Vitafamiliae

I can’t even begin to tell you how excited we all were about this fire engine trip.  Understandably, the boys thought riding in an open air fire engine was a grand idea.  And I relished the thought of seeing the Golden Gate Bridge from the safety of a vehicle.  (I don’t do well walking on bridges and after reading that this one doesn’t have much of a railing for small people, I was NOT going.)

As soon as the fire engine pulled up, my recently rambunctious boys went strangely quiet.  They shyly eyed the vehicle, wanting so badly to touch but carefully keeping their hands to themselves so they would not be removed from the trip.

Willa was exhausted, so I took her out of the stroller and strapped her in the Ergo.  I pulled her new Alcatraz hat down over her ears and she was napping in one breath.

Our tour guides entertained us with jokes and tap dancing while they readied the fire engine.  Marilyn carefully distributed fire jackets for each person.  She asked me if I wanted a thick or a thin one since I was wearing the baby.  I suggested she just give me the biggest one so I could wrap it around both of us.  This was the result.

Willa is under my coat.  The only problem with this attire was that it was very heavy and cumbersome and I couldn’t move my arms.  Plus, I had the added handicap of wearing a baby.  So I was pretty much useless to help the boys with their hats and seat belts.  Fortunately, the other passengers had pity on the Michelin Mama and offered extra hands when they were needed.

As we took off down the road, our tour guide Marilyn burst into song and I watched the faces of the passengers, their eyes incredulous, their smiles frozen.  I could hear the universal thought, “Wait, there’s singing on this trip?”

Marilyn wrote some cute show tune sounding songs to sing with gusto as we rode, in between her stories of interest and wise cracks about the city.  It was a bit like having Ethel Merman for a tour guide.  Somehow it was very appropriate for the setting.  I kept expecting her to burst into “You Cain’t Git A Man With A Gun.”

But when you’re wrapped up in a bulky coat, flying down the street in an open top fire engine, there’s nothing to do but grin and admit that you’re having fun.  So we all cheered and went with it.  Marilyn and Captain Robert were adorable with their 35 years of marriage and living in a firehouse story.  I don’t know if it was true or not, but it made everyone feel all warm and fuzzy inside.  Or maybe that was just the coats…

We took off toward the Golden Gate Bridge and the way the Captain drove up and down the streets of San Francisco was not holy.  But, man, it was fun.  Way better than a roller coaster.  And, I imagine, a lot more dangerous.  The boys were perfectly safe, belted in and on the inside of the engine.  My biggest concern was losing my grip on the precious iPhone I was using to take pictures with.  I was terrified it would go flying out of the engine while I tried to snap a blurry photo.

We stopped before we crossed the bridge so everyone could put on red ski helmets to protect against the elements.

And then… we took off across that bridge.  And this is pretty much what it felt like:

The wind, the speed, the view, the bumps, the clanging of the fire bell … Total Exhilaration.  The boys were completely awestruck.  Their faces were blank, their jaws slack, but I knew that meant they were just soaking everything in.

After our first trip across, we stopped for a photo op.

You will note, of course, that I had on a pink ski hat I purchased on the pier.  What is it about being a tourist that makes us lose all sense of fashion or any ability to blend in?

Here are our sweet hosts, who kept the mood light with songs and banter the whole trip.

They even let Sam and Ian ring the fire bell, which resulted in the first smile I saw on Ian from the moment we started the tour.  When he gets awed, he gets serious, people.

We headed back across the bridge.

Willa woke up every time the engine stopped and fussed, but as soon as we started bumping our way along the streets again, she fell back asleep.  She was warm and cozy and never felt a single breeze.

We arrived back at our starting point with wild hair and bright eyes.  The boys didn’t say much, but when Andrew hit the door hours later, they were ready to unload their news from the day:  “We rode a fire engine across the Golden Gate Bridge and I rang the bell and he tooted the horn in the tunnel and it was loud and I jumped a bit but I wasn’t scared and maybe tomorrow you can ride the fire engine with us, Daddy…”

And I gotta tell you, Andrew was awfully disappointed he missed it.

I’m no travel expert, but if you’re in the area with kids of any age, this is a DO NOT MISS experience.  Forget the California Academy of Science (where we went today), it’s over-priced and short on content.  Spend that money instead on a driving tour of the city.  And if you can make it on that fire engine, DO IT.  My kids may not remember anything else we did, but they will always associate the Golden Gate Bridge with San Francisco, and they’ll definitely remember that fire engine ride.