They say San Francisco is hilly. What they mean is San Francisco is vertical. I've been walking around for the last couple of days and realised that this town will give you calves like a rhino after a while. It can be deceiving, you're walking along, looking at your map, thinking "OK along Vallejo then left on Kearney". What the map doesn't show you is that Kearney is almost vertical. Seriously, I mean I don't have my plumb bob with me but it seemed like it was vertical. 85º at least.
Actually that's the only thing that's near 85º as the weather here is freezing. I had packed my big warm coat away at the bottom of the suitcase but I had to get it out again. The weather forecast keeps saying 60º which sounds OK but that's only 15º in new money and that is too cold. I'm pretty sure it's meant to be summer here but you can't quite tell. Actually you can tell because the city is full of northern Europeans on their holidays. This is a good thing actually because it means I can blend in and not look too much like a tourist as nobody ever looks more like a tourist than a German or Frenchman on holiday.
So far some things here are great and some are infuriating, or at least weird. Good things are the public transport, both cheap and effective. Still full of weirdos though. Also you get plenty of clothes hangers in American hotel wardrobes (I believe they are called closets over here) unlike the two or three you get in Australian hotels. Weird things include all the light switches being upside down, you flip them up for on and down for off. Why? The toilets flush with spectacular force which is a bit disconcerting but not necessarily a bad thing, if you get my drift.
However the chocolate is revolting. I mean I know the americans like cheese but I'm pretty sure the Hershey Bar I ate also had a hint of cheddar about it. Not good. And they cannot make a decent cup of tea here to save their lives. As you know tea actually is life saving for the English so this is an issue. I bought a cup from an actual tea shop yesterday and it was directly responsible for me splitting my trousers. That may sound hard to believe but it was. I ordered a cup of earl grey and it came in this huge bucket sized paper cup, it was also made with water that seemed to be at 298,000º C. So to cool it down so I could drink it and hold it I knelt down to add some cold water and managed to put my knee through the trousers I just bought in Singapore! Hopefully they are fixable as they are really cool and it's a bugger of a way to go to return them. I'm sending them home now as I can't wear them so at least it's one less thing to carry.
I went to Fisherman's Wharf yesterday. If you are ever in San Francisco I would recommend you AVIOD it like the plague. Bloody awful tourist trap. Actually I did know that before I went but it was so bad that I was surprised. I'm sure when I was here in '94 it wasn't that tacky. They have the worst buskers in the world, places selling prawn containing food on every corner (great if you have a prawn allergy) and shops selling tat. There was however a company running tours on Segways. I am so tempted. You have to wear a stupid crash hat though.
I caught up with Carol today in Sausalito across the bay. Went on the ferry which was great, got to see Alcatraz and thought I'd get a great pic of the Golden Gate Bridge. However, even though the sun was coming out, the Bridge was still shrouded in fog. Not the most reliable tourist attraction in the world. Carol has been working at a summer camp for the last few weeks. I have to say it sounds like hell, and not just 'cos of the American children involved. She's been living in a tent, showering with the horses and being poisoned by the food on a regular basis. Apparently this is a right of passage for American kiddies. A bit like trial by a million cuts by the sounds of it. She's not working there anymore though. It's complicated, I'm sure she'll explain why, so you better read her emails. I've actually seen quite a few groups of kids on 'camp' (you have to say it in an american accent to get the full effect) around the city. another reason you know that it's the summer here I guess. The first lot were all little tackers holding hands in a big crocodile at Fisherman's Wharf, singing a little song in their sing song way. It was like an episode of Sesame Street. The next lot were all teenage asian kids and the last lot were all teenage Hispanic kids. I'm guessing from this that 'camp' is not the most melting pot of places, all very racially separate.
This may be a gross generalisation but until I see a rainbow group of campers I'm sticking to it.
You see San Francisco in the winter. It isn't that much colder and there are very few tourists. Plus the bridge wasn't shrouded in mist and Fisherman's Wharf was almost deserted.
ReplyDeleteI highly recommend a bus tour of the city as you get to see things that you can come back to. China town is great for lunch (if you haven't already been there).
There is something about American's and "cheese". The most common type is anaemic, bland and essentially like wax, but they want it with EVERYTHING.
I hope you have been to the Apple store at least once a day.
Have fun!