Visiting Saints Peter & Paul Church and Enjoying the North Beach Neighborhood, SF, USA

Monday, Day 3 - San Francisco

North Beach neighborhood, San Francisco

Our hotel is located in an excellent location, at North Point and Hyde Street of San Francisco, USA.

There are many nice outdoor cafes and restaurants in North Beach

It is only steps to Fisherman's Wharf and a stone throw away from Columbus Street where North Beach is.

When we visited SF last couple of times, we also stayed at hotels close to the North Beach neighborhood.

Therefore I am familiar with it. It is one my favourite communities in this city.

A ceramic shop selling many interesting handiwork.

We love walking around in the North Beach neighborhood as it is lined with many nice cafes as well as interesting shops.

Washington Square is a nice park located within this neighborhood.

It is a beautiful park alive with residents making good use of this green space.

Washington Square is a spacious park enjoyed by many North Beach residents.

Saints Peter and Paul Church, North Beach 

Today, our second full day in San Francisco, we visited the beautiful church in the located opposite the Washington Square.

This magnificent church is called Saints Peter and Paul Church, a Roman Catholic church.


It serves as the home church and cultural centre for the Italian American community since it was built.

The interior of Saints Peter and Paul Church, North Beach, San Francisco, USA

This church was made famous by the very famous Italian American baseball player, Joe DiMaggio who married his first wife Dorothy Arnold here.

Later DiMaggio divorced Dorothy and married Marilyn Monroe in 1954.

But they were not allowed to be married in the Catholic church which considered DiMaggio was still married.









After their civil ceremony, Marilyn Monroe and Joe returned for photographs on the steps of this church.

Joe DiMaggio's funeral was held at the Saints Peter and Paul Church

on March 11, 1999

North Beach, also known as little Italy, is a colourful neighborhood. However, it is evolving.

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An Indian restaurant in North Beach 

Besides many Italian restaurants, there are also other ethnic eateries in North Beach

After the church visit, we had an Indian lunch in one of the restaurants in North Beach.

Staying in a hotel in North Beach

We are glad that we are staying at a hotel in close proximity to North Beach -
a beautiful neighborhood that is within walking distances to many great attractions in San Francisco!


R.T.
North Beach
San Francisco, USA

Discovering the Must Visit Piers at San Francisco's Waterfront

We strolled along the Embarcadero to the waterfront of San Francisco, USA

The waterfront of San Francisco is a lovely place. Whenever we are in San Francisco,  we always make a point to visit this area.









After the Sunday Service, we strolled along the Embarcadero to  enjoy this famous tourist area.

View of Coit Tower from San Francisco's waterfront

We could see the Coit Tower, the landmark of San Francisco clearly from the waterfront.

















There are numerous piers along the city's waterfront.

While many of these are working piers, some are designed  as attractions while some are specifically for cruise ships and tours.

Pier 15 

There are many activities and things to do along the piers. One of which is the Exploratorium at Pier 15/17.

The Buckball in front of the Exploratorium at Pier 15/17

This are many interactive displays
at this exhibit, a great place for kids and young people to explore!

However, the admission charges can be prohibitive as they are around US $35.00 - 40.00 per person.

If you are watching your vacation budget, don't worry. There are much to see that are free at the other piers.

Pier 33

At Pier 33  is the Alcatraz Pier where visitors can board a ferry to visit this once infamous prison.

We looked at the displays about the history of the Alcatraz.

The Rodman cannon on display at Pier 33

Alcatraz fire power - the Rodman cannon was on display at this pier.

There are charges for taking the ferry to the Alcatraz Island.

But there is no admission charge to see the exhibits at Pier 33.

An excellent view of Alcatraz at Pier 39, San Francisco

It was at Pier 39 where we got an excellent clear view of the Alcatraz Island.

Pier 39 - the most visited pier in San Francisco

Pier 39 is the most visited pier along the San Francisco waterfront.

The afternoon we were there, we caught a school group of young people singing Christmas carols and entertaining visitors to the area.

Sea lions sunning themselves on platforms at Pier 39

The most famous inhabitants at Pier 39 are undoubtedly the sea lions who winter there on the platforms.

Some of them were sunning themselves while a few were singing their sea lion songs.

This sea lion responded with its own song.

The best part about Pier 39, it is free! There is no admission to see the sea lions, or to enjoy the musical and children's entertainment provided at this pier.

It was a fine Sunday afternoon for strolling along the waterfront.

Street musicians performing along the piers

Street musicians performed lively musical performances at designated areas along the piers.

Pier 45 - where the Musee Mecanique is located

We visited the waterfront three times in the past few years.


I was surprised to discover something we missed down at the piers.

We discovered the Musee Mecanique at Pier 45!

A very interesting place with free admission!

It is a place where a lot of antique games and pinball machines are on display.

With a quarter or two, visitors can try these old fashion games.

A very interesting game we saw was the wrestling game.

After inserting a 25 cents coin, you can wrestle with a strong mechanical arm.

We saw a few people wrestling with the wrestling arm, but they all lost!


It was fun looking at all those old games and we spent a bit of time at this museum.

We kept walking and reached Fisherman's Wharf















The wharf has been all decked out with Christmas decorations.
















Fisherman's Wharf was a very busy place when we visited it last two times during the warmer months.

This time, it was a much quieter place in December.

We enjoyed some lovely music from the 70's and 80's by the wharf.

A fresh crab and shrimp sandwich, yummmy!

We tasted some fresh seafood sandwiches.

Fisherman\s Wharf, SF, USA

I could not believe we strolled along and spent  six hours at the waterfront ( 1-7 pm) !


We were pretty exhausted when we went back to our hotel!


R.T.
Waterfront
San Francisco

Celebrating an Advent Service at the First Baptist Church in SF

Day 2 - SF, USA

It is important for us to attend Sunday Services regardless of where we are in the world.


















It was Sunday on the second day of our visit to San Francisco. Therefore, we looked up a church close to our hotel and attended a Sunday service the next day in that city.

We attended a Sunday Service in San Francisco, USA, last Sunday

I love Christmas carols and songs. Unfortunately, the churches we attended for the past three decades in Toronto did not sing Christmas carols until the week before and the Christmas week.

If I wanted to listen to Christmas songs, I have to turn to a specific commercial radio station that starts playing them in December.








Imagine my delight when the SF church started the Sunday Service with the singing of Christmas carols celebrating the first Sunday of Advent!














After the carol singing, a beautiful piece of Christmas song was played quietly as congregants mediated on the meaning of the coming of our messiah. It was an opportunity for reflection.

The part I liked the most was when the pastor encouraged attendees to share their prayer requests if there were any burdens on their hearts.

 I did and asked the congregation to pray for loved ones' salvation and hope that E. would be able to join and become a member of this church.







People in this church were very warm and we felt welcome.

We never feel alone wherever we travel to a new city anywhere in the world. The moment we step into a local church, we feel a part of that church and can make friends easily. This is the advantage of being a member of God's family!

R.T.
First Baptist Church
Downtown, San Francisco
USA

Travelling to Our Favourite US City in December

We hosted a couple at our home before leaving for our US trip

We had a busy week as I needed to make sure my mom was well looked after in the rehab hospital as well as hosting a couple of guests from Stayner at our house.

Christmas decorations at the Chicago Airport 

We rarely travel during the month of December as we love being at home for the holidays.

A beautiful building at the Chicago airport, USA 

We had the best tasting bagel at the Chicago airport!

However, with my sis' help we got a good deal for accommodation in our favorite city in the U.S., so why not?   We packed our bags and were ready to visit our loved one in the States.

We caught a connecting flight at Chicago 

Catching an early flight on Saturday morning in Toronto, we needed to make a connecting flight at the Chicago airport.

W arrived at the SFO airport shortly after 1pm. Since this is our third time visiting SF, we felt comfortable taking the public transit from the airport to our hotel near the city's downtown.

It was a breeze taking the airport bus from the airport to the mission district of San Francisco. However, walking the rest of the way to our hotel was not as easy as I thought.

Cars going down slowly on the narrowest street in SF, Lombard Street

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We forgot how steep many of the streets in SF are. I need to take a note of that to remind ourselves the next time.


However, we did get to have a great evening view of the city at Hyde and Lombard Street.

An evening view of San Francisco at  Hyde and Lombard Street  

Arriving at the hotel shortly after 6pm, we received a champagne reception after checking in at the front desk. How nice was that!

We checked into our hotel in SF, USA

We look forward to our visit in San Francisco in the next little while!



R.T.
San Francisco
USA