San Francisco

9th April 2004
We arrived into San Francisco on the 9th of April from Las Vegas. After gathering our belongings we made our way to down town San Fran by train, getting off at the Union Square stop. Going by the map it was just a short stroll three blocks north & two blocks west, that was until we saw the hills. Now I'm not a complete idiot, I always knew that San Francisco was renowned for the hills the city is built on, but it just so happened that ours was almost at the top of the highest street in the city, California Street. So no doubt just like many travellers before us & many travellers after us, we began the inevitable walk up the hill dragging our suitcases behind us. We were staying at USA Hostels. A great location & very cheap, with breakfast included. That evening we went for a walk down to Fisherman's Wharf to check out the shops & try to spot the famous sea lions that have taken over the dock. We looked & looked & looked but no sea lions. We did however find one of my favourite restaurants in San Francisco.... "Hard Rock Cafe". The meals were great, the staff were friendly and the place just had a good vibe to it.

The next day we got up nice and early & headed back down to Fisherman's Wharf. This time we went straight to the ticket sales counter for Alcatraz Island. We had heard that it can be days before you get on the island so we thought it would be best to buy our tickets now. It turned out the first tickets that were available were for a visit in three days time, "We'll take em..". We decided to go down the end of pier 23 & get a photo of Alcatraz from there. As we were walking down we noticed a lot of people standing around & pointing so we decided to go see what all the fuss was about. It was the sea lions, we found them finally. They were lazy, smelly & exceptionally loud. All they seemed to do was fight for the best position on the on the dock & if they didn't get their way they would let everyone know about it. The story behind them is that they were considered a pest not too long ago. All the rich people used to tie their boats up here & one day a few sea lions started to appear on the docks. They tried to get rid of them using various methods but more & more appeared. Eventually they just gave up their futile attempts & now they are one of San Frans biggest attractions. We spent that afternoon taking a ride on the Grayline Open Air Trolley Tour. It was a city tour that allowed you to get off to visit attractions, then once you were done it would continue on it's merry way.

On day three we decided to rent some bikes & go for a spin across the bay. After paying only $28 for the day, we were off on our Blazing Saddle Mountain bikes. We were headed along the waterfront in the direction of the Golden Gate Bridge. This made for a nice ride as there was a bike trail right along the waterfront. The ride got a little harder as we had to ride up the mountain to get on to the bridge. After pausing at the top for a breather & some perfect Golden Gate photos, we were off. This bridge is bloody long, we were peddling for what felt like 20 minutes until we finally reached the other side. From there is was down hill for 2 kilometres, as we coasted into Sausalito. A beautiful & very rich water front community, Sausalito is a great place to relax & have a bite to eat, or do a little window shopping checking out all the unusual gifts available. This place is a little like Noosa combined with Byron Bay. From Sausalito we had three options, the first was to get the ferry back to Fisherman's Wharf, which we decided against as we hadn't had the bikes for very long. The second was to ride back across the bridge which included the ride up hill for 2 kilometres. The third option was to continue riding around the bay which seemed relatively flat, this would take us to the sea side town of Tiburon. It wasn't a hard decision & we opted for the nice ride to Tiburon. As Sausalito faded out of view we realised that it was a little bit further than we first realised. There were other riders along the way but everyone we passed seem to be broken down. There were flat tyre's, injured people & those who had just given up. Half an hour further down the road it was beginning to get a little bit more like a highway ride than the peaceful , beautiful scenery we were sold. After a few wrong turns it appeared that we were back on the right track following the waters edge. "How far is the frickin town for pete's sake?" We both hadn't been on a bike for so long that we were starting to feel sore in places that I didn't even know the name of. After riding the last 4 kilometers with my ass in the air we had made it. "Oh it was so bloody wonderful" a little to sore to enjoy it perhaps. After we had a short cowboy style walk around the quaint little town we bought an ice cream then jumped on the first available ferry headed for Fisherman's Wharf. It was a great day & a lot of fun, but next time I may not pick such a long ride, for my first time on a bike in 12 years.

After experiencing pedal power, the next day I decided it was time to harness some raw power. This came in the shape of a Go Car. "What's a Go Car?" I hear you ask. They are a three wheeled bright yellow vehicle with a top speed of 58 klms per hour. They were only starting out in April 2004 & the British owner asked us to take the very first one for a spin & give him any feedback we could. It comes complete with roll bar & GPS. The GPS tells you where to turn & when you pull up at an attraction it even tells you a brief history & some interesting facts. In the Go Car we took in attractions such as the Golden Gate Bridge, the Exploratorium where you can have a hands on experience with everything scientific, Haight-Ashbury which is the name of the streets where the hippie culture of the 1960's took off, the "Presidio" where there's an old military base with a few ghost stories as well as some nature walks & stunning views. Our last attraction was driving down Lombard Street which currently holds the record for the worlds crookedest street.

ALCATRAZ ISLAND:
We caught the Blue & Gold Fleet boat for about 10 minutes from Fisherman's Wharf. As we docked we were greeted by a National Parks Ranger as Alcatraz Island is protected by the National Parks Service. After a brief overview of the island with a little history thrown in, we were set free to do our own thing. We made out way up to the prison which sits high on the island where we decided to take the audio tour, which I must say I was very impressed with. It was easy to use, easy to follow & told some amazing stories of the islands history, battles with guards & of course the various different escape attempts. You can see Al Capone's cell & have your photo taken inside. There is the also the cell of Frank Morris who most people know of since the movie "Escape From Alcatraz" starring Clint Eastwood. In his cell you can see the small hole in the wall as well as a dummy head set up in the bed. There are only a few places that are off limits due to safety regulations, but you pretty well have free reign to explore Alcatraz as you wish. We arrived there at 11.30am & only had intentions to see it & leave. We ended up catching the last boat from the island at 4.30pm as there was so much to see & so many interesting stories to listen to. This place is a must for anyone going to San Francisco.