What did you do on your summer vacation? ¶ I went on honeymoon. I went to San Francisco with my new wife and we went on honeymoon. Some highlights, in no particular order. ¶ Ken and Hayes Street Grill / On our first evening Pauline and I discussed how pleasantly surprised we were by our situation. The apartment rocked and the we were situated in an area that seemed very cool. A quick walk confirmed this for us and a few days later it was validated by something I read in a magazine. Hayes Valley is home to quite a few cafes, hair salons, beer & grub spots, and charming shops. We weren't quite ourselves on the first night. We stopped into the Hayes Street Grill not really knowing what to expect. It turned out to be a nice spot, but the sort of place that old ladies with too much time and money like to go. We saddled up to the bar, because the setup was quite irresistible (the dining room was just too much). Pauline and I ordered our usual gin martini-to-start and proceeded to chat with our friendly bartender, Ken. We had a good long chat, and he seemed to enjoy our surreality, if only for a moment. At the time we thought we might return to say hi to Ken, but we simply didn't get a chance. It was almost before the honeymoon, if you read me. ¶ Foreign Cinema / This was the sort of day (and night) that I was craving. Our day was spent getting lost in and around the Golden Gate Park (that's where herself snapped the rose picture) and the whole time I was imagining my evening. I didn't imagine anything in particular, more a feeling. We were picked up by Renalto who was one of many quality cab drivers in the Bay Area. He chatted and chatted and we laughed and prompted. At the end of the fare, I got his number and promised him a call around 11am the next day. We needed a lift to Muir Woods, and he was going to be our driver. We were dropped off in an area called the Mission. Foreign Cinema is the name of a restaurant in San Francisco, and we were early. 4:30pm early. But we were received anyhow, and we quickly made some reservations. 5:30pm. Time for a drink. We asked Jeremy and he recommended Revolution, a bar and cafe around the corner. It turned out to be an excellent suggestion. Pints of beer flowed, and we were getting quite an appetite. All the cool kids were there, puffing their rolled Bali Shags in such a way that makes smoking cigarettes movie-cool (I know, I know...). After two strong Jamesons I enjoyed several oysters and Florida white prawns followed by Kobe beef. Pauline had the exact same to eat, and we fell in love. Unfortunately the pints and wine caught up with us early and we tapped out just before dark. ¶ More in a while. ¶ "And that completes my final report until we reach touchdown. We're now on full automatic, in the hands of the computers. I have tucked my crew in for the long sleep and I'll be joining them soon. In less than an hour, we'll finish our sixth month out of Cape Kennedy. Six months in deep space - by our time, that is. According to Dr. Haslein's theory of time, in a vehicle traveling nearly the speed of light, the Earth has aged nearly 700 years since we left it, while we've aged hardly at all. Maybe so. This much is probably true - the men who sent us on this journey are long since dead and gone. You who are reading me now are a different breed - I hope a better one. I leave the 20th century with no regrets. But one more thing - if anybody's listening, that is. Nothing scientific. It's purely personal. But seen from out here everything seems different. Time bends. Space is boundless. It squashes a man's ego. I feel lonely. That's about it. Tell me, though. Does man, that marvel of the universe, that glorious paradox who sent me to the stars, still make war against his brother? Keep his neighbor's children starving?"—Charlton Heston as George Taylor. ¶ I illustrated a portrait of a tipsy Paris Hilton for National Post. It's in tomorrow's issue. ¶ Signing off, me.

Labels: NationalPost, San Francisco

¶ 6:09 PM
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