We didn't have any problem getting up this morning and getting the day started. Bob and Karen are taking us to San Francisco! We're going to see all the tourist-y things we missed when we tried this on our own.
Morning showers out of the way, everyone dressed, cooler packed, first cup of coffee and tea consumed, first Pepsi downed....we're ready for the adventure.
We piled into the smallest of their two cars for the ease of parking and driving in the city. The hour drive flew by as we were still catching up from when they left in March and also making plans for what to see. Karen had the foresight to go to her local AAA office and get street maps of the city. She was also thoughtful enough to get us information for the trip ahead of us. Thanks again Karen!
I STAND CORRECTED! I'll say it right here and now. I was wrong. There ARE days when the bridge isn't shrouded in fog! Thankfully, today was one of them.
Here is our first glimpse of this famous bridge.
To say that I was excited would be an understatement. I was thrilled! I so wanted to see this bridge in all its glory and today was the day for that to happen. Bob drove us to the top of a marked sightseeing vista so that we could get some good pictures of the whole bridge.
This beautiful bridge is 1.7 miles long and I was surprised to learn that its width is 90 feet! Three lanes of traffics in both directions, curbs and and a ten foot wide sidewalk for pedestrians and bike riders. It took five years from when bids were taken for the bridge work (1932) to when it was completed (1937) at the cost of $35,000.000.00. A HUGE chunk of change back in those days!
There are lots of facts and myths about the painting of the bridge. The color is orange vermilion, or more popularly known as "International Orange". If the U.S. Navy had its way, the bridge might have been painted black with yellow stripes to assure greater visibility for passing ships. I'm glad they went with the orange.
Painting the bridge is an ongoing task and the primary maintenance job. The bridge paint protects it from the high salt content in the air, which rusts and corrodes the steel components. Many misconceptions exist about how often the bridge is painted. Some say once every seven years, others say from end to end each year. The bridge was painted when it was originally built with a red lead primer and a lead-based topcoat. For the next 27 years, only touch up was required. By 1968, advancing corrosion sparked a program to remove the original paint and replace it with primer and vinyl topcoats. What a job that must have been! The original program was completed in 1995 with continuous touch up on areas with the most severe erosion.
It was just too cool to go over it and to be able to SEE it!
A perfect start to our day!
Our first stop was the Sts. Peter and Paul Church.
Saints Peter and Paul Church is a Roman Catholic Church, located, somewhat ironically, at 666 Filbert Street.
It is known as "The Italian Cathedral of the West." This building is very unusual in that the parish school is situated atop the church itself and is accessible from stairways under each of its twin towers. Because of this feature, the church's upper stained-glass windows are artificially-lit.
This church is also well known for other than its religious aspects.
The church is prominently featured in the Clint Eastwood movies Dirty Harry and The Dead Pool. Scenes from Cecil B. DeMille's The Ten Commandments were filmed at the church while it was under construction.
After their civil ceremony in 1954, Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio returned for photographs on the steps of this church. They couldn't be married in this church as DiMaggio was married previously and divorced but no annulment was ever obtained. DiMaggio's funeral services were held here in 1999.
The church sits directly across the street from Washington Square.
We watched a Chinese lady do her exercise routine. She was very precise in her movements and believe me, she wasn't the only one doing this. There must be something to it because we saw a lot of elderly Chinese people doing these exercises throughout the city.
Now the guy in this next picture just baffled us. The picture is a little blurry because I zoomed in on him during editing so that you can see who I was talking about better. In both hands he is holding a rope. At the end of the rope is a ball which looked to be a bit bigger than a softball. He beat himself with these balls. His legs, his arms, his back, his chest, his stomach, his thighs. Everywhere. There are some strange people in these parks.
As we drove into town the first thing we saw was Coit Tower. You can't miss it in the picture below.
The Coit Tower was built in 1933 with funds from Lillie Hitchcock Coit. She was an eccentric who was best known for her support of the local firemen. After she died, she left one third of her fortune for the beautification of the city. The result was the Coit Tower, which is both a memorial for Lillie Hitchcock and for the San Francisco firemen.
We drove to the tower and parked.
The 210 foot Coit Tower is built on top of the 285ft high Telegraph Hill, which is situated between Fisherman's Wharf and the Financial District.
It is called Telegraph Hill because in 1850, a pole with movable arms on top of the hill was used as a signaling station. The wooden arms were adjusted to signal the incoming of ships. In 1853 it was replaced by an electric telegraph station, hence the hill's name. (If LaVon can use the word "hence" in her blog, then so can I! www.bakersblessings.blogspot.com)
We opted to go up into the tower for the panoramic views of the city. We were first taken with the interior of the tower. The tower is decorated with a large number of murals, most of them depicting life in California during the Great Depression. In total 25 painters worked on the project, which includes - among many other scenes - a bank robbery, a scene from the harbor and a look into a department store. The murals are protected as a historical treasure and it was easy to understand why. Here are just three of the murals that covered the walls of the entire lower level of the tower.
The colors were still so vibrant.
A farm scene.
We paid our entry fees and got on the elevator to go to the top.
WOW! Three hundred and sixty degree unobstructed view of the city!
We could see the Golden Gate Bridge.
Another view of the city and in particular the Transamerica Pyramid.
Here's a close up the Pyramid. As soon the TransAmerica Pyramid was built in 1972, the skyscraper's unique shape made it an iconic San Francisco landmark. At first the people of the city protested its shape saying it wouldn't "fit in". They now know they were wrong. This building is San Francisco's tallest at 853 feet. That's 48 stories topped with the 212 foot spire.
From up in the tower we could also see what people have done with their rooftops. People in the city don't have yards to sit out in so they improvise.
It looks like someone even laid a dance floor on this one! I bet there have been some good parties on this rooftop.
A view of the Bay Bridge from the tower.
You can see everything from this vantage point. Its Quiz Time ... What do the locals call what's pictured below? Think now, I told you a few days ago.
My favorite picture of all from the top of Coit Tower was the one of Lombard Street, the crookedest street in America. (Mr. Squiggly Red Line doesn't like crookedest. Too bad, I'm using it.)
Our next stop just happened to be Lombard Street. Often billed as the "crookedest street," San Francisco's Lombard Street is, in fact, neither the crookedest nor the steepest street in the city, let alone the world. That fact doesn't deter the hordes of tourists who come every year to see this famous street, built with eight switchbacks on a 40-degree slope. It certainly didn't deter these tourists! For us me this was a must see, a must experience, a must photograph!
The Photograph.
The Experience. This was taken as WE were driving down Lombard.
The two Bob's went down again as Karen and I stood at the bottom. You can see Bob waving as they snake their way down. (Silver car on right)
The main attraction of Lombard Street is watching people drive down the crooked, one-block section, or driving down it yourself.
On a busy day, a seemingly-endless stream of automobiles and scooters buzz down, their passengers squealing in mock fear at every turn. I read that part about mock fear at every turn. I don't know if I'd go that far. Maybe for the passenger in the front seat because his or her brake isn't working! Remember, this a 40% grade! Very, very steep.
If you're on foot, you can walk down (or up) the sidewalks and watch the show. Quite a few people walked up the stairs on each side. Not sidewalks,,,,STAIRS!
Bob & Karen on Lombard Street.
If you fly into San Francisco for a conference, or whatever, and you don't have wheels to get around and don't want to do the bus/trolley/cable car thing but you DO want to sightsee, well, you'd be in luck! We saw these little rental vehicles.
The GoCar not only guides you with its pre-programmed GPS led tour, it tells you what you are passing and will wait while you get out to visit something and take up where it left off when you get back in. A two hour tour will set you back $87.95. Not a bad deal at all considering all there is to see.
OK, I'm going to stop this here because I may have trouble loading it due to so many pictures. Go on to Part 2.
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