Be Back Later...: San Francisco, California

Day Eighteen

Today was a big travel day. After my 4 1/2 hour flight from Honolulu to Los Angeles (arriving at 6am) I caught a fly away shuttle to Union Station. I then had to keep myself occupied for 3 1/2 hours before boarding the Coast Starlight train to take me to San Francisco.

Union Station is one of those beautiful old stations with ornate detailing and high ceilings. One thing that struck me about the station was both the number of armed security (police, army, private security and homeland security) and the number of homeless people. Even with the number of security personal someone still tried to steal my suitcase!

The actual train ride from Los Angeles to Oakland was stunning. The landscape transitioned from city to coast to countryside and back again. You get a real feel for the Californian landscape while travelling on the Coast Starlight. We travelled through America's "Salad Bowl" and got a real feel for the agricultural industry.

Once we arrived in Oakland, those of us heading to San Francisco were directed onto a bus for the last leg of our journey. The bus ride was fairly uneventful and you couldn't see much as it was around 10:30pm. Finally I had arrived at my destination 24 hours later! Only a shuttle -> plane -> bus -> train -> bus to get from Honolulu to San Francisco!

I needed a nap.

Day Nineteen

I started my day early, leaving the hostel at 8am and decided to walk to Pier 39, which was about an hours walk. The weather was absolutely magnificent, it was like Melbourne on a sunny winters day; the air was crisp and fresh, the sun was out and there wasn't any fog in sight. On my walk I discovered a local market selling tie-dyes, home-made candles and smoking paraphernalia... it was hilarious. Once I reached Pier 39, I booked my activities for the day and took a walk down the pier. I found Sea Lions!

I went on a cruise "Escape from the Rock" which was really fun. It went under the Golden Gate Bridge, circled Alcatraz, telling stories of inmates before going under Bay Bridge and then returning back to shore. The Aquarium at the Bay, located at Pier 39 was next on my list. It was quite a small Aquarium, but had some really cool exhibits, including jellyfish and river otters!

I spent the late afternoon walking around Pier 39, looking in all of the shops and staring out onto the bay and looking at the Sea Lions. I then went and sat in a park by Pier 27 until it was time to get ready for my Alcatraz by night tour. Alcatraz by night was really cool! I saw the sun setting as we landed on the island before doing an audio tour finishing up with a presentation given by a staff member. The presentation was not at all what I expected, it was titled "Obsession and Murder", I thought it would be about cool murder storied that got people put into Alcatraz... instead it was about a gay couple who were prisoners at Alcatraz... I headed home from Alcatraz on the Powell-Mason Cable Car which was super fun!!

Day Twenty

I started today with a walk down Sutton Street, which is becoming the modern day Chinatown in San Francisco, heading to City Lights Bookstore and then walking down traditional Chinatown to see the Chinatown Gates.

After walking through Chinatown, I found Union Square (where the love heart sculpture is located), before catching the F-line Cable Car and heading back to Pier 39.

I went on the "Bridge to Bridge" Cruise, once again going under both the Golden Gate Bridge and Bay Bridge, listening to the history of San Francisco.

After the cruise, I hopped on a Hop On, Hop Off Bus and saw many of the attractions in San Francisco not located along the wharf. I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge, went to Golden Gate Park, saw Haight-Ashbury, went through the Tenderloin before heading back to Union Square.

Day Twenty-One

Today was Wine Country Day, I headed to the Napa Valley on a tour, where we visited three wineries. The first winery was called Nicholson Ranch, which was actually in Somona, not Napa Valley. We sampled a Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah. I wasn't really a fan of these wines.

Next stop was Madonna Estate, which produced organic wines in Napa Valley. Here we sampled a Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Roselto, Muscat Canelli and a Gewurztraminer. The last one, a German wine, was amazing.

Our next stop was our lunch break where we headed to a shopping centre "Marketplace V, 1870" which was originally a winery. I had lunch at Napa Styles where I had a Meatball Panini and Truffle Potatoes. It was the best meal I have had in America to date. I then went to Bouchon Bakery where I had a Latte and a Salted Caramel Macaroon, also delicious.

The last winery we visited was the Sutter Home Winery where we sampled White Zinfandel, Pinot Grigio, Red Zinfandel, Retro Muscat and Zinfandel Port. These were all good wines, yet they were not as good as the wine from the second winery.

Fun Fact: the orange poppy is the state flower of California and it grows on the nature strips by the roads near San Francisco. If you are caught piking or destroying this flower, you will get fined $1000.

Day Twenty-Two

Today was another long travel day, I caught the F-Line Cable Car to Pier 39 where I then waited for the bus that would take me from San Francisco to Oakland.

I then caught the train from Oakland to Los Angeles where I then took a $5 taxi through Downtown LA to the Miyako Hotel. It was a 16 hour day of straight travel. I was very happy to arrive safe and sound and crash into my bed. Before I fell asleep, I met one of the girls who would be on my tour, Leeza and we planned to go to Universal Studios the next day.

Day Twenty-Three

At Universal Studios we were determined to do everything and see everything. It was a lot of fun! One of the interesting things was how rides are evolving. There were only 2 legitimate rollercoasters at the park, the rest were simulation rides. These rides were fun, but did not give the same adrenaline rush as normal rides. They would save on space, be cheaper to maintain and be safer than normal rides though.