Wednesday: The Golden Gate Bridge

Wednesday was our day for trekking across the Golden Gate, although the first challenge was finding a bus that would take us as far as the toll plaza.  The #76 only runs on weekends and holidays and the #1 that Fernando's AARP app gave us must have been a Golden Gate Transit bus, not an SF MUNI, but the #28 goes up around the Presidio to the Golden Gate Bridge Toll Plaza on its way to Daly City from Fort Mason.  Of course we had to catch a #45 first and then connect with #28 at Chestnut but we didn't have to wait long for either.  And on the way to the #45 at Columbus and Union we stopped at La Boulange bakery to pick up a couple of fruit and nut rolls to sustain us during the bus ride.  And we had to pick up our lunch at Molinari's Italian delicatessen: two hefty sandwiches.  Fernando's was the Milanese with a lot of pastrami and Penny and I split a goodfella, with prosciutto, salami and roast beef - plus a lot of fixings and dressings slathered on top.

Wednesday was a very windy day but it was sunny and surprisingly warm.  I took my heavier fleece and my windbreaker but never had to break out my windbreaker.  Unfortunately it was too windy to wear a had so I had to resort to sunscreen and sunglasses.  Nobody was using parasols that day.  Lots of walkers, runners and pedestrians on the bridge for a weekday.  Cyclists were to stay on the west side of the sidewalk and walkers on the east (only the sidewalk on the east side of the bridge was open) and you had to watch out for the Blazing Saddle rental bike riders who hadn't been on a bike for years and rode in groups. 

But we made it all the way across despite all the dangers, took lots of photos (which I'll add someday) and ate our sandwiches at the other end.  Unfortunately there were no picnic benches and we had to sit on the ground (it's a real challenge for us to get up now) but it still was a lovely picnic, you just had to make sure that the wind didn't carry off your napkins.  Of course we still had to make it back over the bridge and my right knee and leg were beginning to complain so I was bringing up the rear.   We saw a wonderfully loaded container ship that was carrying so much that it was a wonder it didn't sink.

Miracle of miracles, I made it back across (I didn't worry a bit about walking all over San Francisco last July) and we found that the #28 bus also stopped at the bridge on its way in from Daly City to Fort Mason.  So we jumped on that, then transferred to the 30 and got off to make a grocery stop at Trader Joe's.  And then we waited hours for the Powell-mason cable car because the operators only go when they feel like it.

For dinner we had to reward ourselves with a Persian meal at Maykadeh on Green Street across Columbus.  Fernando had Rocky Mountain Oysters, I had chicken in a walnut/pomegranate sauce and Penny had lamb shank.  It was good but of course couldn't compare with Raffi's Place in Glendale.  I think that Los Angeles has a larger ethnic population to draw from, whether it is Persian/Armenian, Mexican or Jewish.  San Francisco has lots of Chinese and lots and lots of Italian restaurants.