Cute on the Front Lines

One of the benefits to living in San Francisco is being immersed in living history.  Everywhere you turn there's a link to the past, be it a building, a monument, or even a transportation system.  New York, since its inception, has been a city bent on transforming itself.  Only recently has an earnest effort been made to protect and preserve some of the city's gems.  Our old apartment building, the Cherokee, is one of these landmarks.  San Francisco, on the other hand, has done a better job of maintaining the massive architectural and engineer projects, as well as the historical homes and neighborhoods, that not only give a great city its character, but also tell its story.

A vital and strategic port to the U.S. since 1850, San Francisco also has a tremendous and well-represented military history.  As a kid I remember taking a trip to the Marine Mammal Sanctuary, which is up in Marin.  Seeing the process of sea lion rehabilitation was interesting, but what really fascinated me were all the nuclear material warning signs above the doors to the massive, and now defunct, missile silos.  The bay area is filled with these visitable and explorable nuggets of military history.  They're seamlessly blended into the parks, waterfronts, and thoroughfares.  And so, as a military history buff, it was time to take Mimi for a quick visit to one of the old battery installations along the coast.

Unfortunately, many of the installations were under renovation, but we were able to get down to Baker Beach and toddle around the battlements.

All the strolling soon tired Mimi out, so she sat back in the clover (it wasn't actually clover, I just don't know the name of the green stuff she's sitting on).  She must've liked the view because she was content for a good 20 minutes.

The fog was quickly rolling in, so we had to cut our visit short.  Here's a picture of the Golden Gate.  Obviously, this is not how it's most often photographed, but for me, this is how I tend to think of it: shrouded in fog.  Often like much of this surprisingly cold city!

At least there's some sunshine in the forecast for next week.  Maybe we'll be able to get across the bridge and see those sea lions again.