San Francisco
Travel article for San Francisco
by Jami
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From:
Kreuzlingen
Age:
26-30
Travel time:
in November 10
3rd Day of Jami's Western USA Travel Journal - Towed away & Shrimps
November 20th, 2010
Tow away
As I mentioned in my post from yesterday I found a parking space right in front of my apartment. Today, I was appointed with a friend of mine and some colleagues of him. When the time arrived I went out of my apartment to drive to the meeting place. However, when I got out of the apartment... there was no car. I think that is one of the greatest nightmares. Getting to your parking spot and finding nothing. By the way, it was raining cats and dogs. I immediately called my rental car company. It was quite a difficult call. They repeated over and over again that it was my responsibility and that they can't do anything for me. Finally, I got from them the telephone number of the local police department. In case you ever need that - it is +1-415-553-0123. From the police department I learned that my car was towed away and I should call the company for that. In my case it was Auto Return (phone number: +1-415-864-8200 website www.autoreturn.com). They were actually quite friendly. However, they gave me a horrendous bill. It costs approx. USD 380 for being towed away (of that there are USD 180 admin fee for the town of San Francisco). That only applies if you get your car back within 4 hours. After that it costs additionally USD 50. But that is not all. Each day more costs another USD 59.
So I hopped on a taxi to get to the storage lot. When I gave the taxi driver the address he already knew where to go and told me where it is safe to park and where not. Basically, he told me not to park downtown anywhere but in public parking lots because basically, the entire downtown area is a tow away zone. That can be seen by the red, yellow and white markings on the floor. Even if there is a meter and you have white zone - do not park there - these meters are only for trucks that deliver something to the shops. Then after I paid the fine I got my car back and could finally meet with my friends.
Fisherman's Wharf at Pier 39
We met at the Crab House at Pier 39. Pier 39 is a very touristy place with a lot of bars, restaurants and souvenir shops. There is even a Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. You read really Bubba Gump - like in the movie Forrest Gump. The restaurant just opened after the movie launched and is now a restaurant chain with 32 locations all over the US (www.bubbagump.com). As just said, we met at the Crab House. That is supposed to be the best place in San Francisco to eat shrimps and crabs. And my friend really liked what they served. I did not try any sea food but ordered a vegetarian meal. They did not have anything on the menu except for salads but they offered me something else. So I got pasta with a creamy sauce and grilled vegetables. For my taste they could have used less onions but I liked the taste of the pasta and especially of the grilled dried tomatoes. After dinner we headed to a sports bar just around the corner. I forgot its name. It was next to an arcade. That evening was great fun. And again, think about validating your tickets from the restaurants. It gives you 120 minutes of free parking at the Pier39 garage (otherwise USD 7.50 per hour).
Tow away
As I mentioned in my post from yesterday I found a parking space right in front of my apartment. Today, I was appointed with a friend of mine and some colleagues of him. When the time arrived I went out of my apartment to drive to the meeting place. However, when I got out of the apartment... there was no car. I think that is one of the greatest nightmares. Getting to your parking spot and finding nothing. By the way, it was raining cats and dogs. I immediately called my rental car company. It was quite a difficult call. They repeated over and over again that it was my responsibility and that they can't do anything for me. Finally, I got from them the telephone number of the local police department. In case you ever need that - it is +1-415-553-0123. From the police department I learned that my car was towed away and I should call the company for that. In my case it was Auto Return (phone number: +1-415-864-8200 website www.autoreturn.com). They were actually quite friendly. However, they gave me a horrendous bill. It costs approx. USD 380 for being towed away (of that there are USD 180 admin fee for the town of San Francisco). That only applies if you get your car back within 4 hours. After that it costs additionally USD 50. But that is not all. Each day more costs another USD 59.
So I hopped on a taxi to get to the storage lot. When I gave the taxi driver the address he already knew where to go and told me where it is safe to park and where not. Basically, he told me not to park downtown anywhere but in public parking lots because basically, the entire downtown area is a tow away zone. That can be seen by the red, yellow and white markings on the floor. Even if there is a meter and you have white zone - do not park there - these meters are only for trucks that deliver something to the shops. Then after I paid the fine I got my car back and could finally meet with my friends.
Fisherman's Wharf at Pier 39
We met at the Crab House at Pier 39. Pier 39 is a very touristy place with a lot of bars, restaurants and souvenir shops. There is even a Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. You read really Bubba Gump - like in the movie Forrest Gump. The restaurant just opened after the movie launched and is now a restaurant chain with 32 locations all over the US (www.bubbagump.com). As just said, we met at the Crab House. That is supposed to be the best place in San Francisco to eat shrimps and crabs. And my friend really liked what they served. I did not try any sea food but ordered a vegetarian meal. They did not have anything on the menu except for salads but they offered me something else. So I got pasta with a creamy sauce and grilled vegetables. For my taste they could have used less onions but I liked the taste of the pasta and especially of the grilled dried tomatoes. After dinner we headed to a sports bar just around the corner. I forgot its name. It was next to an arcade. That evening was great fun. And again, think about validating your tickets from the restaurants. It gives you 120 minutes of free parking at the Pier39 garage (otherwise USD 7.50 per hour).
