Our 7 day Muni Passport for transit expired yesterday. Even though we plan on renting a car, the price difference between a 3 day and 7 day Passport was minimal, so we bought another 7 day passport.
Hera also wanted to go and see the Art store that we had visited earlier in the week. Today they were having a pen sale, and the pens were magnificent. We did not buy any, but Hera did buy some printing paper.
After buying some deli food to load up our fridge, we hiked up our hill to unload our purchases.
When we headed out again, we decided to go light. Hera decided not to bring her camera, and would rely on her cell phone, while I decided not to bring the back pack. We contemplated wearing our polars with our jackets but decided against it. Pity... the cold wind often blew and we missed not bringing our polars.
We took our now very familiar F tram down Market Street, almost to the end. Getting out near the Financial district, we headed North. Walked through some streets of Chinatown, until we got to our destination of North Beach. The Italian district.
Walking along Columbus street, we strolled slowly, admiring the many cafes and bistros. So many seemed so tempting. One, called the Stinking Rose, had heavy garlic meals on its menu. We almost stopped in, but we had another destination in mind, one of Gail's suggestions.
We found Gail's Italian pastry shop. Stella's Pastry and Cafe shop on 446 Columbus Avenue, is a small authentic looking shop. Hera decided on an Apricot-Almond custard tart, while I had a delicious cannolo (cannoli is plural) along with perfect double espresso coffees. We sat at a table next to a window. The heat of the sun warmed us as we people watched.
After our break, we continued walking along Columbus Avenue filled with restaurants that all looked so good. When we reached Filbert street, we turned left, and headed to another of Gail's suggestions, Luigi's bakery, for some good Italian bread. But we should have gone here first, for they closed at 2pm, and so we missed sampling their goods. Maybe another day.
We walked back to Columbus Avenue, and this time walking on the other side of the street. The aromas of the various restaurants were so tempting.
Early on our walk along Columbus Avenue we had seen historical Vesuvio (255 Columbus Ave) which Hera took some photos of, and we thought it would be a good place to have a beer. We came upon it, and stepped in.
This was a favorite watering hole for a group of writers, one of which, Jack Kerouac, coined the term Beat, which latter turned into Beatnik.
If in the area, do stop by for a beer. It is a great looking pub, with funky tables. We sat on the second floor, which again was great to people watch.
It was time to be heading home, so we walked a bit, and took a bus towards Market Street. Unfortunately, it crossed in front of an Armani Exchange. Hera just had to go in. So we walked in, and she perused the items for what seemed an eternity.
Thrilled with her purchase, we took our F tram home, and then had our usual steep climb up. Tired, we were happy to be home for the night.
Cheers,
Hera & Anthony
