In Summary - San Francisco!

san francisco is a most lovely place - friendly people, cool weather, and lots of things to see. i'd love to go back there again.

chinatown
much better than the one in LA, the san francisco chinatown was bustling with activity. we followed the lonely planet's walking tour which was pretty unexciting (we've got lots of temples and chinese-y stuff in singapore anyway) but it brought us to places where the book joy luck club was set in. it's one my favourite books of all time, so this was a treat!

here is a picture of the first chinese baptist church where the four women of the joy luck club first met, and it is along waverly street, for which the head-strong character waverly jong was named after.

down one of the alleys is the golden gate fortune cookie factory. even when you're round the corner, you can smell the delicious fragrance of the fortune cookies being made inside. of course, this cookie thing was a clever invention by the immigrant chinese, but you can buy other crispy snacks when you're there. i snapped a picture of a worker making the cookies, and yes, the sign behind her says you have to pay USD0.50 to take a picture.

a few streets away, life is just as it would have been in china - groups of men were clustered around playing games of chinese chess. very quaint and surreal.

fisherman's wharf

this is touted as san francisco's most famous attraction, and it's easy to see why. the cool breeze (even in summer) puts you in a relaxed mood, as you stroll down and see the numerous piers and even more numerous sea cows that have made the place their home. my, did they make a racket!

a visit to the wharf would not be complete without sampling some fresh seafood, so i got myself an oyster while my friend tried the clam chowder. i'll put the pictures of the food on the food blog (which is still under construction, many apologies) but here's the menu for your eyes to feast on. i love seafood, and was tempted to buy one of each type of food!


alcatrazalong fisherman's wharf is the jetty from which you can visit alcatraz. a few decades ago, the name would send a chill any self-respecting crook, because it was one maximum security prison no one could escape from. it was initially used as a military prison, first by the unionists in the american civil war then the us army, it was turned into a federal prison during the tumultous prohibition and great depression periods. the place was designed to be impossible to break out from and the guards had various tricks up their sleeves to discourage the prisoners. there were frequent inmate counts, teargas canisters rigged up around the dining hall, and it was mandatory to have hot showers - not because the guards were kind, but to prevent the inmates from aclimatising to the bitter cold.but in 1946, a bunch of inmates overpowered the officers and gained access to weapons. it would have ended up like a prison break sort of escape if not for the fact that they did not have the key to the recreation yard. two officers died in the line of duty, shot at point blank range while taken hostage. the us marines were called out, and they fired grenades into the cell blocks. the scars from the shelling are still visible at alcatraz. the "battle of alcatraz" lasted forty eight hours, and it's main perpetrators executed 2 years later.

alcatraz has been designated a historical landmark, and visitors can also enjoy the wildlife that has settled on this tiny piece of rock.

coit tower


















this 210 feet monument was built by a rich lady in 1933. it was never made official, but from it's design, it was quite likely that it was inspired by the local firemen, who played an important role in the 1906 earthquake which flattened the city.

to get to the top, you must take an elevator (those old ones which resemble a cage) which is operated by a chinese man. as you ascend he recites a well-rehearsed speech about the monument's history. it was well-timed too - just as he finishes his last sentence, the elevator will groan to a halt. the tower offers an awesome view of the city and it's landmarks like lombard street and fisherman's wharf.

lombard street




















also known as the "crookedest road in the world", lombard street is one of the steepest roads in san francisco. in order to ensure safety, the city planners included eight "switchbacks" or curves, to allow drivers to slowly make their way down without accident. when we were there, we saw a line of cars all waiting patiently for a trip down. the speed limit here is 5mi/h (8km/h)!

the rest of san fran
while i was there, i also visited the golden gate bridge (completely shrouded in mist), union square (with macy's as a cool backdrop) and ghirardelli square. from the last place i bought a whole bag of chocolates "at a discount", but have been told that it's actually cheaper to get it from a supermarket. oh well. missed trying the ice cream because it was such a cold day, but i've heard it's pretty good. on the last day i took the caltrain down to stanford to visit a friend. it was quite an experience as i was alone and had to figure out how to read a train schedule and locate the platform, which i had never done before! getting to and from the caltrain station was tricky too, but thanks to various local chinese, i made it safely. it was the first time i was utterly grateful to have people of my skin colour around.

and so it is, my san francisco experience! i know i've taken very long with it, and have yet to put up my diary of new york, but i'll do that soon...before sip hopefully! but san fran is a lovely place, and i hope to visit it again in the future.