San Francisco

26th November

San Francisco was my Father's favourite city apparently.   He spent around five years in Canada and The USA before I was born, beginning his journey on the East coast of the US and travelling across Canada to California over those years, working many jobs along the way.  In those days, it was possible to do that.  He was in his early to mid twenties and the youthfulness smiles back from the black and white photos he brought back.  I've always wanted to visit Canada and am yet to do so.  I've often thought about finding the spots in the photos to see how they've changed, perhaps recreate them, but that's one hell of an undertaking and near on impossible to complete.  I will scan in some of those photos when I next have the chance.

Travelling into San Francisco across any of the bridges you need to pay a toll.  I made sure to set it up so as not to incur a fine.  I almost came through the trip without a citation, as they call it, but on the very last day got caught out staying too long in a 2-hour parking zone.  And that's where my Vegas winnings went.

The HI hostel at Fort Mason in SF is an interesting and very busy building.  It was built to house army and navy personnel a hundred so years ago but is now entirely privately owned.  Rikers Island can be seen through the window of the cafe.  It seems so close, everybody wonders how the prisoners couldn't have escaped.  I wouldn't fancy swimming out there but plenty of people do swim in the harbour below Mason.  All through the winter as well. Nutters!  I watched them for a while, admiring the hardiness on show, then headed West to to what all the tourists do, see the bridge up close.  It was just as busy as all the other days, none of the famous mist on any day I was there.  I always wonder if there really isn't a type of super human that designs and builds these things.  People don't give much thought to the engineering behind the 20th and 21st Centuries.  These people are superstars of the our time.

If you walk under the bridge and head into the bay to the SW of the bridge you find a secluded beach where few people go but from where you have the best vista of the bridge.  It's huge.