A Bridge, a Streetcar, and a Prison
Posted on May 29, 2009
Filed Under Call us tourists, Museums & tours | 3 Comments
Posted by Sierra
When most people think of San Francisco, they think of earthquakes, cable cars, and the Golden Gate Bridge. But there are other things, too, such as Alcatraz, the Exploratorium, and the Musée Mechanique. I’ll talk about some of the attractions (a la “Travel Guide”) and add a few comments of my own.
* The Golden Gate Bridge: This famous bridge is about 8,981 feet long. Although it is not golden (although there is a bridge in Sacramento that is) it is the namesake of many shops, books, and bus systems. On a foggy day you can’t see the tops of the towers. Also, the rice crispie treat version collapsed rather unfortunately in The Food Network’s “Famous Bridges Challenge.”
* Alcatraz: Featured in books such as Al Capone Does My Shirts and movies such as The Rock and Escape From Alcatraz, this island prison was for the worst of the worst. It was pretty hard to be innocent in Alcatraz, since you had to be convicted of a crime more than once. Some famous inmates were Al “Scarface” Capone, “Machine Gun” Kelly, and Robert “The Birdman” Stroud. There is a really good tour of the Cell House that I very highly recommend. It is narrated by former inmates and guards.
* Earthquake: Unfortunately (or not, depending on how you look at it) we did not have a chance to experience this attraction. It is most famous for causing a good deal of damage in 1906.
* Cable Cars: Personally, I think these should be called streetcars, because if you pay attention, you’ll notice THEY DO NOT RUN ON CABLES! There are actually streetcars, which DO run on cables! What a confusing world this is.
* Exploratorium: A hands-on museum of science, this is a good place to learn things like about how magnetic black sand has iron in it. One of the highlights of the Exploratorium is the Tactile Dome. This is like a fun house with all the lights turned off. It’s completely dark as you climb, crawl, slide, and occasionally walk through a maze of pots, pans, and pillows. There are objects in there from spoons to sponges and from bundt cake molds to mattresses. In other words, the Tactile Dome is awesome.
* Musée Mechanique: I know what you’re thinking: How can a mechanical museum be considered “fun?” But this isn’t your typical museum. It’s a collection of old arcade games: fortune tellers, pinball machines, Skee-Ball, even an old “Laughing Sal,” a delightful/utterly terrifying figure. Those of you who have seen The Princess Diaries should recognize the arm-wrestling guy. You can watch a little band of monkeys (25 cents) or have the Bocca Della Verita tell your fortune (50 cents). The Musée Mechanique gets my vote for “Best San Francisco Attraction.”
So those are most of the attractions we went to in San Francisco. Next time, you’re there, remember to smile and scream “EARTHQUAKE!!!!!!!”
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3 Responses to “A Bridge, a Streetcar, and a Prison”
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Alcatraz was creepy. I just keep thinking about ghosts.
Did you happen to see/use one of the self cleaning public toilets in San Francisco?
They totally wash down the insides after using one of these pods! Very futuristic.
Hi Guys!
Sorry it’s been so long. It’s the end of the school year & things have been busy.
The articles are terrific but that is no surprise.
I was glad there wasn’t to much about food this time. The BBQ info was good but it’s still early and i’m not hungry for that yet.
I don’t know where you are right now, but I’ll check back to see the updates. Boys are out of school, I go till te 24th.
Be Safe Love Barb
Hi Aunt Daria, Uncle Stan and Sierra. Thank you so much for the Amazon gift card. I used it to buy a book that i have been wanting.
Love Alex