California, Here I Come!!

Okay, so that totally reminds me of this song we used to sing in high school youth choir that gave a musical homage, if you will, to each state in the US.  Today's title was the beginning of the California song.  Ironically, we went to San Francisco one year on choir tour and sang in Ghiradelli Square, so it was so sweet to return there and remember our time of singing. 

However, I am getting ahead of myself.  My word, where did July go?  So sorry for my lack of posts.  I looked at my little number by June and it says 12 posts and July only says 3 posts. :(  So sad...I considered the differences in those two months, though, and the differing variable does appear to be the addition of a summer school class, which has been AMAZING, btw, but has definitely left me with fewer moments to blog.  I have found that in this class I am so wrapped up in learning the information that 3 hours passes like a breath.  It has been a wonderful experience.  Anyhoo, I am nearing the end of my assignments, so here I am back in bloggyland.  :)  I have so many things to share, but first, I want to continue the story of my trip!

When I last posted, I had been attending my sorority's national convention in Orlando.  On Wednesday morning, I arose early (3:30 am Orlando time and 12:30 am San Francisco time) to be downstairs outside the lobby to catch my airport shuttle, which would arrive at around 4 am.  My flight left at 7, so once I got all checked in, I had some time to read and eat a little breakfast before boarding.  I was pretty pumped to be flying across the continental United States!!  The flight was about 6 hours to LAX and then I flew from LAX to San Francisco.  Fortunately I was able to nap a bit during the longer flight.  :)  I was a little nervous about flight changes and any delays, but everything worked out perfectly!  I made all the flights and was even early getting to my hotel, so I had a few minutes to catch my breath before the keynote speaker.

A little side story about flying into LA...
As I walked to my new gate, I saw probably one of the most handsome men I have ever seen in real life.  I mean movie star glam.  Of course he was--I was in LA!  He was chatting on his phone, so I went over to my gate and waited for my boarding number to be called, thinking to myself that my movie star quality sighting will make a fun story.  Well, we fly to San Francisco without a hitch, I get my luggage, and head to the curb to meet my shuttle that I reserved online.  It is right there waiting for me.  I just cannot get over how well all the little details have fallen into place.  God is so good!!  He knows how to take care of His daughter who is not the best with details. :)  Ok, so the shuttle is pretty full, but not crammed.  I am the last person needing to be picked up.  The only space available is the back seat and who is by the window???  Yes, you guessed the handsome man from the airport!!!  I mean there were several gates around the San Francisco one at LAX.  He could have been going anywhere.  Anyway, the shuttle was completely silent our whole trip and I never saw him again, but that was just a fun little moment. :)

The conference was really great and I met some nice people from Texas, so that was fun.  We went to dinner in Chinatown and it was delicious.  I even got to ride in a cable car...or was it a street car?  I always seem to get them confused!

 

This was the view from my hotel!  Well, with me leaning out of the window a bit and turning to the left and zooming my camera in a bunch. :)  Isn't that beautfiul!  There we have the Bay Bridge and the Ferry Building.  I also could see street cars (or maybe cable cars?) from my window and a beautiful rooftop garden (without craning my neck).

On day 2 of the conference, I headed to Starbucks early in the morning to grab breakfast before attending another keynote and some good morning sessions.  Then, I headed to the Ferry Building for lunch.

Inside was a great restaurant called Gott's.  They had amazing burgers and fries.  I knew it was going to be great when I saw how long the line was.  I ordered a cheeseburger, sweet potato fries with their homemade ranch, and a vanilla diet coke.  I know I know, but I was on vacation!! ;)  Seriously, it was a meal to remember.  This was a sign in the restaurant.  I definitely followed the directions! 

Love the festive patriotic decor!

I got my food to go and enjoyed my lunch al fresco with a view of the bay.

And, of course, even though I had had quite the gastronomic fest, I still needed a little something sweet to cap off my lunch break.  Miette's is the most delightful bakery in the Ferry Building and they sold  parisian macarons.  I had heard of these delectable morsels before and had always wanted to taste one. 

Here it is -- a chocolate lavendar macaron.  Tres bien!

After more sessions that afternoon, I could tell that my transcontinental flight and intense time zone changes of the day before were catching up to me and I was pretty tuckered, so I grabbed a quick dinner and tried to get some extra sleep.  The next morning I went out to get some breakfast at my favorite place --

The Ferry Building, of course!

I had the most amazing latte.  I have always seen on tv how they make lattes and the top looks like leaves or a flower or a heart and I got one that looked exactly like that.  It was beautiful, but don't worry I didn't gaze at it all day, I definitely enjoyed my morning dose of caffeine.

Then, the sweetest security guard offered to take my picture.  As you can tell, my latte hadn't quite kicked in yet.  I think I still look a little sleepy! :)

After my latte, I went in search of a morsel to pair with it.  My journey led me to an adorable cafe and shop called Frog Hollow Farm.  Isn't the sign cute?!

And although I was tempted by these rustic tarts, I decided to go with the steel cut oatmeal complete with homeade preserves and toasted walnuts.  Yum yum!

This particular morning was the last part of the conference and one of my favorite sessions was the last one I attended.  It was about using visuals and we learned really neat ways to make simple drawings!  I'll have to practice some more -- it sure was fun! 

Well friends, if you are still reading this, thank you!  I know today's post was a bit lengthy, so I'll pause here and hopefully be able to finish my San Francisco journey soon.  We still have quite a few adventures yet! 

I just got home from seeing Ramona and Beezus with some sweet friends and if you haven't seen it yet, you simply must.  It is such a precious story and will bring back many memories if you enjoyed those books as a child. 

Sweet dreams!