Advertisement
Published: December 2nd 2008
After Nanaimo, we had a couple more stops to make before we headed down to California. First on the list was Victoria. With a historic look and warm atmosphere (there were even some palm trees!) we enjoyed ourselves at our last stop on Vancouver Island. We walked through the downtown area and down along the coast. We found a popular spot, a pier jutting out into the ocean with a lighthouse at the end and as we walked up it we spotted a sea otter, followed by a harbour seal, and many schools of small fish. Unable to sell the car because of all it's rust - they don't have much rust on cars out west because of the lack of winter salt - we found a scrap yard that was all the way back at Nanaimo, so off we went. On our way there we stopped off at a river where the salmon were running. It was amazing - there were thousands of huge salmon spawning, and we arrived late in the season, so it looked like there were more dead than alive - the birds were having a feast! We got to the scrap yard and sent the car
to car heaven just outside Nanaimo. The car had been our little home for the last few weeks, so stuffing everything in our packs, we really started backpacking. We took the ferry back across to Vancouver and squeezed into the public transit system, too bulky for rush hour, and found our way to the hostel in Vancouver. Vancouver was the first place along the way that had a big-city feel to it, reminding us of Toronto. We did, however, manage to get lost in Stanley Park. The next morning we were at the bus station for 4:30 am for our 30 hour journey to San Francisco. The train was bigger than expected - it was a stretch to reach the footrest! Passing through the states of Washington and Oregon in the daylight, it was a scenic journey, though not as much along the coast as we had hoped for.
Arriving in the morning, we had the whole day to explore. After we checked-in, grabbed some breakfast, and showered, we headed to the newly re-opened California Academy of Science. The most interesting exhibition of its type we have been to, it was a natural science muesuem combined with an aquarium,
planetarium, and four-story tropical rainforest, topped off by a living roof. Full of interesting creatures we had never even heard of, including an albino crocodile, a species that looked like a combination of a sea horse and a twig, and fish that have neon lights under their eyes so they can see in the dark, it was a day full of amazement. Our second day in California we left the city for a guided tour of Yosemite National Park. The park was stunning with it’s mountain scenery, wildlife, and giant sequoia trees. The animals weren’t very afraid of humans and we were able to get close to some coyotes and a large herd of mule deer - about half the size of the deer at home and these guys were also extremely playful. We were absolutely blown away by the mammoth sequoias. One of the bigger trees had fallen over and we were able to climb up it and even through it’s hollowed out trunk! After a very full day, our guide drove us the three hours back to San Francisco in the dark. In the morning our plan was to switch our accomodations and move to the Fisherman’s Wharf
Fallen Giant Sequoia
Yosemite National Parkarea, but not before giving in to the risisng costs of internet time and setting out to by a miniature laptop so we could use free wi-fi. We sought out the nearest Best Buy and aquired a 10.1” laptop; it works great and it’s super portable. Finally we were off to Fisherman’s Wharf, a bussling tourist area where we found lots of street performers, shops, and attractions. We made our way to pier 33 and caught a boat to Alcatraz so we could begin our creepy night tour of the abandoned prison. Closer to the mainland than we had expected, we soon docked at the “Indians Welcome” sign - a reminder that Alcatraz has served as more than a prison. Once we made our way up to the main building, we went through a guided audio tour of the prison. The main cells very tiny and basic, we were able to step behind the bars and get the awful feeling of what things must have been like. The tour included the cells where the men had escaped, including the fake heads and carved-out ventilation holes, the details of a riot where both guards and prisoners were killed, the most dangerous
"Broadway"
Cell block at Alcatraz area in the building - the cafeteria, and the eery hospital section of the prison - the place where “the birdman” Robert Stroud spent his time (contrary to popular belief, he did not have any birds at Alcatraz, but only the prison he was at before, Leavenworth, - “The Birdman of Alcatraz” was a title created to market his biography). We ended the tour outside in the darkness, with the fog rolling across the island and the light house beam streaking through the night. Our last day in San Francisco we jumped on a cable car, going up and down the spectacular hills of the city, went to see the “world’s crookedest road” which is also very steep with it’s 40 degree slope, and watched the California Sea Lions at Fisherman’s Wharf.
It was supposed to take us about eight hours to get to Los Angles the next day, however we missed our train connection which added a couple of hours sitting in the train station. Our first night was spent at a party hostel just off the main Hollywood Blvd. so we followed the Walk of Fame to find our home for the night. We arrived too late to
Hollywood
Los Angeles catch the limo bar crawl, but had some drinks in the lounge anyway. One of our roommates that night had too much to drink and fell out of his bed - lucky for him he was on the bottom bunk! In the morning, we went on a hostel outting to go see the Hollywood sign, we walked up a long and windy road and actually got to the peak of the hill - behind the sign! On our tour, we saw the LAPD hard at work; also doing some sightseeing at the sign. We wanted to see the new James Bond movie, so we thought what better place for a movie than Hollywood? After being escorted to our reserved seats by a uniformed usher, we watched the curtain pull back as the movie began - there’s always more drama in Hollywood! We then headed to Venice Beach for the night, our last stop in California. We didn’t need to be at the airport until 6:00 the next evening, so we had a day to relax on the beach. It was raining a little bit in the morning, so it wasn’t very busy. As we walked along the beach checking out
Cable Car
San Francisco the big waves, we spotted a large pod of dolphins swimming offshore! A perfect end to this leg of our trip,..
Lots of love,
Cass & Andrew
P.S. We’re a little behind with the blog, but we’ve arrived in Australia now - it’s awesome!! We’ve had a busy couple of days adjusting to the time and organizing new bank accounts and what not, but we’ll update you with another blog soon 😊
Also, a lot of you have been asking about my back so here’s the update: It’s holding up as good as can be expected. It was surprisingly good throughout most of Canada. Of course we were taking it easy, and I spent a lot of time sitting in the car. I had a bit of a relapse again in California - similar to the one I had at Thanksgiving but not as bad this time, I could still walk around, and it didn’t seem to last as long. Andrew’s still carrying most of the weight, and we take lots of breaks when we walk places. Overall, I’m definitely improving at a quicker rate than before we left - the warmth helps a lot too. We’re
still taking it easy and hopefully I will heal to 100%. The other thing that’s been difficult is that I didn’t realize how out of shape I got doing nothing but resting for two months! This is like physio bootcamp…Thanks everyone very much for your concern, I’m in a good stretch right now, so hopefully it stays this way for a while!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.055s; Tpl: 0.021s; cc: 8; qc: 24; dbt: 0.0241s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.4mb
Steve
non-member comment
Sea Lion
Andrew, when I saw the sea lion, I couldn't help but think you might need to work on your beach body before hitting the islands! Kidding--- Pictures look great guys, keep em coming. Love from Steve, Kate, Henry and the belly.