Hop On/ Hop Off!

I slept well but Steve & Tina heard a lot of the street noise at the beginning (and some of my noise too apparently!). We felt like we slept in because of the time difference and at 7.30 we went down for the free continental breakfast on the 2 nd floor which was very tasty. We then started out and walked down to the Fishermans Wharf area to catch the red bus. It turned out to be a 45 minute walk and we got straight onto the bus. As the bus took off it was absolutely freezing! We had windbreakers on but they made little difference! As soon as the bus made a stop it was calm again. SF is such a different looking city. We really enjoyed seeing the sights today. It is so different from one side to the other. Took lots of photos especially when we got off after we crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and looked back over the SF skyline. We completed the loop and then went around again to the 4th stop which was Little Italy for lunch. It is such a lovely vibrant neighborhood with door to door restaurants. We chose Pinocchio's as they had a very reasonable lunch menu. Steve and Tina had the lunch special of a bowl of minestrone and a plate of any of 6 different pastas for $13.95. It was a large serve too! I enjoyed a grilled pannino with prosciutto and fresh mozzarella . We then walked back to the hotel. We freshened up & then joined the walking tour of Chinatown that was included with the bus as it took place at 3pm and just 50 m from our hotel. It was very informative and included a look at a fortune cookie making factory and a great tour of a shop that sells thousands of different teas. We sat and had a demo on brewing and tasted 6 different teas. Each has different medicinal properties and taste! Even Tina tried them all. We have now got back to the room and will set out for a walk around Union square which is right next to us. It is the heart of the financial district and has all the swanky shops. We'll have tea in Chinatown.
We did all of the above. Bonus was that as we approached Union Square there was a live band playing. When we got there the band playing was actually quite older players all a bit "hippy" with tie-died clothing and long hair! Entertaining to watch. We then chose a Chinese restaurant that had a lovely view over Chinatown. Had lots of photos in the foyer of famous past diners that included Presidents Bush and Clinton, Arnold Schwarzenegger etc. They didn't ask us to pose with the owner! Had a little walk after eating and now it is time to retire.