BABYMOON

For our last getaway as just us two, we decided to go San Francisco! I had never been to Northern California and it had been a few years since Kyle had been back there. We went right before Christmas, and I highly recommend going that time. There were giant Christmas trees everywhere and all the stores were decked out! The weather was pretty great too! It was in the 50’s our whole trip!

We stayed at the Hilton Parc 55 hotel right in Union Square. Union Square is a great location to stay if you are going for the shopping. There are the most amazing, high-end retail stores lined up the streets! We loved going into the GIANT Nordstrom! The store was probably about 6 stories tall and the decorations for Christmas were unreal! There was also a giant Target, which is you are anything like me, your addicted to Target.

If you go to San Francisco you HAVE to stop by Ghirardelli square. When we went they had a big Christmas tree right in the center. They have an ice cream parlour to satisfy your sweet tooth as well as a chocolate gift shop with every flavor you can imagine. The only thing missing was a chocolate making factory.

We also LOVED seeing the Golden Gate Bridge. It is amazing! We couldn’t bike across the bridge because of my big belly but if you have the chance, DO IT! We also stopped by Golden Gate park, which was wayyyy bigger than either of us expected! There was a lot to see. We thought it would be a great stop for families because there was a lot of kid friendly things to do in the park.

Fisherman’s Wharf is also a must. There were so many street performers! Plus this is the place to get fresh seafood and sourdough bread, although I am still biased for Kyle’s homemade sourdough. The bay was beautiful and we had the perfect view of Alcatraz. We didn’t but they do offer boat tours out to the Island.

TIPS:

#1 Everything is not as close as it appears. This was our first mistake. We looked on the map and thought everything looked so close, we decided to walk our first day. By lunch I was a total goner! We learned our lesson the hard way and took the city street cars, bus and train the rest of the trip. San Fran as excellent public transit. Before you go to San Francisco, download the Muni app. That way you can plan your routes and prepay for passes. Also if you use the app, you get a discount on all passes. All the passes were very affordable and convenient.

#2 Try the local restaurants. Our favorite places we stopped by were places that were one of a kind, mom and pop shops! Here were our favorites!

MAMA’S

This plate of french toast really should have a post of its own…it was that unreal! This family joint opened in the 50’s and now the brothers are running it. We stumbled upon this shop while wondering through little Italy. We were starving and saw this big line out front. It was worth the wait. Everything was scratch made and FRESH! I got eggs benedict and Kyle got orange cranberry french toast with walnuts and fresh fruit. Even though both were incredible, we both decided Kyle’s plate was the winner.

Halal Guys

This place originally started as a street cart in New York city. I am so glad they expanded! Talk about amazing Mediterranean food! I got the beef gyro and Kyle got a chicken and beef plate. The white sauce was the real kicker!

Patxi’s Pizza

This is deep dish pizza at it’s finest! You can buy by the slice or the whole pie. We tried the ceasar salad and meat lovers pizza. Oh man, it was so freakin good!

Boudin’s Bakery

You just can’t visit San Fran without eating fresh sourdough bread! We got two bread bowls filled to the brim with clam chowder. mmmMMMmm!

We had an incredible trip, but the truth about any place you visit is that it’s who you are with that really makes it special! I can’t believe the next big trip we take is going to be a party of three!

xo,

Kyle & Taylor