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San Francisco
click on the pictures to see the videos
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arrived in San Francisco in February 1998, as part of a two centre
holiday to include Maui also.
We had intended to fly straight out again and spend the first
weekend in Honolulu, but we were on standby and the flights were full,
so we had two weekends in San Francisco instead. This was well worth it,
one weekend would not have been enough. Our luggage, however did go to
Honolulu, at that time ‘internal’ flights did not cross check to
ensure that all suitcases had passengers to go with them. They did send
it straight back, so the first day we simply walked down to and around
Fisherman’s Wharf, so that we could check in regularly to the hotel to
see if our bags had arrived. You can walk safely around San Francisco,
simply taking the normal precautions you would in any town, anywhere.
When we
returned to San Francisco on the way home, we had a good walk around the
‘Streets’, including Lombard Street, part of which is the crookedest
street in town, but actually is a steep hill, with a zig zag road
inserted into the normal street. It has attractive houses and flower
beds, so worth a visit.
We took and afternoon tour to Muir Woods, the home of coastal redwoods, which grow in a 450 mile long, 30 mile wide strip of California coastline, where they enjoy the climate of coastal fogs. These trees are taller but thinner than the more famous sequoias, and usually live from 500 to 800 years. It is a lovely place to visit, the towering trees giving an aura of peace and tranquility. The trip also took in a visit to the town of Sausalito a little way down the coast.
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Our second day
we took a guided bus tour of the city, which is very useful to get your
bearings and an idea of what’s where. The tour finished at the
waterfront, and had an optional extra of a visit to Alcatraz, which we
did. Whilst having no particular sympathy for the inmates,
this is an interesting place to visit, and the tour is very well
done. You can use personal tape players with headphones, and you take the
tour at your own pace, and wind the tape on in time with your progress.
We also went
down to the terminal and made a journey on a cable car, taking the route
that went to the Cable Car
Museum. Here they have many ‘retired’ cars,
but also is where the cable motors are, continually turning. The cables
run under the tracks, and the cars have a lever which fits down through
the opening and grabs the cable, simply being dragged along by the running
cable. There was a long queue for the cable car ride, but it is an
unmissable San Francisco experience. They don’t travel very fast, about
14 miles and hour, but as you toil slowly up hills, and feel as if you
night run away down the hills, it is as good as any roller coaster. As one
of my travelling companions says on the film, as we are about to start
down a steep hill ‘you feel as if you are about to fall off the edge of
the world’.
The final day
we took a full day tour out to the Sonoma
Valley, taking in a small
independent
winery, and two belonging to members of the large companies whose
wine you see on our supermarket shelves. The tour also took in the town of
Sonoma itself, which has many historical
buildings as a reminder of it’s own colourful history. The Mexicans
governed northern, or Alta, California from Sonoma, and it was here that
on 14th June 1846
a few Americans stormed the Fort, and Mission. The man in charge,
‘General’ Valleja,
seeing the writing on the wall, surrendered, and the rebels raised
the Bear Flag and declared California a republic. California’s
independence was shortlived, on 9th July 1846 the Stars and Stripes were
raised, and on 9th September 1850 California joined the Union, and became
the 31st State. The Bear flag became the State flag. General Valleja,
after a short imprisonment, returned to his property in the area,
forsaking his home country for a new life, and later was one of the first
Senators for the new State. For an interesting perspective on his life,
click here.
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