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what the hills y’all: a trip to alemany farmers market
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco Grocery shopping is different here than it was for me in Texas. Back home there was an HEB or a Kroger where I could get all my produce, deodorant, batteries and canned goods in one place. I’ve found the Safeway supermarkets here to be disgusting. Dirty, crowded, old produce and prices that make me cringe. So now I do my shopping 3 ways and make a day of it: produce at the local farmers market, everyday items at Trader Joe’s, and anything else I can’t find at Safeway. This Saturday I took a trip to the Alemany…
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what the hills y’all: san francisco microclimates
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco June gloom. Microclimate. Fog. So much fog. I’ve heard about the fog in San Francisco. I’ve also heard that June and July are the coldest months of the year (while everyone else is in summer-mode), and I’ve also heard the famous quote “The coldest winter I’ve ever spent was a summer in San Francisco”. I’ve heard all these things, but never experienced it. Until now. Justin had an appointment in Inner Richmond last week, and when I went to go pick him up, the fog situation was so captivating driving from neighborhood to neighborhood it was…
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what the hills y’all: an anniversary in Santa Cruz
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco The first time I went to Santa Cruz, it was with a friend of mine and we took the doggies, watched pelicans nose dive into the ocean and hiked a forest. So when Justin and I were trying to decide where to go for our 3rd year anniversary, Santa Cruz was a place I wanted to explore a bit more. This was a fairly important year for us with a lot happening that definitely tested our marriage. Moving to a new city, leaving friends and family, getting out of my comfort zone and adjusting to a new…
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what the hills y’all: driving the california coast
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco Want to see nature on a good hair day? Driving down the California coast will make you second guess why you prefer the indoors versus outdoors. The coast is beautiful. I knew California was known for its scenic views, but this was on a whole other level. Blue water for miles, towering mountains, luscious green trees, farmland lined with yellow and purple blooming flowers. It’s really mind-blowing. Justin decided to take the long drive to Palm Springs for Coachella to show me the coast and I’m so glad he did. Road trips in Texas are nothing like this. The drive…
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what the hills y’all: why you should go local
Grocery shopping is more than just getting the food you need for the week, it’s an experience. When I lived in Dallas, my sister and I would go grocery shopping together and catch up on everything. There are different kinds of shoppers, you see, and my sister and I were the same. HEB in Houston will always be my favorite grocery store. It’s clean, have both mass and specialty foods and was like a half grocer, half dinner pick-up. In San Francisco, it’s a different story. The city is packed with places to find fresh food in varieties of organic, vegan, gluten-free and any other version of food you’d like.…
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what the hills y’all: this is where rich people live
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco One thing I’ve come to learn about San Francisco is that there is an endless amount of things to see. There is so much history, fascinating architecture and a whole street where rich people live. Justin and I have been taking advantage of the awesome service, howaboutwe.com, where you can book a customized date for two (read about our beer tasting date at Upcider for more information). This past weekend we did a walking tour of Pac Heights, a neighborhood in San Francisco with all the charm, personality, and so much history of San Francisco. Our tour…
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what the hills y’all: date at upcider
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco note: I was not compensated in any way by HowAboutWe for this post. I just wanted to share my experience with you! Last week, Justin and I had our first date night experience using the service HowAboutWe for Couples. I had heard about this service in Dallas, but never got to try it since they don’t service the area. When we arrived in San Francisco, and found out HowAboutWe actually does “date experiences” for couples, I immediately signed Justin and I up for a date at Upcider. For those of you who don’t know, HowAboutWe is part…
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what the hills y’all: foodsploring in the mission
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco There is so much food here. So. Much. Food. Going “foodsploring” in the Mission district is awesome as it’s known as the Hispanic part of town, so my inner Mexican comes out. It was only a matter of time before my tastebuds and the food here officially met. Here are some places I would recommend if you are looking for a new spot to check out. Note: No calories were counted for the duration of this post. 1. Rustic Pizza After quickly figuring out that a reservation is strongly suggested if going out to dinner on a…
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what the hills y’all: I’m on a boat
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco The Ferry Building is one of those tourist-y things every girl needs to do. When I was reading SF guides like this one and this one, the Ferry Building was something I wanted to check out. Being a foodie and hearing of all the yummy unique treats and tastes there, we decided to take the ferry from Alameda, which dropped us off right in front of the building. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but walk inside and it’s a whole other thing. You can shop for fresh produce, sip a glass of Merlot at…
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What the hills y’all: the anti-bags
What the Hills Y’all: Adventures of a Texas girl living in San Francisco San Francisco has this thing about bags- they hate them. In fact, they hate them so much that they’ve banned the paper or plastic kind and request demand that you bring your own, preferably made out of cotton or otherwise environmentally friendly material. If you don’t, you will be charged $.10 with a side of shame. This presents a problem for the slightly forgetful me. In Texas, people give bags out like they are candy. Stores will double bag for heavy items, and even attach an unused one at the grocery store to fulfill their stuff-20-bags-a-minute…
