good ol' san fran

I love coming home to San Francisco - even though I grew up in the Bay Area, it still seems like a magical city to me. I don't think it's just the sourdough - which is certainly divine - it' more the feel and the memories it brings.


For a few years I lived in the Sunset district - I was a little kid, second-fourth grades. I remember falling asleep to the sound of the old air-powered foghorns - those classic "ow-wooooo-gah" foghorns. They are all electronic now, but I would listen to them late at night and they brought visions of far-away travel and intrigue - pirates and adventure. My brother and I would play in the park near our house, which neighbored a golf course. On more than one occasion we would hide by the greens and steal the golf balls as they would come rolling onto those pristine manicured lawns, and laugh as the golfers would come a-searchin. Good times.


On this day, I got off the bus from Mill Valley and just marched straight down Market Street, where as a teenager I spent many a day and night being wild and teenage like. In later years I would hang out at our comedy club in the Embarcadero - and on weekends I would fill my backpack with a couple of books and food and head out on foot, walking the neighborhoods. I liked cruising North Beach and Chinatown - watching the tourists at the Wharf - saying hello to the sea lions at Pier 39. Sometimes I would ride the Cable Cars, happy that I got to enjoy them whenever I wanted. I ended up here a lot, at the lobby of the Hyatt Regency - walking into this amazing expanse of terraced greenery I would sit at this sculpture, and run my hands through the mirrored water of the fountain below - wonder what it would be like to stay at the hotel. I spent a lot of time writing here before I would head out again.


Even now, after over 20 years of walking into this place, I still get a moment of awe - it reminds me a little of what Charlie Bucket must have felt when he saw the Chocolate Room in Willy Wonka's factory for the first time. I think it's the contained expanse of it all. That, and they even have great glass elevators! Which I also ride to the top every time.

I'm heading out tomorrow - hope to post a little more of my visit with my father and grandparents. I've had a surprisingly difficult time finding free Wi-Fi here. I'm at my friend Susi's tonight where I was able to tap in - so we'll see how much I can get posted before I leave.