Living in northern California, there’s never a shortage of places to go or things to do. As a ‘last gasp of summer’ fling, we headed off to San Francisco for a day of exploring. It’s an easy drive from our house, and when we’re sweltering in triple digit heat, a little fog and drizzle is perfect!

English: Ferry Building in San Francisco, California in 2010 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Recently relocated on the Embarcadero near the Ferry Building, the San Francisco Exploratorium is full of intriguing exhibits and activities to twist your brain and move your body.

Kids and grown ups are equally entertained!

And if there’s too much stimuli inside, a quick step out onto the deck provides a gorgeous view of the ‘old’ Bay Bridge span.

We even got to experience a real-life fire evacuation…fortunately, it was a false alarm.

Inside, we were right back exploring for several hours.

Just when you think you’ve seen it all, you haven’t – I loved creating these digital images of us!

Finally, hunger won over curiosity and we headed to our second stop – The Slanted Door in the Ferry Building.

The Slanted Door came highly recommended, so we were excited to get a table easily. The modern Vietnamese menu was impressive, as was the view from the dining room. Personally, I liked my view of my boys!

Cam was adventurous and tried the “Slanted Door Spring Rolls” – an interesting combination of shrimp, mint, and pork, with a delicious peanut dipping sauce. He was so adept with the chopsticks!

We all agreed that this dish was our favorite – lemongrass chicken with red onion, roasted jalapeno, roasted chili paste, and roasted peanut, served with brown rice. Yum!

The carmelized wild gulf shrimp ere pretty tasty, too – I liked the yellow onion and garlic sauteed in a caramel chili sauce.

Unbelieveably, he still had room for dessert – couldn’t resist the soft snickerdoodle ice cream cookie sandwiches.

The next activity involved getting outside – and getting on bikes. Most people wouldn’t think about riding bikes in a city known for eyepopping hills, but in reality, San Francisco is an awesome place to ride. 

Starting at the Ferry Building, we followed the water. Past Peir 39, Ghiradelli Square, alongside the tourists we rode. Pretty nice views!

Riding through Fort Mason offers some spectacular vistas of the San Francisco Bay.

We decided to go for it, and ride across the Golden Gate Bridge!

Eventually, we made it to the other side!

I have to admit – riding across the bridge was kind of creepy. It was misty, and while there is a nice barrier between the bikes and the cars, the outside edge is surprisingly exposed to the water. I decided to just put my head down and ride straight across. I stopped once, but quickly realized that if I looked down too much I might not have the fortitude to keep going. I was relieved to make it to the large, concrete exit on the Sausalito side, but like my Nicaraguan zip lining adventure, I felt a sense of great accomplishment that I did it.

I felt the same way about our adventure to San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge – so glad that we took the day to go. Time goes by so fast.

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

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