"I Left My Heart In San Francisco"

After a four hour drive, we finally arrived and checked in at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in Union Square, San Francisco. The historic hotel was very old school glamorous except for the flat screen televisions against the wall, which delivered views of Union Square and the streets surrounding the hotel.

The hotel first opened in 1904, after two years of construction. The Crocker family wanted to make San Francisco the new Paris, so they spent lots of time studying and emulating the most popular European hotels of the time. The Great Earthquake of 1906 caused the Westin to close temporarily, but after reopening in 1907, it was once again the jewel of Union Square. With such a rich history, it's no surprise that the walls are covered with photos of guests from days past. If you enjoy history, vintage fashion, or even photography, the Westin is the place for you.

Union Square was mind blowing! I had never been anywhere with buildings that far above me, and inside the buildings were the newest designer items. I was so excited to finally see the designs that I had seen on Instagram in real life. Once I saw the price tag however, the magic was over. My dad started to freak out, telling us not to touch ANYTHING as he ushered us out the door.

I wasn't bummed about leaving Union Square for long, because our next stop was Chinatown. With vibrant murals on almost every wall, the streets crowded with tourists and locals alike, and dozens of gift shops, cafes, and fresh food markets, there's never a dull moment. We wanted to ride a trolley, but after a long drive walking through Chinatown was just what we needed. We walked past a few tea shops and art exhibits before stopping for a mini photo shoot at Vinton Court's colorful steps and dragon mural. Then we grabbed some rice cakes at the Eastern Bakery and kept on exploring.

My dad and my sister have a tradition where whenever we go somewhere, they find a candy shop and stock up on bubble gum for the rest of the trip. This time we stopped at Z. Cioccolato, a candy shop in Little Italy that specializes on their fudge and toffee. We were told by an aspiring pastry chef who worked there that the toffee recipe has never been written down and is passed from chef to chef by memory. My dad, a self proclaimed toffee chef, bought a whole quarter pound and we all chowed down on it as soon as we got back to the hotel.

On the way there, my mom and I were searching on Yelp and Pinterest to find the perfect place for lunch, but my dad's friends saved the day and recommended Tony's Pizza Napoletana. After walking all the way from Union Square to Little Italy, all of our hearts collectively dropped when we saw that the line went out the door and all the way around the corner. Luckily right next door there is a smaller "to-go" option, where you can order individual slices and sit outside on the patio. Bonus points for a 15 minute wait.

This picture reminded me of "There is a Light that Never Goes Out" by the Smiths. I literally sang "AND IN THE DARKENED UNDERPASS I THOUGHT OH GOD MY CHANCE HAS COME AT LAST" the whole time we walked through the the tunnel, until my dad was like "STOP OR I'M NOT BUYING YOUR DINNER". Not a very important detail, but I feel like it makes the walk back to the hotel more interesting.

We took a quick break at the hotel to nap and charge up our phones and after an hour of Forensic Files we took off again, this time to have dinner at The Stinking Rose. The Stinking Rose is a steakhouse known for the way that they add garlic to EVERYTHING. They serve you bread rolls with a special garlic sauce and they put full cloves of garlic on their steaks. It's delicious, but I strongly recommend bringing some mints. We got the garlic taste out with some Baked Bears Ice Cream, which is pretty much heaven in a bowl. I got the brownie bowl with a scoop of cookies and cream on top.

We walked back up to Union Square and took a look at Macy's which is WAY fancier than the Macy's at the mall back home. I only got to see the floor with all the shoes because food comas were starting to set in. We went right across the street to our hotel and crashed, only waking up to switch phones because we forgot to bring more than one charger.

Ever since I was a baby, one of my favorite things to do is go on early morning walks with my mom. Some of my favorite vacation memories are waking up early and walking with her to the donut shop in Pismo Beach for an early breakfast. My mom got me up early as usual, and she didn't want to leave the hotel so we wandered around the lobby until I finally convinced her to go down the street to Lori's Diner. The retro diner was almost completely empty except for the Academy of Arts University students sitting at the counter, so there was plenty of room for an Instagram photo shoot.

Luckily my dad and sister are heavy sleepers so we were able to sneak back in undetected. Once they got up, we went and officially got breakfast at Mr. Holmes Bakeshop. Unfortunately, their "I got baked in San Francisco" sign was broken, but contrary to popular belief, the aesthetic value of a restaurant has no affect on it's food. I got the chocolate croissant and I felt like a cool art student walking down the street with my gourmet baked goods.

*cue Goodbye Yellow Brick Road by Elton John here*

So, we had to leave San Francisco, and I was not happy about it. I pouted in the backseat until we got to Half Moon Bay. It was beautiful, the weather was perfect, and we got some bomb burgers at Sam's Chowder House. I wish I would have enjoyed the beach more but I already missed the city, plus I was starting to get cranky and tired. I slept in the car for another hour until we stopped at a greenhouse and checked out bunch of succulents and Venus fly traps. After thirty minutes of waiting with my dad to buy five pounds of hydro rocks, I was REALLY cranky. He's been working on a aquaponics project, and he needed the rocks, but I was not having it. I went to a corner and sat down on the greenhouse floor and went to my happy place. Finally, my mom called me and my sister over to help put the rocks in the trunk. At this point I didn't care where we were going, I just wanted to go to sleep. The rest of the way home I just put on my headphones and listened to Pacific Daydream on repeat.

I know that most people will think this is dumb, but when I was packing, it was really important to me that I looked like a local, and I couldn't figure out why. As we were leaving the city, I realized it was because I wanted to be like the people in Union Square, walking past the display windows, grabbing coffee at a cute little shop packed with tourists, and going up to my tiny apartment above a restaurant. It was all so fascinating to me, that there are so many people in one place, all different with their own unique stories and dreams. How do you dress in a place where everyone is so different? The secret is you don't. I took a shot in the dark but I was surprised to see I was actually pretty close. Locals for the most part make their own variations on the same outfit, which can best be described as minimalist. Think solid colors, over-sized coats, and sneakers. The over-sized coat and sneakers are just practical for a chilly city with millions of streets, and the primary colors keep your attention on the beautiful architecture and murals that San Francisco has to offer. I thought this was funny, because usually when ever we go out of town, people from back home pack all of their most eye-catching and daring pieces, but it seemed like the people of San Francisco didn't want to be noticed. They just wanted to "keep on keeping on". While pushing our way through the streets of China Town, I could see tiny glimpses of the people's personalities in the way they switched the sneakers for boots, the color of their over-sized jackets, the subtle patterns on their pants, or the design on their t-shirts. I only wish I could have stayed longer and learned more about their own stories.