8/1/13 - Orinda, CA

Lorna drove us into San Francisco today.  We had to go through the Oakland tunnel and across the Bay Bridge.  We got to see the new bridge that is being constructed and the new tunnel.  We went to Mission San Francisco de Asis (Mission Dolores) and the Basilica.  We toured the old mission which is the oldest building in San Francisco and dates back to the late 1700s.  We had to wait for a while to see the Basilica because of a funeral.  We finally got to see it when the funeral was over.  The Basilica was destroyed by the 1906 earthquake and was rebuilt.  The earthquake didn’t hurt the old mission which has four foot thick adobe walls.  Then we drove to the painted ladies Victorian row houses at Alamo Square to take a picture.  We went here last time with David and Lorna.  We then went by the Palace of the Fine Arts.  We drove through town to the bay and saw Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge.  We toured Alcatraz last time we were here.  Then we had lunch and beers at 21^st Amendment Brewery.  Today was National IPA day (India Pale Ale) so they had IPAs all day for happy hour prices.  Then at 3:30 we left to go back to Lorna’s before the rush hour traffic out of San Francisco got too heavy.  Jim washed his laundry tonight.