June 2005 - San Francisco Visit

After the Alaska cruise we traveled to San Francisco, California where we spent four nights at the Hyatt at Fisherman's Wharf.  This was an ideal location as it was only 1 block from Fisherman's Wharf and a short walk to the cable car.  During this visit we visited with a former colleague of Bill's (Walt) that he worked with in Jakarta several years ago. The Golden Gate Bridge Day 1 - Visit to Muir Woods Redwood Forest On our first day in town we drove to Muir Woods National Monument (thanks to Walt for lending us his car).  Seeing these large redwood trees was a truly impressive sight.  The trees are truly spectacular in their size standing over 250 feet tall, however, the redwoods further north can reach heights of 367 feet, 60 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty.  The average age of the coastal redwoods at Muir Woods is between 600-800 years, with the oldest being at least 1,100 years old.  this is still young for redwoods as they can live up to 2,200 years.  On our return drive we went along the coastal road and enjoyed panoramic views.  We also stopped at Sausalito and enjoyed a leisure walk through the quaint downtown. Day 2 - Bay Tour/Fisherman Wharf/Baseball game Day 2 - Bay Tour / Fisherman's Wharf / Oakland A's Baseball Game On our second day in town we went to Fisherman's Wharf and went on a  Red & White fleet 1 hour bay boat tour.  Afterwards we had the world famous Fisherman's Wharf clam chowder for lunch.  After lunch we rode the cable car and walked around the city the remainder of the afternoon.  That evening we went to the Oakland A's baseball with Walt and Murni. Day 3 - Cable Car Museum/Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory We started our third day with a walk along Fisherman's Wharf just enjoying the sights, sounds and beautiful sunny weather.  After a casual stroll through the park along the water we went to Ghirardelli Square to visit the Ghirardelli Chocolate factory.  The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company played an integral role in the introduction of chocolate to American consumers, establishing its enduring chocolate reputation from its San Francisco factory in 1852.  After lunch we headed to the Cable Car Museum which was quite interesting.  Reading about the early history and seeing the artifacts was worth the trip. Day 4 On Day 4 we had a casual breakfast and then headed to the airport to fly to Cleveland, Ohio.