Travel Buggy: San Francisco

 

(If you look closely at the photo and to the right from the passenger's point of view, you'll see the iconic Golden Gate Bridge semi-concealed by mist. This business trip for Hubby was a pleasure trip for this twitchy travel buggy)

Roughly twelve years ago, San Francisco's vibrancy and trappings of wealth bewitched me. The smell of money and self-indulgence perfumed Union Square's air. This district hosted retailers with names like Armani and Burberry. Feeling giddy in a carnival of splendor and glamour, oh how I wished I could afford to live in San Francisco. 

About a week ago, I wrinkled my nose at the stench in Union Square. The place smelled like a public urinal-- and I witnessed one denizen's treating a corner in a vacant storefront as such.  A noticeable amount of storefronts lay grey and vacant. Macy's retained its elegant wine bar on the 3rd level of its handsome building, but at street level of this community, the homeless had staked out litter-strewn territories. Some of the homeless population seemed to have minds wrecked by pathological racism, all-consuming madness, and the rage fueled by despair. Perhaps the rumors of the wealthy fleeing the city were true. But who could blame them? Who wanted to be stalked by a predator who had reckoned the easiest route to a fast buck was to hide among the homeless and get a bead on an unwary pedestrian with a fat purse? San Francisco possessed mesmerizing terrain and spellbinding architecture, but who would pay such a high price to live in a place inhabited by cut-throats and thieves? 

The city held on to some of its jewels, though. Along Chinatown's main strip for tourists, I stumbled across a wellness shop that sold kimonos, wellness books, and crystal bundles. I'm not sure if the palo santo was genuine, but the bundles consisted of a crystal bound to a palo santo stick. Dried flowers decorated the stick. The sales rep explained that the flowers were strictly for decoration, and only the stick was to be burned. Why not? I bought a bundle with a clear quartz crystal, an amethyst crystal, and a deck called "Calm the Chaos."  The deck provided tips and meaningful advice on de-stressing -- something a traveler might need after being considered a potential easy mark by a tattooed, ill-kept joker who seemed pissed that a traveler might have one more nickel than he the joker carried.  We stayed at the Grand Hyatt which possessed delicious food and excellent customer service. Fortunately, not every eatery found in the district demands such a rich price for its meals, and with a bit of planning and research, a visitor to San Francisco may squeeze in three meals a day.