Jack London Square

A few blocks from Oakland's Chinatown is Jack London Square, one of those working waterfront areas that so many cities have turned into a trendy shopping/dining/entertainment/lodging districts. My own foray into Jack London Square was decidedly low-key: I skipped the entertainment and lodging entirely, confining my shopping and dining to the Barnes & Noble and its café, respectively. (Well, OK, I did make a pass through California Canoe & Kayak, but I was just browsing; I knew I couldn't get one of those in my carry-on luggage anyway.) I wandered about the waterfront for a bit (until impending rain sent me inside that B&N) and snapped a few photos along the way, like this statue of (who else?) Jack himself.

The central square was dominated by an imposing stand of palm trees. (Did I mention there was a storm brewing?)


The grounds were dotted with little garden-y areas, including some rather peculiar-looking topiaries like this one, which I think is supposed to be a dolphin. All in all, I have to say I prefer Virginia Beach's signature dolphins to this macrocephalic model.

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King of Grocery

On my business trip last fall, the meetings wrapped up earlier than expected and gave me a free day, so I hopped the BART to Oakland's Chinatown and environs. Love the bilingual street signs. This is just a few blocks from the Oakland Inner Harbor Channel, which separates Oakland from Alameda Island. (More photos later from Jack London Square.)

At another intersection closer to the heart of Chinatown, intricate patterns are set into the crosswalk pavement (that's not paint).

And on the other side of that intersection, a closer look reveals that we are in the presence of royalty, to wit: the King of Grocery.

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A tree grows in Alameda

Not, strictly speaking, San Francisco (as this post is tagged), but close enough; this is in Alameda, which was my actual business trip destination.

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San Francisco Victorian

You know I was taking photos just as an excuse to stop and catch my breath, don't you? Good lord, I'm out of shape. The climb didn't seem to bother my companions, but then they haven't quite reached my advanced age (which felt at the time like it was about the same as that turreted Victorian on the corner); one's around 30, and the other in his 40s, I think. Thanks for slowing down and waiting for me, guys. No doubt you feared I would have a coronary if you didn't.

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San Francisco row houses

Just a shot of some of the charming houses I passed while trudging up the hill toward Haight-Ashbury. Oddly enough, I had to actually straighten the photo in Photoshop to show the true slope; apparently I partially compensated for the incline when I took the shot, making the street appear more nearly level.

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The Hashbury

Almost my first assignment on my new job when I started last October was to head out to California on a business trip with my project team members. Our business was in Alameda; we stayed in Oakland, and rode the BART into San Francisco one evening and climbed the hill up to Haight-Ashbury. Kind of odd to see, for the first time, the district that was an icon of an era that encompassed my high school years.
And no, I didn't wear flowers in my graying hair...

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