San Fran (Cali Trip continued)

Since last post, I have returned home safe and sound. (Praise the Lord).

Here's a mini recap of the trip and some thoughts with it:

So I mentioned we went to San Francisco. It was our first destination, and boy I loved it. It would definitely be a city I could see myself live it. Its absolutely beautiful. San Francisco has many hills and valleys (and we most certainly experienced them), and with the elevations, amazing views of the city. The houses and their architecture was also a delightful sight (so different from the ordinary homes I see here at home- see picture).  Did I also mention that San Francisco has the world's most crooked street? My friends and I literally climbed up that hill to get to the World's most crooked street, only to find about 250 steps to the top (second pic on the right). We made it all the way with a few drops of sweat down our foreheads.



Our San Francisco visit included many of the hot tourists spots: the Golden Gate Park and Bridge, the Ghiradelli Chocolate Factory, Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 33, Chinatown, Coit Tower, the downtown sector, and Alcatraz. Sometimes, we ventured out to see and do some things on our way; we checked out a few art galleries, we toke a cable car down a very long and hilly road, we hopped on the historic buses by the pier, and we visited the famous Fortune cookie factory in Chinatown. And we did this most times by foot, with one to two bus rides there.

   

One of the most interesting and educational thing we did was visit Alcatraz. Its an island in the bay of San Francisco. Check out their website if you're interested. It is well worth it to go if you're visiting SF. We had a cruise boat to bring us over to the island, and then once there, an self-audio tour was provided. It was really neat to learn about the history of the island - from once a military base, to a federal prison, which when the prison ended the Indians took over as a political protest and now to today's national park. I had no idea it had such a history behind it. We had an up close and personal tour of the how the prisoners and those who managed the prison lived. It was insightful. Looking back, I must say what hit me most is how this was their lives only a few decades ago. It got me thinking (I know how morbid this may sound), but about life and death, and life without hope. And what also struck a cord with me is the health care sector of the prison. Prisoners had the best of health care - doctors on call, a prisoner ward, surgery rooms, dental care. (Aside note: this also totally reminded me of Prison Break haha). But, illness and health show no discrimination whether rich or poor, criminal or not. We went at night too, so it was dark and cold, which only made me think of the worst I suppose. Anyways, just some thoughts about it. Well worth the trip out to the island.




 All in all, we had a wonderful time in San Fran. Our next thing we looked forward to was ... getting the car and actually road tripping!!! Next post: pictures proofs of our road trip to LA. The view was amazing along the coast, simply breathtaking (at times literally as we tried not to fall of the road)! I somehow feel like everyone should have at least one good road trip in their lifetime, and the road we took is a must!