For Christmas this year, James gave me a very interesting present. He handed me a medium-sized, square gift and was very excited for me to open it. After tearing off the wrapping I was surprised to find a book about Ronnie and Nancy Reagan and another about the Chinese in America. I put on what I hoped was a grateful face, then racked my brain trying to think of a time that I had expressed an interest in either of these topics. James told me to open the cover so I did. Inside the book was a secret compartment and inside there were two tickets to "Wicked" in San Francisco for Valentine's Day. It was a great gift!
Valentine's finally arrived and we headed to the airport amidst a terrible snowstorm. The snow caused our plane to be delayed two hours but we enjoyed the time in the airport chatting with our friends that were going to San Francisco with us. The Markers and the Browns were joining us on the trip. We talked about how a week before Christmas we had all gone out to dinner and the women were talking about how we'd love to get tickets to Wicked in Utah but the prices were so high that it would be cheaper to fly to New York and see it. Unknown to us, the men had already purchased the tickets to see the play. They were very proud of themselves and we were proud of them for being so creative.
We landed in San Francisco that afternoon and spent some time downtown shopping before we had to get ready for dinner and the show. The men had planned to eat at a fancy restaurant not far from our hotel so we were able to walk there. We had a lot of fun dining together and enjoying the good food. It was a place where they actually bring out the food and show it to you instead of giving you menus. Once we were thoroughly full, we headed to the theater downtown.
Wicked was a lot of fun to see. As with most broadway shows, the sets and special effects were amazing and the cast was great. Some of the cast members had been in movies and on television so it was fun to recognize some familiar faces.
Once the show was over we headed to Ghirardelli Square for some chocolate treats. We had a hard time getting a cab. Our first try landed us in a cab with a driver who spoke little English and didn't know the way to Ghirardelli Square, even after we gave him the address. James wished him luck on his career as a cabdriver and we hopped out of his car. We finally flagged down a cab driver who knew his way around the city and headed to the chocolate corner of the city. Once again, feeling bloated on chocolate sundaes made with melted chocolate, we headed out to find a cab. Because it was after midnight, we weren't having much luck. We were just about to head in and call a cab company when a limousine came around the corner and asked if we were looking for a cab. He offered to drive us in his limo. It was the perfect way to end a perfect Valentine's Day.
