Friday

Friday Blog

Wake-up call was 7:30…..I don’t think many of us had much trouble getting up as we were all thinking the same thing. It’s SAN FRANCISCO day!!!!! Kaitlyn cooked us a wonderful breakfast of eggs, pancakes, and bacon. (Our cooking has also got Darren begging one of us to stick with him for the rest of his trip to do his laundry and cook his meals J). Our tour started at 9:00 in the morning; and our tour guide, Angela, got us a tour bus all to ourselves…..seeing as how our group is so big. After a quick pep talk about what we would be doing that day, and what time we wanted to be back, we set out. It took about 45 minutes to get from our Petaluma campground to San Francisco. As we got closer to the city, the air got noticeably colder and much foggier. Angela told us a lot of random facts about the bridge. Did you know that the only reason the bridge is red instead of gold is because the people painting it decided they liked the primer (which was the red-orange color); so they opted to keep it that way instead of painting it gold? It is now International Orange, and we won’t forget it. Did you also know that the bridge is named after the Golden Gate Strait which runs underneath the bridge? I bet you didn’t….and if you did, pretend you didn’t J. The bridge is able to swing 27 feet in the wind. I don’t think it ever has, but it could. All the cord used to hold the bridge, if joined together, would wrap all the way around the world 3 times! Quite unbelievable.

Anyways, as we crossed the bridge, it was super foggy, so pictures and views weren’t as great as they would be that afternoon. We caught a glimpse of Alcatraz through the haze as we stopped for a quick break and a few of us walked a bit of the bridge. Angela then took us through many different parts of the city; the Golden Gate Park, the Pesidion, the Victorian homes, etc. The history and architecture of the city is amazing! The Victorian homes are elaborately decorated with bright colors and amazing detail. The old military homes are simple, but very elegant as well. We were told so much of the history that it’s hard to get it all on paper. It’s very elaborate and interesting. We were told much of the 1906 earthquake, as well as the 1989 earthquake. Angela showed us the building that remained standing after those earthquakes and fires, and the safety precautions taken to make the city safer. For lunch, we stopped at Fisherman’s Wharf….and Pier 39. We split into groups, went for lunch and shopped for souvenirs. There’s so much to see and do that at first, it’s overwhelming. The city is bustling with people it seems to never stop.

We also discovered that Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. also exists on Pier 39. Now, there is a story to this. If you’ve read our earlier blogs, you know we’ve taken to calling Bart, Bubba. So, he decided he should buy a Bubba Gump shirt as well as the Forest Gump movie for those who haven’t seen it yet. Guess what we’ll be doing on the drive home? J The very mention of Forest Gump brings a chorus of ‘I love you Jenny. I’d make a good husband’ from every guy in the camp to any girl in sight.

We shopped for about 2.5 hours before getting back on our bus and headed for Chinatown. We spent about 45 minutes there shopping for more souvenirs and taking the different culture. It’s quite fascinating to see how some cultures can be so different from out own. After Chinatown, we started out of the city and stopped again at the Golden Gate Bridge. This time around, it was much clearer and the bridge was more visible. We took a bunch of pictures and headed back to the campground.

We are all sitting nicely around the fire, listening to the chaperones decide which route to take home. We hope you’ve been enjoying the stories of our adventures as much as we’ve been enjoying our adventures. Till tomorrow, “Life’s like a box of chocolates, you never know what your gonna get.” J Goodnight all!

[Written by Caitie]