The San Francisco Treat About This Page:

[PrincessSharon]

This is a continuation of my Disneyland trip report.

Day Six Continued
Meeting a Crazy Lady in San Francisco

After landing, I collected my suitcases and headed outside where Karen (zacksmom_1993) and Zack picked me up. Karen drove me around for a little tour, then we stopped at the Halloween store to get some stuff for the haunted house they’d planned (Headless Horseman themed).

We had dinner at a local place (I had fettucine alfredo with chicken and broccoli, which was tasty ) and got to meet the rest of Karen’s family. After dinner, Karen kindly drove me into the city and dropped me off at the Fairmont.

When I checked in, I was informed that I was upgraded to a king room in the tower. I went up to my room, which was on the 22nd floor right next to the elevator, and checked out the amazing view! Then I snapped some pics.









It was dark, but also pretty clear, so I could see a lot of the city all lit up. I spent a lot of time looking out the windows.









Then I unpacked a bit and turned in. I had an early bird tour of Alcatraz the following morning, so I requested a wakeup call. I left the curtains open so I could see the city as I drifted off to sleep.

Up Next: The Rock

[Colexis Mom]

What a great room Sharon!! Glad you made it to San Fran!!

[amandal]

That hotel room is beautiful!!! Can't wait to hear more . . . . . .

[PrincessSharon]

Day Seven – Friday, October 31
The Rock

I was up early and checked out the view again first thing. It was rainy, but not too foggy, so I could see a lot!












And there’s the Golden Gate Bridge!

I got ready for the day and stopped in the lobby to get an umbrella before getting a cab to Pier 33. I only needed the umbrella for a few minutes while waiting to board the ferry. Otherwise it either wasn’t raining or it was light enough that I didn’t need to bother with the umbrella. I arrived at the pier in no time and snacked on crackers and fruit I’d brought with me until it was time to board the ferry.







Once we arrived there was a short presentation telling us what kinds of tours were available.



I decided (as was recommended) to start with the film. It was a history of the island, and was very interesting (though one family had brought their little girl who was about 2 and understandably bored, so they let her run around, which was slightly distracting). Once I’d seen that, I headed up the steep hill to take the audio tour of the prison.




These were apartments where the prison guards lived with their families



I made it to the top (slightly out of breath) and entered the main prison to begin the audio tour.










This is how a cell looked when an inmate “checked in.” He’d get a pillow and blanket and a copy of the rules (very, very strict rules, of course)




This tiny area was the recreation yard for the entire prison



Then I went to D Block, also known as solitary. There were open cells where you could step in, and let me tell you, they were tiny. Also, the lights were supposed to be kept on, but it was usually totally dark in there!


The island is so close to San Francisco that prisoners could hear the sounds of the city



Then we got to see the prison library.





Next was the spot of the inmate escape attempt that turned deadly, also known as the Battle of Alcatraz. A couple of inmates decided that they could find a way to climb up and get the key to the Gun Gallery and shoot their way out. It ended badly.




The gun gallery (which was on the second level)


The key was kept here for the safety of the guards


The cell where part of the standoff took place


Marks on the ground from the tear gas canisters

The tour continued with a look at some cells as they were when they had residents.








That little window is where the prisoner would sit to see his visitor



Then we got to see the Warden’s office.




The Warden had a great view!









You could go outside here, and since it wasn’t actually raining, I did. The views out there were really awesome.








This is what remains of the Warden’s house. It was burned down during the Native American occupation of the island







Continued…

[PrincessSharon]

I headed back inside to continue the tour.





Then we got to see the actual jail cells from the infamous jailbreak (the one they based the movie Escape from Alcatraz on).




You can see the fake dummy that fooled the guard


There’s one of the holes the inmates squeezed out of




This is the corridor behind the cells where the inmates climbed out onto the roof

Next on the tour was the kitchen.




There were outlines drawn on the wall of the knives so it could quickly be determined if one was missing

That was the end of the audio tour. I returned down to the dock where the Escape tour was to start. It was a really interesting tour, but one that isn’t really scheduled. It just happened to be a tour given by a volunteer on the day I was there (and the funny thing is, Karen knew the man giving the tour!).

It talked about all the various escape attempts from the prison (officially, nobody ever successfully escaped). I think the thing I found most interesting was that a dozen or so inmates successfully made it out of the prison and into the water, only to find it too cold and treacherous and turned back! He also talked about the Nicolas Cage movie and the filming of it. It was really a cool tour.



We got to enter a restricted area! We actually followed the path taken by many of the escapees, including the infamous Clint Eastwood (or more accurately, Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers).



And we got to go into the tunnel (if you’ve seen the movie The Rock it should look familiar).



The tunnel lets out into… the laundry room. How exciting!! But this is where Al Capone used to work.



Then we ventured out to the end of the island. It was amazing how close San Francisco was!


So close, but so far away


I took this shot to show how run down and rotten the building is. This is one of the reasons it can’t be reopened as a prison.

That was the end of the tour, and I’d seen everything there was to see. A ferry was at the dock and the last of the arriving passengers were getting off, so I lined up to get on. I was able to get some good shots on the ferry back to San Francisco.










There was a Princess cruise ship in port

As we approached the dock, we had a phenomenal view of the city skyline.





The next stop was Pier 39. I wanted to do some sightseeing, but first I needed to eat! I stopped in at the Boudin Bakery for lunch.


It’s scary how hungry this picture makes me!

There was a fancy-shmancy McDonald’s across the street (still didn’t make me want to eat there instead, though )



After my super-yummy lunch, I checked out the bakery’s workings from the sidewalk.












It’s kind of hard to see, but there are loaves of bread shaped like jack o’lanterns

I got this shot before catching the cable car.



I was heading back to the Fairmont, but I decided that since the Cable Car Museum was only a few blocks from the Fairmont, I’d take the Cable Car to the Museum and then walk the rest of the way back to the Fairmont.




My self portrait





I got off and went into the Museum. It was really interesting to see the history of cable cars, but the best part is that this is a working museum. You can actually see the working cables.








The actual working cable lines



















I was ready to walk the few blocks back to the Fairmont. Unfortunately, what I didn’t know that those few blocks were uphill in the snow – both ways!. Whew! People in San Francisco must be in great shape! I was seriously out of breath by the time I reached the Fairmont (I had to stop to catch my breath once I reached the top).

I relaxed for a bit and then caught a cab to the Caltrain station, where I caught a train and Karen picked me up. We finished decorating “Sleepy Hollow” and picked up Zack from school (his Headless Horseman costume was fantastic). I also got a mini tour of San Mateo. Then we returned to Karen’s house.

We set up for trick-or-treaters (I had a bag of rocks handy ). There weren’t many kids, but we impressed everyone who came by (and scared a few, too ).

Karen kindly drove me back to San Francisco. She parked her car so she could come up and check out my room. It was costing $87 a minute to park so she didn’t stay long. I was planning to tour Chinatown and a few other things in the morning, then meet Karen after that.

Up Next: Who Ordered the Rain?

[chezp]

What great updates Sharon - you're really taking me back to our last visit to San Francisco, especially staying at the Fairmont. It's funny - I thought the same thing about Alcatraz, how close it is to San Francisco. The cable car museum looks neat. It's a shame we didn't make it there.

[lauren-roxy]

Great start to this part Sharon!!!!! Your photos are just fantastic!!!! I have only visited San Francisco once and I really want to go back!! I just loved Alcatraz and your photos are just awesome!!! Nice hotel room too!!

[TinkerBelz]

Brings back so many memories. Isn't that hill CRAZY up to Alcatraz??? LOL I told Sam and Kassie about it to warn them when we head over there in May. I loved the audio tour. Did they still have all the loud silverware clanging when you reached the mess hall? The girl we took to WDW this last trip, Rissa, well her boyfriend's mother was in the The Rock. She was a stripper on a TV set in the movie. LOL Seriously! LOL

You've been somewhere I've never been - The Cable Car Museum - we'll have to check that out, it sounds interesting.

So what did you think about the sourdough? Different than the sourdough we eat outside of SF, isn't it? I LOVE it and mom will occasionally express me some from Boudin.

Excited to read more and makes me more excited about our upcoming trip!

[Colexis Mom]

Great pictures Sharon! Glad you had a great time at Alcatraz and trick or treating at Karen's house!! More please

[Lemap760]

Great updates. Thanks for the quick tour of Alcatraz and San Francisco.
Did that parking sign say $16? I hope that wasn't per hour.

[Minnie Lor]

The cable car museum sounds really cool. Alcatraz could be interesting. I heard somewhere that they have a ghost tour. That would've been a thrill on halloween.

[DrDolphin]

Great update Sharon!! Makes me want to take a weekend in San Fran!

[scottjs]

Originally Posted by Minnie Lor

The cable car museum sounds really cool. Alcatraz could be interesting. I heard somewhere that they have a ghost tour. That would've been a thrill on halloween.

Actually the most active ghost area in San Francisco is the old Letterman Hospital!!! Its now the site of George Lucas Film Studios(Well part of them anyway). A lot of vets died or went crazy at Letterman. Its been there a long time and it rumored to be one of the most active areas in the state for paranormal activities.

I agree though, this was a great report. Very well done.

[ilovedisney247]

Great update! The pictures from the ferry are great . . . I love the ones looking back at the island!

[chezp]

Originally Posted by Lemap760

Great updates. Thanks for the quick tour of Alcatraz and San Francisco.
Did that parking sign say $16? I hope that wasn't per hour.

That wouldn't surprise me. I know the parking charges in San Francisco were horrendous.