Babe, Pig in the City.: San Francisco

Sunday Funday.

We went to Alcatraz.

It was a chill and foggy morning as we rode the boat to the island.

It's only about a mile from the city. There are quotes from prisoner's saying that the most torturous aspect of the penitentiary, was that they could hear and see the city, but couldn't take part in life there because of what they'd done.

We were welcomed to the island by a ranger who instructed us to walk towards a main room and watch a 17 minute video. After that we walked up a ramp to collect a headset connected to a laynard with something that looked like a walkman on it. It was a self guided tour narrated by past prisoners and guards who's voices walked us through the prison and island, telling stores and history about the famous rock.

It's so cool there. And as dumb as we felt with the head phones and lanyard, the tour was really interesting.

The prisoners spent most of their time in their cells, with very little outdoor time. Some men would paint, crochet, read, and study. They were given an hour a day for music time in which it was said they didn't really know how to play instruments, but just made noise for an hour.

There were only three men who successfully escaped. They carved imitations of their heads out of soap and stuffed their beds.

Then with spoons that they broke to create a sharp edge, they enlarged the vent under the sink to create a tunnel. This led to an area behind the cells full of pipes and the sewer system.

They followed the sewer pipes to the bay and were never found.

This is their isolation cells, where people would go for punishment or extra security. In isolation, a prisoner was allowed no entertainment, light, or time away from the cell. They were absolutely trapped in a dark box.

Some prisoners were only permitted to leave their cells three times a day, twenty minutes each time, for meals.

The cafeteria.

When the tour led us outside we were excited to see beautiful blue skies and sunshine!

When our morning and early afternoon had been adequately filled with Alcatraz, we got back on the boat.

Just a few blocks down from the Alcatraz pier, we headed to Fisherman's Wharf for more food, shopping, and entertainment.

We took a drive down Lombard Street, which is famous for having crazy hair pin turns on a steep block.

Next up was some more shopping, then back across the bridge to San Rafael.

When we got to the apartment it looked like total chaos. Arielle and Leslie, friends from the NICU at Presby who are also travelers now (in Connecticut), had arrived in Cali to get their licenses and have tons o fun.

With music blasting, hair dryers going, phones buzzing, talking, laughing, singing, shouting, all 5 of us got ready for a night out in San Francisco.

We crammed in to a cab and rode across the bridge.

We did a bar crawl of a string of bars that people had suggested.

Laura and I

Ashley and Arielle

Leslie and I

We had so much fun telling stories, drinking, dancing, and laughing a lot :)

A late night out started a late morning Monday. Then we were delayed further because my keys were misplaced. Laura and I searched everywhere, but it seemed hopeless. With the amount of people temporarily living out of suitcases, there was stuff everywhere. My keys were either buried or laying on the street somewhere in San Francisco. Ashley took Arielle and Leslie to Sacramento to get their licenses, and I went to the main office to ask for an extra key. Then I tore my room apart looking for my spare car key, which was in a place I could not for the life of me remember.

Finally I found it and Laura and I left to grab lunch somewhere, leaving my room and the apartment as a whole a total disaster.

We ate lunch at a local place on the marina, then Laura left. We had such a great visit, full of so much fun and cool places.

Next up for me was an 1.5hr nap before nightshift..

The shift started off in med-surg, but then I was floated to ICU. It is so much more enjoyable working at the ICU at this hospital, but I feel like I rarely do. As a policy, travelers will be pulled to fill empty spots before the staff. I hate getting pulled.

Nice snack at 4am.. coffee and sugar.

I got home and slept for another 1.5hrs, then Ashley, Leslie, Arielle, and I headed up to wine country.

First up was Sterling Vineyards.

We chose to take a self guided tour around the vineyard and taste their fancy wines and enjoy the beautiful views.

Remember Tanya from our assignment in Woodland Hills?

She was recently hired for an assignment at UCSF and will be staying with us until it starts. We are so happy to see her again and to work in the same region :)

We left Sterling but down the road took U-turn to visit the Sutter Home Vineyard, after I pointed out the sign that said, "complimentary wine tasting"