The Roamans Journey Through San Francisco On Foot...Sorry Maude

​That's right, we had to leave Maude behind for this adventure. Although her baby body is svelte and extremely maneuverable, we just didn't feel comfortable navigating her through the narrow streets of the city. 

The trade off of leaving our home behind was that we were able to stay with my sister Liana, and her boyfriend Steve in their apartment. Thinking back on it, fitting four humans and three dogs in their place was a bit of a stretch, but we made it work, and boy was it glorious to have rolling room on their pull-out. I practically slept full star-fish the entire time, sorry Vanessa.

Penny, too, was happy sleeping next to her cousin Molly again...
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We explored the city full force, and didn't leave a stone un-turned. Okay, that's a lie, I turned 31 and those hills are damn huge. BUT, we did do a ton of walking, a lot of exploring, and even rented a car to head up to Sonoma for some wine tastings.

Overall, San Francisco was one heck of an experience. Within half hour you can go from the heart of the city to Muir woods and just be immersed in absolute silence. It's truly incredible. Vanessa and I were there for a total of 5 days, and ended up doing some pretty phenomenal things. It's hard to narrow down some of the favorites from the trip, but alas, somebody has to do it. 

Here are a few of recommendations and tips from The Roamans when you visit San Francisco:
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1. Walk Everywhere...And Don't Be An Ass Like Me & Only Pack Espadrilles

 
If we didn't walk everywhere, we wouldn't have stumbled upon these beautiful, weird, quirky spots in San Francisco. It helps to wander off-the-beaten path every once in a while to discover hidden gems that you wouldn't normally find on map. We caught the sunset perfectly at this street above, and were able to see for miles. Cha ching!

Another pointer, pack some decent shoes. Sneakers, perhaps. Because I was the ass who had a bum knee and was hobbling around like an idiot thinking my espadrilles would do the trick. Turns out, nope. Bring sneakers. You'd think I was seventy-five the way I was limping around.

​2. Eat As Much as You Can...Now Is Not the Time to Count Calories

There is definitely a time to watch what you eat, and exploring a new city is not one of them. I'm not saying walk into a doughnut shop and stuff your face full of crullers, but definitely indulge a bit. Don't hold back the way you usually do. TREAT YO'SELF. We had a ton of amazing food in San Fran, but most notably our favorite was ShakeDown ice cream in the Tenderloin area.  If you love small batch, artisan ice cream, then this is your jam. You walk in and immediately are greeted by the warm, sweet scent of homemade waffle cones thickening up on the griddle. Then, you are able to sample to your heart's content until landing on the flavor of choice. What's so cool about this shop though, is that EVERYTHING is made in-house. Even down to the cookies in their banana cookies and cream—in-house. It was truly a delicious experience, and one I have dreamt about may times since. Still kicking myself for not getting the Blood Orange scoop which tastes like a creamy, smooth orange cream ice pop but way better. The flavors are so unique, it's a legit one-of-a-kind shop.

Also, if you can try a California burrito here, do it. Vanessa and I normally like packing stuff into a burrito and devouring it, but this was an all new experience. There were friggin' french fries in my burrito! Holy cow, it was delicious. Mexican food is taken to another level in California and we loved every minute of it. 

3. Take a Professional Tour If You Can

I know, these tours are quite expensive. And if it weren't my birthday and my sister taking me out, then we probably wouldn't have done it. BUT, it's worth it to at least check out if you can afford to. We took a Bay Cruise around the entire San Francisco Bay. It was breezy and cool, but I'm not sure we would've see Alcatraz so close, or gone under the Golden Gate Bridge otherwise. Plus, probably the coolest part for my little nerdy heart, was listening to the history and facts of the city that accompanied the tour. 

4. You Don't Need to Do Every Touristy Thing, But Find The Ones That Speak To You

I've spoken to a lot of travelers before who feel obligated to do all the touristy stuff in every city the go to. And while that's well and good for most, this doesn't have to be you. Don't pressure yourself into seeing all the "obligatory" spots in a new city when you can be wandering along discovering new stuff on your own. Sure, there are some places in a city which you want to go and experience firsthand. But if it doesn't speak to you, or your soul, just don't do it! Also, don't let the touristy stuff be the only things you do.

​Would it have been fun to head up the hill and imagine Danny Tanner and his family in those houses making quips about Stephanie joining a dance troupe, or Uncle Jesse singing a new ballad with the Beach Boys?! Of course. But alas, we didn't need to venture up to see the famed Painted Ladies this time around, because we had some wandering to do. We happened upon both the California Academy of Science and Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park and decided to check out both. Which, by the way, WERE AWESOME. If we hadn't been adventuring on our own terms we never would've stopped by either. 

​5. Exploring With Natives of the City is Always Fun

Vanessa and I often end up exploring new spots on our own, which is enjoyable, don't get me wrong. But when you have the opportunity to explore with city locals, or natives, do it. My sister and her friend Kassandra showed us so many different places in the city, and did so with such enthusiasm, you wouldn't have guessed it was only their fifth time doing it as well! They were excited to see these new things for us, with us, and were troopers the entire time. We cannot thank them enough for their time and excitement during our trip. 

6. Wine, Always.

If you're in San Francisco, then you need to take a day to explore wine country. Even if you aren't a wine enthusiast, like Vanessa, go. It's pure natural beauty. If you don't know where to start, then check out Groupon, which is what we did. You have access to a variety of tastings for very cheap, which can almost draw a map for your day. We chose two different Groupons, for two different tastings, and got two types of drunky-drunk. Just kidding. But we did taste a slew of wines, plus a bunch of cheese, plus shared a ton of laughs. Sonoma or Napa—it doesn' t matter. Just go. It's worth it.

There you have it, some of the tips and tricks for exploring San Francisco.  From SF we traveled up to Ukiah, California, where Vanessa had a birthday surprise in store.

Until next time...