California........Here I Come

"California........Here I Come" was my battle cry as I boarded a non-stop flight from Boston to San Francisco on November 7th.  I was headed to the Western Family/Patient/Physician CMTA Conference in Palo Alto, CA and was an invited guest of the host. As the New England Support Group Leader for the CMTA, this was an honor, and little did I know what lay in wait for me. Long story short, after arriving we worked very hard to set up the conference facility and in the end, it was an incredible success.  We had some of the "Who's Who" in the CMTA scientific community address us, and everybody came away from this program highly motivated to help fund and find a cure for this debilitating form of hereditary peripheral neuropathy. In attendance also, was our guest of honor, a member of Hollywood Royalty who recently announced to the world that she too is suffering from CMT. I'll have more about that later in a separate post. After the conference, I decided to stay on for another week, since it had been 20 years since my last visit.  This was not the only reason I chose to hang out there, since Fisherman's Wharf, the sour dough bread, countless crab and seafood purveyors, Ghiradelli Square and endless foodie paradises were all waiting for me to explore, sample and partake. It is a foodie's nirvana, as the restaurants, cafes, pubs and numerous seafood shops all have their specialties, and each is calling out only to you as you pass by.  To list and show the many places I stopped and enjoyed something delicious in San Francisco would take a month of Sundays, so instead I'll just focus on Fishermen's Wharf where I spent an entire day eating and drinking to my heart's content. I drove into town with two associates who wanted to take the tour bus excursion, and bid them farewell as I wanted to explore all of the nooks and crannies by foot. I was not going to be caught dead sitting on a tour bus if I saw an ice cream shop or candy store that was beckoning to me. So off I went, and almost within minutes of spotting the Boudin Restaurant, I found myself at Sabella and La Torres munching down on a sour dough and crab sandwich.  My God it was pure heaven. I then had a bread bowl of their seafood chowder and two of their delectable crab cakes. They too were incredibly satisfying and hit the spot. I moved along the crowded sidewalks looking into the windows of countless boutiques, gift shops, and purveyors of everything knickknack and somehow wound up in front of the original DelMonte Cannery.  Inside was a gem I had read about before, Tony's Ice Cream Shop............San Francisco's Best Ice Cream. I ordered one of their Vanilla Caramel Ice Cream Cones and stopped to enjoy this very decadent dessert.  While I was sitting in the open courtyard enjoying my ice cream bliss, I noticed a sign for Jack's Bar. This funky establishment has both an inside and outside bar and is known for having 80 draft beers available all the time. I had also been told, that if I did stop there, to ask for Becky who would help me master their metro system in no time flat. Well with all the seafood and then the ice cream cone to top it off, I needed something cold and satisfying, so I stopped inside for a Coke and to check out the bar. Becky was indeed working that day, and in no time flat she provided me with a map and a crash course on the Muni and Bart systems. And sitting at the bar I surveyed their menu, and immediately decided that I was definitely going to be coming back later for their rib eye special. Jack's is indeed not the normal "tourist" spot, as locals make ready use of this colorful establishment to chill out after work or enjoy delicious beef entrees in a casual, laid back atmosphere. I hung around for awhile chatting with a couple of locals who offered all kinds of suggestions for even more food, sweets and other fun spots, and then continued my journey. Along the way I came across a candy store that just lured me in.  If you can think of anything chocolate or sweet, it was all here for the taking.  I just had to buy a few Ghiradelli chocolate bars to further sustain me (they were priced just right) and then continued to walk around sampling, visiting and taking a million pictures of everything that caught my eye.  At the end of the day, as I finished my delectable rib eye dinner at Jack's, I was a bit pooped, but my stomach and now bulging goodie bag were full and happy. Twenty years ago I was an "amateur" foodie and didn't appreciate all of the treasures that this section of the city has to offer.  On that day, I thoroughly appreciated all that was available, and more than made up for my lack of "foodie"experience during my last trip. I can't wait to return, and hope that Jack's and Becky are still there waiting for me.