I woke up late. Bren had called me twice earlier, and left messages on my answering machine, but since my phone hadn't rung I hadn't awakened. I prepared myself, got dressed, and walked to the motel. We started by having coffee at the small coffee shop across the street, and enjoyed it at an outdoor table. Then we took a bus which went around the University of California, and got off at the end of Telegraph Avenue. We walked along the sidewalk there, stopping at several of the tables where vendors were selling hand-made jewelry and other things. Bren found a pendant that she liked, and bought it. We then had lunch at a restaurant there.
We walked back along the other side of Telegraph Avenue, and then toward the downtown area, stopping both at other tables and a consignment store along the way. We rode BART to Downtown Oakland, and then took a bus to Jack London Square. After finding the ferry schedule, we telephoned Fran and arranged a meeting with her in San Francisco later in the evening. While looking for the pay phone, I saw a man I know who works at a nearby business that I frequent, but he didn't recognize me. We took the ferry from there to the Ferry Building in San Francisco, and wandered around the Hyatt Regency Hotel and the surrounding Embarcadero Center. Bren found a pair of hand-made earrings to match her pendant at a vendor's table outside of the hotel.
My next planned destination was Pier 39, but after waiting a while we realized that the direct bus had apparently stopped running for the evening. I was upset with myself, and confused, and we ended up walking first to where I thought another bus would come several blocks away, finally realizing that it actually stopped closer to where we had been and having to walk back. The we waited while every other bus and streetcar passed that stop several times before our bus arrived. We finally reached our destination, but the aquarium, where I had wanted to take pictures of Bren, was closed by then.
We walked around Pier 39, which is more of a "tourist trap" than an actual sight worth seeing. We wandered into several stores, including a sweater shop, where each of us tried on several sweaters but didn't find ones that we liked. Then we walked the restaurant where we were to meet Fran, which was farther away than I had thought it would be. Throughout the day I was anxious, and very disapointed with myself for not planning better, not having gotten up earlier so that we would have had more time, and by having forced my friend to walk around more than I should have.
We met Fran at the restaurant, but found that there was a one and a half hour wait for people without reservations. So we then drove near the Polk Street club, which was our destination for later in the evening, and amazingly found a parking place fairly close. Bren got some batteries for her camera, and we went to a Fish and Chips Restaurant that Fran knew, and shared our small orders.
Then we went to the Mother Lode. It is actually three different clubs, on three different levels. The first floor is a bar. Despite the fact that it is now illegal, people were smoking everywhere, and there was an ashtray on every table. I felt very uncomfortable there, trying not to breathe the smoke, and eventually having to plug my ears with tissue due to the very loud bass beat of the music system there. I found it nearly impossible to talk with anyone.
On another floor was a bar with a dance area in back, again with loud music, with a dance area in the back. I really never learned to dance myself, and feel self conscious when I try to, so I watched everyones purses when Bren and Fran went back to dance themselves. Another floor was much quieter, with music playing without the loud bass beat. We were able to talk among ourselves, as well as with a man who joined us there. Picture taking was not allowed in the club, so despite the fact that I had loaned Fran a camera, and both Bren and I had our own, we have no pictures of the evening.
Afterwards, we drove back across the Bay Bridge, and at my suggestion went to an all-night donut shop for a donut and coffee. We chatted there for a while, then drove to Bren's motel nearby. We were there until the wee hours of the morning, trying on some of Bren's extensive wardrobe, and chatting among ourselves. Fran left first, and since she would be working on the following day we planned for an airport shuttle van to pick us up at the motel later in the morning. I then walked the short distance to my home.
This page last updated: August 19, 1999
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