The Coldest Winter I Ever Spent was a Summer in San Francisco

The coolest quote Mark Twain never actually said... though it's a pithy witticism that would be so characteristic of one Samuel Clemens. It was seriously cold though, a brisk wind the entire morning and a gloomy fog hanging over the city that never fully lifted.

I love visiting this city though I would never want to live here... like other great American cities of old, I find a lot of inspiration and room for reflection when surrounded by buildings and monuments that have seen the best and the worst of things - if only the walls could speak, what would they say?

We began our morning with coffee at Four Barrel and breakfast at Tartine in the Mission and then found our way in Russian Hill at Lombard & Hyde among the tourists to look at the 8 hairpin turns of that crooked street. From there, we headed to Fisherman's Wharf & Pier 39 and waved across the bay at the Campanile, which we only found through the haze by finding The Claremont Hotel first. After lunch at Boudin's to have the famously tart sourdough (apparently unique because of the humidity & weather in the Bay - the starter dough was actually brought from Europe, but after being exposed to SF weather, it developed that characteristic sourness), we made a quick jaunt to Fort Point to get pictures of Golden Gate before heading back. I also made a detour to Bi-Rite before jumping on BART back to the East Bay.

I'm behind in posting since I also took pictures in Napa and brunch in the Castro, but those will come soon when I get a free moment from taking pictures to actually update and post!