Conference in the City on the Bay (San Francisco, November 2011) About This Page:

[MelissaSue]

My coworker and her husband (we’ll call them Jack and Jill or J&J for short) picked me up around 3:45a … really, really early. They were both well dressed and looking put together, while I was wearing sweats. No joke. I felt like such a slob. Oh well. At least I was going to be comfortable!

We got to the airport with plenty of time before our flight and easily soared through security. I guess that’s easy to do before the sun comes up. Apparently, no one wants to fly before dawn. We ended up waiting for about 45 minutes before they boarded the plane.

We took off a little later than scheduled, probably about 5:45a, and as I was getting on the plane, they took my carry-on luggage because the overhead bins were full. First, we flew to Philadelphia, and I had the window seat. I slept a bit and read a bit, and it was over before I knew it (about 90 minutes).

When we got off the plane, I had to wait and wait … and wait for my luggage. And then we ran. The Philadelphia airport is the worst for transfers because you have to literally take a bus between terminals. Who ever heard of such a thing?! It was a little ridiculous.

We did make our connecting flight with plenty of time to spare—they were just calling “final boarding” when we got up to the gate, so we were fine. This flight was six and a half painful hours, and I was on the isle. I usually hate the isle, but I did appreciate being able to get to the bathroom easily when I needed it! I got a lot of reading done.

This was a US Airways flight, and I was really disappointed that there were NO free snacks, and even though it was a LONG flight, they only served food once. I ordered a Café Plus snack box for $6. I was pretty hungry by the time they came around to sell food, so I ate the chicken salad and crackers immediately. But it also came with a small bag of Popchips, some raspberry cookies, a small container of crasins and a small container of almonds. I spread the little snacks out over the duration of the flight, which kept me entertained (and satiated).

When we finally landed in San Francisco, it was 11am PST. Wahoo! We were finally there … sort of.

[MelissaSue]

We hopped in a cab for a $55 trip into the center of the city and our hotel, the Stanford Court Renaissance on California Street. We checked in, although the process was a bit slow, and J&J took the last clean room. Darn it!

Luckily, they let me come up to their room and freshen up—wash my face, brush my teeth and put on more appropriate clothes. We were all pretty hungry by then, so as soon as we were freshened up, we headed out into the great big city.

We ended up walking down Nob Hill, toward Chinatown. It was about 12:30, and the conference started at 1:45, so we had lots of time. We slowly walked down Nob Hill, and ended up at a Chinese diner called the New Café Honolulu. It was the strangest thing! It was just a little hole in the wall on Stockton Street between Clay and Sacramento Streets. It looked like your typical greasy spoon, but they served authentic Chinese food!

I ordered a red bean ice milk shake to start the meal. It was totally yummy, but I’ve never had it before where the red beans are WHOLE—usually I’ve had it where it’s sort of a watery bean paste. The texture was a little weird, and I didn’t appreciate having to chew my beverage, but that is, as Rob told me later, the traditional way to serve that beverage.

For my main meal, I ordered spare ribs and pineapple. Both were cut into bite-size pieces and tossed with a sweet sauce. They were served with peppers and onions and white rice. Very interesting and very delicious! I do wish the Chinese would remove the bones from the food … but honestly, that’s very authentic, too. Just not what I prefer.

Overall, it was a really enjoyable meal. And cheap, too!

We walked slowly back to the hotel, up Sacramento Street to Huntington Park, taking in the sights. Some photos from the walk:

Wrought iron details

Parking sign on Sacramento Street

Corner of Sacramento and Mason Streets

Toward the Bay down Mason Street

As we ambled into the hotel, I got a call: my room was ready! Yay! Just enough time to move my suitcase up to my new room and then head down to the conference (taking place in the lower level of the hotel).

[elbodans]

are you calling them jack and jill because they walked up many hills in san fran???

YAY PHOTOS!

also--funny story--i almost choked and died on a chicken bone at a chinese restaurant in paris. as doug patted me on the back and wondered how anyone eats food like that in a civilized manner, we glanced over at the next table. a very beautiful woman was expertly eating the same dish (a very tasty spicy chicken that was chopped up into tiny piece while leaving the bones in)--with chopsticks--nibbling the meat off the tiny bones with insane accuracy. it was like watching an ant eater french kiss.

i hadn't realized your hotel was the convention hotel--isn't that the best? it saves so much time--that you could then use for touring around in the evening! can't wait to read more (and see more photos) but then, you knew that already.

[MelissaSue]

The first day of the conference was pretty low key. The opening keynote was sort of lame, but I really enjoyed the first speaker, who talked about ways to get your shit together when there’s a million little things crossing your desk every day. It was actually amazingly helpful, and I got a lot of great ideas from her. Anyway, I’ll keep the conference chatter to a minimum.

After the conference closed for the day, Jill and I split up. I went up to my room to unpack and explore a bit. I’ll take this opportunity to tell you a bit about the hotel. You enter into a really cool courtyard, which is really nice. It’s covered, so you stay dry in the rain, and there’s plenty of room for cars to park or drop you off. Very safe. Here are a couple of photos of the lobby:

The Stanford Court

Beautiful glass dome ceiling

Fountain at the center of the courtyard (at night)

Seating area as you enter the hotel

My room was awesome. The bathroom was large with a small area for a closet and ironing board. The vanity was long, and the toilet and shower/tub were in a small separate room. Weird, though: both of the bathroom doors were pocket doors. They didn’t really block sound at all, but whatever. I was by myself.

Vanity

Awesome bathroom wallpaper

The rest of the room had an entertainment center, seating area (like the one in the entryway), a desk with a comfy chair, and a big, beautiful queen-size bed. It had two windows looking out over an alley. And a fully-stocked minibar. I had trouble resisting the peanut m&ms all weekend!

Beautiful sheer curtains

Hallway arches

After I got settled and Skyped with my husband, I met up with J&J for dinner. We walked to the Nob Hill Café (http://nobhillcafe.com/). It’s a tiny little Italian spot, but you couldn’t tell that from the name or the location. In fact, it looked a little snobby from the outside, and I never would have gone in there on my own. So thank goodness J&J suggested it. And thank goodness we arrived when we did. Just in time! About 5 minutes after we were seated, it started to get REALLY crowded. Apparently, it is incredibly popular with the locals.

I ordered a spinach salad as a starter and fettuccini al pesto, which was really delicious and creamy. Overall, it was a great meal. Jill and I also split a bottle of the house white, which was probably more than I should have imbibed.

We walked back, past Old St. Mary’s Cathedral as well as the dog park. I met the cutest goldendoodle, whose entire body shook whenever he wagged.

Old St Mary’s Cathedral

After dinner, I went up to bed to decompress and read for a while. J&J headed to Union Square, the city’s shopping district.

[karadisney]

Love the hotel! The dome is so beautiful!!

[elbodans]

love the dome (and the hotel as a whole) though i have an unnatural love for domed ceilings.

i will now consider this hotel for a future possible maybe probably san fran trip in the near-ish future! thanks!!!

[chezp]

What a great first day! The hotel looks amazing.

[Colexis Mom]

Great start and pictures!

[MelissaSue]

Originally Posted by karadisney

Love the hotel! The dome is so beautiful!!

It was really interesting! I loved the interior courtyard—all of the interior hallways were just giant rectangles because of it, and it made finding things easier, for sure.

Originally Posted by elbodans

love the dome (and the hotel as a whole) though i have an unnatural love for domed ceilings.
i will now consider this hotel for a future possible maybe probably san fran trip in the near-ish future! thanks!!!

It is a beautiful hotel, but it’s a little pricey. If I were going back, I’d probably try to find a cheaper option, to be honest.

Originally Posted by chezp

What a great first day! The hotel looks amazing.

Thanks! I know you’ve been before—which hotel did you stay at?

Originally Posted by Colexis Mom

Great start and pictures!

Thank you!

[MelissaSue]

Good morning, San Francisco! Day two started with breakfast in the cutest little spot in literally the bowels of the hotel. It’s called Fournou's Ovens, and it used to be a little bistro. Now it’s a meeting place, I guess.

It has really cool ovens (I guess that’s what it’s named for). Anyway, I had some breakfast with a bunch of folks I’d never met before, and we talked about style guides and other stuff that you don’t care about. And then I had some morning sessions that you guys don’t care about!

During our two hour lunch break, we managed to see ALL of California Street (by walking and riding the cable cars) as well as most of the financial district. We’ll start with our walk down California Street …

Looking at the TransAmerica Pyramid from California and Powell Streets

Trade Mark building in Chinatown

Lion head icons on the California Bank and Trust building on California Street

Cylindrical Tower Atrium at 101 California Street

I was so impressed with the architecture here. It’s a pretty amazing blend of different styles and periods, but it flows so naturally. It was a nice, slow walk, so I was able to appreciate a lot of the sights.

We eventually made our way down to Seller’s Markets at their 388 Market Street location. It was immediately obvious that this was a happening place for locals. We saw lots of financial-types ordering lunch to go, but the interior dining room was also pretty packed. (It was a little cold out—most of the locals were wearing coats and hats—so the outside tables were empty.)

Planter outside Sellers Markets

I ordered a turkey melt with a side salad, and it was quite delicious. The ingredients were extremely fresh, so it wasn’t like going to a typical deli. Very yummy. If I was going to go back, I think I’d try the chicken and brie. Or pretty much any one of the salads. I’d definitely frequent this place if I lived in San Francisco.

After lunch, we headed down Market Street back to the base of California Street, and we passed a small group of Occupy protesters. We heard from several locals that the protests were really slowing down the public transportation in the financial district area. We didn’t notice it, but we also have no idea how fast or slow it usually is. Anyway, they seemed pretty peaceful and we not blocking the road. They left plenty of space on the sidewalk, too. Tomorrow, we’d learn that this encampment was a smaller offshoot of the larger, louder Occupy area in the city.

We hopped on the California Cable Car at the base of the street and rode it to the end. We had plenty of time for this long, slow ride, and it was a great way to see more of the awesome architecture.

Courtyard at 101 California Street, from the Cable Car

View from the Cable Car between Stockton and Grant Streets

This was our view from the top of the line

On our way back down, I switched sides of the car, so I’d be able to see the other side of the street! (J&J thought I was insane. But they already thought that.)

Loving this art deco-style gate

This seemed very sad to me

The wrought-iron gate behind this car is unbelievably intricate

More art deco detailing

This is the incredibly beautiful Flood Mansion, the only great Nob Hill house to survive the 1906 Fire

The Flood Mansion was about a block from our hotel, and by the time we got there, it was time to head back into conference-land.

[chezp]

Wow, you certainly got a lot done in your lunch time!

[MelissaSue]

The conference was great, as ever. I vividly recall eating an absolutely amazing lemon bar during one of the breaks. When the learning was done for the day, I headed back up to my room, where I talked to Rob on Skype and changed my clothes for the evening.

And then it was time to head back out into the world. I’d been thinking I’d tour Little Italy this evening, but J&J wanted to go to Fisherman’s Wharf. So we hopped on a cable car headed out that way. I have to say, the ride was the best part of this evening! The car was so full that I had to stand on the edge, which would have been great for photos (if my point-and-shoot wasn’t terrible at night).

One of the Powell cable cars, headed down toward the Bay

We got down to the water, and I was immediately disappointed. It was the most horrible, terrible tourist trap I’ve ever seen in my entire life! The streets were literally lined with shops selling crap. And once you got down to the Wharf itself … it was more of the same!!

Wing-tipped building on the Wharf (a restaurant and souvenir shop)

We ended up walking around, looking at menus, trying to pick a spot for dinner. All of the menus were pretty much the same, and so we ended up at Cioppino’s. I ordered a salmon sandwich on focaccia with pesto aioli and a side of fries.

The food was good (not great), but the whole time I was there, I couldn’t stop thinking about how Restaurant Impossible would redecorate this place. It was really, seriously tacky. But they were doing brisk business, so what do I know.

Afterward, we did some souvenir shopping at one of the many emporiums. J&J are fun to hang out with, and we enjoyed ourselves. I bought a San Francisco mug but nothing else. Mostly, all of the stores were selling the same crap. The area seemed mostly dead—no locals and very few tourists. I was getting tired, and J&J were cold, so we headed back to the hotel, via cable car.

I loved this statue of Saint Francis by Beniamino Bufano

Disneyland advertisements

We saw this sign advertising the holiday lights at Disneyland while we were waiting for our cable car. J&J asked me what it was advertising for, and I said, “oh, the holiday lights are up only from Nov. 14 – Jan. 8.” They seemed shocked that I knew … but, dude, any respectable Disney fan knows when the holiday lights go up, am I right? It’s the most magical time of the year!

When we got back to the hotel, I turned in for the night.

[Colexis Mom]

Sounds like another great day!

[karadisney]

I loved the Transamerica builidng! It was so neat!!

[MelissaSue]

Another beautiful morning in the Stanford Court! Actually, it was a cold morning at the Stanford Court, and I stayed in the delicious, warm, fluffy bed longer than I should have. I can’t even begin to describe how feather soft the bed was there. I actually lost my cell phone in the folds of the bed—that’s how fluffy it is!

Despite that, I actually made it down to breakfast early! In my spare time before the morning sessions, I bought some books from the conference, chatted with some people I met and let Jill into my room to use my wifi (the office paid for ONE room of wifi, and since I run the company’s twitter stream and facebook page, I was the one who had the wifi).

The morning sessions were good, but nothing terribly exciting. One of the topics was something I was interested in personally, and I’d already spoke to a bunch of conference-attendees about it. The second was the closing keynote, which seemed somehow irrelevant and out of place, which was especially weird given how amazing the rest of the conference was. Oh well.

We were out of there by noon, and after a quick wardrobe change, we were off! We took the familiar long walk from the hotel through the financial district; although this time we walked all the way to the Ferry Building.

Trade Mark Building, Old St. Mary's Center, the Hartford Building and TransAmerica Pyramid

On the way, we discovered the much larger Occupy San Francisco encampment. They looked like nice people, and they looked like they were having fun. But, frankly, the whole camp just looked dirty. And they’d built their little city right across a pedestrian walkway from the temporary ice skating rink. It just seemed weird.

Anyway, when we got to the Ferry Building, we decided to split up. I headed straight toward CowGirl Creamery, the happiest little cheese store in the world. Honestly, this is one of the greatest places on earth. I tried about six different kinds of cheese before walking away with 1/3 lb of Echo Mountain Blue and half a wheel of Cowgirl Creamery Pierce Point. Yum Yum Yum!

Ferry Building

After that, I headed to Cowgirl Creamery Sidekick to get lunch. I ordered a roast turkey sandwich with herbed fromage blanc on focaccia and a chai spiced tea milk. I ate half of my sandwich at one of the awesome standing tables in front of the Creamery and saved the rest for later.

From there, I explored all of the amazing treats in the Ferry Building … seriously, this place is a foodie’s dream. I was amazed by the mushroom-only shop as well as the dedicated tea, wine and olive oil shops. I could have spent hours here, sampling and exploring, but too soon it was time to move on. I bought some honey from beekind, hazelnut and pistachio macarons from miette and sampled some gelato at ciao bella.

Far West Fungi

From there, we headed out to the street car stop … and I’ll tell you about that in the next update.

Yellow Street Car