Gawd I'm bored. I've spent most of the day watching telly, catching up on eps of Ugly Betty, Primeval, Stargate: Atlantis and SG1, ER and the freakin sweet Family Guy. And now I've surfed most of the message boards I'm on. I've been putting off posting about my hols but I might as well do it now or I never will.
So. San Francisco.
Flight was pretty uneventful. Just about managed to rush myself through Paris customs where I was changing flights only to find the flight was delayed by two hours. Joy. Then we eventually flew to SF but back over the UK again. So why did I waste 4 or 5 hours going to Paris??? Not doing that again.
Got into SF on Saturday afternoon. Very disconcerting flying in over the bay, watching the water getting closer and closer, not being able to see land. But it did appear and we landed safely. In the pouring rain. I might as well have never left Manchester. I was knackered and greasy and icky so I negotiated the BART system, found my hotel and gratefully ran myself a shower only to slip mid-soaping and fall on my arse. I nearly came a cropper there and then. How I manged not to cry I'll never know. During the fall my ankle had twisted and I feared I'd done some damage to it. My arse and my side were also hurting like hell. I eventually managed to stand up and finish my shower to then lie/sit gingerly on the bed calming myself down and wincing every time I moved. The only thing I did manage to do that night was get dressed and find the nearest Dennys to recover with a much needed burger and a strawberry shake. I also discovered the locals. Druggies, hobos and neer do wells. Great! I should have guessed what sort of area I was in when I saw the adult cinema across the road.
Next morning I was very sore but not so much that I couldn't get down to breakfast (a sandwich thing with fresh juice and tea) in the Brazilian cafe attached to the hotel and wait for my pick up for the tour I was going on. Alcatraz and a deluxe city tour by coach. Alcatraz was fun. It was a gorgeous day and the place was packed. Its actually a rather beautiful place that's been turned into a nature reserve. I mooched around the souvenir shop first then made my way up the hill to the self-guided tour of the cells which was very interesting. I thought the place would be really spooky but it was so crowded and sunny that any atmosphere was lost. Shame. I got loads of great pics and took in the spectacular view of the city before it was time to make my way to the ferry and back to the pier where it was time for the second leg of the tour.
I found myself sitting next to a family from England, presumably Essex or thereabouts from their accents, and chatting amiably with the mother Avril. Very nice lady, giving me tips on what to do and where to go etc. First stop was the Golden Gate Bridge which took my breath away. It was definitely one of those pinch-me-I'm-dreaming moments. You wouldn't have thought a bridge could be exciting but to be somewhere so iconic - then you really know you're in San Francisco. Next we toured through some pretty districts to reach Golden Gate Park where we stopped for the Japanese Tea Gardens or the De Young museum. I opted to just pick up my city pass from the De Young and grab something to eat from the cafe. I'd planned to go back later in the holiday anyway. A tour through more districts, this time some of the really wealthy areas to a place called Twin Peaks which had the most stunning views of the city. And thankfully a lack of horrific murders by a man named Bob. Back on the coach we made our way back through the Castro where we saw a group of men in wedding dresses crossing the road, and IIRC back through Chinatown and to Fishermans Wharf where I got off. Fishermans Wharf is a bit like Blackpool really. Full of tacky souvenir shops but good fun and I picked up pressies for the folks back home and did a bit of shopping for myself. I also found a Johnny Rockets diner which my brother had waxed lyrical about. Or more specifically the milkshakes. Well it was a nice milkshake but not quite as nice as the one I'd had at Dennys the night before and I didn't rate the food much really. I had these breaded chicken wings which were in some kind of weird sauce that I didn't much like the taste of and some onion rings that were a bit average. Finally I wandered down to the far end of the Wharf where the cable car turnaround was. A nice experience being on a cable car but it should really be done during the day I think to get the full effect. It was dark by the time I got on. And its fun trying not to slide down the length of the bench crashing into the person next to you as you go up and down hills. And that was it for the night. I retired back to my hotel to chill out, watch TV and get more sleep.
