Honeymoon-Inspired Travel Journal: San Francisco, Calif.

ENTRY No. 38: SAN FRANCISCO, CA

I have so many travel journal entries to catch up on for you guys {Ireland, another French road trip and my Cinque Terre re-visit plus a few more} but I thought I'd share my recent fall girls getaway to San Francisco with you today. While it may not be a top choice for a honeymoon, it's a great city and I actually think it would be a fun spot for a mini 'moon!

As I've already shared, you know one of the biggest highlights of our trip was meeting up with super sweet photographer Laura Monfredini, of eLLe PHOTOGRAPHY, and doing a fun little shoot at the Presidio with her. T&I had such a ball being goofs for the camera. And I love the photo of us blowing bubbles so much that I framed it! ;)

After checking into Hotel Majestic {details below in my Top Tips}, it was already pretty late so we headed out, grabbed dinner {@ Modern Thai on Polk Street - it was so good, we had it again before we left town!} and started making plans for the next day. We decided that if the weather looked good, we'd head over to Pier 39, rent bikes and pedal our way across the Golden Gate bridge over to Sausalito. Luck was on our side and that's just what we did ...

But not before stopping to see the sea lions at Pier 39. They are so funny with their loud barking, flopping to-and-fro and their sweet, playful spirits - we witnessed a 3-way kiss in the water! Oohlala...

And then we were off ... it was pretty amazing to bike through Crissy Field {despite the dorky helmets!} and approach the Golden Gate bridge ... it's so much more beautiful in person than photos could ever show.

Almost there!

After a long + exhaustive day of biking, I think we deserved In-N-Out. nomnomnom.
The next day we decided to walk over to Chinatown for brunch {and bubble tea} ...

A few things we spotted along the way ...

Is this not SF wedding perfection? I just love it!

I also dragged T to the Haight due to the awful Grateful Dead phase I went through in junior high {wait, didn't everyone?}. Funny there's a Ben & Jerry's on the corner now {another junior high obsession}. I have to say, I really loved this area. I tend to have a soft spot for hippie meccas and this one did not disappoint. If I'm ever back in SF, I'll definitely visit this area again during the day for some shopping, eating, hanging. ... And wouldn't it be fun to live in that purple gem of a house??

We also managed to squeeze an excursion to Muir Woods in to see some redwoods. I later found out per my Dad that we only saw the "babies" of the redwoods so I now I feel compelled to make it back out and head north to see the real deals. Gah.

... And that's all she wrote. See more from my SF shoot here.

CB's Top Tips for San Francisco:

- Hotel Majestic. This was a lovely boutique hotel that came recommended to us by our photog, Laura. It was a very Victorian-styled {like most everything in SF!} hotel and the lobby made us feel like we were stepping back in time. One thing I'm going to highlight - you should probably know this hotel is haunted. We didn't know this when we booked it. We stayed on the 8th floor and as soon as we got off the elevator, we both looked at each other and didn't say anything ... okay, I whispered "The Shining!" ... I mean, the hallway was just creepy ... it just was. The four-poster canopy bed and clawfoot tub in our room definitely added to the haunted look and feel and finally we decided to pull out a phone and google search if the hotel was haunted. I kind of did that as a joke but a little bit shockingly, we found that the 8th floor was indeed haunted by the previous owner's daughter. We were a room over from where she hung herself. We may or may not have started freaking out at this point. Aside from the spookiness, we had a good stay and nothing too scary ever happened. The location of this hotel is pretty fantastic - very central to almost anything in the city. And if you need a taxi, ask for "Cheetah." He was awesome - he even took us down wind-y Lombard Street when we mentioned we wanted to see it. And he had cheetah floormats - I mean, that should sell you right there. ;)

- Bike the Golden Gate. I'm soooo glad we did this. I mean, first of all, it just sounds cool. "Oh, we just biked across the GG bridge over to Sausalito. No big deal." But don't kid yourself ... this is pretty much an all-day affair and you need to be prepared for a few hills. ps. There's a cute place called The Warming Hut right before you cross the GG if it's chilly and you need something to warm up! ;) Find bike booths all along the pier but most are clustered around Pier 39.

- Top of the Mark. My Dad pretty much insisted that T&I make it to Top of the Mark. So, of course, we did. Aside from being aggressively hit on by geriatrics {who danced very, very badly}, we had a pretty stellar time. The view of the city is unrivaled {it's a rooftop bar atop the Mark Hopkins Hotel in Nob Hill} and the live band was fantastic. Fun vibe, diverse age group, good drinks. Dress swanky + give it a try. 999 California St, San Francisco, CA 94108 // Monday 6:30 – 11:00 am, 12:00 – 11:30 pm // (415) 616-6916

- Alcatraz. I didn't mention it in the post but we also took a ferry out to Alcatraz one day. It was pretty interesting. If you go, make sure you get the audio guide - it definitely adds to the experience as they talk about events that happened right where you're standing. They have a night tour that would probably be extra creepy ... if you're into that. We were good with the day tour. ;)

- Muir Woods. If you want to escape the city to a magical place that resembles Fern Gully, head to Muir Woods. It's a tranquil + relaxing getaway.

- Copita Tequileria y Comida. OMG. Copita is a darling restaurant in Sausalito and was, by far, our favorite restaurant of the trip. They grow their own vegetables in the garden behind the restaurant and use them in all of the recipes - I still can't get over that! The salsas were amazing. Go - just go. 739 Bridgeway // Sausalito, CA 94965 // (415) 331-7400

- Modern Thai. This yummy Thai place was very close to our hotel and so good we had to go back again. Everything we ordered was delicious. If you find yourself nearby, stop in. 1247 Polk St (between Bush St & Fern St)

- Presidio Social Club. Set in the Presidio {duh}, this is such a cute little place. It almost feels like you're going to a neighbor's for dinner. I suggest the mac 'n cheese entree and a Bloody Mary. :) 563 Ruger St, San Francisco, CA 94129

- Tacolicious. Julia, the darling of Tartan & Sequins, clued us into this little gem. We visited the Mission location and even though we had to wait for a table, we found a cozy spot in the bar and got to know the menu and bartender quite well {he's very into his mustache and hates taxi drivers, in case you were wondering}. After a few cocktails, we found treasure. Try the T-lish spicy beer {tecate, chile vinegar, lime, salt}  + the Michelada {tecate, lime juice, salt, tapatio, other stuff} They're $4 and crazy good. I also had the butternut squash tacos and they were superb. Definitely give this place a go. {And thanks for the reco, Julia!}

Images: first + last by Laura Monfredini; rest by moi.

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Tags : HONEYMOON , HONEYMOON TRAVEL , SAN FRAN , TRAVEL

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