A Sunny morning is waiting for the boys in San Francisco after waking up and so they decided to first board a boat to drive around the bay from the Fisherman’s wharf and see the Golden Gate bridge from sea level and drive around one of the world’s most famous prisons – Alacatraz.

 

Breakfast was skipped and instead one of San Francisco’s most famous foods had to be consumed- a Clamp chowder in sour dought bread at Pier 39.

 

A Crab chowder is a must eat when in San Francisco be it for breakfast or dinner

PREPARATION

  1. Chop bacon and in a 2-quart heavy saucepan cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain, reserving fat in pan.
  2. While bacon is cooking, cut onion into 1/4-inch dice. Peel potatoes and cut into 1/4-inch dice. Stir onion, potatoes, and water into bacon fat and simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender and most of water is evaporated, about 15 minutes.
  3. While mixture is simmering, pick over crab meat, removing any bits of shell and cartilage. Stir milk and cayenne into mixture and return just to a simmer. Add crab and salt and pepper to taste and bring chowder to a simmer.
  4. Serve chowder garnished with parsley and bacon….

A glass or two of Californian Red Wine does no harm to the taste…

Thereafter it was time to board the ship and hit the bay of San Francisco

 

Alcatraz was designed to hold prisoners who continuously caused trouble at other federal prisons. One of the world’s most notorious and best known prisons over the years, Alcatraz housed some 1,576 of America’s most ruthless criminals including Al CaponeRobert Franklin Stroud (the “Birdman of Alcatraz”), George “Machine Gun” KellyBumpy Johnson, (who served more time at Alcatraz than any other inmate). It also provided housing for the Bureau of Prisons’ staff and their families. A total of 36 prisoners made 14 escape attempts during the 29 years of the prison’s existence, the most notable of which were the violent escape attempt of May 1946 known as the “Battle of Alcatraz“, and the arguably successful “Escape from Alcatraz” by Frank MorrisJohn Anglin, and Clarence Anglin in June 1962.

 

The June 1962 Alcatraz escape may have been the only successful escape from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in that facility’s history. Late on the night of June 11 or early morning of June 12, inmates Clarence Anglin, John Anglin, and Frank Morris tucked papier-mâché heads resembling their own likenesses into their beds, broke out of the main prison building via an unused utility corridor, and departed Alcatraz Island aboard an improvised inflatable raft to an uncertain fate.

 

 

Alcatraz Island

Of course one of the main attraction of San Francisco is the Golden Gate Bridge over which the boys arrived last night from northern California

 

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, thelength of the bridge is 1.6 km connecting  San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the American city of San FranciscoCalifornia – the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula – to Marin County, carrying both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1 across the strait.

The bridge is one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco, California, and the United States. It has been declared one of the Wonders of the Modern World by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

 

The bridge as seen during a nice day and as seen behind Willy on this misty , cold and windy afternoon.

 

Willy and the Golden Gate Bridge

Again the option of using a hop on hop of bus was used to explore the various landmarks of San Francisco

 

Typical street view of the older buildings in San Francisco
Of course a ride on one of the cable cars in SF is a must
Skylines of San Francisco

 

Enjoying some of the great Californian Red Wines on this T58 evening in SF looking at the Skylines of San Francisco

 

Californian Red Wines on this T58 evening

Another Gold Rush City visited by Team Lipstick during their drive through the Americas

SAN FRANCISCO

 

Day 22 – 8th September – San Francisco