It is almost always obvious that the best recipe for a boisterous, wild, and vivacious time when travelling is to do it with your best friend. We reunited in San Francisco and unexpectedly turned our travels into something more shockingly reminiscent. Cue the soundtrack, Best of Both Worlds by Hannah Montana. Here’s what we did!
1) Walked the streets, looked at expensive artwork and chased the sunset around Fisherman’s Wharf
When you arrive in SF in the afternoon and have some time to spend downtown. This includes hitting up In-N-Out Burger!
2) Started the days off right with some Blue Bottle Cafe Coffee
They said the New Orleans styled coffee was best served with a view.
3) Brought out our teenage blessings and inner fan-girls over the That’s So Raven House
It’s the future I can see.
4) And did the exact same thing over the Full House house
Everywhere you look, everywhere you go.
5) Witnessed the twists and turns of the Lombard Street flowerbed frenzy
And chilled it out with some awesome San Francisco views.
6) Grabbed the best burritos in the Mission District
La Taqueria has the best burritos in town! Their beef burrito was so good! The beef was juicy and toppings were zest to perfection. Added in some avocado for more flavour and got some mineragua to help cool me down in the warm weather.
7) Boarded the Red and White Fleet at Fisherman’s Wharf to learn about the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz
And of course to capture those pretty city skyline views of San Francisco!
8) Enjoyed a lovely seafood dinner at Pier 39
Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see the sea lions, but we did enjoy a delicious summer special seared scallop and crab risotto as well as an apple crisp a la mode at Fog Harbor Fish House.
9) Navigated the windy, winding uphill SF streets to the Top of the Twin Peaks
For a bright-at-night view that makes San Francisco all that more lovable.
10) Bridged the ties of friendship, or literally made your best friend tremble every step of the way
Apparently the Golden Gate Bridge is good at doing that, just don’t look down. The fog made the experience all the more cool.
11) Gazing at the magnificent Palace of Fine Arts
You bet we took all those touristy photos. The ducks in the moat definitely gave the place some personality.
12) Immersed ourselves in the heart of San Francisco’s Chinese Culture
Chinatown was bustling with people ordering from different Chinese bakeries and dim sum restaurants. You could see lanterns beautifully strung from building to building, and performers occupying the side-streets. It was a feast for the eyes, our stomachs, and our hearts.
13) Took some time to check out San Francisco’s Japan Town
If we weren’t so full from all the Chinese food we had in Chinatown earlier that day, we would of definitely had taken the time to eat here. There were so many Teppanyaki, Ramen and Sushi restaurants! The Pagoda Peace Tower is also a pretty structure.
14) Raided the streets around Union Square
Obviously our priorities put us on an epic mission of spending Rayquaza’s Legendary Raid Hour in Union Square, an area that boasts all these gyms! And no, I did not catch a shiny Rayquaza. Insert immense sobbing here. #pokemongo
15) Observed the sunset and SF skyline at Mission-Dolores Park
For a calming yet breathtaking way to end one of our days.
16) Sweetened our sweet-tooth cravings at Ghirardelli’s Chocolatier
And you know we’re all about that dark chocolate.
17) Celebrated pride on the most casual of days in The Castro
Rainbow Road was always my favourite Mario Kart stage. #princesspeach
18) Picked up a few snack items to progress our day at Tartine Manufactory
And somehow the only way I managed to enjoy this tenfold was to dip my chocolate chip cookie with a dash of sea salt in the vanilla soft served ice cream.
19) Google mapped literally every location we visited but especially Googleplex
And literally took every picture on our travels with my Google Pixel 3.
20) Relived our High School Musical 3 moment at Stanford University
And also paid our huge respects to such a prestigious academic institution.
21) Liked and loved our way to the Facebook and Instagram HQ
No, seriously. The amount of posts I went through to pass the time as we drove out to Mountain View. Mind you that The Best of Both Worlds by Hannah Montana is still playing in the background.
22) Sneaked a preview of Apple’s Ringlike Facility and Headquarters
The futuristic feel to it is where all the personality is.
23) And last but never least, represented Data and Analytics Canada at the Cisco Data Symposium!
I had the pleasure of meeting and connecting with Data Scientists from all over the globe, working on pushing Cisco’s machine learning and artificial intelligence to the next level!
This San Francisco trip was one for the books — incredible food, iconic landmarks, and memories that will last a lifetime. The Best of Both Worlds indeed.