CALIFORNIA: Day 6

The first part of our vacation was beautiful seeing all the God-made creations in the National Parks. However we could not pass up the opportunity to go sight-seeing in SAN FRANCISCO! Our day was filled with many fun adventures:

1. BAY BRIDGE

This is the inital bridge we had to cross to get from Oakland to San Francisco. It is actually pretty cool because it has two levels. The traffic going to San Francisco is on top and the traffic going to Oakland is on the bootom. (WARNING: It costs $6 to cross the bridge each way!! Can you believe people pay $12 in bridge tolls just to get to work? CRAZY!) My dad decided that as we were CROSSING the bridge it would be a great time to tell us about how the top level collapsed onto the bottom level during the Earthquake of 1989!! Needless to say we did not take the Bay Bridge out of the city after that story.

2. ALCATRAZ ISLAND

I guess we still managed to see a National Park in San Francisco because Alcatraz Island home to the famous prison is considered a national park. This was such a cool experience to visit the island. As soon as we got off the ferry boat, the island had an erie feel with hundred of birds making noises at once. (Think Shutter Island in real life! eeek!) The highlight of the island is most definitely the Cellhouse where we received an audio tour. The tour involved wearing a media headset that guides you step-by-step through the cellhouse. The thing that made it even cooler was that real guards and inmates recounted the history, lifestyle, and violent escapes of Alcatraz Prison!

The outdoor recreation area

The prisoners described their stories as torture and explained that the design of Alcatraz was that they would be reminded of a society that they would never be a part of again. They said on holidays like New Years Eve the voices from parties carried accrossed the bay into their windows. Also as you can see below each of the halls and structures were named something famous.

3. CABLE CAR RIDE
This was such a fun way to explore the town of San Francisco. We were able to see all the different neighborhoods, streets, and culture while feeling like we were on a rollercoaster!

4. GILROY, CA

This is the town we stayed the night in after our fun-filled day in San Francisco. As soon as we got off the interstate, all of our eyes started itching and watering. Then as we pulled into the town a distinct and unpleasant aroma seeped into the car. We all looked at each other wondering what was going on!! Dad and I were pretty sure the smell was garlic, but we had no idea where it was coming from. We checked in at the front desk of our hotel expecting the receptionists to mention the smell or apologize for the inconvenience but they did not say anything! Were we going crazy? After we got to our room I had to look up online what was going on---our eyes were still watering!! We then discovered that Gilroy is the "Garlic Capital of the World," known for its garlic crops and annual garlic festival! Their town motto is "a community with a spice for life" and they even have a garlic ice cream shop. HAHAHA! This adventure definitely topped of our day first with burning tears and then tears of uncontrollable laughter!!



Below are more photos from our fantastic day in SAN FRANCISCO:

XOXO Alexa