So, here we are three days into USA 2018 and I’m finally getting around to my first blog…. blame jet lag, packed days and late nights!
Flights were uneventful and we touched down slightly behind schedule at 0935 Thursday morning – an hour after we left Adelaide according to the calendar 😉
Clearing immigration was relatively painless and after exchanging our pre-paid vouchers for BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) tickets we were on the train and headed for downtown San Francisco. Unfortunately, but as expected, our room was unavailable so we dropped luggage and wandered out to get connected at T Mobile followed by a restorative coffee in Union Square, observing the locals.
Having last visited SF 20 years ago (and never with Russell) I was keen to renew acquaintances with old favourites, especially Fisherman’s Wharf and the famous cable car. We disembarked at Lombard Street, the “crookedest street in the world “ with no less than eight hairpin bends in one steep block and walked down in bright sunshine along with hordes of other tourists!
We wandered aimlessly for a while and eventually in our jet lagged state were coerced into the “best value on the wharf” – a one hour boat trip “under the bridge and around the island” (Alcatraz) for only $15 ! It actually turned out to be great fun and a stiff breeze and salt water helped to keep the eyelids propped open very effectively. The bridge, of course, dominates the skyline, visible from everywhere and simply magnificent, I couldn’t count how many photos I took even though the sun was low in the sky and therefore not ideal….
Slightly damp and very hungry, we ambled down to Pier 39 and Russell indulged another of my 1997 memories and agreed to have dinner at Bubba Gumps, a local seafood eatery. We killed the thirty minute waiting time very efficiently in Bow Wow….
We may have found one or two things there worth spending our $US on …. 😉
Dinner was calorie filled and delicious and later as we fell into bed at 11pm we thought we’d done pretty well for day one. Tomorrow, over the bridge….
2 thoughts on “Water under the bridge”