Me & Dad

Rather than attacking the whole trip to Europe in my blog, I thought I would write about specifics that were funny or cool or educational, etc... (This way I'm more apt to write about it instead of putting it off indefinitely.)



It was Thanksgiving Day, November 26th 2009, when my sister-in-law drove my brother and I to the SLC airport to begin our two week trip to Europe. It was definitely a new adventure for myself having never been too far from the USA. Yes, I had been to Canada a few times and Mexico a few more times than that. But never so far away from home. With the international travel and booking our tickets online there was some concern about my seating assignments on our flight from London to Rome. So while we were checking in our baggage, my brother was asking about my seating assignment on that flight. The lady at the baggage check tried to assist us but found out that we would just have to deal with that when we arrived in London. As we were leaving, she told me, "Have a good trip with your dad." Ha ha! I have been rubbing that in ever since to Ben. He does not look old enough to be my dad. There are only six years difference in our ages! I actually think she thought he was my dad because he was being very concerned about my seat assignment and I appreciated that even if I do tease him.

Don't Get Sassy With Me!

A few days after I got back from Europe I had stopped in to Target for a little shopping. I was in the check out line ready to get rung up when I turned and saw an "old" friend. After exchanging some pleasantries, she said, "So, when was the last time you were in London?" Her tone was a little snotty and I was a little taken back as to just where that question was coming from. She must have noticed my sweatshirt that read "LONDON ENGLAND" across the front of it. And thought I had purchased it at Target or somewhere local. Instead of getting the response she was hoping for, I simply replied "Monday." :)

Ciao Italia

I did it! I bought my ticket and I'm going to Italy, France, and England. I just got my passport earlier this summer and I will have put it to use several times before the year is over. Woo hoo!

Mexican Riviera Cruise

This fall I'm going on a cruise with my brother, niece, and 2 nephews. I'm pretty excited even though it's a ways off yet. We'll be going to the Mexican Riviera via the Carnival's cruise ship, Splendor. The reason why I'm posting this now is that I hope that people who have gone on this cruise will know of all the best excursions to take in each port city. The ports are Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas, and Mazatlan. So if you have any suggestions, please feel free to share. :)

St. George Singles Weekend

Last weekend I got to spend several days with a few other single friends in St. George. My friend, Lindsay, planned the whole thing. She's amazing. It was a little out of character for me to go but I decided that I should go and that it would really be fun. I was right. I had a great time. Fortunately Lindsay had access to a vacation home in which we stayed. It's a 3 bedroom house with several couches and air mattresses. There were 7 of us that stayed at the house: 4 girls and 3 guys. Plus another friend stayed near by and came over a break breakfast out and a hike. We did a little eating out. Okay, that was a lie. We did a lot of eating out: Famous Dave's, Bear Paw, and Ruby River. There was some hot-tubbing, lots or movies, some card playing, and lots of Arrested Development. We all went away anxious for the next trip. Good times!

Spray Paint Artist - San Francisco

While we were in San Francisco we got to see plenty of street artists along Fisherman's Wharf. None of them quite compare though to the guy doing spray paint art. The guy shown here is not the guy we saw but the painting he makes and the techniques he uses are very similar to the one we did see.

San Francisco - Day 4: July 5, 2008

Our fourth and final day in San Francisco consisted largely of touring Alcatraz. The tour was with Alcatraz Cruises. They launch the ferry from Pier 33 and we didn't realize just how far away it was or how long it would take us to get there. We didn't run, but close.

Once on the island they hand out headsets and audio players so that you can give yourself a tour. It works out really well. The audio is delivered by either guys that used to be in prison on the island or by some of the officers that served there. It certainly made it more interesting. We caught the ferry back to the mainland and glimpsed our first view of the Golden Gate Bridge without it being obstructed by fog. Woo hoo!

Once we got back to the pier we had food on the brain. The group of us walked to Boudins to eat once again. This time it was in the sit down restaurant upstairs. And on the way out I had to pick up a few loaves of sourdough to bring home with me.

Following Boudins it was back to the hotel to pick up our luggage and head to the airport. It was a fun trip. Thanks, Ben, Beth, and the girls for letting me be part of your family vacation. And I'm glad My Sister Who Shall Not Be Named and Nick came along too. I think we all had a good time.

Ferry Ride to Alcatraz Island
Don't Try to Take Any Prisoners!
Alcatraz Island

BriAnne Was Naughty
Waiting for the Ferry Back to San Francisco
San Francisco From the Ferry
Golden Gate Bridge (Finally Without Fog)
Buying Bread for the Road

Getting Around in San Francisco

Who knew there were so many ways to tour San Francisco?!

San Francisco Tour Guide Extraordinaire - BriAnne

BriAnne is my niece. She's 18 and the world is her's! So this story really should come as no surprise to anyone that knows her. This photo was taken shortly after this story.

It was 4th of July just after the sun had gone down, when Nick and I stopped our shopping. As we walked out of the sunglass store, who do we run into? BriAnne. But she was not alone. Accompanying her was a large black guy to whom she had been giving directions. Just as we found her, this guy was trying to give her a hug for helping him find Lou's Bar. Here was our conversation.

Me: Hi Bri. What's going on?

BriAnne: I was just helping him (the large black guy) find Lou's bar.

Me: How did you know where Lou's was? (I had been up and down that street so many times and I had no idea where it was.)

BriAnne: It's just right there. (She pointed. Then she guestured that he wanted to give her a hug.)

Me (Maybe Over Protective Uncle): You really should not be out here after dark alone. Nick and I were just one street over and ran into a woman without her shirt and a drunk santa clause.

To which she pretty much shrugged her shoulders. Oh to be young and fearless!

San Francisco - Day 3: July 4, 2008

This day was the first day where we didn't have some kind of tour or specific activity scheduled. And it was the day where we got to do something that was high on Ben's wish list. He's a fan of the ethnic food and wanted to check out Chinatown. Since we were without a car we decided to take one of the historic cable cars to Chinatown. Conveniently located next to our hotel is the first stop on the San Francisco Cable Car Powell-Hyde route. The trolley was an experience all by itself. They fill them up as tight as they can. We slid over so that a Dutch father and sons could squeeze on the same car. As we went up and down the hills I tried hard not to squish the little guys.

Chinatown was filled with shops largely selling the same stuff and I do mean stuff. People on the street would try and get us to come into their restaurant by repeating "dim sum" over and over. I assumed that dim sum was a specific dish but now that I Google it, I find out otherwise. Apparently it's like saying brunch. I guess it makes more sense now. Ben & My Sister Who Shall Not Be Named did buy some kind of bun with a meat mixture in it. I had some. It wasn't too bad but nothing to get excited about.

We were also approached by guys going up and down the streets saying "Fireworks?" I don't know but it felt like maybe they were trying to sell some illegal fireworks or something. Otherwise why not just have a store or a stand or something?

As we were walking down the main street it was interesting to observe a wedding party down the street that was having their wedding photos taken on the main street in Chinatown. Not my idea of a great setting for wedding photos but then again, I'm not Chinese. (Surprise!)

ChinatownOur Own China Man, NickBride & Groom Having Wedding Photos Taken in Chinatown

After checking out Chinatown, we decided to start heading in the direction of Union Street because we had lunch reservations at a place called Betelnut. We thought it was a great idea because we were in Chinatown in Grant Street and Betelnut was on Union Street. So we just started walking north. Then we realized that the restaurant was also a lot further to the west. And then we realized that we were going to have a steep climb and then another drop. Just a few blocks from the top of the hill half of the group hailed a taxi. The rest of us made it to the top of the hill and were very ready when the first taxi returned to take us several more blocks. Apparently things are further apart than they look on a map!

The Long Walk Uphill (and Then Downhill) to Betelnut

Betelnut is an Asian restaurant that was recommended to us by my sister's friend who lives in the Bay Area. We ordered a variety of dishes and shared them family style. My favorites were the szechchuan green beans, Indonesian Mee goreng noodles, and the shui jiao pork dumplings.

Betelnut RestaurantBrian on Pier 39

After working our way back to the hotel some of us wandered down to Pier 39 for some more shopping/walking. On the way back we stopped at Boudins for some of their famous sourdough bread. The previous day some of us got their clam chowder in a sour dough bread bowl. Yum!

Buying Sourdough Bread at Boudins

That evening we just had to step outside our hotel to celebrate Independence Day. They had live music in the park just to the west of the hotel and just north of Ghirardelli Square. It was also there that they lit off fireworks in the bay. Since it was a foggy, the tall fireworks would just make the sky glow in the various colors.

Brooke and Ben in Front of Ghirardelli'sFoggy FireworksBrooke & Nick with Fireworks

It's Just the Circle of Life

While we were at the Aquarium at the Bay on Pier 39 in San Francisco, I overheard a conversation that I found interesting and a little humorous. I thought that I should share it.

As soon as we gave the attendant our tickets, we turned the corner and there were several exhibits to view before heading to the the under-water tunnels. One of those exhibits was a video about sharks similar to the video shown above. The video had a warning that it was violent. It quickly became apparent as the killer shark created a bloody mess by attacking a seal. The interesting part came from a mother and daughter also viewing the video. Here's how their conversation went:

Daughter: Did that shark just eat a seal?!

Mother: It wasn't a seal. It's not real.

Another Viewer: Yeah, the shark just ate a seal.

Mother: Okay, it was a seal and it's real but it's the circle of life. See even the birds are doing it (eating the left over seal.)

Somehow I don't find it more comforting to know that even the seagulls feed on seals. I don't know what the mother was trying to accomplish but I'm afraid that she probably only further traumatized her daughter. Now her daughter knows that her mother will easily lie about things that don't really matter. But more scary than that, I fear that she might have nightmares of being attacked not only by sharks but also by seagulls. Eeek! But hey if she got attacked wouldn't it really just be "the circle of life?"

San Francisco - Day 2: July 3, 2008

We started our day early with a bus tour out to Muir Woods just north and west of the bay. We crossed the Golden Gate Bridge on our way to Muir Woods. As you can see the morning was really foggy. Above is what we saw as we crossed the bridge. The woods were nice and peaceful after being in the city. I was glad I have brought a jacket and long pants for the trip. Who knew it would be so cold?!

Big Trees! Brian, Nick, BriAnne, & Brooke in Muir WoodsBrian at Muir Woods

Following Muir Woods the van dropped us off north east of the Golden Gate Bridge in Sausalito. Sausalito is a small artsy community. There was plenty of little shops, restaurants, and art galleries. While we were there I endulged in a little fish and chips. Tasty! We could have taken the van back to San Francisco but it was leaving too early for us. So we decided to ride the ferry back to Fisherman's Wharf. During the ferry ride we got a good view of Alcatraz Island.

Brooke on the dock in SausalitoBriAnne on the dock in SausalitoA Pretty Flowering TreeNick was ThirstyBrian & Ben on the Ferry

Once we made it back to the Wharf, we wandered around a bit with all the shops. We also decided to check out the Aquarium at the Bay. This is once of those places where you get to walk through the tanks filled with sea life. They also had some petting pools. The shark tank was the best.

Brian in the Aquarium with StarfishBrooke & a Huge Scary Looking Bass

We also stayed in a nice hotel, The Argonaut. It was right on Bay Street so we were in the middle of all the Wharf action. It used to be the Del Monte Cannery in a former life. The Cannery has since been converted to a hotel, restaurants, bars, etc... Everything in the hotel had a nautical theme going on so it was a little humorous when we opened the closests and found leopard print terry robes and pajamas! Someone didn't think that through.

BriAnne, Brooke, & Nick - Fancy!Brooke in the Hotel Lobby