alcatraz --- at NIGHT!

instead of going to a haunted house this october, 

we took a boat to alcatraz...at NIGHT. ahhhh!

i'm willing to bet this was scarier than any haunted

house. we've both been to this prison island a few times,

but going at night has been on our bay area bucket list

forever. we figured, what better time than a spooky

october night? especially when there was a scavenger

hunt involved. we loved going with city experts to this!

and it begins... no turning back 

once you step on that boat!

i was already spooked on the dusky boat ride over ^^

the event was so well done by city experts,

we were lucky to be invited!

cheery faces on the boat before

the scares and spooks began.

then we arrived on the island -- 

you tell me how creeped out you

are seeing this prison in the dark!

^^ i tried to distract myself from the fright

with a hot chocolate while we chose teams...

this guy LOVES alcatraz. i'd call it a borderline

obsession with the amount of books he's read on it.

you can see here how happy he was to be here, and

happy to tell anyone around all the cool stories he knows :)

^^ this quote sums it up -- the worst of 

the worst criminals were sent to alcatraz!

audio tours with a scary portion at the end --

as if it isn't already scary enough!!!

i could barely be talked into stepping

into the cells in the dark hallways 

at night...scary music playing.......

terrifying............you get the picture!

let's just say there were a few completely

dark ones with some scary things inside :)

phew - made it through!

this view of our city lit up orange

for the giants world series / october 

made the night even more festive.

and ... our spooky outing turned magical 

with this sparkly view on the way back.

truly, you must go to alcatraz at night --

not just for alcatraz, but to have the view at

night coming back to the city. i almost cried,

it was so beautiful! this city has my heart.

this fun, crazy night ended on a good

note with loving this city even more.

i think it was one of my favorite experiences

since living here to look back at SF at night

as we cruised back through the bay. i could NOT

get over it. how do we live here? so much love for this place. 

here's to october and halloween and getting spooked!

xo

exploring fisherman's wharf + a bay cruise

what's the deal with "touristy" always being a bad thing?
trust me -- i'm the first to love finding the best local 
spots when i travel, but sometimes you also have to 
realize that touristy places are that way for a reason. 
i have to stop by these "touristy" places when visiting 
new cities, because they are the bustling areas full
of part of a city's personality. of course you can get to
know a place better by exploring unique neighborhoods
and knowing it more personally, but it's also fun to go
where the action is and see what attracts the masses.

like you might have read in this post, when you live 
in SF you don't go to fisherman's wharf too often.

at least we don't! i had gone a lot while visiting
on trips growing up, but living here it just seems
so crowded and not worth going to when there
are so many other parts of the city we know and love. 

BUT, thanks to our bay cruise with blue & gold fleet 
we had an excuse to explore the wharf and we were 
pleasantly surprised to return and find it fun +
entertaining! we headed down to pier 39 to hop on
the classic bay cruise which goes out in the bay, under
the golden gate bridge, and around alcatraz with history
and facts about the city being told the entire time. 

here are a few photos of our bay cruise,
and then some wharf exploring after!
if you can't tell, we love to play tourists
and locals in our own city...keeps things fun!

^^ the most beautiful day on pier 39, 
and very crowded as you can see!

^^ hello, sea lions! i want to
take all of you home!

^^ this city of ours, she's a charmer with the
sailboats, sparkling october days, + that view.

somehow even on the warmest day this
bridge attracts the famous fog. in just a few
minutes we went from being hot hot hot
to chilly in the windy fog...welcome to SF!

we got engaged just about two years ago in these waters,
so i'll take any chance i have to be out on them with my love.

after the cruise, we were already at the wharf...

so we decided why not stick around for dinner?

walking through pier 39 sort of feels like

disneyland with the crowds, carousel,

crazy shops, and lots of treats!

in true fisherman's wharf fashion we even did

some touristy shopping since i don't have a

49ers hat yet ... should i get it? :)

mini donuts + fresh squeezed lemonade.

what could be better?

proud lefty at the left hand store!  

after we got our touristy fix at the wharf,

we decided to walk along the embarcadero

to red's java house to finally try this famous

hole-in-the-wall favorite right by AT&T park...

in honor of our giants! we got the hot dogs on

toasted sourdough bread buns. AMAZING

amazing amazing and so san francisco. 

we decided on over the moon creamery for 

dessert with our cutest friends T&T before

finding their secret view spot to watch the

october fireworks. a pretty good day! 

 chase's new quad copter toy was put to use

during the fireworks .. he needs his practice

for all of our upcoming trips! it was a little

crazy watching him fly it in the dark... :) i'll have

to learn to not have anxiety when he flies it around!

just another reminder to LIVE it UP 

wherever you live! to give touristy places

a chance, to do it all, to find the fireworks,

and to never stop exploring..even your own city!

xo

sailing in santa cruz

it's not every day you get to go sailing in santa cruz...



on a pretty yacht...



it started as a cloudy, foggy morning like most northern california mornings do...



but, the sun started to come out,



and it turned into the most glorious day.



we sailed, ate brunch, and even got a little driving lesson :)



and i think i found the cutest sailor boy..



we had a fun time with some of chase's team from work:
here's chase and his google intern :) and coworker paul 
from dublin. {you can bet i spent this entire time talking his ear 
off asking all about dublin and obsessing over ireland
planning a trip, or maybe just to live there!}

i couldn't be more in love with seals.
we got so close to them! i want to
take one home as a pet, please chase?

the best sailing partner.

luckily the boom never knocked us over

even though we were sitting right under it!

the captain was pretty much the best,

look at his stance driving the boat!

loved sailing on the sea with this babe of mine.

xo