Disappearing Acts

Yesterday, I was alerted by the Yahoo! home page that the sea lions that have entertained tourists at San Francisco's Pier 39 for the last 20 years have suddenly disappeared. The sea lions began abandoning their post around Thanksgiving, and now not one of the noisy sea lions remain. Experts, who never understood why the animals first colonized the pier, are not sure if the animals will ever return. They don't seem to be worried, though, as sea lions are migratory animals by nature.

I watched the following clip that shows footage of the silent pier: http://video.ap.org/?f=AP&pid=eD4hidQL_OW3p7lMJiN_LPpiQuiSN61g. Jim and I visited the sea lions on our trip to San Francisco in the summer of 2007, and were amused by their loud barking and silly antics. Before the sea lions' disappearance, approximately 1,000 animals occupied the floating platforms at Pier 39. Those platforms now float empty in the water.

Experts guess that the sea lions might return in the spring. If they don't, Jim and I consider ourselves lucky for having seen the sea lions first-hand.

On the opposite coast, a tourist attraction of another sort will close its doors on New Year's Eve. Tavern on the Green, the famous restaurant located in Central Park, will serve its last meals on December 31, 2009 after it filed for bankruptcy. The restaurant will auction off pieces of its notorious decor to cover its $8 million debt (I'll take a few of the Tiffany lamps, please.).

Jim and I were fortunate enough to dine at Tavern on the Green when we traveled to New York in August 2005. After a lunch enjoyed on the restaurant's patio, we took a horse-drawn carriage ride through Central Park.

Jim and I are glad that we had the opportunity to experience both the San Francisco sea lions and Tavern on the Green in our travels. If you did not have the pleasure of visiting the sea lions at Pier 39 or eating at Tavern on the Green, you can experience those attractions through our pictures below (I know it's not quite the same...):