Free as the wind blows….

Took some time this morning to check out the tai chi ladies in Washington Park. I did some fake little arm swirling but I’m still too shy to march in their midst and do the moves. A hilarious tableau of three or four middle-aged women in another corner of the park dancing ina kind of box-step to a really fuzzy ghettoblaster.

Cafe roundup: Divine opens far too late. Roma: baked items are not superb. Francisco St: slow service, chairs are uncomfortable. Sapore: subpar food and coffee. Winner? Brioche, on Columbus way down the strip. Amazing french pastries (suffering from an overly rich tummy ache now) and espresso to spec. I was impressed with the crowd that tromped through, 4 or 5 sets were actually French and asked immediately, “parlez francais?” Another just started rattling off stuff in French without asking. Not that I like the French, but they do have amazing pastries and cafes.

Telhi neighborhood- Telegraph Hill Neighborhood- something I didn’t know until now was that it had a cute name. Walked from Broadway up Kearny, which, in my book, is the steepest street in San Francisco. There are about 2 blocks worth of serious steps. I’m not sure cars ever go up it, despite the fact that they are allowed to by law. Little “no parking” signs are on either side of the street, almost like it’s a joke by the City that you want, or could, even park there. At the top, there is a crowd control gate permemently fixed in cement. There is one little turnoff street, “Fresno” and a motorcycle was parked there. It had an outlet on Grant though so it’s not proof that cars can drive up the Macchini Steps (the official name, in essence it’s Kearny). I’m really wondering. Can cars go up this hill? The Green Tortoise Guesthouse, in all it’s skanky VD-ness, is on the street, and otherwise it’s just totally amazing and adorable. I think I remember reading in either the Baghdad by the Bay book or the Stairwalks of SF that this was where the Latina prostitutes hung out in the late 1800s. The East side of Tel-hi. Hmmm.

Walked on the slope of Telegraph Hill down Grant to Chestnut, where there is a cliff dropoff. I was wondering, when I’m at the base, I look up to Chestnut (my street) and just see a sheer wall of rock. Guess what, from the end of Chestnut you also look down… with no barrier (unless you count some fennel plants). More crazy urban planning. Another scene that is just out of a weird anxiety dream. You’re running down a street, and it ends, and it’s a sheer cliff! You’re driving down a one way street, and it get steep, and your car starts to roll backwards!

Big Princess cruise ship in the dock, which may be why there were so many frogs at the cafe.