After a delayed start to San Francisco, an hour sit on the runway (due to weather in San Fran) and an hour holding pattern in the air (due to weather in San Fran) we landed 2 and 1/2 hours late in San Francisco at around 10:30 in the evening. Glad we weren't flying to Frankfurt, and then Edinburgh, until the following afternoon. Our taxi driver who took us to the hotel is from Japan, the bellboy at the hotel is Malaysian, the two bartenders at Amelie, the wine bar we visited, are from Turkey and the Canary Islands, and our cab driver taking us back to the airport this morning is from Algiers. Love the cosmopolitan nature of the city though the weather can be a sure pain in the butt for travel and at $1200/sq foot, the real estate is WAY out of reach.
Stayed in Hotel Scarlet on Nob Hill where everyone was almost alarmingly energetic and cheerful at 11:00 pm. Art Decco decor; Alison, you would have loved it. Despite being tired we walked a few blocks to Amelie, the wine bar (NOT named for one of my favorite movies, "Amelie", but for the proprietor's daughter) and we each had a glass of white and red and nibbled on some yummy cheese and honey, and pear and apricot marmalades and a bottomless burlap sack (can't call it anything else) of bread. Amelie is clearly a local hangout with its multicultural regulars. Just about everyone was greeted with hugs and kisses upon entering the bar. Love the warm and friendly feeling. Bartenders took good care of us giving us generous tastes and even more generous pours. Found a new yummy meritage, referred to in shorthand as GSM for grenache/syrah/mouvedre made mostly in California. Delicious! A great way to start the trip.
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