After taking a month off, I'm getting back in the blogging habit and I have amassed a shedload of topics to cover so brace yourselves for a torrent of posts in the coming week!

I haven't told you about my vacation yet and it's hard to believe it was a month ago. Just under 3 weeks hopping from coast to coast across America - I have never had a more enjoyable, interesting and invigorating holiday.

Touching down on a Monday evening, we checked into our hotel, changed & freshened up (necessary after a 12 hour flight from Dublin) and stepped out on to the steep streets of San Fran.

We headed down to the Embarcadero and port of San Francisco for dinner and a snoop around. Despite being a new, big city; it wasn't intimidating.

mine?

The clocktower at San Francisco port

 Waking early on Tuesday morning (stupid jet lag) pulling on Converse, jeans and my favourite ever tee, we set off to see the Alamo (however, we ended up in a different park) so we took a walk down Lombard Street, famous for being the crookedest street in the world. It's like Screwball Scramble set at a 45° angle.


One of my favourite book series is Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin. A frank, funny and heart felt serial spanning from the 1970's to present. Set in San Francisco, it features the intertwined lives of a mixed bag of characters, centralised on the fictional Barbary Lane so naturally I had to visit Macondray Lane, believed to be the inspiration for the setting. I could definitely see myself living here, the communal atmosphere sums up the relaxed and bohemian vibe of San Francisco.

the secluded, shaded and secretly special Macondray Lane

We had read the forecast to be mild, but the temperatures quickly climbed to the high 20°s so a stop-off in H&M for shorts  and we were back on the streets.
I considered myself quite the accomplished pedestrian but my faithful Converse let me down - their lack of insoles and support were not enough to cope with the long walks and steep inclines; the ensuing shin splints and blisters led me to Nordstrom Rack (their outlet store) and I picked up a pair of New Balance sneakers for under $50 and my feet have been grateful ever since. 
(I had a pair of bright blue and neon New Balance waaaay back when I was doing my a-levels and then the boys from Steps wore them - I thought I was such a trendsetter)

We headed to Alcatraz on Thursday, I had pre-booked the trip before I left home and I advise you to do the same if you ever visit as you cannot buy a ticket at the port for the same day of travel.

panoramic view from alcatraz - a harsh reminder to inmates how close freedom was

after closing, alcatraz was taken by native american protesters

home sweet home