Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair...

I just got back from San Francisco last night around midnight. It was a whirlwind trip and I have to say... it kind of kicked my butt. But the city was beautiful and wonderful. I LOVED it! It was such a switch from Texas. I love this crazy, humid, ridiculously hot part of the world (DFW), but there is something beautiful about a city that stays below 68 degrees even when it's sunny. Also, I love the positivity the city seems to be buzzing with. Every where you turn there were murals, encouraging billboards, and fliers for some sort of charity walk. The feeling of complete cultural acceptance, regardless of what kind of culture it happened to be, was so refreshing. It was a beautiful thing.

Firstly, my friend, Melissa, who I went with, works for the Mansion in Dallas, and therefore we got to stay at another property owned by Rosewood called the Sandhill. It was beautiful and the staff was SO nice. Especially Mia. Whom I know will never find my blog, but just in case, I dropped her name. :)

We had to get up around 4:00 AM to catch our flight out to Cali, so we were pretty tired and HUNGRY, but we were also ready to get into San Francisco and see the Golden Gate Bridge.

So first we ate at Woodside Bakery a few minutes away from the hotel. We got to sit on the patio and we DIDN'T burn to pieces. It was such an adjustment to be able to hang out outside in the middle of July and not feel like bursting in to flames. Nice change.

I ate the best chicken sandwich... and I mean I ate the WHOLE thing because I hadn't eaten since 6 AM, and by this time, it was around noon Cali time... meaning it was 2 my time. Which leads me to the biggest, most embarrassing moment of the trip for me...

On the way into San Francisco, I was helping navigate while Melissa drove, and I got car sick. Now usually when I get motion sickness (something I've always had to deal with my whole life), I can just step out of the car, get some air, and I immediately begin to feel better. However, this time... not the case. We arrived at a park right next to the Golden Gate Bridge, parked, got out, ran to the bathroom to freshen up, and I kept feeling sick. No matter how much air I got, or how much water I sipped, I kept feeling awful but I just pushed it aside because I REALLY wanted to walk to bridge and take pictures. Plus, I didn't want to ruin Melissa's experience of the bridge. So I powered through and we started walking towards the bridge. Just then Melissa asks, "Are you ok now?" As I tried to answer I gagged! She goes, "Did I ask too soon?"

YES.

I threw up right there in front of Melissa, the bridge, and the whole world. It was SO embarrassing! I kept trying to move towards the bathroom and I never made it. When I finally could get to the bathroom, I was fine. There was only one working faucet and no soap anywhere that I could find, but I composed myself and still went to the bridge. We just... exited that bathroom on the other side from where I entered as to not run into anyone who may have seen me puke.

Later I tweeted this, and also wondered how many people at the bridge that day also tweeted about seeing me throwing up.

The bridge itself was SO neat. It was draped in fog and it felt very ominous. It was a little overwhelming, but in a good way. Oh yeah, and it was ridiculously windy as you can see in the pictures.

On Saturday, Melissa had her test for Grad School, so she dropped me off in the city and went to the school. So, I got to hang out with Anya, a San Fran local who I had never met before in real life. Anya and I met on Facebook about 4 years ago in a Keira Knightley Fan community. Call us nerds if you will, but we still keep in contact and now we actually got to meet in person, turning our Facebook friendship into the real thing. Plus, it was a fabulously fun day! Anya knows the area well and took me all over the city, places I would've gotten lost trying to find. Especially while trying to ride the buses. Haha! (PS. The first place we walked in together, there was a frame for sale with a picture of Keira in it! It was a sign!)

Sunday was the last day Melissa and I were in San Francisco, so we decided to go into the Financial District and see the City Lights Bookstore. Like I've said before, I majored in English and so this was something VERY special for me! Modern Poetry was one of my favorite classes in college, and we learned all about this establishment and the men that were a part of the movement. This is definitely where I took the most pictures.

Poetry room upstairs!

Ferlinghetti next to the "I am the door" door from the basement... and the actual door in the basement! This was exciting for me.

Then it was time to leave, so I caught this picture of a beautiful building down town as we left.

So long San Fransisco! It was magical, and one day I hope to go back, explore it deeper, and not end up puking in front of hundreds of people. HAH!

Next stop, Potter World, Orlando, Florida! I'll be there next week! Get jealous.