Scenes from Irving Street, Inner Sunset

After checking out the murals at the Beach Chalet at the Golden Gate Park Visitor's Center, we headed east towards the Inner Sunset...

We drove on Lincoln St, which is parallel to the bottom of Golden Gate Park. Here are the gates...

My fears of crappy street parking were realized as we drove past block after block of filled streets...

Bert told me to go on ahead and shop at the thrift store. He would find parking somewhere near 3rd (the lower the numbers go in the Inner Sunset, the farther east you are) plus TC was asleep in the car and we didn't want to wake her.  I needed to get a sweater or a light coverup for my former student's wedding we would attend later that afternoon...

I did find a few things actually at this store my cousin recommended. By the time I walked back (maybe about half an hour or so), TC was already awake and we were ready to do some exploring.  We were parked so far out that there was no 'time limit' and no meters. This is TC and Bert walking past Lime Tree, a Southeast Asian restaurant. We had our sights set on another small eatery for some snacks. I have so many photos of TC and Bert from behind and it's neat to see how she's grown over the years.

The corner of Irving and 8th (as well as 9th) are chock full of shops and eateries. This post just shows a few of the interesting signs we saw...

This was the thrift store I got my $15 Esprit bomber jacket.


Loved the signage here, both painted and neon, plus the mosaic artwork featuring a guy eating pizza.



The corner of 8th and Irving with streetcar lines. Very busy this place was.

TC and I found the small print amusing but racist. If you look closely, you will find that it reads "Asian Fit Eyewear".   Yes, ASIAN FIT.  I first heard of this term when I took TC to get her glasses adjusted at the optometrist's office. Her glasses kept slipping off her nose. The guy was trying to be diplomatic  but basically, I remember jokingly telling the worker that it was because of her Filipino nose and lack of a bridge. He kind of didn't  want to say anything. Another worker that I knew told us that there are certain models of eyewear that used to have what they call "Asian Fit" but now are discreetly renamed as "Alternative Fit" (same initials, but you're not fooling me eyewear companies, haha).  The Asian Fit, I meant Alternative Fit glasses have extra padding near the bridge so that the eyewear can sit better on what I presume is a person who lacks a nose bridge.

So that was my longwinded explanation of Asian Fit.  This poster isn't trying to be coy with "Alternative Fit". It's straight up Asian Fit and you can see the pads too on the glasses that they're wearing.

Fresh fruits from this market..


Vintage signage where the letters are raised. I wonder how long these places have been here.


Vacuum this.

More info on the Inner Sunset:
SF Gate
SanFrancicoDays

All this walking was making us tired...and hungry!

Next stop, just down the street of course!