Post Exam Vacation (Day 1)

In my group of friends, it has become a bit of a tradition to travel after sitting for the PE exam. So when my friends suggested that my trip be out to visit them and work on craft projects, like we used to do regularly back in college, I agreed wholeheartedly. Since they are located about 20 minutes from my brother, I made it a week long vacation and added some time visiting with my "baby" brother. Hence begins the travelogue:

I flew out on Thursday and spent the morning on planes and in airports. Thankfully, the time change worked for me flying west, so it was only 1:30 when I landed. Plenty of time to squeeze in some fun. : )



I bought a ticket for BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit, it's a train that runs through the Bay Area) and boarded. About a half an hour later, I found myself in downtown San Francisco to meet up with one of my friends who works downtown. I loved the juxtaposition of the escalator with the trees at ground level. I'm sure it's not nearly so fun when it's rainy.



I gave my friend a call and we figured out my location based on the fact that I was across the street from the Occupy San Francisco Protesters. She came out to meet me and we stowed my luggage in her cube. She had a few more hours before her day ended so I left to grab a cup of tea and wander the City.

I checked out the street cars...



...the sculpture...



...and the Ferry Building.



The Ferry Building was especially awesome. It held shops dedicated to pork (slogan: Tasty Salted Pig Parts), mushrooms, vegan baked goods, and, in a serendipitous twist, a Sur La Table.



It was a lovely way to kill some time and I was finally able to check out the plates I had been ogling online.

I loved the color (a warm white) and the edging, but channeling my inner golidlocks, the 8.5 salad plate seemed too small...



...and the 10.5" dinner plate too large.

.

I snapped pictures all the way back to my friend's office where we grabbed my luggage and hopped on a bus to another friend's apartment in Alameda where I would be staying.

We meet up with my hostess, another friend, and a new suitor and headed out to a local restaurant for food.

Trust me when I say the photo does not do this meal justice.



After dinner, we wandered around, popping into a random bookstore, before heading back to my hostess's apartment, where we finally snagged some group shots:

The group shot didn't turn out so well...



...but the one of my friend with her new fellow was much better.



At this point, it was getting late, so we dispersed for the night and rejoined the next morning.

To be continued...