July 4th in San Francsico

July 4th turned out to be quite the crazy day.
Dallas and I were on the road for the first part of the day, driving back from Washington and all our family reunions.  We couldn't just chill at home for the 4th of July festivities, though!  One of my cousins, Greg, and his wife, Heidi also live in the Bay area and were more than willing to brave the craziness of San Francisco to join us for fireworks at Ghirardelli Square.

We began our adventure by meeting up at Jack London Square in Oakland to ride the ferry across to Pier 39.  I love riding the ferry across the bay.  I swear I could live on the water!  It's funny the temperature change from our place in Pleasant Hill to San Francisco.  Even though it's only 20 miles away, it drops about 20 degrees.  The Embarcadero was closed down to traffic since the crowds were so large and everyone was walking in the streets.  This allowed for all the "crazies" to emerge, which is always the most fun to experience.  I especially loved the old dancing man in the pin striped white suit...priceless!

For dinner we decided to eat at Boudin, famous for it's sour dough bread.  Surprisingly the wait wasn't too long and the food was perfect.  Nothing like fresh clam chowder and warm bread bowls.

After dinner we walked along the Embarcadero and explored the patriotic displays.  There was a military submarine and battle ship allowing tourists to board.  Of course we found this to be a great opportunity to take some pictures!

 

We slowly made our way through the shops down to Ghirardelli Square.  San Francisco is such a unique city.  I love the drastic rolling streets, the fun-loving spirit of the many diverse people, and I swear no matter how many times I have visited the city I ALWAYS see something new.

Ghirardelli Square is right on the beach.  The city had a pretty great set up with lots of vendors and a live cover band playing until sunset.  Their outfits were absolutely amazing and Dallas got some great shots of them in action.  I especially love the picture of the guitarist with the foggy Golden Gate in the background.

For the fireworks display we designed a back rest in the sand for the four of us to lay on.  It was a perfect way to enjoy the half hour show.  The fireworks were set to several different songs; I was very tempted to sing along, but figured I would give Dallas a break from my singing, considering we had just finished a long road trip with me yelling along everything on the radio. 

The fireworks finished around 9:30pm and we slowly made our way back through the crowds to Pier 39 where we were to catch our ferry home.  Unfortunately someone passed out drunk on the ferry and the crew couldn't legally move him until EMTs arrived.  We ended up waiting on the pier for almost 2 hours waiting to load the boat.  I felt bad for Dallas, Greg, and Heidi who all had to be at either work or school the next morning, but I have to admit, I had a lot of fun with them and watching all the crazy crowds get worked up. 

We finally got home well passed midnight after a chilly ferry ride and a memorable evening with cousins.  We love you, Greg and Heidi, and had so much fun with you guys!  Can't wait til we can get together again!