vacation update part trois

THURSDAY: JAPANTOWN and HAIGHT/ASHBURY/MAGNOLIA PUB & BREWERY (AGAIN)

we went back to japantown thursday to pick up some tiny glass figurines we'd seen in the window of one of the shops.

cadence had fun running around and chasing the pigeons. i think the hardest part of the vacation for cadence was not being able to run around as much as she wanted. we tried to make time for her to let loose every now and then, but she threw quite a few tantrums when we wouldn't let her run as freely as she would've liked.

after japantown, we went back to the haight to get a burrito at Zona Rosa per our friend yvonne's recommendation. it was definitely yummy. and cheap! see, not everything in san francisco is expensive! we peeked into the resale shops, but really, they were way overpriced.

we stopped by magnolia pub and brewery again to try more of their beers. i wish we'd been hungrier so we could try out their menu, which looked fab. they use mostly organic and locally grown/raised produce and meats.

FRIDAY: RIDING THE MUNI, THE MISSION DISTRICT, MORE BEER, DOWNTOWN, CABLE CAR RIDE, and DINNER w/ HAYUTA and MAHEESH

on friday, we decided to give the car a rest and try out san francisco's public transportation system. our hotel was only a block away from van ness ave, which has several buses that frequent it. we took the 49 bus all the way down to 16th and mission in the mission district.

the mission district seemed to me to be a mix of chicago's pilsen and wicker park neighborhoods...very ethnic, old and hip all rolled into one little area. there was a lot of graffiti art, like this stencil in the photo above, as well as plenty of formal art galleries.

what can i say...i can't resist a good puddle! which is why i love sunny days after a really good rain shower.

we stopped by dolores park, which has a pretty steep hill with great views of the city to the north and east. everything was still pretty wet from the previous evening's rain showers, and there was a lot of mud around, which cadence fell into at one point. she didn't get too dirty, thank goodness, since i had forgotten to pack an extra change of clothing for her.

at this point, cadence refused to get back in her stroller and wanted to walk while holding her daddy's finger. actually, she would've run if ted ever let go of her hand. luckily, we did find a playground in the neighborhood that was dry enough to actually play in. we stopped there for a brief respite and a snack for cadence.

we walked south on valencia, and found the pirate shop (part of the 826 valencia writing center) that our friend michael had told me about. we found a really nice big shell for cadence to listen to the ocean with, and i got me a pair of red and black striped pirate hose!

the mission district was really interesting. i wish we had more time to spend there. definitely next time.

yes, it's true. we are at yet another brewery. this one was called the 21st amendment (get it?) and they make some lovely brews as well as yummy eats.

serendipity led us to the thirsty bear brewery. we were walking from the 21st amendment to catch a cable car on powell and market and we just happened to be walking down howard when i spied the sign for thirsty bear. we were still stuffed from our lunch at the 21st, and i have to say that ted was probably a bit inebriated since he wasn't driving.

thank goodness for 3oz samplers for 50 cents. we ordered 4 different beers, and i can't remember what they were but i do remember that they were yummy. i think i was getting a tad lit on my tiny sips of ted's samplers.

ok. this is getting long. here are more photos and less words.

some fountain downtown on our way to the cable car.

reflection of the late afternoon light some other fountain's waters.

we happened to be passing by st. patrick's church (on st. patrick's day no less!) so we went in to take a look.

i love prayer candles!

dude was walking around powell and market with this sign.

here's the cable car we took back to our hotel up powell and hyde streets.

friday night, we met up with my old-time friend hayuta and her husband maheesh at a mesopotamian restaurant called ya ya cuisine just a few blocks away from our hotel. if you're wondering what mesopotamian cuisine is like, it's basically iraqi/middle eastern style. lots of phyllo. the food was absolutely yummy, and our waiter jerome was the perfect host. hayuta and maheesh were great dinner companions so we all had a good time. they also gave us great tips on where to go for our berkeley trip the next day.

alright almost done, but later.