San Francisco

Today we are playing tourist and heading on a Ferry to explore Alcatraz and Angel Island. Rick and I toured Alcatraz about 12 years ago, but Angel Island is a new one for me.

We headed over early to Pier 33 (Alcatraz Tours Pier) to get organized and to ensure that we had enough time to get there by "Street Car". Our tour is mostly a full day. Our first Alcatraz Ferry left Pier 33 at 09:30 to travelled to Alcatraz Island. We had from 10:00 to 12:00 to explore the Island and take part in the Audio Tour (1 hour self guided audio tour). Back to the Alcatraz Pier and on the Alcatraz

Tour Ferry Boat at 12:10 and travel over to Angel Island. Once arriving to Angel Island we headed on a Tram Tour of the Island (1 hour), having about 30 mins before our Ferry travelled back to San Francisco.

Alcatraz Island is located in the San Francisco Bay, 1.25 miles (2.01 km) offshore from San Francisco. The small island was developed with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, a military prison (1828), and a occupied federal prison from 1934 until 1963. Beginning in November 1969, the island was occupied for more than 19 months by a group of Native Americans from San Francisco; who were part of a wave of Native activism across the nation, with public protests through the 1970s. In 1972, Alcatraz became part of a national recreation area and received designation as a National Historic Landmark in 1986.

Alcatraz Island is home to the abandoned prison, the site of the oldest operating lighthouse on the West Coast of the United States, early military fortifications, and natural features such as rock pools and a seabird colony (mostly western gulls, cormorants, and egrets). According to a 1971 documentary on the history of Alcatraz, the island measures 1,675 feet (511 m) by 590 feet (180 m) and is 135 feet (41 m) at highest point during mean tide. However, the total area of the island is reported to be 22 acres (8.9 ha).

Landmarks on the island include the Main Cellhouse, Dining Hall, Library, Lighthouse, the ruins of the Warden's House and Officers' Club, Parade Grounds, Building 64, Water Tower, New Industries Building, Model Industries Building, and the Recreation Yard.

The majority of the tour encompasses the Main Cell-house. I was

great to be able to put on a set of earphones and walk around and listen at your leisure, pressing pause to take a few extra moments when you would like to explore an area a bit more. A person could really take 3 hours or more on the island if you participated in the audio tour, National Park Service talks, walking tours and exploring all the island has to offer. I still enjoyed it the second time around.

Angel Island State Park, the largest natural island in the San Francisco Bay, offers some of the best views of the surrounding Bay Area. With great hiking trails and many other recreational opportunities readily available, Angel Island is truly a hidden gem in the midst of the urban Bay Area.

From 1910 to 1940, the U.S. Immigration Station processed hundreds of thousands of immigrants, the majority from China. During World War II, Japanese, and German POWs were detained at the Station

before being sent to facilities farther inland.

The Island has been a cattle ranch and beginning with the Civil War at Camp Reynolds, the Island has over 100 years of military history. With the outbreaks of WWI and WWII thousands of troops both returning and embarking for conflicts around the world were processed through Angel Island. In the '50s and '60s, the Island saw its last military service as a home to a Nike missile base.

In 1954 the transition of Angel Island as a California State Park began. Starting with Ayala Cove on the western side of the Island, park visitors had the first opportunities to enjoy the beauty of this amazing Island. In the early 60's the final departure of the military allowed the rest of Angel Island to become park lands and the rest is history.

What an amazing day! After our full day of exploring the islands in the bay we headed back to the hotel to unload a few things and set out for Ghiradelli Square. On the walk over to the square we came across the SanFrancisco Maritime National Historical Park Service Visitor Centre. The visitor centre has a high-tech exhibit that helps to tell the story of San Francisco's colorful and diverse maritime heritage.

A First Order Fresnel lighthouse lens, a magnificent brass structure encasing hundreds of precisely polished prisms, guides visitors through the door. Housed in the Park's 1908 historic brick cannery warehouse, visitor center exhibits tell the stories of voyage, discovery and cultural diversity. Since 1849, the world has rushed through the Golden Gate, and each wave of population or industry has left its own fascinating imprint on America's West Coast (and the City by the Bay). The exhibits were simply fascinating, and free to boot.

Next stop.. Ghiradelli Square. This specialty retail and dining complex, housing shops and restaurants, was originally a chocolate factory established by Domenico “Domingo” Ghirardelli. Between 1852 and 1895, Ghirardelli’s Chocolate Factory was located at four different sites before the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company took over the Pioneer Woolen Mills on North Point Street—today’s site of the

Ghirardelli Chocolate Manufactory & Soda Fountain and Ghirardelli Square.Today, Ghirardelli delights visitors with its lively retail mix, while maintaining Ghirardelli’s tradition as a trendsetter for the rest of the world. In 1982 the owners applied for and were granted National Historic Register status, a move that ensured the preservation of Ghirardelli Square for future generations. It was a very interesting place to wander around and visit the number of speciality stores.

Having a very full day we definitely were ready for dinner. So we wandered around the waterfront in the Fisherman's Wharf area in search of pasta for mom and a place that served some form of seafood for me. We stumbled across the Casagnola's Restaurant and were welcomed in with live Jazz music. It is the longest standing restaurant in Fisherman's Wharf where Thomaso Castagnola introduced the crab cocktail at the Panama–California Exposition. He opened the first crab stand on Fisherman's Wharf in 1916, selling fresh crab to passersby. Mom had a fantastic crab linguine and I had a wonderful fish dinner. Great food and fantastic company!

Well tomorrow is going to be another great day of exploring. I can hardly wait!