The greatest bathroom experience I had ever had...
I slept on Leslie's futon, and Matthew took the floor even though there was another couch readily available. The carpet just seemed so comfortable, so I don't blame him. We each got ready and headed out to San Francisco together on the BART. The BART system map has changed! And the trains ran more quietly than I remember. Maybe things just seem better when you've been away from them for a while...
In any case, Matthew and I got off at Embarcadero as Leslie proceeded straight to Chinatown. In the plaza was the free zip-lining sponsored by the province of British Columbia. The line was hella long, so it was a no-brainer to skip it.
Instead, we explored the farmers market at the Ferry Building, which had a lot of stalls! And it was packed full of people! The food all looked really fresh and delicious but it was pricey and I was saving myself for the Japanese yummies in Japantown. I bought 2 apples to snack on, giving one to Matt.
Then we were off: We took the F line streetcar to Pier 39. Cassy called and gave us her ETA of being in about 3 hours. After she hung up, Matt and I realized that it was just like we were in the Amazing Race and had to beat Cassy and Dan. We then quickly walked the length of Pier 39, took in the bay views, saw the sea lions, then walked to Fisherman's Wharf. Hungry but not wanting to spoil our appetites, we shared a bread bowl of clam chowder. I then led us to Ghirardelli Square. Matt wanted to check out Coit Tower, but the bus to take us there was leaving just as we were walking towards it! Damn! So we instead walked uphill a couple blocks to Lombard Street and walked down the curviest street in the world. It was only 6 more blocks to Coit Tower, so we just walked the rest of the way. We were exhausted and sweaty (it was a warm day in the city!), but we made it. And we bought tickets ($5) to ascend to the top of the tower:
It was alright. The windows are glass panes, so the pictures you get from there aren't crystal clear. I still have to prefer the Campanile :). We took the bus downhill, talking for a while with the extremely extroverted bus driver (he asked everyone who got on the bus where they were from - we rode with two girls from Panama, two guys from Switzerland, and a couple also from LA). He talked to us about the Dodgers, who're playing the Giants this weekend, and the film
Inglorious Basterds and the different ways of saying "3" with your fingers. We transfered at Columbus Avenue - where Matthew and I just missed another bus (the 8X), but we RAN two blocks to the next bus stop - and we made it! The bus was luckily stuck in traffic. Everyone just boarded the bus from the back. Took that bus to Union Square. Transfered right away (!) to our final bus to Japantown. Traffic got bad right before our stop. But we made it, and we ran through the stalls of the Cherry Blossom Festival to find Leslie. We stood in front of her and asked her to check us in. We were SO the first team to arrive :)
The festival was cool. There was music (both from the radio station and from the live music/cover band stage), freebies being given away, and of course lots of food stands. I ate a lot: Spam musubi, yakisoba (fried noodles), green tea ice cream, and imagawa yaki (fluffy pancake batter with a sweet bean paste filling). We explored, got some samples of random food from the safeway booths, and then entered into the store/art gallery New People, where I had the most breathtaking experience of the day.
It was the first time that I used an electronically controlled toilet!
I first saw the toilet and, even though I didn't have to, ahem, sit down, I knew that I simply
had to. I mean, when else am I going to get the chance to use such a thing?! So I sat down, and the seat was heated! I then looked through the buttons carefully before choosing "rear wash soft". A few clicks later there was a jet of water cleaning my... rear! And it felt amazing! It feels much better than wiping, let me tell you. And yes, there is still the option of wiping it yourself. But the toilet also has an air dryer built-in, so why would you even bother?!
From that experience the rest of the day was downhill. Well, not really but still kinda sorta. Leslie and Katie finished up with their tabling, so we helped them put their stuff away and the six of us walked around then met up with Rachel and Elton. Then, we split up. Matthew and I sat down to watch some naginatajutsu, which is a martial art evocative of kendo that uses the weapon naginata. We rejoined the group and soon were heading back to the East Bay. I somehow lost my bus transfer! So I called to see if Elton could drive me too, and yes! Drove us to Macarthur BART, then I went with Cassy and Dan to pick up their car in Orinda and we drove back to Oakland. We arrived just a minute after Leslie and Matthew.
The rest of the evening - Chinese food on Piedmont, beers at the Trappist, and karaoke at Jaguar! FUN FUN FUN!
Posts
