Could this be the best day ever!?

The weather is absolutely perfect today and everyone in San Francisco is outside celebrating because it's Columbus Day in America! I was lucky enough to come across San Francisco's 142nd Annual Italian Heritage Parade (San Francisco's oldest civic event and the nation's oldest Italian-American parade) at Fisherman's Wharf and it was lots of fun with lively marching bands, lots of Italian groups and soldiers & guards, including Canadian guards, all the while a fighter plane did fly-bys over head. (I did find it mildly amusing that young women used fake rifles to throw around in the air and men on horses shot blanks in the air with pistols - I don't think that would be allowed in Australia.)

(I'm staying on Mason St)

In the afternoon, the wharf was totally packed out for the Blue Angels air show.

The Navy is also in town. Their slogan and, I'm guessing, relatively new focus is pretty swish - "Defending Freedom, Protecting the Environment". So, not only are they protecting mankind against evil, but they also feel compelled to save the koalas for us. (That's a koala in the 'Y' of the sign.) Nice.

PS America is much cheaper compared to rip off Australia. A bottle of cold water - $1 and chocolate bars - 89c. Someone in Berlin commented that Australia was expensive, now I know it's true!

I finished the day off with pizza, root beer (tangy) and a directionless stroll through the throngs of people celebrating in Little Italy. It has been an enjoyable day. Tomorrow - Alcatraz.