A ‘What’ Bar Tour?
I've been remiss in my previous trips here as I haven't mentioned The Isotope before. One of the coolest comic stores I've ever visited, run in the style that all should be - somewhere that you go because you love comics and want to take time talking about them with people who know what they're talking about and have the time and interest in doing so. (Orbiital in London is another such, by the way, and unsurprisingly Damien who runs Orbital stopped by The Isotope when he was setting up the shop, and he and James from the 'Tope shared their very similar aims for their shops.)
James is quite a character, and it being San Francisco's WonderCon this weekend, he decided to kick the con off with one of his famous Tiki Bar Tours (The 'Con-Tiki Bar Tour' in fact). I had no idea what a Tiki Bar was, but it turns out to be somewhere that serves drinks loaded with pieces of fruit, umbrellas and other paraphenalia, in an environment involving palm trees, huts and a lot of bamboo. After being awake most of last night I wasn't expecting to be able to stick with it very long, but I made it from 8pm to midnight, taking in three of the bars along the way, drinking something that was on fire at one point, and finally parting company with the gang in the Tonga Room, which is a *very* well established and almost upmarket bar in one of the hotels. They have indoor rain, and everything....
Absolutely bonkers, but very enjoyable, and as I said - I lasted quite a bit longer than I was expecting to.