Publications
Partners
This is part of a series of travel stories, based upon the experiences of me and my wife, on our tour across America. Read more at
http://www.thebizz.biz/travel-bizz/
San Francisco – California, CA
The History:
Driven mainly by the “Californian Gold Rush” that spanned through the mid 1800’s in the West, “The City by the Bay” is today one of the most densely populated urban areas in the States. Famously, nearly 3 quarters of the City was destroyed by the 1906 earthquake and fire, San Fran was rapidly rebuilt to one of the most popular tourist destinations in the World. Evocative of a hybrid between the Coastal tranquil elements of Cape Town and the buzz of New York City, Fog City merges the best of many worlds to present an epicentre of enlightenment. Presenting many renowned symbols, the City draws fame from landmarks like the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, the San Fran cable car system and Alcatraz Island. With an inability to bore, it’s easy to see why this has become the hub of world connectedness through Silicon Valley, where the geniuses of our age are bubbled-in at the headquarters of Google, Facebook and many other.
The Setting:
After barely surviving scenes from a Wes Craven superscript (read San Diego), we arrived in the astonishing San Francisco. We decided to toy with another backpackers, after our first encounter in LA pleasantly surprised. Nevertheless, we were shocked to our core upon our arrival at our hostel called “The Green Tortoise”, when immediately noticed that our neighbours for the next couple of days consisted of a strip club to the right and a Salvation Army hairdresser to the left. Flanked by these poles of dexterity, we unknowingly got our first taste of the palpable diversity of San Fran. But variance often sprouts beauty and resembling a classical metamorphosis, this City has the ability to change its dark side to splendour within seconds. Walking through the doors of our hostel and up a steep staircase, with a magnitude of luggage, we realised that no book should be judged by its cover, since what awaited us was the perfect culmination to our US journey.
The Experience:
We arrived early in San Fran and quickly ascended the steps to our hostel to check-in and unpack. Even though our lodgings were not extravagant, there was a translucent vibe floating through the corridors. We were greeted with smiles and gleeful nods everywhere we wandered. Unfortunately our hostel did not have parking, so we had to rid ourselves of our final personal mode of transport that evening, and thereby only had the car for the afternoon. Deciding that we have to explore far-reaching horizons while being mobile, we descended upon the Golden Gate Bridge. Creating a magnificent vista, this renowned red bridge spans across the Pacific Ocean like Phoenix taking flight. Not ones to dally to be part of the action, we quickly drew our cameras to get our piece of the most photographed suspension in the World. Bootlegging the art of flash photography, we fed our memory sticks with endless pictures from different slants. Sometimes the model, sometimes the clown, sometimes the director and sometimes the shutterbug we created magic through our lenses. Preluding an actual visit to the site, all of us probably marvel at why this is such a fascinating enigma. We will however fail to provide reason in this prose, but braving icy gales on a sunny day to witness what engineers awe as a wonder of the world, stretches beyond discourse. Glowing an orangey-red against a blue backdrop, it really leaves you breathless.
We then strolled around the bridge and had a pictorial history lesson on how the bridge evolved since the onset of its development. Thereafter we witnessed forts and war relics of master masonry that were erected to protect San Fran from warships of old. Traditionally sights like these will be met by a jaded response from both parties, but being surrounded by the bridge on the one side and Alcatraz on the other, we were able to overturn any effervescent boredom. After exhausting the photo capacity of our Kodaks, we went downtown in search of food and settled for trustworthy Burger King Whoppers. We then returned the car to the airport and planned on catching the train back, before Chantel decided to misplace her backpack, containing ALL the tour memorabilia et.al. Fortunately, citizens of the 50 states are either too dumb, rich or honest to take the belongings of another. Therefore, with the help of a security effort normally reserved for Barak Obama, we eventually found the bag – neatly nestled on the circulating airport train where Chantel was seated earlier on. Slightly embarrassed we returned to our hostel, all the time contemplating how a random, unsearched bag could circulate so surreptitiously, within the borders of an American airport. Even though a Las Vegas key ring will never be considered a weapon of mass destruction, the happenings of 9/11 made a bit more sense, despite airport security measures that feel like they try to re-enact the infamous strip scenes from “Magic Mike” every time you try to board.
Three things become very apparent within the first few hours of exploring San Fran; firstly the cable car system is more for show and not an effective method of transportation, secondly there is an apparent lack of alternative transportation other than walking. Finally, the City has a mountainous landscape, with more ups and downs at every corner than Graeme Smith’s Test career. So between mountaineering one corner and blitzing downhill at the next, the amount of kilojoules burned equate to a gold medal comrade. This was our final day, so we championed the hills with chariots of fire anthems accompanying our hi5 moments with each summit. This is how we found our way along AT&T Park, the home of the Major League Baseball champions – the San Francisco Giants. With one accomplishment in the bag we embarked to Pier 39, or more renowned as Fisherman’s Wharf. Here we were amazed by this nugget of awesomeness, consisting of various little shops and restaurants all capturing the breath-taking aura of the City. We were entertained by lazy seals basking on docked stages in the ocean, before enjoying a meal at Bubba Gumps, where we overlooked the infamous Alcatraz prison. Drawing inspiration from the splendid sight (and a couple of cocktails), we purchased tickets for an Alcatraz tour and were also fortunate to view a submerged submarine on close inspection.
We then got onto a ferry and approached “The Rock”. The final home for many eminent rogues including Al Capone, Robert “the birdman” Stroud and George “machine gun” Kelly, this was obviously no place for the cowardly. Boasting the only hot prison showers while in operation, even this gesture was carefully planned to prevent prisoners from acclimatizing to cold water and thereby enabling their bodies to endure the swim in the icy Pacific Ocean surrounding the prison. As if the fear of Sharks and sharp-shooting guards were not enough to put terror in the hearts of even the most courageous of prisoner. We received story-telling headsets that narrated our journey around the prison. Filled with mimicking sound effect and tales from former prisoners, this is a site not to be missed. Nicolas Cage became a legend in our minds because not even Chuck Norris could jailbreak from Alcatraz. Prison stories are scary, especially when they’re of the non-fiction nature, and this was presented strikingly on a tray of realism. Alcatraz was a highly anticipated hit.
After our mob-experience we decided to join an array of people from our hostel and a few locals on a night out on the town. This decision placed us dead-centre in the flawlessly orchestrated pub-crawl. We moved through four of the most prestigious venues in close proximity and had an exquisite dish, with a perfectly paired drink, at each. We were making friends as the night got longer and we soon realised that all of us were often lost in lingo due to the multinational representation, and the only antidote was obtained through alcoholic prescriptions. So who were we to argue against doctor party himself? Few things are more entertaining than carousing with people from all around the globe, but we discovered at least one – watching this blond Afrikaans babe beating the hell out of the Aussies, Spaniards, Americans, Brazilians and many more in consecutive bouts of pool. Unbeaten on the evening, we also discovered Neil’s natural talent for cheerleading bouts aimed at his soon to be fiancé. He still blames this emerging hidden gift, on his subconscious hate of the Aussies. That night we slept soundly and in proudly South African style, with Shosholoza and Ole, Ole, Ole echoing through our bones.
Our final day in the United States had two missions; to build our stock of gifts and memorabilia for those awaiting our return and also to ride on the famous cable cars. But first breakfast – and what better place for our final pre-lunch feast than Johnny Rockets – the place that aims to create a classic American restaurant atmosphere. They didn’t disappoint. We ate hamburgers wrapped in paper and served on cardboard plates, while drinking All American Shakes and listening to our very own mini jukebox of epic songs. We then browsed through Chinatown to buy a new suitcase, after one of ours did not survive the Civil War launched by the states. Similar to LA’s Chinatown, this one was highly overrated, even though English was the lingua franca and we successfully purchased an impressive “fong kong” suitcase on wheels for a bargain. Our last moments in the states were spent souvenir shopping which also resulted in a success story, before we attempted to catch the Kodak moment on a cable car. If we could claim victory in this event we could have died happier than sleeping next to an Olympic gold medal, this is how impossible this affair is. Alas, we had to admit defeat or miss our flight home. The lure of Spur Steaks and Black Label beers won the day and we declared San Fran the victors. Those cable carts might have won the battle, but the war was still ours for the taking. America stole our hearts and can expect us back with a bang….
