Jacoby Does San Francisco!
July 14, 2009
Introducing…
Name: Jacoby
Title: Mi Sobrino (Nephew)
Aliases: Jacoby Jay, Jake Jay, Jake, Jakey, Jakers, MR (Minnie-Rod)
Specialties: Big brotherhood, can drive anything, picky eater (just kidding)
Our eldest nephew, Jacoby, recently graduated high school and we thought it’d be pretty cool to fly him out to CA to celebrate properly! So we did. Let me tell you, he has a lot of admirable qualities. He’s got a good head on his shoulders, and he’s a lot smarter than he looks. 🙂
So let’s take it from the top…
Thursday – GoCar, Giants Game
Jake arrived around noon and after lunch at our building, he and JP went to rent a GoCar (self-guided tour of the city) and paint the town red. This part of the story I will be dictating second-hand (I was working!). Aren’t these boys cute in their little yellow car and big helmets?
You have to be 21 to drive these things – totally disregard the fact that Jake has his Commercial Driver’s License and is qualified to drive just about anything with wheels – he cannot drive a GoCar, and that’s final! I’m pretty sure besides the one time Jake had to get out and push the car up the hill, they had a pretty good time. Sites along the route included:
Fisherman’s Wharf and Pier 39
Crissy Field, Fort Mason, Golden Gate Bridge
Ocean Beach
Painted Ladies (Full House house) at Alamo Square
After work, Lea and I went to procure some tickets to the Giants game, and didn’t do too shabby. In the bleachers, 4th row from the field – $25!
We were already pretty pleased with our seats, and then things really got out of control. Two homers right in a row, both close enough that I got a little scared when I was following them in the sky; then another one in the next inning. On the downside, it was a “little” breezy. We bugged out a little early and went to our new favorite spot – Jerry’s house! He made some mean quesadillas – leftover rib meat from our Sunday dinner, cheese (naturally) and jalapenos on a tortilla cooked on the stove top. Mmmmmmm. Welcome, Jake!
Friday – Lombard St/Cablecar, Lunch at Ferry Building, Alcatraz, Coit Tower, Dinner in North Beach
To begin, I’m going back to the second-hand perspective (but only temporarily). The boys started by paying a visit to some of the local points of interest, including Lombard Street (the crookedest street in the world) and the world-famous SF cablecars.
BTW – they didn’t even pay for their ride on the cablecar because they, “didn’t know.” Sure, boys. Sure.
Anyway, after some gallivanting about town in the morning, the boys met up with Lea and me at the Ferry Building for lunch.
They had a hankering for New England Clam Chowder in a sourdough bread bowl, but Ferry Plaza Seafood doesn’t serve bread bowls. I know – it’s crazy. Fortunately for us, Acme Bread Company does, and JP had the great idea to pick-up a few sourdough rounds and have the restaurant cut the top off and serve our chowder in that. Brilliant! Really smart idea, and one you should exercise the next time you have the need/opportunity.
We also ordered a dozen oysters – half Miagi (CA) and half Hood Canal (WA). (Ever heard the Irish saying, “It was a bold man who ate the first oyster”? It’s like that every time we order these things). Down the hatch, boys!
After lunch, half of us went back to earn our paychecks, while the other half did some more sightseeing. Alcatraz!
I still haven’t been out there, but I always hear great things. Jake and Jared had a great time, as well. Here’s a fun fact they brought back – the jail operated for only 29 years (1934-1963), in which time 36 inmates escaped and all were recovered but 3. Those three escaped in 1962 by using spoons (13 in total) to dig a hole through the wall over the course of more than a year. Just like, Shawshank Redemption!
They got back to free land about the time Lea and I were getting off work, and we met up to go for a stroll up to Coit Tower. From Sansome St (where we started) up the Filbert Steps and to the top of Coit Tower was 483 stairs. Yes, we counted. That number would be higher, but the stairs from the base of the tower to the top were closed, so we had to take the elevator nearly to the top before finishing the final 37 stairs.
The Filbert Steps are lined with some of the most unusual species of flora I’ve ever seen.
The crew.
View from the top…
JP’s a photo hog…
Afterward, we had dinner in North Beach at Bocce Garden Patio. Sounds romantic, dunnit? It was OK. Jake’s lasagna was great, JP and I ordered the cannelloni which was OK, and we sent Lea’s Margharita pizza back. Wine – Valpolicella. I’m new to Italian wines, and old world in general, and I’m confident there are better ones out there.
Over dinner was when the boys told me what they learned about Alcatraz and we noted the similarities to, Shawshank Redemption, which we then learned Jake had never seen. Never seen?! There was only one thing to do. You guessed it…
Saturday – Santa Cruz Surf, Bike/Hike to Berry Creek Falls, Bean Hollow Beach, Sam’s Chowder House, Hot Tub
If you read the line above, you already know this was a fun-FILLed day. We started with a drive down to Cowell’s Beach Surf Shop in Santa Cruz (about an hour south, depending on who’s driving) to rent a wetsuit for Jake and a longboard for JP. Once set, we were off to tame some waves at Pleasure Point in Monterey Bay.
If you click, “Zoom here,” and then zoom closer, you can see the surfers in the water. Just imagine that’s us!
If
We’re told that this spot is known to be a little territorial among the local surfers, but I’d say we held our own pretty well. These are the most slow-rolling, smooth, gradual waves we’ve ever had the opportunity to surf. It was Jacoby’s first time in any sizable waves, and every time I looked back for him, he was swimming back from shore. Atta-boy! In fact, I lost count of how many waves we caught, and that’s never happened before! Be-A-utiful.
After a cold beer to wash the salt from our mouths, we returned our gear and had some tacos at Las Palmas Taco Bar. It’s a great local joint, just off the strip at Cowell’s Beach. We were told to try the fried chicken tacos from the girls at the surf shop, but when you have an addiction to carnitas like we do, it’s hard to try anything else.
We took Hwy 1 North toward San Francisco, and pulled off at the back entrance to Big Basin State Park.
Here we unloaded the bikes and road six miles down Rancho Del Oso trail until it came to a point where we had to disembark from our aluminum ponies and hike another half-mile to our destination – Berry Creek Falls. It would have been worth the trip even if we’d traveled twice as far. Lea and I had been here once a year ago, but came from the opposite direction. I’m stunned when I try to realize how much natural beauty is within a short drive, a few pedals and a couple steps from our front door
As we continued to make our way North, we made another stop. This time we were at Bean Hollow Beach. The tide pools here are the best we’ve seen of any beach in N. CA so far, and we’ve been here several times. Fortunately, we arrived around 7PM, which was low tide. That means that more of the tide pool was exposed, along with the creatures that call it home. We saw starfish that range in color from deep purple to bright orange, sea urchins with fluorescent purple spikes, dozens of crabbies, and bright green anenomies.
That’s Lea’s shadow on the water.
Our final stop on the way home was for dinner at Sam’s Chowder House in Half Moon Bay. On tap – Hoegaarden. So refreshing after a long day in the sun! On the table:
- New Zealand Bluenose Sea Bass
- Seared Albacore Tuna
- Alaskan Halibut
- Cioppino (Savory shell fish stew with cracked Dungeness crab, prawns, mussels, and rock fish)
After all that driving, surfing, biking, hiking, exploring and eating, we thought it best to soak our muscles in the hot tub before calling it a night. Good night world – it’s been a great day!
Sunday – Farmer’s Market, Muir Beach, Pelican Inn, Dinner at JP’s
Jake and Jared started their Sunday morning with a trip to the Burlingame Farmer’s Market. (I started my day by catching-up on an extra hour of sleep). They picked-up some plumbs and peaches to snack on for the day, and the majority of the ingredients for a salad we would eat later that night (heirloom tomatoes, baby-yellow tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers, and more). I’ll come back to that.
Although yesterday was a busy one, you can never give yourself enough time in the sun. Today’s destination: Muir Beach. But not for a lazy day of sunbathing and beachballs. Oh, no. We’re explorers, remember?! We took a path less traveled along the treacherous, rocky coastline south of Muir Beach to a point off Pirates Cove. Again, we saw much of the same sea creatures here as we did at Bean Hollow, but this trip included some real rock scaling. I was so proud of Lea for hanging with the boys today!
At the last beach, we found what looked like a bell of some sort off a naval ship. It wasn’t a bell, but it was cool whatever it was.
Jake wanted to pack it as a souvenir, but we didn’t have a crane to lift it, so we thought it best to leave it behind.
At the turn off Hwy 1 to Muir Beach is Pelican Inn.
We knew it would be a while until dinner, so we stopped for a light lunch…and some beers! (Don’t worry – Jake drank lemonade. Four to be precise). They have a house Pale Ale, which was pretty good. But the food was great! Maybe anything would’ve tasted great at that point (this is English food we’re talking about here), but it really hit the spot. We had the Ploughman’s Lunch, which consisted of pickled pearl onions, stilton and cheddar cheeses, apple chutney, hunks of bread, etc. on a bed of greens.
We also had the Cheese Toast (grilled-cheese to you Americans) with fries. Mmmmm-m!
It was just enough to take the edge off our appetities. Did I mention we were eating outside on the lawn? Because we were. The sky was clear. The air was warm and still. The grass was cool and soft. It was the perfect afternoon.
We’re now homeward bound, with a brief pit stop in the city for some final souvenirs, and regaining our appetites. Thankfully, Jared had a plan. Remember the salad I mentioned earlier, with the ingredients from the farmer’s market? They got chopped-up and thrown in a bowl with crumbled feta cheese. I could stuff myself with this as my entire dinner on another night. It tasted like a quintessential summer dish – FRESH.
We also had corn on the cob, our recent favorite – sweet potato wedges, and two types of New York Strips. Two types of seasoning, that is. Salt and pepper on all four, and ground coffee beans on two. JP’s hypothesis was that the oils from the beans help carmelize the steaks when we first sear them in the skillet, which creates a nice crust.
After a dessert of grilled white peaches and vanilla bean ice cream, we sunk contently into our seats and watched a great movie to cap what has been a remarkable weekend.
See you, Jake! We miss you already.
For more pictues, visit our Picasa Web Albums:
http://picasaweb.google.com/bleopold/20090712JP?authkey=Gv1sRgCKbKjaPcu7SsKQ&feat=directlink
Ugh – you are KILLING me with these insane photos – beautiful weekend!!!