Despite getting in late, we were up relatively early. My wife got up before us as she had to work, but she managed not to wake us up on her way out.

Breakfast in the Club

Once the kids started to stir, I got them up and dressed. We wanted to be at the club lounge as soon as it opened at 6:30 since we had a busy day planned. We found the lounge quickly enough, and there were a few other people there. The staff was still bringing out the food and had that section of the lounge roped off.

The lounge itself was large with seating for at least 100 people, and about a third of the space is reserved for the buffet, drinks, etc. The boys were hovering and the attendant let us in as soon as the food was ready. The selection was excellent with eggs, bacon, sausage as the standard hot selections, a bread station, several cereal and fresh fruit options, and a multitude of drink options. Tomatico dug right in and we found a table near a TV (of course). My wife joined us when her call ended.

The lounge quickly filled up and was shoulder to shoulder within 10 minutes of opening. It was a big space, but it was a really big hotel with lots of business travelers, the type that have status that gives them access to the lounge.

Cable Cars

While the boys finished eating I downloaded the MUNIMobile app which is the official app of the San Francisco public transit authority. Through that I was able to purchase 1 day passports for the boys and myself. This would allow us unlimited rides on cable cars and public transit for the day. Cable car rides are $7.00 per person per segment so if you ride it more than once in a day the passport is the way to go. You can buy passports that last longer than a day (3 or 7 day passes) at a significant discount, but I wasn’t sure if that would make sense because the passports are consecutive days. It was going to be close either way so I decided to go with the one day option.

We quickly said our goodbyes to my wife as she went back to work and raced off to the Powell Street cable car stop to catch our first cable car ride. It was a short 5 minute walk and they started loading the car as soon as we arrived just after 7:00am. We got seats right up front as the other people were sitting inside the sheltered part because it was a bit foggy and chilly outside.

The ride started shortly and I showed the attendant my tickets on the app with no issue. They didn’t need to scan anything and they didn’t really even check that I had tickets for all three of us. You don’t want to be caught with not enough tickets as the fine is pretty hefty. As for the ride, the boys loved every second of it. They were fascinated with how it worked.

Due to the fog, we couldn’t see much of the city. We could barely see very far in front of us, much less the skyline. The boys loved the ride, though, and got a kick out of how close we came to the parked cars and how steep the hills were.

Alcatraz

We got off at the end of the line at Ghiradelli Square and walked past Fishermans wharf to get to Pier 33, where the Alcatraz tour ferry departed. It was about a 20-minute walk from where we started. We arrived about 40 minutes before our reservation time of 9:10, which was the second departure of the day. I hoped we might be able to squeeze in on the first departure, but when I asked, they said it wasn’t possible since it was full.

We filled the time by reading the displays in the waiting area and relaxing on the bench before it was our turn to line up for our departure. By about 8:50, we were able to queue up for our departure.

Despite the fog, the ride over to the island took only about 15 minutes. The fog cleared as we approached the island, if only for a few minutes. It came and went throughout the day.

After docking, everyone got off and gathered around a park ranger with a microphone that was explaining what there was to do on the island and where to go and not go. She also explained some of the special programs that were available that day, including a tour of the gardens. The boys didn’t seem interested in that, though.

Once the ranger finished, we started our long walk up to the prison. The park ranger said it was the equivalent of a 13 story climb. The boys claimed it was easy. The truth was a little different! Once at the top, we got in line to pick up our audio tour. From there, it was up a flight of stairs into the cell block to start the journey.

The tour is excellent with lots of great information, relevant sound effects, and real inmates doing some of the voiceovers. It makes it feel real, so real that my youngest got a little spooked at times. He was ready to leave once the tour was complete, but Tomatico thought it was great and got into it.

After returning the audio tour headsets we wandered through the gift shop and then back down toward the ferry. We watched one of the videos they were showing down in the guard barracks until it was time to board the ferry. We could have stayed longer, but the boys were getting hungry, and it was time to go.

The ferry ride back was equally short, and it was still foggy onshore. We couldn’t see the Golden Gate Bridge or the Bay Bridge at all, which was a disappointment. We’d have to wait for a clearer day.

Lunch

Back on shore, the boys wanted to get lunch at Gott’s Roadside. It’s a burger joint that’s one of my personal favorites (for the chicken fingers, though people love the burgers). To get there, we took a trolley since we had the all-day passport, which included the trolleys and buses. San Francisco has a wide range of public transport options, and the boys enjoy the old trolleys almost as much as the cable cars.

While we waited for our lunch, we sat at the bar that overlooked where they put the orders together. The boys found that quite entertaining as they tried to guess which order was ours. The food was terrific, as always, when we finally got it.

Cable Car Museum

We had hoped to bike the bridge in the afternoon, but with the fog, there wouldn’t be anything to see. We instead decided to try to go to the Cable Car Museum which we would get to… via cable car! We took the trolley from the Ferry Building, where we had eaten lunch back towards Fishermans Wharf. We then walked a few blocks to the cable car station. The car was still filling up, and we were able to find seats near the front again. I had to stand, but the boys could sit.

After a few minutes, the drivers came out, and we were off. The Cable Car Museum is about halfway along the route to Powell Street and opens at noon. We missed the stop but got off at the Chinatown stop, which was half a block away. The museum is in the powerhouse of the whole cable car system. You can see the motors that power the cables and where the cars are repaired and maintained. There are displays of the history and evolution of cable cars and routes in the city. There’s a video about how the system was renovated and revitalized in the early 80’s, around the time I first rode one while on a cross country trip with my parents as a kid. It’s a fascinating stop if you get a chance.

Back to the Hotel and Dinner

The boys were ready for some rest, so we hopped on the next cable car to Powell Street (and Union Square). Since the museum is where both cable car lines converge, they come by twice as quickly, so we only had to wait a couple minutes for the next one. There was only room in the enclosed portion of this segment. The boys were having a great time.

Back at the hotel, we met with my wife, who had finished work for the day. We rested for a few minutes before heading out to walk around Union Square. We watched the ice skaters in the rink that was there for the holidays and took s some pictures. Tomatico wanted to visit the flagship Apple Store, so we went there for a couple of minutes to admire it.

We then decided to split up for dinner. Tomatico went with my wife to try a Mexican place by the hotel while my youngest and I went to split a pizza in the food court across from the hotel. The pizza was fair. The Mexican food wasn’t great, though I know a lot of people from work that praise that place. Maybe it was just what they ordered.

We met back up at the lounge to see what snacks and desserts they had there. It was quite busy, and they had some rather substantial appetizers available. Tomatico tried the beef dish and filled up on it. It wasn’t surprising, but he said it was decent. As happened in the morning, the lounge filled up quickly. There were also several pre-packaged snacks available.

The boys were tired after a long and active day. They started bickering more than usual, so we took that as a hint and headed back to the room to get ready for bed and an early night.