USA trip report - 4 states - 17 days
Mar 7th, 2024, 06:52 AM
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USA trip report - 4 states - 17 days
I've wanted to post a trip report for the longest time, as I really appreciated the helpful suggestions that I got from Fodorites and wanted to share our wonderful time in the USA! I finally found some time and got to reminiscing...
Part 1: Seattle and Mt Rainier
Day 1 – Getting to Seattle
This was the first time that my husband and I travelled to another continent (if you exempt Lebanon, which is in another continent but only half an hour flight from Cyprus!) and I was anxious that the time wouldn't pass in the plane. However, I was pleasantly surprised - with the meals, movies, my book and a couple of naps, it wasn't bad at all! We flew with Lufthansa via Frankfurt and arrived at Seattle late in the morning (local time). First impressions of the airport: modern, pleasant and really clean toilets! The immigration line wasn't too bad. We got an uber to our hotel, Theodore Hotel. The view of skyscrapers for the first time as we were driving to our hotel was pretty exciting! Luckily, the view from our room (to Pike Place Market) was incredible. Even though the room was a bit small, we really enjoyed this hotel and would recommend it.
We tried to minimize jet lag, so we didn't stay in our room to sleep, but went straight in search of food. We had an enjoyable late lunch at Capitol Cider and then walked around Capitol Hill. We popped into the Starbucks Reserve Roastery and the Elliott Bay Book Company. We also went to a shop selling mostly souvenir stuff and witnessed our first (but not last) shoplifting incident! Someone was walking by outside and casually grabbed some merchandise from the window shop, which was at street level and wide open.
First day impressions: Seattle is cool, but, as some of you warned me about, the homelessness and drug problem is evident. There were so many tents right in the city center, a lot of homeless people who looked like they had drug problems and so we didn't feel very safe walking around, especially after dark.
Day 2 – Pike Place Market, Seattle Center and Kerry Park
This was one of my favorite days. I woke up at sunrise due to jet lag, which gave me the opportunity to post a sunrise photo on Instagram with the cheesy caption "Sleepless in Seattle" haha! I tried to sleep a little more without success. My husband then woke up and we went straight to Pike Place Market. We got some breakfast on the go from there - I got a cinnamon roll from Cinnamon works and he got a cheese sandwich from Beecher’s Cheese, which he thoroughly enjoyed. We passed by the first Starbucks, but didn't wait in the long line to get in, as I read that it's just like a regular Starbucks (other that the logo) and it's not worth standing in line for. We then explored Pike Place Market, popping into various shops and checked out the vendors. We saw the Flying Fish (fun!), the Gum Wall (disgusting!) and walked around the promenade.
Afterwards, we headed to the Seattle Center through the Olympic Sculpture Park, an outdoor art installation with a view of the Olympic Mountains across the water. We had already purchased a combined ticket for the Space Needle and the Dale Chihuly Gardens and Glass via Get your guide, which was cheaper that getting two separate tickets directly from these places, and also had free cancellation up until the day in advance. I'd previously read reviews that the Space Needle wasn't really worth going to, but I really enjoyed it. The views from there were incredible and its history was interesting. They also sell some cool stuff at their gift shop. I LOVED the Dale Chihuly Gardens and Glass and would highly recommend going there if you enjoy art. The glass installations in the gardens and the glasshouse especially were stunning!
We then had lunch at Virginia Inn and went to the hotel to rest for a while, as we had walked quite a bit that day. We then got an uber to Kerry Park, which is a great spot for a view out over the entire city, especially at sunset time. The golden light was making the buildings glow. After that, we headed to Belltown,where we went to Umi Sake House for sushi. Though the reviews I read for this place were good, I didn't really enjoy the food. It wasn't the freshest, but maybe it was just my order, as my husband did like what he ordered.
Day 3 – Mt Rainier day trip
The main reason for choosing to visit Seattle was its proximity to Mt Rainier and the fact that there are organised tours that go there, as we didn't want to rent a car. We booked a tour from Viator and it was honestly one of the highlights of our trip. Our guide Joe was such a fun guy and made the whole day very enjoyable. He stopped at a huge supermarket on the way there so that we could get food, but he also offered us snacks and water. We saw Alder Lake Park, the town of Eatonville and a steam train, Longmire, Christine Falls, Nerada Falls, Paradise and the Reflection Lake. The tour wasn't tiring at all and it was great for people with mobility issues. Joe took great care of everyone. I would love to visit Mt Rainier again to stay longer, as well as other national parks in Washington, like the Olympic national park. The nature was jaw-droppingly beautiful, and unlikely anything I'd ever seen. In my opinion, it was worth including Seattle in our itinerary just for this day!
Day 4 – Seattle spheres and Museum of Flight
Our final day in Seattle! The initial plan was to go on aSeattle Locks cruise from Elliot Bay to AGC Marina on South Lake Union and then visit Fremont to check out the Fremont troll, Fremont Canal Park and Gasworks Park. However, my husband got to talking with Joe the previous day, and Joe mentioned that for airplane enthusiasts, the Museum of Flight was not to be missed. My husband is very much an enthusiast, so we decided to change our plan and go there instead. We had a delicious breakfast at Lola's, walked nearby to check out Amazon's Spheres and then went to the Museum of Flight. This was indeed an impressive museum. I also enjoyed it and I'm not into planes at all. The short films that they have on, showing interviews with pilots from WWI and WWII are really interesting - most of the pilots were just so young and I got the impression that they saw the whole thing as a game! There's also a clip showing Armstrong's first words upon first stepping on the Moon, which I'd never seen in the past and found to be moving. We ended the day by getting pizza from Razzis Pizzeria, which was quite good, and a very generous portion!
Next up, San Francisco!
Part 1: Seattle and Mt Rainier
Day 1 – Getting to Seattle
This was the first time that my husband and I travelled to another continent (if you exempt Lebanon, which is in another continent but only half an hour flight from Cyprus!) and I was anxious that the time wouldn't pass in the plane. However, I was pleasantly surprised - with the meals, movies, my book and a couple of naps, it wasn't bad at all! We flew with Lufthansa via Frankfurt and arrived at Seattle late in the morning (local time). First impressions of the airport: modern, pleasant and really clean toilets! The immigration line wasn't too bad. We got an uber to our hotel, Theodore Hotel. The view of skyscrapers for the first time as we were driving to our hotel was pretty exciting! Luckily, the view from our room (to Pike Place Market) was incredible. Even though the room was a bit small, we really enjoyed this hotel and would recommend it.
We tried to minimize jet lag, so we didn't stay in our room to sleep, but went straight in search of food. We had an enjoyable late lunch at Capitol Cider and then walked around Capitol Hill. We popped into the Starbucks Reserve Roastery and the Elliott Bay Book Company. We also went to a shop selling mostly souvenir stuff and witnessed our first (but not last) shoplifting incident! Someone was walking by outside and casually grabbed some merchandise from the window shop, which was at street level and wide open.
First day impressions: Seattle is cool, but, as some of you warned me about, the homelessness and drug problem is evident. There were so many tents right in the city center, a lot of homeless people who looked like they had drug problems and so we didn't feel very safe walking around, especially after dark.
Day 2 – Pike Place Market, Seattle Center and Kerry Park
This was one of my favorite days. I woke up at sunrise due to jet lag, which gave me the opportunity to post a sunrise photo on Instagram with the cheesy caption "Sleepless in Seattle" haha! I tried to sleep a little more without success. My husband then woke up and we went straight to Pike Place Market. We got some breakfast on the go from there - I got a cinnamon roll from Cinnamon works and he got a cheese sandwich from Beecher’s Cheese, which he thoroughly enjoyed. We passed by the first Starbucks, but didn't wait in the long line to get in, as I read that it's just like a regular Starbucks (other that the logo) and it's not worth standing in line for. We then explored Pike Place Market, popping into various shops and checked out the vendors. We saw the Flying Fish (fun!), the Gum Wall (disgusting!) and walked around the promenade.
Afterwards, we headed to the Seattle Center through the Olympic Sculpture Park, an outdoor art installation with a view of the Olympic Mountains across the water. We had already purchased a combined ticket for the Space Needle and the Dale Chihuly Gardens and Glass via Get your guide, which was cheaper that getting two separate tickets directly from these places, and also had free cancellation up until the day in advance. I'd previously read reviews that the Space Needle wasn't really worth going to, but I really enjoyed it. The views from there were incredible and its history was interesting. They also sell some cool stuff at their gift shop. I LOVED the Dale Chihuly Gardens and Glass and would highly recommend going there if you enjoy art. The glass installations in the gardens and the glasshouse especially were stunning!
We then had lunch at Virginia Inn and went to the hotel to rest for a while, as we had walked quite a bit that day. We then got an uber to Kerry Park, which is a great spot for a view out over the entire city, especially at sunset time. The golden light was making the buildings glow. After that, we headed to Belltown,where we went to Umi Sake House for sushi. Though the reviews I read for this place were good, I didn't really enjoy the food. It wasn't the freshest, but maybe it was just my order, as my husband did like what he ordered.
Day 3 – Mt Rainier day trip
The main reason for choosing to visit Seattle was its proximity to Mt Rainier and the fact that there are organised tours that go there, as we didn't want to rent a car. We booked a tour from Viator and it was honestly one of the highlights of our trip. Our guide Joe was such a fun guy and made the whole day very enjoyable. He stopped at a huge supermarket on the way there so that we could get food, but he also offered us snacks and water. We saw Alder Lake Park, the town of Eatonville and a steam train, Longmire, Christine Falls, Nerada Falls, Paradise and the Reflection Lake. The tour wasn't tiring at all and it was great for people with mobility issues. Joe took great care of everyone. I would love to visit Mt Rainier again to stay longer, as well as other national parks in Washington, like the Olympic national park. The nature was jaw-droppingly beautiful, and unlikely anything I'd ever seen. In my opinion, it was worth including Seattle in our itinerary just for this day!
Day 4 – Seattle spheres and Museum of Flight
Our final day in Seattle! The initial plan was to go on aSeattle Locks cruise from Elliot Bay to AGC Marina on South Lake Union and then visit Fremont to check out the Fremont troll, Fremont Canal Park and Gasworks Park. However, my husband got to talking with Joe the previous day, and Joe mentioned that for airplane enthusiasts, the Museum of Flight was not to be missed. My husband is very much an enthusiast, so we decided to change our plan and go there instead. We had a delicious breakfast at Lola's, walked nearby to check out Amazon's Spheres and then went to the Museum of Flight. This was indeed an impressive museum. I also enjoyed it and I'm not into planes at all. The short films that they have on, showing interviews with pilots from WWI and WWII are really interesting - most of the pilots were just so young and I got the impression that they saw the whole thing as a game! There's also a clip showing Armstrong's first words upon first stepping on the Moon, which I'd never seen in the past and found to be moving. We ended the day by getting pizza from Razzis Pizzeria, which was quite good, and a very generous portion!
Next up, San Francisco!
Last edited by christtravel; Mar 7th, 2024 at 06:57 AM.
Mar 8th, 2024, 08:03 AM
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Part 2 - San Francisco
Day 1 - Getting to SF, Alamo Square and the Painted Ladies, Corona Heights Park, Golden Gate Bridge, ferry from Sausalito and riding the cable car
I went back to my photographs to check out what we'd done on our first day and I actually couldn't believe how much we were able to fit in! I kept scrolling down, checking the dates on the photographs and seeing that they were all taken on the same day.
Our flight from Seattle was super early in the morning and we arrived at SF at around 8:30 am. We took an uber straight to our hotel, the Stanyan Park Hotel, which was very charming and located right across from the Golden Gate Park. The room was decorated beautifully in yellow wallpaper and was really clean and spacious. I found this hotel to be great value for money in comparison to some hotel's insane prices and would definitely recommend it. It's not too far from public transport taking you to the city center, offers complimentary breakfast (nothing special, but still), and has a complimentary happy hour in the afternoon with wine and cheese (which we didn't try out).
As it was too early to check in, we left our luggage there for storage and went to have brunch at Zazie's nearby. The area felt safe for walking and we enjoyed looking at the distinctive architecture of the houses. At Zazie's, I got the Albert eggs benedict, that had white cheddar, salsa, bacon and hollandaise, and my husband got a chicken sandwich, which he declared to be one of the best he's ever tried! We also shared an oat pancake with banana and maple syrup, but this was kind of meh. The service was very polite and tips were not expected, as the staff there gets paid a living wage and has benefits, which are calculated into the prices.
Happy and with our stomachs full, we took the bus to Alamo Square and saw the famous Painted Ladies. It felt surreal being somewhere we had only ever seen on TV. The park and playground there were lovely and tranquil. We then took a short bus ride and walked uphill to Corona Heights park. The hill was so steep that the cars had to be parked horizontally! Weadmired the wonderful views of the city and sat on a bench with the touching inscription "In loving memory of my shelter mutt Kooper - This park was his happy place. I hope it's a happy place for you, too". We then walked back to our hotel, as it was time for check in. We rested for a bit, took a shower and changed our clothes, and went back to sightseeing! We took a bus from the Golden Gate Park to the Golden Gate bridge and promptly proceeded with taking about a thousand photographs posing in front of it, like the typical tourists that we were. We were lucky as Carl the Fog only covered its upper half haha! After than, we decided to cross the bridge and head to Sausalito. The sun was shining and the skies were blue there - very different to the windy and foggy weather at the other side of the bridge! We had a late lunch/early dinner at Copita, a Mexican restaurant with really good Margaritas! We tried a tortilla soup, two types of pork tacos and a fish taco, which was our favorite. We went for a short walk around the Marina, but unfortunately couldn't stay for longer, as we needed to catch the last ferry back. The ferry ride back was chilly, but magical. We sat on the top deck and enjoyed some magnificent views of the bridges at sunset with the ferry USA flag blowing in the wind. It felt like something out of a movie and was one of those moments in which you realise how lucky and grateful you are to be able to experience - a memory to be cherished forever.
We arrived at SF and decided to incorporate riding the cable car from the Powel & Market turntable in our journey back to the hotel. In hindsight, this wasn't the best decision, as it was getting dark, we were unfamiliar with the area and we wanted to avoid getting into the Tenderloin district at all costs, as we read that it was really dangerous. This made the experience rather stressful instead of carefree and enjoyable, as we weren't sure where to get off. It seemed that everywhere was close to areas to be avoided. All was well at the end though, and we safely got back to our hotel room.
Day 2 - The Ferry Building, Chinatown, Pier 39, the Marina and Alcatraz night tour
Woke up and headed straight to the Ferry Building! Sampled some great chocolate from Dandelion and got some as a gift for our friends, whom we would meet at LA. We also got some great coffee from Blue Bottle Coffee and, for breakfast, I had the most delicious club sandwich (and a bear claw for later) from Mariposa Bakery, and my husband got some empanadas from El Porteño, which he loved. We checked out some of the stalls and witnessed our second shoplifting incident - someone walking by simply grabbed food from Mariposa - the girl at the counter yelled something to him about not paying, but of course he just left and nothing else happened. Incidents like that were a bit shocking to us coming from Cyprus, which is a very safe place, but also something that we hadn't witnessed anywhere we traveled to in Europe, including large cities like London, Paris and Milan.
We left the Ferry Building and walked to Chitatown, starting from the Dragon's Gate. We popped into a couple of shops, but were a bit disappointed with the merchandise - everything was really touristy. Finally, we walked through North Beach, decided to skip the Coit Tower and headed to Fisherman's Wharf to check out the sea lions on Pier 39. They made so much noice! It was really fun watching them slide in and out of the water and land on each other! We walked around the Fisherman's Wharf area and decided to take another cable car from there, which was a much more enjoyable experience that our previous attempt. After that, we headed back to the hotel in order to get changed for our Alcatraz night tour, as we were advised to dress warmly. We booked this tour months in advance, as I read that it quickly sells out. We boarded the Alcatraz clipper and after some time, saw Alcatraz surrounded by ominous dark clouds. The audio tour was excellent and the prison's history is fascinating. Visiting at night made it even more spooky, and I'd highly recommend it! The gift shop had some fun gifts, like mugs with some of the most famous prison rules. We ended the night with a dinner to the Hard Rock Cafe, as it was nearby and convenient to visit. I have to say, having the calories shown on the menu is sobering!
Day 3 - The Golden Gate Park, the Lands End trail and Whole Foods
We spent the entire day walking! The Golden Gate Park is enormous, and has so many things that you could do. I read that some of the museums there are great, but unfortunately we didn't have the time and only saw them from outside. We went to the Japanese Tea Garden, which was beautiful and serene. We did a small detour and went to get lunch at the Game Parlour, a really fun place with board games that you could rent, making delicious waffles, fried chicken, milkshakes and other comfort food. After that, we got an uber to the Sutro Baths to do the Lands End trail. This coastal trail was so worth it - it was really easy to walk and the views were stunning! At some point, we passed through the El Camino Del Mar neighboroughood, and oh my, what gorgeous houses! Dream house inspiration..We continued to Baker beach and Presidio, stopping and admiring the views every few minutes. The trail ended at the Golden Gate bridge, and we actually passed under it. We took the bus back to the hotel. We had a reservation at a restaurant, but were too exhausted to go and cancelled. We went to the Whole Foods store next to the hotel instead, and got some soups and snacks. Honestly, the tomato soup and the broccoli cheddar soup that we got were some of the best food that we had in our entire trip! We spent a small fortune there, but it was worth it!
Day 4 - The Mission, Mission Dolores Park, Lombard Street and SF airport
We only had half a day left in SF, as we needed to be at the airport by 4:00 pm. We got some breakfast from Wholesome bakery (meh) and some coffee from Sightglass Coffee Roasters (good, but I liked Blue Bottle coffee better) and headed to Valencia Street. We read that this was one of the best streets for shopping, but we were really disappointed. I don't know if we did something wrong, but the area that we were in felt unsafe. Most of the shops were run down or closed and the people looked sketchy. We went to the Mission Dolores Park, but it was almost empty and again felt unsafe. We went to get the bus in order to go to another area, and a woman who obviously had mental health issues was screaming at the top of her lungs and deliriously talking to herself during the whole ride. Everyone was acting like nothing was happening and it felt pretty scary. It's so sad that homelessness, drugs and mental health issues have not been dealt with and have become so prevalent in the city center. I can only image how amazing SF was in the past.
We reached Lombard Street, which was fun to see and walked to Russian Hill, where we saw some beautiful houses, including one with a dragon sculpture on the gate. We got some delicious Brazilian cheese bread sandwiches with bacon and chicken from a cute little cafe there, Cafe de Casa and headed back to our hotel to check out. We made another stop to Whole Foods, as my husband wanted to get another tomato soup, which he ate at the Golden Gate Park. Then, we were off to the airport!
I was seriously impressed by the SFO (International). It reminded me of an art gallery or a fancy hotel lounge rather than an airport. The toilets were seriously lux and the building and furniture so well-designed. There was an opera costume exhibition and some great food and coffee options, including one where a robot arm was making the coffee. I actually enjoyed spending time there.
And then, we were off to LAX!
Day 1 - Getting to SF, Alamo Square and the Painted Ladies, Corona Heights Park, Golden Gate Bridge, ferry from Sausalito and riding the cable car
I went back to my photographs to check out what we'd done on our first day and I actually couldn't believe how much we were able to fit in! I kept scrolling down, checking the dates on the photographs and seeing that they were all taken on the same day.
Our flight from Seattle was super early in the morning and we arrived at SF at around 8:30 am. We took an uber straight to our hotel, the Stanyan Park Hotel, which was very charming and located right across from the Golden Gate Park. The room was decorated beautifully in yellow wallpaper and was really clean and spacious. I found this hotel to be great value for money in comparison to some hotel's insane prices and would definitely recommend it. It's not too far from public transport taking you to the city center, offers complimentary breakfast (nothing special, but still), and has a complimentary happy hour in the afternoon with wine and cheese (which we didn't try out).
As it was too early to check in, we left our luggage there for storage and went to have brunch at Zazie's nearby. The area felt safe for walking and we enjoyed looking at the distinctive architecture of the houses. At Zazie's, I got the Albert eggs benedict, that had white cheddar, salsa, bacon and hollandaise, and my husband got a chicken sandwich, which he declared to be one of the best he's ever tried! We also shared an oat pancake with banana and maple syrup, but this was kind of meh. The service was very polite and tips were not expected, as the staff there gets paid a living wage and has benefits, which are calculated into the prices.
Happy and with our stomachs full, we took the bus to Alamo Square and saw the famous Painted Ladies. It felt surreal being somewhere we had only ever seen on TV. The park and playground there were lovely and tranquil. We then took a short bus ride and walked uphill to Corona Heights park. The hill was so steep that the cars had to be parked horizontally! Weadmired the wonderful views of the city and sat on a bench with the touching inscription "In loving memory of my shelter mutt Kooper - This park was his happy place. I hope it's a happy place for you, too". We then walked back to our hotel, as it was time for check in. We rested for a bit, took a shower and changed our clothes, and went back to sightseeing! We took a bus from the Golden Gate Park to the Golden Gate bridge and promptly proceeded with taking about a thousand photographs posing in front of it, like the typical tourists that we were. We were lucky as Carl the Fog only covered its upper half haha! After than, we decided to cross the bridge and head to Sausalito. The sun was shining and the skies were blue there - very different to the windy and foggy weather at the other side of the bridge! We had a late lunch/early dinner at Copita, a Mexican restaurant with really good Margaritas! We tried a tortilla soup, two types of pork tacos and a fish taco, which was our favorite. We went for a short walk around the Marina, but unfortunately couldn't stay for longer, as we needed to catch the last ferry back. The ferry ride back was chilly, but magical. We sat on the top deck and enjoyed some magnificent views of the bridges at sunset with the ferry USA flag blowing in the wind. It felt like something out of a movie and was one of those moments in which you realise how lucky and grateful you are to be able to experience - a memory to be cherished forever.
We arrived at SF and decided to incorporate riding the cable car from the Powel & Market turntable in our journey back to the hotel. In hindsight, this wasn't the best decision, as it was getting dark, we were unfamiliar with the area and we wanted to avoid getting into the Tenderloin district at all costs, as we read that it was really dangerous. This made the experience rather stressful instead of carefree and enjoyable, as we weren't sure where to get off. It seemed that everywhere was close to areas to be avoided. All was well at the end though, and we safely got back to our hotel room.
Day 2 - The Ferry Building, Chinatown, Pier 39, the Marina and Alcatraz night tour
Woke up and headed straight to the Ferry Building! Sampled some great chocolate from Dandelion and got some as a gift for our friends, whom we would meet at LA. We also got some great coffee from Blue Bottle Coffee and, for breakfast, I had the most delicious club sandwich (and a bear claw for later) from Mariposa Bakery, and my husband got some empanadas from El Porteño, which he loved. We checked out some of the stalls and witnessed our second shoplifting incident - someone walking by simply grabbed food from Mariposa - the girl at the counter yelled something to him about not paying, but of course he just left and nothing else happened. Incidents like that were a bit shocking to us coming from Cyprus, which is a very safe place, but also something that we hadn't witnessed anywhere we traveled to in Europe, including large cities like London, Paris and Milan.
We left the Ferry Building and walked to Chitatown, starting from the Dragon's Gate. We popped into a couple of shops, but were a bit disappointed with the merchandise - everything was really touristy. Finally, we walked through North Beach, decided to skip the Coit Tower and headed to Fisherman's Wharf to check out the sea lions on Pier 39. They made so much noice! It was really fun watching them slide in and out of the water and land on each other! We walked around the Fisherman's Wharf area and decided to take another cable car from there, which was a much more enjoyable experience that our previous attempt. After that, we headed back to the hotel in order to get changed for our Alcatraz night tour, as we were advised to dress warmly. We booked this tour months in advance, as I read that it quickly sells out. We boarded the Alcatraz clipper and after some time, saw Alcatraz surrounded by ominous dark clouds. The audio tour was excellent and the prison's history is fascinating. Visiting at night made it even more spooky, and I'd highly recommend it! The gift shop had some fun gifts, like mugs with some of the most famous prison rules. We ended the night with a dinner to the Hard Rock Cafe, as it was nearby and convenient to visit. I have to say, having the calories shown on the menu is sobering!
Day 3 - The Golden Gate Park, the Lands End trail and Whole Foods
We spent the entire day walking! The Golden Gate Park is enormous, and has so many things that you could do. I read that some of the museums there are great, but unfortunately we didn't have the time and only saw them from outside. We went to the Japanese Tea Garden, which was beautiful and serene. We did a small detour and went to get lunch at the Game Parlour, a really fun place with board games that you could rent, making delicious waffles, fried chicken, milkshakes and other comfort food. After that, we got an uber to the Sutro Baths to do the Lands End trail. This coastal trail was so worth it - it was really easy to walk and the views were stunning! At some point, we passed through the El Camino Del Mar neighboroughood, and oh my, what gorgeous houses! Dream house inspiration..We continued to Baker beach and Presidio, stopping and admiring the views every few minutes. The trail ended at the Golden Gate bridge, and we actually passed under it. We took the bus back to the hotel. We had a reservation at a restaurant, but were too exhausted to go and cancelled. We went to the Whole Foods store next to the hotel instead, and got some soups and snacks. Honestly, the tomato soup and the broccoli cheddar soup that we got were some of the best food that we had in our entire trip! We spent a small fortune there, but it was worth it!
Day 4 - The Mission, Mission Dolores Park, Lombard Street and SF airport
We only had half a day left in SF, as we needed to be at the airport by 4:00 pm. We got some breakfast from Wholesome bakery (meh) and some coffee from Sightglass Coffee Roasters (good, but I liked Blue Bottle coffee better) and headed to Valencia Street. We read that this was one of the best streets for shopping, but we were really disappointed. I don't know if we did something wrong, but the area that we were in felt unsafe. Most of the shops were run down or closed and the people looked sketchy. We went to the Mission Dolores Park, but it was almost empty and again felt unsafe. We went to get the bus in order to go to another area, and a woman who obviously had mental health issues was screaming at the top of her lungs and deliriously talking to herself during the whole ride. Everyone was acting like nothing was happening and it felt pretty scary. It's so sad that homelessness, drugs and mental health issues have not been dealt with and have become so prevalent in the city center. I can only image how amazing SF was in the past.
We reached Lombard Street, which was fun to see and walked to Russian Hill, where we saw some beautiful houses, including one with a dragon sculpture on the gate. We got some delicious Brazilian cheese bread sandwiches with bacon and chicken from a cute little cafe there, Cafe de Casa and headed back to our hotel to check out. We made another stop to Whole Foods, as my husband wanted to get another tomato soup, which he ate at the Golden Gate Park. Then, we were off to the airport!
I was seriously impressed by the SFO (International). It reminded me of an art gallery or a fancy hotel lounge rather than an airport. The toilets were seriously lux and the building and furniture so well-designed. There was an opera costume exhibition and some great food and coffee options, including one where a robot arm was making the coffee. I actually enjoyed spending time there.
And then, we were off to LAX!
Last edited by christtravel; Mar 8th, 2024 at 08:05 AM.
Mar 8th, 2024, 09:56 AM
#7
Really looking forward to more! - from your State tags it seems you definitely got around. I appreciate your honest descriptions -- the great, the good and . . . the bad. Often some of the local 'cheerleaders' especially for San Francisco do seem to pooh pooh the issues.
Oh -- didn't see your new posts -- one would NEVER dream English isn't your native language. Full marks
Oh -- didn't see your new posts -- one would NEVER dream English isn't your native language. Full marks
Mar 8th, 2024, 05:25 PM
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Powell & Market area: (not Union Sq.)
We lived in SF & I worked downtown in the Mid 70s. This area was not great then. Nordstrom's & the Westfield Center were developed & opened in 1988, and the area improved a bit. But it still was not that great. Lots of scruffy & touristy businesses on Powell between Market & O'Farrell. Plus the Tenderloin was just to the west. The vagrants migrated from elsewhere to this area (and others) starting about the 90s. More "drugged up" into the 2000s.
Covid hit.
Amazon became the shopping choice of many (including us). Techies who occupied the offices were laid off, or moved elsewhere and worked remotely. No need to go to Union Square to shop or the Financial District to work. Nordstrom's closed, so did most/all stores in the Westfield Center. So did most stores on Union Square. And SF has a 37% office vacancy rate. Higher vagrant to "other" ratio.
Valencia St (in the Mission area)
We lived close to there in the Noe Valley. In the 70s The Mission was not a very popular place to live. But many adventurers moved there to pick up inexpensive Victorian Houses to restore & live in.
Tech boom.
The techies loved the bohemian atmosphere of the Mission. Many moved there - including Mark Zuckerberg. Trendy restaurants & shops popped up. We've dined in this area quite frequently then.
Covid hit
Techies were laid off or moved elsewhere (like Ohio) and worked remotely. BART station street entrances somehow became places where people sold stolen goods (just very recently the City took action to limit this). High vagrant to "other" ratio. Of the dozen or so restaurants were we regularly dined in the Mission - only 1 remains (Foreign Cinema).
If you read a guide book that was researched before Covid - it is obsolete.
I realize that this is more than anyone wanted to know.
Stu Dudley
We lived in SF & I worked downtown in the Mid 70s. This area was not great then. Nordstrom's & the Westfield Center were developed & opened in 1988, and the area improved a bit. But it still was not that great. Lots of scruffy & touristy businesses on Powell between Market & O'Farrell. Plus the Tenderloin was just to the west. The vagrants migrated from elsewhere to this area (and others) starting about the 90s. More "drugged up" into the 2000s.
Covid hit.
Amazon became the shopping choice of many (including us). Techies who occupied the offices were laid off, or moved elsewhere and worked remotely. No need to go to Union Square to shop or the Financial District to work. Nordstrom's closed, so did most/all stores in the Westfield Center. So did most stores on Union Square. And SF has a 37% office vacancy rate. Higher vagrant to "other" ratio.
Valencia St (in the Mission area)
We lived close to there in the Noe Valley. In the 70s The Mission was not a very popular place to live. But many adventurers moved there to pick up inexpensive Victorian Houses to restore & live in.
Tech boom.
The techies loved the bohemian atmosphere of the Mission. Many moved there - including Mark Zuckerberg. Trendy restaurants & shops popped up. We've dined in this area quite frequently then.
Covid hit
Techies were laid off or moved elsewhere (like Ohio) and worked remotely. BART station street entrances somehow became places where people sold stolen goods (just very recently the City took action to limit this). High vagrant to "other" ratio. Of the dozen or so restaurants were we regularly dined in the Mission - only 1 remains (Foreign Cinema).
If you read a guide book that was researched before Covid - it is obsolete.
I realize that this is more than anyone wanted to know.
Stu Dudley
Last edited by StuDudley; Mar 8th, 2024 at 05:39 PM.
Mar 9th, 2024, 12:26 AM
#11
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Really looking forward to more! - from your State tags it seems you definitely got around. I appreciate your honest descriptions -- the great, the good and . . . the bad. Often some of the local 'cheerleaders' especially for San Francisco do seem to pooh pooh the issues.
Oh -- didn't see your new posts -- one would NEVER dream English isn't your native language. Full marks
Oh -- didn't see your new posts -- one would NEVER dream English isn't your native language. Full marks
Mar 9th, 2024, 12:27 AM
#12
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Powell & Market area: (not Union Sq.)
We lived in SF & I worked downtown in the Mid 70s. This area was not great then. Nordstrom's & the Westfield Center were developed & opened in 1988, and the area improved a bit. But it still was not that great. Lots of scruffy & touristy businesses on Powell between Market & O'Farrell. Plus the Tenderloin was just to the west. The vagrants migrated from elsewhere to this area (and others) starting about the 90s. More "drugged up" into the 2000s.
Covid hit.
Amazon became the shopping choice of many (including us). Techies who occupied the offices were laid off, or moved elsewhere and worked remotely. No need to go to Union Square to shop or the Financial District to work. Nordstrom's closed, so did most/all stores in the Westfield Center. So did most stores on Union Square. And SF has a 37% office vacancy rate. Higher vagrant to "other" ratio.
Valencia St (in the Mission area)
We lived close to there in the Noe Valley. In the 70s The Mission was not a very popular place to live. But many adventurers moved there to pick up inexpensive Victorian Houses to restore & live in.
Tech boom.
The techies loved the bohemian atmosphere of the Mission. Many moved there - including Mark Zuckerberg. Trendy restaurants & shops popped up. We've dined in this area quite frequently then.
Covid hit
Techies were laid off or moved elsewhere (like Ohio) and worked remotely. BART station street entrances somehow became places where people sold stolen goods (just very recently the City took action to limit this). High vagrant to "other" ratio. Of the dozen or so restaurants were we regularly dined in the Mission - only 1 remains (Foreign Cinema).
If you read a guide book that was researched before Covid - it is obsolete.
I realize that this is more than anyone wanted to know.
Stu Dudley
We lived in SF & I worked downtown in the Mid 70s. This area was not great then. Nordstrom's & the Westfield Center were developed & opened in 1988, and the area improved a bit. But it still was not that great. Lots of scruffy & touristy businesses on Powell between Market & O'Farrell. Plus the Tenderloin was just to the west. The vagrants migrated from elsewhere to this area (and others) starting about the 90s. More "drugged up" into the 2000s.
Covid hit.
Amazon became the shopping choice of many (including us). Techies who occupied the offices were laid off, or moved elsewhere and worked remotely. No need to go to Union Square to shop or the Financial District to work. Nordstrom's closed, so did most/all stores in the Westfield Center. So did most stores on Union Square. And SF has a 37% office vacancy rate. Higher vagrant to "other" ratio.
Valencia St (in the Mission area)
We lived close to there in the Noe Valley. In the 70s The Mission was not a very popular place to live. But many adventurers moved there to pick up inexpensive Victorian Houses to restore & live in.
Tech boom.
The techies loved the bohemian atmosphere of the Mission. Many moved there - including Mark Zuckerberg. Trendy restaurants & shops popped up. We've dined in this area quite frequently then.
Covid hit
Techies were laid off or moved elsewhere (like Ohio) and worked remotely. BART station street entrances somehow became places where people sold stolen goods (just very recently the City took action to limit this). High vagrant to "other" ratio. Of the dozen or so restaurants were we regularly dined in the Mission - only 1 remains (Foreign Cinema).
If you read a guide book that was researched before Covid - it is obsolete.
I realize that this is more than anyone wanted to know.
Stu Dudley
Mar 12th, 2024, 10:22 AM
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Thank you everyone for your lovely comments!
Part 3 - LA and San Diego
Our friends picked us up from LAX and we drove to their house, which is about an hour and a half outside LA. We stopped at In n Out on the way there - we heard that their burgers are addictive, and really wanted to try them out. They were good, but I think they're overhyped.
Day 1 – Santa Monica and Venice beach
We had some breakfast at our friends' house and our friend then drove us to Venice beach, getting some Starbucks from the drive-through on the way, which was a novel experience for us. I wasn't really impressed with Venice beach, but the Venice canals nearby were nice to explore and I enjoyed looking at the quirky houses. We walked to the Marina Del Ray and then walked back to Venice beach and drove to Santa Monica. We got some quick and filling lunch from Bibibop Asian Grill and some coffee from Blue Bottle. Our friend really enjoys Philz coffee and he wanted us to try it so he got some for us. It tasted dessert-like, but I'm not sure how I feel about mint in my coffee. We walked the Santa Monica Pier and back, stopping at the carousel and taking pictures at the Bubba Gum Shrimp & Co. It was enjoyable, but nothing to write home about. As in the other cities, there were lots of homeless people lying on benches, garbage and some sketchy characters. We were planning to go to the Getty Villa, but unfortunately we didn't have enough time to get there before it closed and felt a bit tired, so our friend just drove us around a beatiful area of Malibu, La Costa Beach, to check out the views and some of the incredible houses there. We then headed home, stopping at a supermarket to get groceries for our dinner. Our friend grilled us some steaks, which were incredibly juicy, and made mashed potatoes with caramelized onions for the side dish. The quality of the beef that you can get in the USA is amazing and it's so much more value for money in comparison to Cyprus!
Day 2 – Griffith Observatory, Hollywood, LACMA and Beverly Hills
We started the day by driving to the Griffith Observatory. Our friends said that we brought them luck because all of the parking meters there weren't working and they were able to park for free, which apparently had never happened to them before in LA! The views of the Hollywood sign from up there are nice, but it was a bit cloudy that day. We checked out the exhibits, took some photos and continued to our next stop, Hollywood. We parked close to the Walk of Fame and walked, checking out the stars, to the Chinese Theatre. From what I had read online, I knew that the Walk of Fame isn't anything impressive and that it would be dirty and underwhelming, but it's just one of those things that you want to check off your list and say that you actually saw in person. It was a good thing that we had managed our expectations, as the things we read online were definitely true. Let's just say that we were ready to go after a few minutes there! We drove to West Hollywood, which had a much livelier atmosphere and got some tacos at Guisados, which were tasty and good value for money. We walked around for a bit, checking out the various bars and restaurants. We then headed to LACMA, stopping at Fonuts on the way and splitting some baked donuts between us. We all agreed that our favorite flavor was the churro, but they had run out of most selection by the time that we got there. We only saw LACMA from outside, but even so, I found it to be the most interesting place that we had been to in LA until then. We had some fun taking silly photographs with the public art outside, like the Levitated Mass (the boys pretended to carry it on their shoulders, which resulted in some absolutely ridiculous shots) and, of course, the Urban Light, which we saw in the movie La La Land. In case I ever return to LA I definitely would want to spend more time there. We then drove to Beverly Hills, passing through Rodeo Drive. I thought the SF and Malibu houses that we had seen were incredible, but the Beverly Hills houses actually topped them! It's unbelievable how wealthy some people are and how big the contrast is between rich and poor. My husband and our friend then wanted to go to the Fast & the Furious movie house to take a photograph of them outside, as they really liked that movie when they were teenagers. It seems that people after all these years still go to see that house and though it was a random weekday afternoon we saw other people taking photographs of it. I imagine the people living in that house and their neighbors must be sick of it. What can I say...men and their cars!
Day 3 - San Diego
I loved San Diego and would definitely return to spend more time there! It felt much safer than LA and has so many things to do. We first went to Coronado and walked around for a bit in Centennial Park. The views across the water from Harbor View Park and when crossing the bridge are great! We then returned to San Diego and my husband and his friend went to the USS Midway Museum. They later told us that they really enjoyed seeing this and would recommend getting the tour (which they didn't). Us girls walked the pier, checked out the huge Kissing Sailor statue (I think it's officially called "Unconditional Surrender") and got some tacos and margaritas at Seaport Village. We then headed to Balboa Park, which was incredible. It has a Desert Garden, a Japanese Friendship garden, a Spanish Village Art Centre and many more sights to see, like the California Tower, the Botanical Building and the Palm Canyon Trail. Unfortunately everything closed at 5:00 pm, so we didn't have the time to see it properly. I could definitely spend a full day here. I also read that the Old town is very pretty and that La Jolla is also beautiful. So many sights to explore, yet so little time! I'd definitely spend more time in San Diego if I could.
Day 4 – Downtown LA and California Science Centre
On our final day, we drove through Downtown LA and went to get breakfast from Honey Hi with our friend, as his wife had to work. We shared three different plates from the menu, the breakfast sandwich with a sunny side farm egg, avocado and chipotle aioli, the lambwich with lamb, beef and halloumi (a Cypriot cheese) and the pancakes. Everything was delicious, but the lambwich was exceptional! If you ever go there, I'd definitely recommend sitting inside, as it's much much nicer than the outside. After our breakfast we went to the California Science Center, which has some impressive exhibits and is mainly free. You might have realised by now that my husband is very interested in aviation and space, so he really wanted to see the Endeavour shuttle. I've just went online to double-check the name, and it seems that this will now be off display for several years, so I'm really glad we had the chance to see it. We saw some incredible footage showing how the space shuttle was transported through the streets to the museum and did the space shuttle simulation experience. At the time, there was also a temporary Maya exhibition, which I went to. However, I've just now seen on Reddit that the exhibition was abruptly terminated for political reasons - apparently the Guatemalan government demanded this, but can't say how accurate this is. After we left the museum, we got some sushi from Sugarfish on the way back to our friends' house, and with that, wrapped up our LA part of the trip!
Next adventure, road trip to Arizona and the Grand Canyon!
Part 3 - LA and San Diego
Our friends picked us up from LAX and we drove to their house, which is about an hour and a half outside LA. We stopped at In n Out on the way there - we heard that their burgers are addictive, and really wanted to try them out. They were good, but I think they're overhyped.
Day 1 – Santa Monica and Venice beach
We had some breakfast at our friends' house and our friend then drove us to Venice beach, getting some Starbucks from the drive-through on the way, which was a novel experience for us. I wasn't really impressed with Venice beach, but the Venice canals nearby were nice to explore and I enjoyed looking at the quirky houses. We walked to the Marina Del Ray and then walked back to Venice beach and drove to Santa Monica. We got some quick and filling lunch from Bibibop Asian Grill and some coffee from Blue Bottle. Our friend really enjoys Philz coffee and he wanted us to try it so he got some for us. It tasted dessert-like, but I'm not sure how I feel about mint in my coffee. We walked the Santa Monica Pier and back, stopping at the carousel and taking pictures at the Bubba Gum Shrimp & Co. It was enjoyable, but nothing to write home about. As in the other cities, there were lots of homeless people lying on benches, garbage and some sketchy characters. We were planning to go to the Getty Villa, but unfortunately we didn't have enough time to get there before it closed and felt a bit tired, so our friend just drove us around a beatiful area of Malibu, La Costa Beach, to check out the views and some of the incredible houses there. We then headed home, stopping at a supermarket to get groceries for our dinner. Our friend grilled us some steaks, which were incredibly juicy, and made mashed potatoes with caramelized onions for the side dish. The quality of the beef that you can get in the USA is amazing and it's so much more value for money in comparison to Cyprus!
Day 2 – Griffith Observatory, Hollywood, LACMA and Beverly Hills
We started the day by driving to the Griffith Observatory. Our friends said that we brought them luck because all of the parking meters there weren't working and they were able to park for free, which apparently had never happened to them before in LA! The views of the Hollywood sign from up there are nice, but it was a bit cloudy that day. We checked out the exhibits, took some photos and continued to our next stop, Hollywood. We parked close to the Walk of Fame and walked, checking out the stars, to the Chinese Theatre. From what I had read online, I knew that the Walk of Fame isn't anything impressive and that it would be dirty and underwhelming, but it's just one of those things that you want to check off your list and say that you actually saw in person. It was a good thing that we had managed our expectations, as the things we read online were definitely true. Let's just say that we were ready to go after a few minutes there! We drove to West Hollywood, which had a much livelier atmosphere and got some tacos at Guisados, which were tasty and good value for money. We walked around for a bit, checking out the various bars and restaurants. We then headed to LACMA, stopping at Fonuts on the way and splitting some baked donuts between us. We all agreed that our favorite flavor was the churro, but they had run out of most selection by the time that we got there. We only saw LACMA from outside, but even so, I found it to be the most interesting place that we had been to in LA until then. We had some fun taking silly photographs with the public art outside, like the Levitated Mass (the boys pretended to carry it on their shoulders, which resulted in some absolutely ridiculous shots) and, of course, the Urban Light, which we saw in the movie La La Land. In case I ever return to LA I definitely would want to spend more time there. We then drove to Beverly Hills, passing through Rodeo Drive. I thought the SF and Malibu houses that we had seen were incredible, but the Beverly Hills houses actually topped them! It's unbelievable how wealthy some people are and how big the contrast is between rich and poor. My husband and our friend then wanted to go to the Fast & the Furious movie house to take a photograph of them outside, as they really liked that movie when they were teenagers. It seems that people after all these years still go to see that house and though it was a random weekday afternoon we saw other people taking photographs of it. I imagine the people living in that house and their neighbors must be sick of it. What can I say...men and their cars!
Day 3 - San Diego
I loved San Diego and would definitely return to spend more time there! It felt much safer than LA and has so many things to do. We first went to Coronado and walked around for a bit in Centennial Park. The views across the water from Harbor View Park and when crossing the bridge are great! We then returned to San Diego and my husband and his friend went to the USS Midway Museum. They later told us that they really enjoyed seeing this and would recommend getting the tour (which they didn't). Us girls walked the pier, checked out the huge Kissing Sailor statue (I think it's officially called "Unconditional Surrender") and got some tacos and margaritas at Seaport Village. We then headed to Balboa Park, which was incredible. It has a Desert Garden, a Japanese Friendship garden, a Spanish Village Art Centre and many more sights to see, like the California Tower, the Botanical Building and the Palm Canyon Trail. Unfortunately everything closed at 5:00 pm, so we didn't have the time to see it properly. I could definitely spend a full day here. I also read that the Old town is very pretty and that La Jolla is also beautiful. So many sights to explore, yet so little time! I'd definitely spend more time in San Diego if I could.
Day 4 – Downtown LA and California Science Centre
On our final day, we drove through Downtown LA and went to get breakfast from Honey Hi with our friend, as his wife had to work. We shared three different plates from the menu, the breakfast sandwich with a sunny side farm egg, avocado and chipotle aioli, the lambwich with lamb, beef and halloumi (a Cypriot cheese) and the pancakes. Everything was delicious, but the lambwich was exceptional! If you ever go there, I'd definitely recommend sitting inside, as it's much much nicer than the outside. After our breakfast we went to the California Science Center, which has some impressive exhibits and is mainly free. You might have realised by now that my husband is very interested in aviation and space, so he really wanted to see the Endeavour shuttle. I've just went online to double-check the name, and it seems that this will now be off display for several years, so I'm really glad we had the chance to see it. We saw some incredible footage showing how the space shuttle was transported through the streets to the museum and did the space shuttle simulation experience. At the time, there was also a temporary Maya exhibition, which I went to. However, I've just now seen on Reddit that the exhibition was abruptly terminated for political reasons - apparently the Guatemalan government demanded this, but can't say how accurate this is. After we left the museum, we got some sushi from Sugarfish on the way back to our friends' house, and with that, wrapped up our LA part of the trip!
Next adventure, road trip to Arizona and the Grand Canyon!
Mar 12th, 2024, 11:52 AM
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Too bad you did not visit Laguna Beach. We lived there in the early 70s. About 5 years ago, my wife & I visited Santa Monica and Venice beaches. We had the same impression of it that you had. Glad we chose to live in Laguna Beach instead of Venice or Santa Monica.
Stu Dudley
Stu Dudley
