San Francisco
We used to live in San Francisco and Berkeley, so we have lots of friends there and it was great to catch up with them. The city has also recently invested significantly in its playgrounds, and we definitely availed ourselves of that investment! Also ate at some of our favorite spots here: French bakery La Boulange, burritos in the Mission, pasta up in North Beach (where Hazel and Sam started journaling about the trip), sesame balls in Oakland’s Chinatown (where shop owners were lighting off firecrackers in celebration of Chinese New Year). A highlight while in SF was a stop at 826 Valencia–a writing/tutoring center for kids with a pirate shop at the front, started by author Dave Eggers. There is another 826 in Seattle with a time travel theme, and if it’s anything like the 826 in SF, definitely worth a visit.
We also had fun looking at skulls, insects, and plants at the shop next door to 826. And across the street, Hazel got to meet the authors of one of her favorite books: Show Me How.
