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Published: September 26th 2008
Looking north from Twin Peaks
The Presidio, the Golden Gate Bridge, and Mt. Tam in the distanceMuseum-going:
Our first adventure was at the Exploratorium, the fabulous science museum with hands-on exhibits that actually work! I never got off the second floor, absorbed in huge exhibits on “life” (from cell structure and DNA to … everything else) and “sound.” (Just heard on NPR that one of the people who developed the Sound exhibit just won a McArthur award, and hooray for him!) Along with several kids who were so interested they practically lay on the table where it took place, I watched the fascinatingly revolting dissection of a cow’s eye (by a most dispassionate teenage kid; “…thinking of being a vet or biologist some day?” “I dunno…”), and watched as cells from a young girl’s cheek went under a microscope and were zoomed until the nuclei were clearly visible - all explained by a great docent. Robb played with the mechanical stuff all afternoon. (Yes, I did! It was amazing how much cool movement you can get from very simple things, like a long chain that is just spinning from a big bicycle wheel about ten feet above the ground. Stop it for a half second and watch the weird gyrations it goes through as it is conserving
angular momentum!)
Next back to Oakland Museum of California. As our new Berkeley friend Nancy warned, the building is not a very pleasing design (being built in the heyday of the brutalist design craze), but the various concrete walls have been softened by the plantings that are now hanging over them. Two of the three galleries are closed for renovation, but the gallery on natural history and a special exhibit on California art and history were excellent, and we especially enjoyed the insights of a very enthusiastic docent who spent an hour with us.
Then a day at the Monterey Aquarium: Another must-see place where we spent about six hours. If we missed anything, I don’t know what it was. We managed to get to the feedings of the penguins, sea otters, and fish in the “kelp jungle.” Most endearing sight: the female penguin making non-stop trips to bring shells to her mate, sitting on an already huge nest of same. Back and forth, back and forth, one shell at a time, that cockeyed waddle never stopping. At the feeding, I was so amused to see that most of the birds lined up just like little kids in
A computer-controlled car gives a tour of the city
(a little too expensive for us, but these folks were enjoying it) the hall at school, waiting their turn to be fed. They’re fed one fish at a time while the keeper notes down exactly how much every bird consumes! For the most part they behave themselves quite politely, although a docent did say they’re more rowdy at the morning feeding (probably more hungry!). Another endearing sight: a molting female who hides herself in a cave. Her Scruffiness came out during the feeding, but mostly to watch with, I thought, a rather sad or thoughtful demeanor. Molting birds, and ones on the nest, don’t eat.
We stood on the San Andreas fault again: in San Juan Bautista, a little town that still has an authentic Spanish flavor and is home to the 18th mission built by the Spanish at the end of the 1700s on the original Camino Real. We stopped for dinner on our way back from Monterey and afterwards walked in the late twilight to the atmospheric old mission and along the steep ridge at its edge - the fault.
Hiking San Francisco
Sunday my cousin Jan and husband Denny took us on an urban hike through San Francisco, up and down Russian Hill, then Telegraph Hill, up
to Coit Tower and down again - much of it on back streets and, especially, stairs not well known to tourists. This was a superbly interesting and fun way to see the city, its architecture and its gardens. The day was beautifully warm and sunny, so the views everywhere were knock-out, especially the bay dotted with sailboats. The climbs were always steep, and sometimes very steep, and the next day my calves were killing me! But oh - the chance to see so many houses and gardens up close and to imagine how it would be to have your front door in the middle of six steep flights of stairs - think about it! And to think how it would be to live up so high, perched on the edge of a hill, with a premier view and the knowledge that you are on top of an active earthquake zone!
Before driving home Robb and I stopped to watch the beautiful spectacle of countless wind- and kite-surfers in the bay. The wind was strong and steady, and the speed of these guys was unbelievable - lickety-split! They turn about in an instant, and yes, they dump with some frequency.
But zap! They’re up and zooming away in seconds. The kite surfers can make some astounding maneuvers. We watched one guy take off from the beach and almost immediately fly high into the air and attempt a few twists before coming down. Involuntarily, from all of us watchers: “Whooooa …. Waaaa!” You get the idea.
On Wednesday, we joined Denny’s hiking group for a 10+ mile hike south and west of the city in the hills along the coast. It was surprisingly hot, somewhere in the 80’s. Although most of the hike was in the shade, there was up and down (total 1400+ feet gain/loss) and this is a serious group that doesn’t take many breaks. The last two miles I was really working! They’re an informal gang that began with a bunch of GTE employees who were friends. Yesterday there were almost 25 people, and Denny said there are many more. Everyone hikes at his/her pace, but I can tell you, they’re all strong! And the majority are in their 60’s-70’s! The oldest hiker that day was 79.
On driving:
For a flat-lander used to a grid and fixed landmark (The Lake), hills, hills and more hills
Wind & kite surfers in San Francisco Bay
more sports that Robb will never be able to do! make for rewarding but sometimes nerve-wracking experiences. Today, Thursday, Robb navigated a slow rubbernecking route through the Berkeley hills, where we gaped at houses, some of them on stilts going down into canyons, and views. I’d give my eyeteeth to be able to get into some of them. On the down side we often saw a carport off the road with an entrance into an invisible house going down two or more stories and shrouded by tall trees, shrubbery and flowers. So intriguing! Quite a few houses with a Japanese-y feel to them, but in all, a great variety of styles and sizes - though not many really large ones. The views up there today were stupendous - completely clear and a view for miles and miles over city and water to more city.
Driving anywhere requires unusual attention. The expressways can be brutal, choked with traffic. Fast cars and motorcycles zoom in and out. Our saving grace has been the commuter lanes. With two passengers we qualify for those on most, though not all, highways. But local driving is also a challenge. Not only do we contend with “no left turn” on many of the main roads in
San Francisco, but we never know what kind of hill is around the corner. Then there are the legions of bicyclists! They are everywhere - male, female, every age, helmets or no, lights or no. Most of them are strong (they’re young!), and some are incredibly daring (reckless?). They swoop and zoom and you can’t be sure what they’ll do next. Finally, there are the crosswalks. They’re serious - people really do STOP at them, and this also requires vigilance. It’s a good thing, I’ll admit, but all of this makes driving more dicey than usual, and driving is the only way to really see stuff.
Things Political:
In Francisco Chronicle: a thin ragsheet reporting that Obama is 16 points ahead of McCain in this state, and that Sarah Palin has ditched two planned fundraisers here to either (1) campaign with McCain because he can’t pull any crowds alone, (2) cram cram cram for the upcoming VP debate, (3) go shoot a moose or (4) start a war with Russia. But really, why campaign in a state you know you’re going to lose? In Berkeley, a woman rolled down her car window when she saw the Obama sticker
on our bumper (from Senate primary days) and yelled something like “All right!! I see you’ve been behind Obama for a long time!!” so I yelled “He’s our guy!” and gave her a thumbs up.
Dinner in Oakland’s Chinatown (more appropriate: Asia-town): on a Saturday night there were surprisingly few people around, free parking everywhere, and a wonderful selection of cuisines available. For about $40, we stuffed ourselves and brought back about five pounds of leftovers (I’m not kidding!) Funny fact: on the credit card chit, the appropriate tip amounts for our bill were listed at the 15%, 20% and 25% levels - just in case we had flunked percentages in school…
Sad sight in Oakland: a shabby Chinese older woman maneuvering a heavy shoulder pole with a large, black garbage bag - full - hung from each end. Other sad sights in SF - people wheeling around HUGE bundles of stuff, sleeping under huge bundles of stuff in parks. Still too many sadly disturbed homeless people around…
Last but not least: Biking!
On Tuesday we rented a tandem in Golden Gate Park. Know what? SF maps don’t show hills! Robb took us to the Embarcadero … via Pacific Heights - an area of beautiful house atop a serious hill. The worst was coming down - I called it six steep hills in a row; Robb called it one hill going six blocks. Whatever you call it: zowie! Robb plied the brakes continuously and we went down slowly - had to stop at each street corner. So we made it but I can’t exaggerate my HUGE RELIEF at getting down to the water! From there we threaded our way through the most tourist-jammed part of the Embarcadero to the less-crowded area of now-abandoned wharfs (wharves?) and all the way to (the former Candlestick) ATT Park. Beautiful view of the Bay Bridge as we passed under it both going and coming, and a close-up view of downtown. Then back almost as far as the Golden Gate and up into the Presidio (former military outpost; being converted a la Fort Sheridan at home), and once there, an even longer up to get over and back down into the park to return the bike. With the exception of one very steep, short uphill getting up to Pacific Heights, we managed to get up all those hills without walking thanks to Robb’s legs and, I must say, I gave my all. I looked around Robb once and groaned when I saw the rest of the hill. Robb said: “ Don’t look! Don’t look!”
Despite the challenge of biking in them, there’s something very appealing to me about these neighborhoods built on hills. I know, I know - earthquakes will kill everybody, San Francisco is going to fall into the sea, etc. But I find it intriguing to think of living in a house where I drive up or down as much as two levels to my garage. Where my front or back yard slopes down dramatically, and where I can plant a wonderful assortment of plants - from deciduous to evergreen, trees, flowers, shrubs, grasses, succulents and even cactus. When the sun is out in this area, it’s a very green and colorful place with a great variety of housing styles. I haven’t seen McMansions in Piedmont. If they’re there, they have been cleverly designed and fit into the neighborhoods. Even large houses do not overwhelm, and there are plenty of small ones of considerable character and color. Piedmont is a nice place, and I love to rubberneck in San Francisco admiring the architecture.
Today, Thursday, is another absolutely glorious day of sun and warmth, and everyone says that this is highly unusual (as in, don’t get used to it), etc. etc. Well, we’re back in shorts and t-shirts, just ate lunch in the sun, and we are reveling in it! We’ve taken a “rest day” to catch up on laundry, email, books, haircuts, new pair of shoes, etc. We’ve decided that this becomes important when you’re on the road for so long.
A few final odds & ends:
From a magazine ad for Matrix Energetics … “based on the laws of quantum reality…helps you make key shifts into new possibilities! The Matrix is the frame on which the canvas of reality is stretched… to help us to move into personal transformation.” Another ad talks of reaching “a higher logical level” through “advanced clearing & healing techniques” and “quantum linguistics”, etc. On the facing page, an article entitled “Feed the meter and put your feet up.” Now THAT I can deal with!
Bathroom, Monterey Aquarium: Sign on toilet handles noting that, to save water, push the handle UP for liquid waste, and DOWN for … well, you know. By the towel dispenser: PAPER TOWELS = TREES.
Trying to be good guests but a little overwhelmed with garbage detail: three receptacles (Organics; Recyclables; other). First two bins are large, deep; the third large but only half as deep. I wonder how it’s working. Takes thought to do it right. (Robb here: I’ve been impressed by the amount of recycling and general attention to all things environmental here in the Bay area. Barbara’s aunt & uncle have a refrigerator magnet that says “Love to save water”.)
Sign in Piedmont advertising: Pop Singing for Girls, 9-13. Sign in Gilroy, garlic capital of the world: Got Garlic? (also businesses like The Garlic Shoppe & Garlic World)
Tomorrow another Big Pack and we’re off to Tahoe and the eastern Sierras.
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