A few stories from San Francisco

It's been a while since I wrote something. So here are a few stories.

The City

Aside from the smell of a public toilet, the city is not bad. There are a lot of cafes and pubs. You can also do a lot of sightseeing. The downside? I think the whole of Europe is here. It's crazy how many tourists are here...

' The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.'

Mark Twain

Yes, he's right. The weather is changing and the wind is freezing. That's August here in San Francisco. ;)

The Hotel

It's okay, you get what you pay for. The hotel is almost clean. It's more like a hostel. So I'm sleeping in a 6-bed dorm. The hotel is old and I think a makeover would be a good idea. The hotel is located near Sutter Street & Larkin Street. Yeah, it's not the best corner of the city. There are a lot of homeless people and sometimes at night, there are a lot of transgender prostitutes. But they don't bother you. They're just trying to live their lives. 

If you're not too picky, it's a good place to stay for less money.

The Bay Bridge

The first night, I went to the Hard Rock Café (where else?) at Fishermen's Wharf. I met Paul there. He produces wine. His kids were outside waiting in line for autographs of a music group that I didn't know... We were talking and he suggested that I should go to the Giants game on Saturday. Okay, convinced, I'll watch my first baseball game on Saturday....

After that, I walked towards the Bay Bridge. It's quite a walk, but it's nice along the waterfront at night. Except there was this guy. Talking to himself (or his imaginary friend?!?). As he passed me, he said: 'What did you say? I should start a fire?' Yes, there are some crazy people out there.... ;)

The Bay Bridge

Lombard Street

So I planned to go to Lombard Street. Yes, that neat, curvy street in San Francisco. I was down at the beach and didn't have the patience to wait for the cable car. So I walked to Hyde Street....

No, it doesn't look steep! It's much steeper!

I made it, but I should have taken the cable car!

And then there's the mess, I mean the Lombard Street. It's so crowded with tourists and I think every car wants to drive down that road. Okay, it's not really driving, it's more like stop and go. That can't be fun...

The view is great. In the background, you can see the Coit Tower and the Bay Bridge.

I walked down and there were even more people. I decided to take a long exposure shot of the street. The blurred streaks are cars driving down that road...

The Golden Gate Bridge

Finally, I made it to the Golden Gate Bridge. I decided to walk over to the other side. Yes, I really underestimated the distance. It's 4200ft (1280m). The weather wasn't that good and there were strong winds on the bridge. It was really cold. The bridge is indeed impressive.

For the sunset, I went down to Baker Beach. It was a little adventure to go down this trail and make my way through the rocks. In the end, I found a spot for the sunset. Unfortunately, the tide was rising. I would have stayed longer, but the tide was getting stronger and it's definitely less expensive than having the Coast Guard rescue me... XD

But I got some nice shots down there.

Yeah, then came the way back... I don't remember how many steps I walked up... was it worth it? Yes, absolutely!