North Beach Italian Heritage Parade & the Blue Angels in SF

Every year, good friends of ours celebrate Italian Heritage Day during Columbus Day weekend in North Beach, San Francisco....more specifically, from in front of Original Joe's restaurant and bar. This year I had the pleasure of joining in all the fun.  We couldn't have asked for a more spectacular day.  It was sunny, no fog, with temps close to the 90's.....yes, it was that warm.

The Italian Heritage Parade is the city's oldest civic event and the nation's oldest Italian-American parade and community celebration that works its way from Fisherman's Wharf to the quaint neighborhood of North Beach.  Every restaurant in the entire neighborhood of North Beach sets up outdoor, reserved seating, serving food, drinks and a front row view of the two hour + parade which begins at 12:30 p.m.

A family style lunch was served just after noon to our outdoor table at Original Joe's.  Oh so tender roasted chicken, flavorful beef, roasted potatoes, broccoli, ravioli, salad and plenty of vino.  What a spread!

Soon enough the parade made its way down past our table.

 A wide variety of parade entries kept us all entertained....from tossing candy and even a pizza to the parade viewers and diners.

The Italian Heritage Parade happens to coinside with  Fleet Week in San Francisco and this year, the Blue Angels were scheduled to fly once again.  I was fortunate enough to be able to watch the entire Blue Angel show from the roof-top of Saints Peter and Paul Church in North Beach...{thanks Randy!!!}

Fighter jets; so loud, fast and powerful.....gives me chills every time.

We had a panoramic view of the bay and all North Beach from the roof top.  

Perfect for viewing some of our nation's top pilots.

I hope to make this weekend experience an annual tradition for myself.  If you're ever in the City or have thought about attending Fleet Week or the Italian Heritage Parade, I highly recommend it!