San Francisco in the summer

Want to catch a super foggy, windy day in the city? Chances are pretty high you will-especially if it’s summer. It’s noon, and 70 degrees, but the fog is relentless. We’re parked at Fort Point, just below the bridge when I make this first sketch but the bridge still keeps disappearing out of sight as I sketch it…

So we set off to walk across the bridge. And I decide to give it another shot. This time though, not only is it foggy, it’s crazy windy too. My pages fly open and shut, and the wind almost whips the book out of my hand. All I manage is a little bit of wet-in-wet work before it is just too windy for more… Still, it is fun to let the elements influence the piece.

A four-mile hike from Fort Point, across the bridge and back and everyone is hungry! Time for la Mediterranee in Fillmore. I had an incredible dessert called muhallabieh. I expected a rosewater-scented rice pudding. This was something else!! It uses ma’ez zahr (orange blossom essence) and an ingredient that I think is called sahleb (sp?) Anyone know what that is? I need to source it!

A great hike, some sketching, a lovely meal. All that was needed to complete the day was Browser Books, a great little bookstore just across the street. Luckily, the kids can read for hours, so after I had browsed my favorite sections: food and travel writing, and found me a book of short stories to buy, I still had time for a sketch.