Dave, Pico, Lombard and The Missing Sock

i was treated to a beautiful day in San Francisco this past friday.  i walked up and down the hills, streets and back alleys taking photos of... everything that caught my eye. and for me that is quite a lot.  Polk Street is a favorite for walking on with it's interesting shops, cafes and...people. (some people way more "interesting" than others).  finally i found my way to and then down Hyde Street to the Cannery Row area.   i sat and listened to a street performer playing his shiny silver guitar, a harmonica and singing the blues. he was a "licensed" street performer as he was wearing a "license" on his black shirt like it was a sheriff's badge.  he was dressed in black which included a handlebar mustache and dark sunglasses.  i think his name was Dave Earl and he played original and old favorites from the Americana genre.  i was the only one sitting on the benches in front of the performer.  there were a few other "tourists" sitting further back in the sun as the benches were still in the shade from surrounding buildings and trees.  one tourist came up and dropped a dollar into the tip jar and bought a cd to take back home. he said he was from Italy when the singer asked him where "home" was.  ciao. there is a wonderful music shop in the Cannery Row called Lark in the Morning www.larkinthemorning.com with instruments from around the world.  i will send the webpage to Toshi in Okayama.  if he and his wife Nanami have been to San Francisco, i am sure they have been to this shop as Toshi plays the didgeridoo and every kind of guitar and flute.  yes, when will i start to seriously practice my sanshin.  

when the man in black took his break, i continued on my journey towards Pier 39. as i was taking this photo of the the colorful boats, right beside me the Bushman was scaring and entertaining those who walked the sidewalk along this marina. check out "The Bushman of San Francisco" on youtube to see him in action.  i will send this boat photo or one like it to one of my favorite writers,  Pico Iyer for hopefully obvious reasons.  i need to check the internet to see if his new book has come out yet.  i think in his last email he said he was still writing his latest book on the Dalai Lama from that spring his spent with him a year or two (or three) ago.

there was so much to see and hear on this

warm, blue sky friday.  i listened to, photographed a wonderful saxophone player playing in front of the Hard Rock Cafe at Pier 39.  and then it was off to see the big carousel and the California sea lions basking and barking in the sun.  i also heard a very entertaining Chinese violinist and an old man playing the dulcimer hammer...not at the same time and same location although they might have sounded good together.  there were some steel drummers setting up and then being told to move to another location by a local policeman.  they were not too happy, mon. apparently they did not have the required "license" as did the other musicians.

i ate some delicious clam chowder and listened to a father/daugher duo.  the father was playing keyboards and the daugher played the tenor sax.  excellent clam chowder eating music...except for the pesky seagulls and pigeons.

on my way back to my hotel, i walked back up Hyde Street which is just a little slower than taking the trolley.  i wanted to get a photo of the setting sun and Golden Gate Bridge and then Lombard Street (the world's crookedist street) with Coit Tower and the Bay Bridge in the background.

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as i was looking for some chicken chow fun to take back to my hotel room i came across this night scene which i labeled in my mind "my big friday night in San Francisco"...