Saturday – July 21, 2012
We were staying at the Inn at Union Square which is a small boutique hotel diagonally across the street from Union Square right in down-town San Francisco. After a light continental breakfast, we went out into the brilliant sunshine to explore the city.
Historic Street Car
We went around the corner to a shop that sold transportation passes. The MUNI-Pass give unlimited rides on all the buses, trains, trolleys, cable cars, and street cars in the entire city. Our goal was the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park, so we took a bus to the park.
Intersection of Haight & Ashbury Streets
The best thing about above-ground transportation in a city is that you can see where you’re going and you’re able to view all the neighborhoods. The bus drove through the infamous Haight-Ashbury section of San Francisco. Today, young tourists enjoy walking around the district to see tie-dye t-shirt shops and psychedelic graffiti.
Carousel
We got off the bus at Golden Gate Park and walked into the park. We followed a path and arrived at a wonderful big children’s playground. Just past that we found a lovely carousel which was made in Watertown, New York.
The California Academy of Sciences
We continued on for a while, passing a lawn bowling court and a botanical garden. Finally we arrived at the “science museum”. There were lots of children and families around the museum. We crossed the boulevard to find an outdoor art show & sale positioned around a fountain.
Entrance to the Japanese Tea Garden
We finally found the Japanese Tea Garden, paid our admission and entered. It was the oldest garden in San Francisco according to the sign. It was not as large as the Japanese garden we had visited in Vancouver, but was still quite beautiful.
The Tea House
Japanese Pagoda
Reflecting Pool
Beautiful Garden
Since we were so close, we decided to see the exhibits in the De Young Art Museum. The building was interesting and the collection was also surprisingly good. I love the palm trees around the building!
The De Young Museum
Outdoor Cafe
View Inside, Looking Out of the Museum
Contemporary Art Room
Glass Sculpture
Tired Visitor or a Different Perspective
Nice Light on the Statue
View of the Sculpture Garden
Performance Piece and Spectators
We had walked many many miles today! And we were exhausted. We found a bus which passed near our hotel and rode back across the city. After a bit of a rest in our suite, we ventured out for dinner. Chinatown was close by so we walked up the hill to a Chinese restaurant for dinner. We had a fun day exploring parts of San Francisco we had never seen before.
Cable Car Going Down the Hill on Powell Street