I consider myself fortunate. The 1/2 gallon of milk that was spilled upon my keyboard has left a few keys quite funky-functioning, but that is the extent of the damage so far.
This entry is about the few trips the kids and I made from the financial district to parts of the city that require a train.
On Wednesday, we packed a lunch and hopped a Muni train to Corona Park. The kids hung out at an old-school rusty playground like we used to have in our old neighborhoods. Those playgrounds were rusty even then.
We then ventured up a steep hill to the Randall Museum, a small almost-wildlife preserve located in what appears to be a renovated school. Apparently, this is all run by the local park district. The pictures and video will give the best idea of what the kids did over those two days. I liked both the neighborhoods we visited quite a bit. They were diverse; had lots of culture. You can tell a lot about an area by who hangs at the playgrounds during the day.
So, yes, it's been quite some time since we've checked in writing, picture, video-wise...
We've been evicted from our gorgeous two-bedroom apartment, only because our rental period ran out, and the real estate person couldn't find us another place. We will miss having the kitchen and the extra bedroom, and the experience of just being another family in San Francisco...
We've relocated to the Courtyard on 2nd and Folsom, just down the street from our last place, but it's like we've moved to an entirely different part of the city. None of the same busses are available, there are all new stores, we only have to walk a short distance for anything we need (AND pay an arm and a leg for it!!!). I've forgotten this weird dichotomy of city life.
We've become well-versed in the public transportation of this beautiful city, and I've dragged the children to many of the corners...
We've been up and down the hills within the Presidio to hang at the Letterman Digital Effects studio created for Lucasfilms' special effects department. And, then, we made our way to the Julius Kahn playground, which is probably one of the coolest playgrounds I've been to: there were swinging discs that fit multiple children, a huge net that fits twenty kids and spins like a top, climbing nets that are not like any we've ever seen!!!!! It was a great time Check out the video for more!
I also took the kids to the Exploratorium in the Marina District. We loved the nearly hour-long bus ride to get there (it's the funniest thing: the kids complain so intensely about the bus travel, and then have the most wonderful time once they are on the bus...), and once we got there, the museum had the coolest things. The exhibits centered around the senses, and had some hands-on activities that had to do with sight, sound, and feeling as well as art-centric exhibits, like a room that children paint with a light that records every stroke on a screen, enabling the kids to make 3D tables and chairs out of light in that little room.
Two weekends ago, Karen and I took the children to the Aquarium of the Bay right on Fisherman's Wharf, and despite meeting a group of great people who work for the aquarium, the actual place as a museum left quite a bit to be desired. Coming out of a rich museum town like Chicago, the kids are used to some outstanding hands-on fare with these places out here, and apparently, they cannot live up to the expectation. Caity actually demanded that the employees of the aquarium open up the wing of the museum that we had failed to see that day. They were baffled. The museum itself was just THAT small. And THAT expensive.
Last Friday, we booked a tour with Safari West, right outside of Napa, California in Santa Rosa. The preserve itself is owned by an obnoxiously rich couple, Nancy and Peter Lang. Peter is the son of Otto Lang, a Hollywood director who was responsible for many projects, including the Man from U.N.C.L.E. and Flipper.
The place was huge and amazing. The minute you walk in, you can see giraffes walking about relatively happily and freely. Once the walking tour begins, you meet some monkeys, cheetahs, tortoises, and an area for endangered birds such as the Scarlet Ibis. It was a guilty pleasure afternoon knowing that we were really just carting around some rich couple's back yard in a 1950's vintage safari jeep looking at their expensive, endangered pets.
Karen and I decided that in whatever city we may be spending any bit of time, we would try to catch a baseball game at their home field. In California, we have the choice of five, Oakland and Giants being the closest to us. We drove into Oakland to pick up some $2 day-game tickets for an upcoming Wednesday, and stopped afterward to have lunch at the greatest sandwich shop I've ever experienced in my entired sandwich-munching life: Bake-Sale Bettyon Telegraph Avenue in Oakland... I had a brisket on a French roll with potato chips (on the sandwich!!!!!!!) and horseradish sauce that made you sneeze and cheer at the same time... I also had the privilege of tasting their claim-to-fame fried chicken and cole slaw on French roll sandwich, which was just as good. The kids even raved about the food, it was THAT good. And, the topper: all dining is outdoors, and they use ironing boards for their tables. Brilliant!!!!
Karen and I ran the first half of the San Francisco Marathon this past Sunday. The hills were unreal. Simply insane. So, our time was not outstanding, but we really enjoyed the view. The weather was amazing, never reaching over 62 degrees the entire time. They started at 5:30... Heat that, Chicago???? 5:30 AM!!! It's still relatively MILD, then!!!!! AND, you get to be done by 10:30 at the latest (or, thereabouts). We had a wonderful run, despite the hills.
