Flowers in my hair?

Wow, I'd forgotten what a fab city San Francisco is! So much to do, so many lovely places to visit. This is the place to get fit - the movies don't lie - the streets are all ups and downs, and I think I've walked most of them in the last 4 days!
My heart sank when I arrived, as my hostel is not the best, despite a 90% rating on the net. They must have paid people to write good reviews! On the first night, the ceiling in the lounge collapsed, narrowly missing my Aussie 'roomy' Carol.I was the only one to enquire whether she was ok. Maybe if the staff showed concern they would be admitting liability? Then Carol's transformer melted in the wall socket. This will be checked 'in a few days'. We have contingency plans in place in case we catch fire in the night... Ah, the joys of travelling! The up-side of all this was the friendship with Carol - we teamed up with Canadian Sophia and hit the town one evening, going to the famous Starlight bar. We felt rather conspicuous in our scruffs, but the staff were as courteous to us as to those dripping with expensive jewelry! Last night we went to the theatre to see 'Tis Pity She's a Whore' by John Ford. Very bloody at the end - luckily I was up in the gods, but still had to look away...
The first picture is Crookedest Street- very pretty, but quite a climb to get up to it (unless unlike me you are sensible enough to take a bus/streetcar). The second, of course is the famous cable car. The guy behind me in the queue wanted to pay for my ticket... Earlier that day, I had gone up to hippy paradise Haight-Ashbury. On the bus, a guy started to advise me about which shops I should go in. He then told me not to buy drugs on the street, as they are poor quality. He patted his pocket, and asked me what drugs I would like. I told him I got my highs without the aid of drugs... he and another guy then proceeded to tell me how to avoid paying on the buses and cable cars. I know I'm not looking very smart (understatement) at the moment - but do I really look that destitute?
My favourite food so far (I love American food) has been clam chowder, served in a huge round sourdough bread bowl. You drink the soup, then eat the bowl and the lid. Yummy!
The weather has been typical San Francisco - a heatwave for the first couple of days, then chilly enough to warrant buying a new 'hoodie'. Today I had both climates - I rented a bike and cycled over the mist-shrouded Golden Gate bridge, battling against the wind - at one point I thought I might start going backwards - but when I reached Sausalito it was really hot, and I sat in t-shirt and shorts enjoying a sandwich and 'chips' at a sidewalk cafe, overlooking the sea. I ended up cycling 16 miles; not much for you regular cyclists, but a good distance for an amateur such as myself. I then took the ferry back and walked up millions (ok, hundreds) of steps to the Coit Tower - the patroness apparently liked firemen (can't think why...!) so the tower is a tall column looking like a fireman's hose. You get a very good view from the top, anyway.
While I was here in San Francisco I took the opportunity to look up my late friend Martha's family, who live in Berkeley - only 30 minutes on the train. Martha's mother met me from the train and took me to their house, where I had a lovely day with her and with her sister, who is a very lively 91-year-old. I very much enjoyed meeting them and seeing Martha's roots - they are very artistic, and have a house full of beautiful things, mostly made by members of the family. Quite apart from their relationship with Martha, making it a poignant occasion, it was also interesting to meet a real Californian family, and get their viewpoint on various issues, including US politics!
I haven't seen everything in San Francisco by a long way, and this is my third visit here, but I'm leaving enough to make a return visit sometime worthwhile.
I'm setting off tomorrow on my road trip, having investigated and rejected the Greyhound bus and the Amtrak train. Sarah (my sister-out-law) and Randy have pinpointed some places I should visit on my way, and hopefully will join me at some point. I'm aiming for Richmond, Va, to visit my friend Ros, from Louisville days; that's 3000 miles from here, were I to go without detour. Then on to New York.
So tomorrow I head East. Haven't quite worked out the finer details yet, but I guess if I point the car in the right direction, and remember to stick to the right hand side of the road, all should be well.

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