The Time When San Francisco Wouldn't Let Go

Taking a peak at the Golden Gate

As a writer (What did you say? Jury's out on whether I can call myself one? But I want to sound fancy!), sometimes I selfishly wait for something to wrong when I travel, so I can write about it. Well, not too wrong. Just a smidgen. Not much more. Enough to recall and retell it, be a little funny - so I can come off as an affable, pretentious brat (ironically so) who throws her head back in laughter and says sentences like, "I was just recalling that one time in a small Italian town , after I'd had the best pasta ever and then I almost fell off the cliff, but something very Bollywood happened to me and we all laughed about it." Or "you know that time in Banaras when my parents thought I got lost in the tiny, winding alleys, scared by the police into thinking there had been a kidnapping, but I was just having limca at a stall. Because the temple guard didn't let me in because of my earphones in my wallet." (This actually happened.) 

San Francisco is a beauty. I've been there once (as in, during one trip), a couple of years ago. But I know I will go back. I want to. I will. Since May 2015, that trip, I've struggled to describe how it is and why it is that I love it so, why it won my heart (and probably will win over a kidney and liver too given how expensive it is). So today, almost exactly 2 years later, I've decided to give up on doing that and instead speak of my adventures in that city. 

A and I were living with Akshay Bhaiya in Mountainview. We commuted to SF by the Cal Train. The CalTrain runs local, limited stops and baby bullet trains from San Jose to SF and back. The frequency is great during peak hours, but not so much otherwise. Getting there seemed easy enough. There was probably one moment of panic when the electronic board at the Mountainview station flashed something about "San Jose Quakes". I immediately recalled being 13 years old and listening to Thakker Ma'am about how her son lived in California and earthquakes were super commonplace, so they were always ready. The news flash didn't inspire much confidence. However, it took some Google searches to know it was the (unfortunate) name of a soccer team. 

Thanks to Google maps, the English language and some kind strangers, we did okay and reached some of the places we intended to see that day. These are subjects for another time (at the rate I'm going, perhaps by 2020). 

Using our combined prowess in basic maths, limited common sense and Google dependency issues, we calculated the time at which we would leave Ghirardelli Square to catch the CalTrain back to Mountainview so Akshay Bhaiya could pick us up at the station after work and we could eat dinner at a decent time. We'd been travelling by ourselves in the US for about 10 days at that point, gotten past lost luggage, dragging suitcases through the New York subway and Uber-ing our way. We had made it in the morning and spent a day in this city we weren't familiar with (A had a whirlwind day trip 4 years before). What could go wrong? The city had already won me over; I was already planning learning to drive on steep inclines for when I moved there. What happened next will blow your mind. Not. I just always wanted to try that oft-used hook. I basically discovered SF had a hard time letting go, that's all.  

Lombard Street

Despite some confusion about which side of the road and where precisely the bus stop would be (a running theme throughout the SF trip - Google isn't helpful, neither are signs, so try asking someone), we boarded a bus which seemed to be going in the right direction (after cautiously cross-checking the first couple of bus stops). Real troubles began right in the middle of crossing through China town. We stopped for a while in this tunnel of sorts. It took some time but we got moving, thinking nothing of it, we figured we'd still make one of the faster trains. All of a sudden, we're in downtown and it's peak traffic hour clearly. The buses are of course connected to overhead wires given the crazy inclines in the city. We stopped again. And again. And again. And at one point, most of the bus emptied. 

The last stop on this bus was supposed to get us to our CalTrain station. Without giving into passenger-peer-pressure, we stayed put, putting all our faith in the bus driver. We moved along slowly. If we weren’t tired and the stop wasn’t very far, walking may have been quicker. And all of a sudden, the faith as well as the bus came to a screeching halt. The bus and driver had taken an executive decision to not venture forth and that very spot in the middle of downtown SF was to be our last stop. 

Betrayed, confused and low on battery (us and the phones), we got off. We turned to Google, as one does in times like this. We found that the light rail was running right below us and could get us close enough to the CalTrain station. Did some clueless scrambling around, entered a mall-like area and found our way to the Muni (light rail) station. There seemed to be two potential trains that could take us where we wanted to get. However, specific instructions from someone at the station, given to us in a hurry, made us believe only one would take us. This meant a lot of impatient waiting on the platform. We finally got in, thankful that something was moving. 

One station down, we were about 10% relieved. Until we felt 20% more tense because all of a sudden, we weren't moving. Again. The train had stopped before even entering the next station because the previous train hadn't moved. For a while. The light rail was a heavy letdown already - we weighed down the light rail with expectations of the NYC subway or even the Delhi metro, clearly an incorrect assumption to make. I'll stop with the puns, just like bus and the rail did (haha). 

It was claustrophobia-inducing, crowded and making us restless. It was as though we needed to return on time or we'd have a case of Cindrella and carriage-metamorphosing-into-pumpkin situation. Although, I think the real reason we panicked was because our phones were running out of battery and charging them would mean having to sit at a cafe - something we had done multiple times already (and would have two more days of to look forward to). The rail moved a little and we were at least above the ground. Only to stop again. At this point, A and I decided to ditch the particular train we were on and try either for an Uber or the next train. Once we were off, the train moved along deceptively fast and the next one came along - with more breathing space. It moved for a bit and then all I remember is orange. We were closing in on the AT&T ballpark and of course the SF Giants had a match. G.R.E.A.T. Traffic - vehicular and foot - was unbelievable. 

If you grew up watching Full House like I did, remember how the trams were just part of the road? Imagine the light rail on similar lines - and so we had to wait for our turn when the signal was green, even though you could only see orange everywhere. Somehow, we got to the last stop - which was still a 2 minute run (non-feasible, because this wasn't India) or a 5 minute walk to enter the CalTrain station. While I'm usually a fan of pedestrian crossings and the safety angle, at that moment, I wanted to unleash the desi in me and just run, without rules. Except, I couldn't. And as we inched closer to the station, we could see the training inching away from the station, from us, and the sun setting behind. Very bollywood. 

The next train was at least an hour and a half away. It was getting late. We were hangry (hunger+anger), tired, and frustrated. After managing to hold a brief telemeeting with Akshay Bhaiya, it was decided we'd Uber it till Millbrae and he'd drive to pick us up. But not before we charged one phone by finding the only outlet free, next to the washroom at the station. 

Our Uber driver was the sunniest and friendliest guy - a complete contrast to our moods. And honestly, I think it could have gone either way - we could have drained away his happiness instead of what actually happened, him calming us down. This was an Uber Pool ride and we picked up an older gentleman from the UCSF campus. A and our Uber driver became pally in the front of the car, while I ate older gentleman's ear off with questions about travel. You can't tell me you have more airline miles than you care to admit and have backpacked in your 20s and not expect me to be chatty, no matter how hungry I am. He also happened to casually mention that his son had hired an Indian actress for his next show. Priyanka Chopra for Quantico, by the way. Aah, Uber rides in the US - the gift that keeps on giving curiouser and curiouser conversations. 

A and I reached Millbrae before Akshay Bhaiya could. The station was deserted. We strolled around, taking in a temporary mental map of the place. We did some car-watching on the highway. Any time we heard a car pull up, we got excited and ready to leave. Until finally, Akshay Bhaiya came along to find too super frustrated, exhausted, hungry 20-somethings and took us home. To thair chadam (curd-rice), the eternal answer to happiness.