In case ya'll didn't know, I was in Hippieville USA last week visiting family. It was a nice reprieve from my all-consuming job search. I was blown away by the beauty and general feeling of the "city by the bay" and the surround area! Here is a little photo review of my trip:
Here is my brother and me on top of mount Tamm just north of SF (hereafter referred to as 'the City') in Marin County. Notice the incredible skiing available just 30 min north of the City and only about a mile from the beach! Just incredible huh?
Actually that's Winter Park here in Colorado... now for the City pics:
This is my cousin Bort. He is completing his master’s degree in GLBT Studies at UC Berkeley.
Okay, his name is actually Colin and he is completing his masters in civil engineering (actually Hydrologcondogy Minterius Nebulas).
Berkeley has got a beautiful campus:
I'd like to point out a geek observation:
This is the modern art museum in Berkeley. Notice the concrete balconies protruding out on the left. The main structural support column is about 10 meters farther back to the left. Now why is this interesting? Because this building is built on the SAN ANDREAS FAULT and it sits in CALIFORNIA. Probably tomorrow a huge earthquake will hit and this building could collapse! Thus the reason everything you see in this picture is probably super reinforced with massive amounts of steel and very, very large amounts of concrete!! WOW! That really isn’t all that interesting…
So the next day we (Bort and I) went sailing with my Uncle who happens to live just north of the City. It was a rare beautiful day with just enough wind.
Thanks to my expert navigation we went around the Cape of Good Hope (Angle Island) and toward the Golden Gate Bridge...
... got stuck going against the current underneath the bridge with drunk Captain Ron at the helm...
... and then safely got out of harms way thanks to my expert assistance and a bag of American potato chips to provide a little sustenance...
... then we went along the shoreline beside the City and slowly back to the Harbour.
Next was the incredible downtown area (by foot) and financial district.
I was really impressed by the size of the downtown, reminiscent of maybe New York with valleys of buildings:
I was also impressed with little Italy and the number of actual Italians I met. Notice the Italian colours painted on all the light posts:
And the little Italian man sitting next to my aunt:
But much of Little Italy (actually called North Beach) is being consumed by Chinatown:
I guess Italians just don't wanna leave Italy anymore... I wonder why?
We also saw how the cable cars worked:
This is getting a little longwinded so: during the trip I also:
Went to the top of the real Mount Tamm:
Went to the beach:
Went wine tasting in Napa:
Partied (2X). Went to a Jazz concert! And ate super delicious food!!! including Sushi:
I left with one really fine taste in my mouth... that of San Fran!! It is truly a beautiful and entertaining city!! I send my thanks out to Cousin Bort, Captain Ron, and Auntie Anne for having me!!
