Precious Memories: June 2024

Wine Country Coastal Cruise on Discovery Princess

April 30, 2024 - Tuesday

After a day at sea following San Diego, we sailed into San Francisco early in the morning on Tuesday. The captain had announced that we should go under the Golden Gate Bridge around 4:00 so I had to get up early for that particular moment. Unlike the last time we sailed into the bay while the sun was coming up, this time we sailed in total darkness. Fortunately, the moon was bright enough for a little light in the dark. It was too cold and windy to be up on deck so I decided to just enjoy the moment out in our balcony.

Darkness all around as we sailed into the bay.

A 'Goosebump' moment!

As the ship sailed into port, the sun slowly popped up. What a sight!

HAL ship sailing towards the Bay Bridge. I have read that they had to dock at Pier 80 which is on the other side of town near the cargo pier.

Discovery Princess docked at Pier 27.

Zooming in on the HAL ship.

After a hearty breakfast at the main dining room, we were ready to explore.

As always, taking a photo of the port agency contact in case of emergency.

Walking out into the terminal.

Down the escalator.

Outside Pier 27.

Our beautiful ship!

A wonderful view of downtown SF right at the pier.

From Embarcadero, we walked up through Levi's Plaza to Sansome Street.

Towards Chinatown area with the iconic Transamerica building in front of us.

We then made a turn up on Washington Street where we stopped at the Portsmouth Square for a break.

We are quite familiar with this area because we usually park our car here in the underground parking garage at Portsmouth Square when we drove to SF. We found that's the easiest and economical parking available in Chinatown without having to watch the parking meters. These are elevators from the parking garage up to street level at Portsmouth Square.

Walking around Chinatown is always fun. There are so many interesting things to see with little nooks and crannies that even make a Chinese like me, who have been there many times, curious. Many stores were not opened yet because we were kind of early but slowly waking up as we strolled along.

The Dragon Gate at Bush and Grant.

Grant Avenue, the main drag and most touristy part of Chinatown.

We have never been to the original 'Fortune Cookies' factory in Chinatown of all the times we have been here, so that was my mission on this trip--find this historic location. Little did I know that Ross Alley is actually right near our favorite restaurant in town, Kam Lok. The Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory is hidden inside this tiny alley right off of Washington Street.

Beautiful street arts painted on the walls of the alley.

about the main festivals and celebrations in Chinese culture.

We even found the Chinese Christian Mission in this alley!

Here, Golden Gate Cookie Factory, a 60+ year establishment. They do sell many different fortune cookies in this small store front. If going in to take pictures, drop a quarter or so in the tub next to the women making cookies just to show appreciation. You'll get a piece of ruined cookie in return for taste.

After the cookie factory, we wanted to look for the bakery that is famous for the Pineapple buns (no pineapple in the bun) called BoLo Bao. We knew it's supposed to be on Stockton Street and Google map even showed clearly where Napoleon Bakery is but we couldn't find the sign. It turned out that they have changed their names. It is now called Stockton Bakery. We were just going to get three buns but the lady said, get four, it's cheaper. Yes, make sure you get at least 4 if you are going there. By the way, this is a very busy place and there may not be a line, just have to get the ladies' attention and order quickly.

Bakery changed it's name but they do have some awesome Pineapple Buns!

As I mentioned earlier, our favorite restaurant in town was Kam Lok, a tiny eatery at the basement on Washington Street. We've been there a couple of times for their Crab meal special. Unfortunately, we found it closed on this day. Apparently, Tuesday is their off day out of the week. So disappointed! I was so looking forward to enjoy another crab meal there. The last time we were there, it was like $70 for the meal set that's enough for 4, or 5 people. Oh well, there should be other restaurants that can satisfy our cravings.

We ended up at the Hon's Won Ton House near Portsmouth Square on Washington Street, which used to be Washington Cafe that we have visited a few times in the past. This turned out to be a good choice with plenty of authentic items to choose from. We had a wonderful lunch here.

Inside Hon's Won Ton House.

Fried beef rice noodle.

Won ton noodle with BBQ pork.

Regular won ton noodle. Everything was delicious!

After lunch, we were ready to walk again. This time all the way from Chinatown, through Little Italy, to the Fisherman's Wharf area. We tried to avoid the hilly part of town and mainly stayed on Columbus Avenue. We have already been to Lombard Street so we did not have to climb up there. It was actually quite a pleasant walk and we got to see the part of town that we don't normally see.

We finally reached Ghirardelli Square. By now, we were tired and it was nice to be able to sit and enjoy the view in a shady spot.

Aquatic Park/Cove where the Golden Gate Bridge can be seen.

Then we made our way back to Pier 27 through Fisherman's Wharf on Jefferson Street.

There weren't that many people there on this day because it's a weekday.

We were told that this In-N-Out is the only one in the city.

The iconic sign of Fisherman's Wharf.

With all these seafood restaurants long the street.

I think this is called the Sky Star Wheel

and the Ferry Arch.

The next thing to see is the Sea Lion Viewing area at Pier 29.

So many ...

At the end of Pier 39.

As we walked back to Pier 27, we past by the Aquarium with colorful sculptures of sea lion.

Back to the ship.

Our ship stayed in port until 10:00 that evening, which was quite ideal. Gave us enough time to enjoy the city. We decided to rest a little, had an early dinner at the buffet, then go back out again for an evening walk before coming back for all aboard time.