Well, after 9 and a half months of hard travelling (well mostly) we are finally kicking off our shoes and having a wonderful and well deserved holiday in San Francisco with my uncle and aunt. We have been here since Thursday evening and over the last four days we have divided our time between the city (about a 45 min drive west) and the East Bay region, more particurlarly Alamo, where they live. Their home rests in green, hilly countryside, below Mount Diablo, rising some 3,000 Feet. It feels part New Zealand North Island (but not as green), part Cape Town (but not as rocky).Today we did a rather special sight-seeing tour, special because our tour guide was my uncle (Colin) who is full of interesting facts and trivia about the city. We started off in downtown San Francisco. Here there is nothing like the hustle and bustle of New York. Downtown Frisco is quiet and easy to navigate with little traffic congestion. We started off at Coit Tower, a white column sitting on top of Telegraph Hill and dedicated to the city firefighters who battled the blazes caused by the 1906 Great San Francisco earthquake. From here you could see infamous Alactraz nestled in the bay (Could there ever have been a better or more bitter view for a prisoner?) and the steep streets leading up to exclusive Pacific Heights.
From here we took a drive down the top of Lombard Street, the 'windiest road in the world' (built surely just for tourist value, as it could have been, and much more easily, a bog standard straight road). Local residents must get awfully tired of people driving slowly down the zig-zag strip or just stopping completely to take photos. We then popped into Ghiradelli Square (near Fisherman's Wharf), the site of the SF chocolate company of the same name dating back 150 years. Here you could watch the original machinery turning cocoa beans into smoothy, creamy decadence.
The highlight of the day though was driving out to the Golden Gate Bridge and walking some of the way across. It is a beautiful red beacon to engineering brilliance, suspended above the pacific ocean, with the main cables made up of 27,000 individual pieces, lifting the bridge up in a gentle arch. A plaque said over 1,100 petitions were filed agains the building of the bridge. Why? Over fears it would not withstand the turbulent currents, that it would ruin the view and somewhat bizarrely, that it would deflate property prices. My uncle told me that for the Golden Gate's fiftieth anniversary in 1987, the bridge was closed to traffic allowing only pedestrians to walk across. Such was the sheer number of those who walked over on the day (they were packed in shoulder to shoulder) that the curve in the middle actually flattened out, scaring the living daylights out of engineers over fears it may break. Thankfully, the bridge lived up to the word of its creater, Joseph Strauss, who said it would last forever.
We crossed over the bridge (by car) and had lunch in Sausalito, an artists enclave slash upwardly mobile fishing village on the North side of the bay. I ate a bowl of thick, creamy clam chowder while Larna munched on a Reuben sandwich stuffed with corned beef, mustard and sauerkraut. Two all American culinary traditions. Our table was right out on the water. Of all things, a flag of a kangaroo in yellow boxing gloves hung from a window above the deck where we ate, reminding me that, soon, in Oz, my temporary "retirement" must soon come to an end.
Tomorrow morning we are driving out to Yosemite National Park, about 4 hours from San Francisco, where we are spending two nights. It is famous for itse dramatic waterfalls, canyon, towering rockfaces and overall scenic beauty. Another iconic place in the American landscape.
No comments:
Post a Comment