On the road again

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So here we are in San Francisco, the first stop on the new trip, my first time in America and I am loving it!

I arrived Tuesday afternoon after a very long but uneventful flight with a dissapointing array of inflight films, I was hoping for Batman Begins, War of the Worlds or ............... but instead I got 'Bridget Jones's Diary: Part 2' and 'Hitch'...........hmmmm. Jen and I had got seperate flights so it was very strange when I was waiting in the hostel room to hear a knock at the door and find Jen on the otherside, all the way out here in California when the last time I saw her was a few weeks ago in Mumbles in Wales! We managed to keep ourselves awake until about 9.30/10pm by having a couple of beers in a little place called Cafe Prague - perhaps not the most 'American' of all places to try for our first night, but it was close by and we were too weary to travel any further.

These boots were made for walking.....

Talking of weary, I don't think we've stopped feeling absolutley shattered since we arrived, it has taken ages for the jet lag to wear off, mainly due to the amount of stuff we have been packing into our days and a few of our nights. I've not walked so much in my life! We've covered so much of the city on foot, up and down far too many hills, but it's the best way to see it all, around every corner there's another amazing view, roads stretching out with the city all around and the sea or the mountains in the background, it is certainly a very beauiful place to be. After a full on day of exploring the city on Wednesday we tried to have a lazy day on Thursday and just chill out in Golden Gate Park with our hangovers, but we thought we'd take a lesiurely stroll and walk to the park, unfortunalety we underestimated quite how long it would take us and every new stretch of road or hill to climb seemed never ending, 2 hours later after setting off from our hostel in the North Beach area we managed to get to the park and plonk ourselves down at the nearest point possible. On the walk to the park we went through some slightly less touristy or populted areas and those members of the population we did see were rather more..............interesting characters, particulary at the point when we walked past the out-patients Crisis Clinic............we have noticed quite a lot of homeless people in San Francisc, more than normal perhaps. Anyway we didn't get to see much of the park, we were far too tired to do any exploring, we're hoping to head back there and hire some skates to get around and see it all properly.

We have already managed to get a bit shopping time in on Friday - of course! We hadn't come across many shops except for the likes of Tiffanys and Armani, which are just a liiiiitlle bit out of my price range..... But then we found a great shop with incredibly cheap clothes and we both went a bit mental and had to really stop ourselves from spending the whole day searching through hundreds of clothes rails. we also had a wader round the Yerba Buena gardens which are beautiful and we looked around the Cartoon Art Museum (one for you Guy and Ian!). I've still got to try and find the place where my Dad stayed when he came here at the age of 21, I think its just up the road and we fear it may longer be here, not that it was taht long ago of course.......ahem (sorry Dad!).

I'm really enjoying being here with Jen, the last time we went on holiday was when we were 17 and its just so good to have the chance to spend this time with her and to share the amazing experiences Talking of which, our trip to Alcatraz on Friday night was brilliant. We got the boat at 7pm and you head out from the city and into the thick mist and famous San Fransisco fog, and after being lovely and warm all day in the city all of a sudden it was freezing cold, you needed layers of clothes and we even resorted to putting socks on with our sandals...oh the shame......... But it was all well worth it, inside the prison you got audio guides with voices from the actual guards and various prisoners who'd stayed there, and you just walked around everywhere, it was really interesting and the idea of spending 23 hours of your day, every day for years and years in those tiny cells is horrific, its such a cold, clinical place. Even the island itself where the wardens families had to live, you can't imagine it, it just feels lacking in any kind of warmth, not just in terms of the weather but in its landscape as well. It was dark by the time we left but not as creepy as I'd feared, what I was really pleased about was doing my first boat journey since Christmas, I hadn't been over the moon about it when we'd been waiting to board staing on the pier, but it really was fine once we were going.

Is this the way to Sausalito.......

Not stopping to rest or barely even take a breath we decide on a bike trip on Saturday, cycling over the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito. It was fantastic and also a little terrifying for me I have to admit. The bridge was covered with fog and once you rode onto it you couldn't see anything in front of you or behind, you were just suspended in a different world with cars whizzing by on a bridge suspended high over the ocean with a very loud fog horn going off every few seconds. So, combining heights, loud noises, the sea and the eerie fog all together made me a little tense I have to say, but it made the moment when the fog breaks up and you see the other side with green mountains and blue sky and the warmth of the sun hitting your face all the more amazing. It's was quite tough going though, lots of hills on the way to the bridge, some of which I am embarrassed to say, we had to get off and walk up, but then there were some fanastic hills to sail down on the other side. We were going to try and cycle all the way around, past Sausalito and on to another place beginning with T....., we carried on for a while but we were absolutley starving by this point and had been going for about 2 hours and so we turned back to go and find somewhere to eat in Sausalito and ended up cycling up and down the same road about 4 times trying to find somewhere to eat, all we wanted were big, fat burgers and chips, it was getting on for 3pm, all we'd eaten that morning was a banana before getting on the bikes at 11.30am, it was roasting hot and after ten years of barely even standing near a bike, let alone getting on one, all our muscles were crying out for us to stop moving as soon as possible. Heaven came in the form of the 'Cat and Fiddle' with beer and burgers and the knowledge that we were only 5 minutes away from the ferry back to San Francisco to avoid cyling back up those hills to the bridge.

Food glorious food

I should just pause for a minute here to mention the food, it would be an understatement to say we have eaten well since we've been here. I'm hoping all the walking is helping to counteract the amount of food we've managed to consume so far, but it has all just been so good, you can't help but try it all! We've had Thai, Chinese(The House of NanKing - the best food so far!), French, Mexican, burgers, sandwiches, salads, even the free food at the hostel was good and tasty. We are lucky enough to be situated, in a very good hostel, between china town and little italy and we are certainly making the most of it! I am hoping that our stay in Yosemite will wean me off all the cakes and pasteries we seem to eat at every oppurtunity.

You've got a friend..................everywhere

Yesterday we headed out to a little park for a free concert with Ladysmith Back Mombazo, we had thought we'd been good in leaving at 12pm to get there in good time, but it was absolutley packed and we had to find places to sit in amongst the trees way up on the hillside, all different kinds of people were cramming in at every point possible and there was a great atmosphere. It was fantasic to see them but we did leave fgairly early on in order to get out before everyone tried to leave at the same time, we walked out by wandering through the main amphitheatre area and the sound was incredible from there, it really resonated around the place and looking around at the huge tall pine tress reaching up to the sky and the crowds of people smiling and moving along to the music was just a fantastic experience.

So thats prettty much it so far, I've not really talked about just what a great city this place, aside from all the tourist trips we've done, just walking around the streets (I could write paragraphs and paragraphs more about everything we've done so far but I will spare you!). It feels like a really nice place, really chilled and I can't tell you how freindly everyone is, I mean unfeasably friendly. Everyone wants to help or find out who you are, we go out for drinks at night and people just start talking to you everywhere you go, all diferent kinds of people of every age or background. But we are both looking forward to getting out of the city for a few days, to feel the space and to get in to the countryside. Although the idea of being on a bus with 34 other people for 4 days without a proper shower isn't the most appealing thought I have to say...... but we have heard nothing but good reports about the trip and the pictures I've seen of Yosemite are beautiful, so allI need to do now is watch out for the bears.......

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Photos

Alcatraz shrouded in mist
Freezing and foggy as we approach the island

Alcatraz in the sunshine
Looking out from the mainland

Sausolito
crazy mist rolling in over the hills in the afternoon

Comments

[Mia]

welcome to my world...:)
Dear Anna, I'm so happy to hear that you're enjoying California, and I love reading about your travels, especially having been there myself, so I can picture what you're talking about (I did the Alcatraz tour two years running with the kids from camp!). CALL ME when you get a chance, and just have fun - the American people are wonderful and friendly and outgoing, and it's so nice to hear you're experience that part of my heritage :))) Love you, take care, Mia xx

[Mia]

nostalgia
Ah, these pictures make me all fuzzy for the past two summers and time spent there with my kids from camp :) You must be having a great time, or so I'm assuming from your absense of blogs haha! CALL ME! 214.280.9644 Love always, Mia xxx