Friday 19 June

There is no way Chris will be out of bed before noon and I have given myself an extra hour's sleep, until 9am. I have a few ideas for today of things I want to do so sit tight this is a huge day!!!!

First up I walk into town and I come across a window displaying beautiful old stagecoach. It is an original Wells Fargo postal coach. I go in to take a photo and discover it is actually a museum and free. What a job that was back in the day with the long hours and travel time!

My next stop is the Railway Museum which is small but interesting to read about the different streetcars they have. I saw one in action that was painted in green and yellow with Melbourne on it. They do this with all the cities that have streetcars (trams).

I move towards the centre of town and go to a mall looking for a spiral escalator I have read about. I find it and ride it but it is a non event. It is too big to really notice you are moving in a spiral but I think it's a novel idea. I am suckered in by one of the shops in the middle of the walkways, you know the ones where they come at you with a sample of something so great you won't know what you did before it came along!! This is one I have bought before, the Dead Sea lotions and potions. I don't mind being stopped, the girl is lovely and we have a great time, she laughs at my jokes while exfoliating and moisturising my hands. We chat about Australia and the harsh sun and I know she is working up to the sale but I have already decided I will buy something. She will start at the value of all 3 products being $250 and work her way down to me buying 1 for $50 and then 'ssh, don't tell anyone' giving me a free gift of the second. The piece de resistance is the staff price on the third item so I can have the set but I really have to 'ssssh, she isn't supposed to do this but she is a trainer so she can'. I spend around $90. It is actually good value as these products do last the 15 months or so they say they do. Jen even gives me her personal email to let her know how things are going and if I have any questions. I am so lucky!!!

I need to get going, I didn't factor in this time waster. On my way to the Cable Car Museum I am distracted by 4 fire trucks that come speeding towards me, well to the homeless man lying semi conscious on the ground. This distraction costs me a very steep walk up Nob Hill and I am the knob because I just have to walk down the other side!! The museum is terrific with the actual cables and sheaves that the cars run on. It doesn't seem real.

My next stop is the area of Fort Mason (suburb by the water) so I head in the right direction intending to take the bus but it's too close so I walk. The scenery is just gorgeous and so summery. The bay, sunshine, tourists, attractions, me and a general relaxed attitude.

I need sustenance and a toilet break so I go into Safeway. I buy a red banana (which is purple) from Mexico but I pick one that isn't ripe and it tastes like any other banana.

Moving on I aim for Fort Point which is underneath the Golden Gate. This is where Hitchcock filmed the scene where Kim Novak dies in Vertigo. I planned to take the bus but the walk is so lovely and the houses amazing I can't stop. This is the Marina area and this lovely walk is to become my enemy as I am getting tired now and my legs are aching. I get side tracked again by an extraordinary building housing the Exploratorium. I don't go inside as it is just like Scienceworks and I don't need to re-acquaint myself with experiments and facts that I can remember anywhere. It's the structure outside the museum that I am drawn to as is everyone else. There is a wedding going on and I hear the bagpipes which are not being played particularly well.

I feel like I should be wearing a toga and am transported back to Roman times. I wonder how this structure survived the 1906 earthquake and what are the Romans doing here anyway? I find the info I need and it tells me it was built for the Panama Pacific Exposition in 1915. So it's not as old as I want it to be.

I take the bus the remainder of the way and arrive at the bridge at 4.45pm, the Fort closes at 5pm. I still have to find my way down the hill and the signage is terrible. I am sent in different directions by various people and I am not happy now. When I get there I just get a few photos and imagine what it is like inside. When we walked the bridge we caught a glimpse inside.

Desperate for a chardonnay I am seeking a cafe to sit in for a while but it's all park and beach, no shops. I am tempted to walk the The Presidio area but decide it's really not a good idea given the pain I am starting to feel. The Presidio is the area once occupied by the Marines as you would expect with a name like that. It is now one of the wealthiest areas to live in.

I have got to get to the bus stop before I collapse and after a mix up of bus numbers and finally accidentally coming across the shops, I am on the home stretch. This bus will take me within minutes of my front door.

I pop in to Enrico's at 6.50pm. I have time for a happy hour mojito. I have been out since 10am and figure I have been walking for 8 of the 9 hours.

Time for a well earned shower and then it's out to dinner and to relax. I go around the corner to an Italian restaurant. My meal is delicious - roast chicken with zucchini mashed potatoes and broccolini. My cab sav is yummy! I really like being on my own, listening and observing. Americans are very loud, we have established that and it is well known. I am loud and often feel self conscious when I catch myself. Here, there is no catching of one's self, it is the way you are.

Couple A in front of me are competing for my aural attention and all I want is to eat my vegetables. Couple B next to me are not trying to be subtle. She is disturbing me because she is shaking her legs with nerves or maybe she has a chill. My peripheral vision is awesome at the worst of time so this is just killing me and I can't turn away far enough in my seat to avoid seeing her without looking strange. Besides there is a mirrored wall on my other side and I do not want to look at myself.

I have sometimes thought I would fit in with America society given the volume I can speak at and I can be brash but geez I hope I do not come across like this. It hurts my ears it is so loud. The shaky legs are still going and I want to smack her as she takes a photo of her calzone.

Couple A man is getting louder and louder. The waiters are not attentive to my wine levels and I wonder if this is a safe drinking tactic or they are just slack. I decide they are slack! Some restaurants love to wait on a single female diner - others don't! I can't wait to leave so I can go elsewhere for dessert. Maybe I should let everyone leave before me and then I can avoid them. Plan!!

Couple C - oh no, another leg shaker! I think they are on a date. Threesome D has a foot swinger, female B is still going - is she dizzy? I'll make her dizzy. Oh, couple A has left the building. I hear someone many tables away say "ssh". I'm like, yeah shut the hell up everyone. Couple E have been eating so slowly, drinking the same wine, corporate clothing - let's meet after work Friday type of meeting. I can't hear the words coming out of their mouths, just sounds. The body language tells me everything. I know these things and there is no one here to tell me I am wrong.

Finally I leave and I am hanging out for some tiramisu. Staying in Little Italy the options are plentiful. Unfortunately I choose the wrong place. I struggle through my coffee and dessert with a constant grimace on my face.

Time to go home to bed. It's the last night here and I am wrecked.

N.B. I know there are some typos but I can't be bothered to fix them. I must really be relaxed!!!