7 days in Dubrovnik

So, you’re in Dubrovnik, one of the world’s most beautiful, historic and arguably underrated cities in Europe. You had a week off work, so naturally you thought it made sense to book seven nights in the stone city. Or, if you’re anything like me, you had two weeks off work and you wanted to get away for a long enough time to call it a holiday rather than a city break.

However, upon your arrival, you find that although it is a simply stunning place, the attractions within the city only take four days. So, what do you do?

Below is a list of highlights both inside and outside the Old City, followed by my own top tips for a trip to the Game of Thrones city.

The City Walls

You’ve probably heard about the majestic stone walls which surround the city of Dubrovnik, and there’s a good reason for that. Built between the 7th and 17th century (yes, it took 10 centuries to finish!) these walls are steeped in a rich history which will be fascinating for even the most cynical history-phobe. The walk around the walls itself is the second best way to view the entire city from above. On the walk, you’ll briefly pass through each tower located at the main corners of the walls, each of which has a particular name based on their location, if close to a church, or the noble family who commissioned the building. The walk is nearly 2 kilometres but it’s really easy to walk, and gives you a great way to navigate the city from above. I would recommend doing this at the beginning of your trip, so you get used to your surroundings and also take in the fantastic city and sea views.

Price: 150 kuna, or around £18 each. This price also includes entrance to Fort Lawrence, which is another highlight, but you must use the ticket to enter the fort within two days of purchase. If you go to Fort Lawrence after the two days, you’ll have to buy tickets.

Time needed: at least an hour, depending on your walking speed.

Lokrum Island

This haven of natural beauty is a must-see. Lokrum is known for its abundance of trees, botanical gardens and mysterious monastery ruins, but there’s much more to it than that. Not only does it boast stunning cliffs and a natural lagoon, but it even offers the chance to Dine with peacocks. The island is full of tame peacocks, and the ratio of males to females is off so the males often have their feathers open in an effort to flirt with the peahens. A tiny island, you can walked the circumference of it in around two hours, and there are a couple of restaurants and cocktail bars to refresh yourselves along the way. However, if you’re after a cheaper holiday, you can buy pastries and sandwiches for a very reasonable price from bakeries outside of the walls and take a picnic. Remember to save some bread for the bunnies which bound around the park area and will happily come close for food. Along with the usual attractions, there is a nudist beach were those who fancy it can get the ultimate even tan. However, if that’s not your think, there is a huge section of rocks and boulders where you could find a nook to sunbathe. Along with the above, th monastery ruins are a wonder to behind and there is even a hidden Game of Thrones exhibition, providing information about filming locations around Dubrovnik and even a chance to sit on the iron throne.

Price: the boat is 120 kuna each (£15 approx) return from the old city port. The boat leaves every 15 minutes or so, starting at 10am. In high season, the last boat back to Dubrovnik is at 8pm. On the island, restruarants tend to be expensive. Public toilets are free. Entrance to the monastery and the Game of Thrones exhibition are also free.

Time needed: You could easily spend anywhere from 2 to 6 hours on Lokrum, depending on how much you want to do.

Sea kayaking

One of the first things you will notice upon your arrival at Dubrovnik Airport is the stunning blue Adriatic Sea that gives the illusion that you are on some tiny island, surrounded by the big blue. This sea is known for having some of the most flavoursome fish, as well as being a haven for divers who take the plunge to see the region’s sea life. The sea is often calm, and always clear, so why not use it to make your experience all the more rounded? There are a number of tour operators running kayaking tours which go around the base of Dubrovnik and past Lokrum, and even some tours which venture further to the Elephantine islands. The advantage of doing a kayak tour is that you get a guided tour of the city, with background information of different spots of the Walls, islands, forts and even exclusive villas that often house celebrity visitors. With a fourth minute stop in a cave for lunch, with the opportunity for swimming and snorkelling included, I would recommend Adventure Dalmatia.

Price: 240 kuna each (around £30)

Where: Book online or in person. There are always reps from the companies in the square outside Pile Gate.

Time needed: Tours last between 3 and 4 hours.

Fort Lawrence

This fantastic Fort offers the best, detailed views of the old city. A short walk from Pile gate, past the black block in the middle of the square and left, down the steps past the restaurants, you will find yourself looking up at a huge cliff, topped with th solid and strategic Fort Lawrence. This clever strategic building has an interesting history, although there are no guides or signs within to tell you this. O would recommend visiting after you have done the sea kayaking, so you go in with a good knowledge of the Fort, as it will help you to appreciate it even more. Game of Thrones fans may want to do heir research before going to the Fort, as it has been used for many scenes and discovering this yourself is much more satisfying and cheaper than going on a Game of Thrones walking tour. The views from each layer of the Fort are extremely impressive, so make sure you take your camera. There’s also a nice garden area at the bottom of the Fort which could be nice for a picnic.

Price: Free with a ticket to the city walls which was bought within the last two days, or 50 kuna each (around £6.50)

Time needed: you could do the Fort in 30 minutes.

War photography limited

Sure, we go on holiday to get away from the harsh realities of the world, and to relax in a bubble of perfection. However, if you miss out on a rare opportunity to see the realities of war and to broaden your own mindset, you will regret it. Not for the faint hearted, this gallery includes the graphic realities of war from all over the world, including the 1991 Croatian War of Independence. The Croatian people have suffered hugely in the past, and this gallery pays tribute to the civilians who often get caught up in wars of politics and leaders. An absolute must.

Cable Car and Fort 

You may notice the mountain that provides the background to the scenery of Dubrovnik’s old city, and the white cross which sits on the top that is lit up at night. This would be Mount Srj, which you can on top of in a mere two and a half minutes. Take the cable car and admire the views on the way up. Walk around the small centre with viewing platforms at the top, stay there for sunset and take the cable car back down. While you are up there, You should pop into the War Museum which explains and depicts the siege on Dubrovnik in 1992, where many parts of the city were destroyed. Seeing this will help you appreciate how far the city has come in the last twenty years, and yet recognise the scars and tension that still exists

The Beach

It may be a city, but that doesn’t mean you can’t give an afternoon over to some tanning while you listen to the soft swish of the waves. Be sure to grab a picnic before you head to the beach – I’d recommend stopping at a bakery beforehand

Top tips for Dubrovnik

1. It is expensive! Expect to pay at least £11 each for any main meal. The cheapest dinner we could find is pizza. Have a look at menus and keep your options open, and maybe just plan to have a proper two or three course meal twice in a week f you’re on a budget of sorts. We travel as cheaply as possible, but I can imagine that other people are the same.

2. Their pastries are incredible! Why spend a fortune at a restaurant for lunch, when you can eat a variety of both sweet and savoury pastries for under £8? The further out of the city walls you walk, the cheaper the bakeries are, so venture out early morning for a stroll and find yourself some lovely spinach pastries and apple tarts that will go down a treat after a morning of exploring.

3. Rakija/rakia is strong! I’m not a drinker of neat spirits, so I found this really hard to drink. Only go for it if you like the sort of drink that will make your tongue numb!

4. As with any city, stay away from the main strip when choosing where to eat, as these places offer sub-par food at sky-high prices. Walk up the many, many steps and eat at one of the restaurants on the “landings” on the outside of the main square.

5. Look out for posters outside churches advertising classical concerts, as there isn’t a more magical experience than listening to a violin and piano accompany a stunning voice in the setting of an old, cavernous church with only candles and the stars for light. The quality of the acoustics of a church cannot be underestimated. A must for anyone who wants a musical experience in this great city.

6. Enjoy it! This is a stunning place of old architecture, religious ceremony (we were there for Easter and got to enjoy trees covered in decorated eggs, and lovely people.

So that’s it! Enjoy this beautiful place where city, sea and nature come together to great an ideal destination for anyone.

Day 115: Wakin’ up in Vegas

We woke up at 10am, which was the latest we had slept in since we left the UK all those months ago. We remained in a half-asleep stupor in bed until after midday, though it wasn’t exactly The Hangover and my head was feeling fine. Ash, on the other hand, was a little worse for wear.

We freshened up and went to find some food. Thankfully, there was a Pizza Hut in Excalibur, which was exactly what we both needed. This was going to be our last full day in Vegas, so we wanted to make the most of it. The rest of our tour group had returned to LA at 5am this morning, and we had agreed to go on a different bus tomorrow to give us some extra time here. As tired and groggy as we were, it was time to do what I had been looking forward to doing since we got to the USA – shop!

We left our hotel and went right, away from the strip, walking past the dominating figure of the Luxor casino and stopping for a picture.

As we walked past, we saw a couple in wedding gear in the Mandalay Bay complex. We made our way to the bus stop and waited. A bus appeared and we realised that we couldn’t get on without buying a ticket from a ticket machine first, which just wasn’t working. After some hassle, we finally managed to get a ticket, which was a 24-hour pass, and got onto the next bus. We got to the big shopping outlet, Las Vegas South, and off we went.

A couple of hours later and we had ended up back at the hotel room. I had returned from the bathroom to find Ash lying on the floor, experiencing some kind of hung over pain and exhaustion, begging me to just stay in tonight (as I had expressed a wish to try out the clubs, which we hadn’t managed to do yesterday). Bless him, the lightweight. I sat on the floor next to him, and somewhere in the conversation that followed, we decided that, when we got back to the UK, we would find a place to live together.

We ate a our salad boxes that we had bought from Wholefoods on the way back from the shopping outlet, freshened up and made our way out again, to see the real Las Vegas. Luxor looked stunning at night with a bright beam being projected from the top of the pyramid. We walked down the road a little, and caught the bus to what is known as the ‘old’ strip, or the Freemont district, Las Vegas’ seedy alter-ego. I couldn’t help but take some pictures of the buildings on the way.

The characters you come across in Vegas are a huge spread of people. You get the stag and hen parties, mostly American groups who are getting lairy from the cheap frozen margaritas that are served in huge plastic palm-tree cups; you get families with young children who are out at 10pm, the parents being worse for wear and clutching a drink of some sort while the child hurries along behind them; you get the couple who have obviously just got married at a Las Vegas wedding chapel, and by obvious, I mean the woman is wearing white. You have strange people talking loudly on their phones on the bus, and boys who look about 15 talking about hiring prostitutes. It’s a strange, colourful place where everybody seems to let go, and just about anything goes.

We passed the Bellagio and Ceaser’s Palace, the Stratosphere, and then suddenly there it was: the Freemont district.

There it was: the seedy, flesh-baring, stripper-filled, bright red and flashing (in more ways than one) underbelly of Vegas. It was noisy and rowdy, with an atmosphere of old-school American “fun”. The ceiling light-show was a very cool thing to experience, as it turned from a scene of the sea to a psychedelic mix of colours, flowers and songs from the 60’s playing. There was also a zipwire that went from one side of the strip to the other and looked very cool, but unfortunately (and luckily for Ash, who looked terrified at the prospect) there was a very large queue.

We went into a casino and had a drink. This side of Vegas is a great place to people-watch. We sat for a while and observed groups of drunk people being loud and making wins, or losses. We also came across the infamous Heart Attack Grill, a place that fills me with complete disgust. If you don’t know about this place, you’re made of good stuff; if it’s somewhere you want to go to eat, get the hell off my blog and go for a run. It’s where the waitresses are dressed as nurses, and the menu is strictly high fat, preservatives, salt, colourings and boasts “DEEP FRIED IN PURE LARD!” They also boast about having the world’s highest butterfat content. For a country that already wastes a gross amount of both food and other resources, how is something like this even legal?! Why has it become desirable or daring to be morbidly obese and die before your parents?! I would love to say “Only in America!” but I fear it’s not the case; like anybody who lives in the UK knows, the people are getting bigger, and bigger, and it won’t be long until something equally gluttonous and disgusting appears on our island.

Over 350lbs eats free? It’s a vile world we live in where millions of people still starve and struggle to find any kind of food for survival, and then you have places like this where people eat ten-times what their body needs.

After we decided that we had enough of Freemont, we hopped back onto the bus and made our way back to the strip. We got off a few stops early so that we could walk past some of the casinos we hadn’t yet seen, and take in the warm evening air. We were both too exhausted to make a night of it, so we took a few pictures and walk past every inviting neon light, until we came back to Excalibur.

We arrived back and collapsed into bed. 5 days to go, and this whole adventure would be over.

Day 114: The Grand Canyon

We were rudely awoken at 5am by our tour guide knocking on the hotel door. We groggily got up and dressed, checked that the cameras were fully charged, stopped by the casino’s Starbucks for a chai latte and a fruit yoghurt, and hopped onto the bus.

I plugged the iPod in and watched the sun rise higher over the ridges in the horizon, as the sky turned from pale to deep blue. That has been one of my favourite things about this trip: listening to music while travelling through numerous towns and cities, covering miles and miles over just a few hours, beginning somewhere and ending up somewhere that looks completely different, and could even be another country. A classic example of this was New Zealand, where every two days we’d be on the move. I was all too aware that in merely six days, we’d be heading home, so I was starting to reminisce.

A few hours later, and we arrived at the Grand Canyon Visitor Centre. We went inside and watched an IMAX film about the Canyon’s discovery, and the deadly currents that travelled through. This is the issue with doing organised tours: you lose any control of what you do. I would have much preferred an extra hour-and-a-half walking around the canyon itself, or even going through the canyon on as boat. Unfortunately, that wasn’t up for debate, so to the cinema it was. I definitely hope to revisit the canyon but independently and with a car, so that I can take my time around the area.

We got back onto the bus and made our way to the Grand Canyon national park, where there were queues of cars, families going camping and such. That must be an amazing place to go camping, and there would almost certainly be no rain.

We were going to visit the South Rim, as we had been given a choice of either North and South, but South would give us more time at the canyon itself and present the opportunity to go on a helicopter ride over the canyon. Unfortunately, the wind was a little too strong to allow the helicopter trip to go ahead, but once we had got off the bus and walked down the path to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, it really didn’t matter, because this is what we saw.

 

The sheer vastness of the canyon was staggering. It literally went all the way to the horizon. The red and brown hues in the rock made for a beautiful scene, and the expanse of land was just crying out to be explored. We walked along the south rim for a while, taking in the beauty.

After an hour or two of wandering and picture-taking, we headed back towards the coach and had an obligatory photograph with the sign.

After that, it was back on the bus and back to Las Vegas.

That night, we went out on the main strip. We went from our casino (Excalibur) to a few of the others, having cocktails and a go on the slot machines. At one point, we had to return to the hotel room because my new sparkly gold ‘Vegas’ heels, as I had dubbed them, were rubbing my feet so much that my heels were bleeding (I know, yucky). We ended up in a casino (I have no idea which one) which had jewels falling around a spiral staircase, and it was while sipping a rose cocktail, that we realised it was almost 4am. 4am!!! We had nearly been up for twenty-four hours!]

Satisfied with an $11 profit from the slot machines we had played throughout the night, but a little disgruntled that we had lost track of time to the extent that we never even reached a club (which was my intention), we made our way back to Excalibur. ❤ Vegas

Day 113: Las Vegas

The phone rang in the hotel room (which was very nice, might I add) at 5am.

When you have been travelling for this long, you learn to pack and unpack efficiently. I shoved everything back into my backpack and got onto the bus, bleary eyed. Thankfully, we had organised breakfast the night before, so I had a little something to eat on the way.

The desert-like landscape returned as soon as we left the town, and I used the time to catch up on some sleep. We had been promised a shopping outlet today to break up the journey to Vegas. Ahh Vegas. Just saying the word gets me excited. I’ve always imagined it to be such an amazing place, like Disneyland for adults: lights, people dressed up, music, crowds, cheap alcohol…

After a few hours, we arrived at a large shopping outlet. I had been very good until now; knowing that we had limited baggage capacity and weight had forced me to consider things sensibly before buying. Now, however, we were on the last seven days of our trip. A little hand luggage wouldn’t be the worst thing to lug around.

I won’t bore you with tales of out shopping expedition. What I will say is that we were given a tight time limit in a kind of Supermarket Sweep-esque way. So it was like “3…2…1…SHOP!” Ash and I parted ways immediately with a promise to meet back on the bus. When I returned, I had a brand new clutch bag from Coach, a new pair of trainers and a little hand luggage bag to put them in.

We continued on in the coach, passing a few small casinos on the way, through the desert-like surroundings, when suddenly, it appeared in the distance: Las Vegas, in all it’s fake, over-the-top glory.

It was at this exact moment that the bus suddenly made a “HUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM” noise. Then it did it again. And again. The coach driver, a young Chinese man, started to look worried and look around at the tour guide. The bus slowed to a walking pace, and all of the cars around us began beeping as we started to hold up the traffic. It was not the most glamourous way to enter Las Vegas, but the main thing is that we got there. At one point, I thought we may have to get off the coach and walk to the hotel, but thankfully, it kept moving. Besides, the slow-moving traffic gave me time to take pictures and drink in the scenes around me.

And there was our hotel: The Excalibur. As an Englishwoman, it was quite an amusing prospect, to stay in this big Lego castle that was created as a comical portrayal of medieval English monarchy. I loved it! It’s so bloody cheesy, but I loved it!

We got to our room, which was in one of the towers on the 14th floor (a princess tower! A room in a very tall tower with Ye Olde Times style window looking out onto Las Vegas – I was in heaven) and dumped our things, freshened up and went downstairs to the lobby. A casino is like no other place on earth: here, you see people from all walks of life in this large, high-ceilinged, brightly-lit room with colourful carpets and the sound of neon-lit machines chinking as coins are slotted into them, and the occasional cheer as somebody wins something on the tables. There are no clocks. There are no windows. The bar is always fully stocked and tended, as is reception. There is absolutely nothing to indicate what time, day, week or month you have slipped into. Nothing to give any sign of just how many hours you have spent in this one room. It really is a place where time stops. There is no WiFi in any of the bedrooms, so you have to go downstairs to the casino to get any internet. obviously, this will end in you buying a drink and sitting at a machine, spending the quarters you received as change for the drink. This is how they make money. I’m a little ashamed to say it, but I completely see the appeal.

We went to the desk and asked about some shows. Blue Man Group were playing tonight, and I had heard excellent things about them. There was a showing that night at Monte Carlo, so we went and got some food before walking down the strip.

We walked past New York, New York (which really made me want to visit New York) and saw the brightly lit shops on the other side of the road. Vegas was bustling with all sorts of people. It really did feel like Disney for adults, a kind of safe environment to go a little crazy in. I’m a sucker for a good party and an all-nighter so I immediately promised myself that if I ever have a hen party (and can afford it), it will be in Vegas.

We went into Monte Carlo and waited in the casino area with our tickets. Suddenly, what looked like a great big neon caterpillar emerged and danced its way through the casino.

Ok, so it was more of a weird beast than a caterpillar, but in any case, it was a sign of things to come.

The show was amazing! The blue men were exceedingly talented, and there was a little audience participation involved, too. It was a really fun show and ended in us being instructed to “shake the booty”.

I even got a picture with the amazing live band when the show had finished.

So far during our time in the USA, I had felt very anxious about walking around after nightfall. Vegas, however, is the ultimate exception. Maybe it’s because it’s so well-lit everywhere, or because of the Disney-esque feel, but we had no problem walking back to the Excalibur Hotel, taking our time to gaze up at the bright lights and flashing images around us.

It was going to be another early morning tomorrow, so it was off to bed by 11pm. Tomorrow, it was going to be back to nature: the epic Grand Canyon.

Day 112: Yosemite

Now, neither Ash nor myself knew what on Earth Yosemite (pronounced yo-sem-it-ee which again, we didn’t know) was. So when we found that the only way for us to get from San Francisco to Vegas by bus was to go on a tour that stopped there, we thought, why not!

Happen to be one of those people who have always dreamed of seeing Yosemite? Annoyed? We had never heard of El Capitan, either. That should get you really annoyed!

We packed up our backpacks and said goodbye to San Francisco. We went to our pickup point for the bus, found that we were the only non-Chinese people on the bus and immediately thought we had gate-crashed somebody elses tour. However, it turned out that we were in the right place so we hopped on board, by far the youngest people on there, other than the few toddlers that were travelling with their families. The guide was a lovely fellow with a bald head and a big belly, and welcomed us onto the bus. We took our seats and the journey began.

The scenes outside the coach window turned from bustling, cosmopolitan city, to bleak flat land with the odd shrub here and there. The tour guide got on the mic and gave us some insight into California. He was a friendly chap and kept referring to us as “our young couple over here”. It was nice to sit and watch the world go by for a few hours.

Before we knew it, we had reached Yosemite. Yosemite, it turned out, was a beautifully stunning national park that encompassed all of my favourite things: waterfalls, huge trees that seemed to touch the sky, and giant, majestic mountains that commanded respect. As we drove through the woods, the tour guide told us that bears had often been spotted here. After that, obviously I was pressed up against the window like a child at a sweet shop.

Unfortunately we didn’t spot any bears. We got out of the coach and went on a little walk around the area. I was completely in awe. This was such a beautiful place, and it felt great to be surrounded by nature again. As much as the USA has its flaws, both structurally and society-wise, this is the first time I had ever seen it as a naturally beautiful place. Every where I looked, it was like my surroundings had been painted by a romantic with ideals about a pre-human earth and what it would look like. You could easily imagine bears, birds of every breed, even dinosaurs residing in a place like this. (OK, so I know that may not be historically accurate, but let me have this moment.)

The waterfalls were as powerful as they look, with the stream of water crashing down musically onto the rocks below. There were quite a few people there: families with children, elderly couples in their best walking gear, groups of young people. It made me glad to know that in one of the most cosmopolitan countries in the world where technology was the centre of everything, that people still valued going back to nature.

This is where I found out what El Capitan was, which I had heard about before but, for some reason, had always imagined that it was the name of a famous American action movie or actor. Now, I know it is a sheer rock face. I also discovered what a Half Dome is, or specifically the Half Dome. The great mount of rock that looked like a mountain that had been cleft into two sat grandly in the midst of the rocky scenery.

This is one place I really am keen to go back to, within the USA. Those woods call to be explored. Unfortunately, this time we only had a couple of hours to stare in awe, before we were back on the bus and on our way to a hotel. Don’t ask me where exactly the hotel was – all I know is that we had a 5am wakeup call the next day so we could be on our way to the next big event: Las Vegas!

Day 111: The Island of Alcatraz

Ash had been looking forward to this since we got to America: the day he finally got to walk around the secluded island of Alcatraz.

I have had the theory for a while now that J.K. Rowling got the idea for Azkaban, the wizarding prison in her Harry Potter books that resembles a triangular building in the middle of the sea, from Alcatraz prison. I have also watched a few gangster films and was familiar with some of the characters who had been incarcerated there.

The first thing we had to do was change hostels, as our current hostel where the lovely Carlos had looked after us so well, was full up for our remaining stay in San Francisco. We packed up, said our goodbyes and grabbed a taxi to the new hostel. Remember when we were taken to the wrong hostel on the night we arrived in San Francisco, which was nestled in between two strip clubs? Yep, it was that one.

We checked in, dropped our things off and went down to the pier to catch the ferry. Our first stop was Angel Island, which I had never heard of, followed by Alcatraz. After the horrifying experience of boats in Fiji, I was extremely nervous about the journey on the ferry. Thankfully, the day was a nice one and the journey was pleasant.

We passed very close to Alcatraz on our way to Angel Island, and it was a bit like the opening scene of the film Shutter Island but without the scary-looking prisoners trimming shrubs. It’s an eerie place, and the sign alone was enough to give you a feel of the island and the people who were in it.

After about half an hour on the ferry, we arrived at Angel Island, a very beautiful, quiet place that seemed very far removed from the hustling and bustling city of San Francisco. There were no sounds other than the birds tweeting, and wind rustling the leaves of the many trees.

We hopped into a trailer car and went on a tour around the island, following a worn path through the trees and past some very old, out-of-use buildings. The lady giving a tour had promised us a spectacular view, and as the trailer car pushed its way up the hill, through the trees and around corners, the surroundings suddenly opened up to this.

Ok, so it’s not the best photo in the world, but you get the idea.

Back onto the trailer we hopped as we made our way back down the sloping hills of Angel Island. We had a little time to walk around before boarding the ferry and slowly drifting towards the main event: Alcatraz.

Already, there is a sense of a very scary place where there is a lot of history. The stark contrast between the stunning blue skies that day, and this hollow, derelict prison was just outstanding. I am a complete wuss in many respects: I don’t watch horror films, I don’t like watching things that involve killing in any way, and psychologically viewing strange and distressing images disturbs me for quite a length of time. So, naturally, I had never felt the impulsion to visit a prison where some of the USA’s most notorious, violent and unhinged criminals had once resided.

Nevertheless, I’m glad I went. There is a lot of history to that building. There is so much more than just a prison there, and the first sign that this was true came when I saw bright red graffiti everywhere.

Indian? I was very confused. We entered the building and watched a video that told you about this part of Alcatraz’s history. I don’t want to spoil this too much because I believe that everybody should visit San Francisco, and those that do should definitely take the time to visit Alcatraz. Here, however, are a few of my favourite parts.

We followed the crowds around and ended up in what looked like the shower area, where we got into the que for the audio guide. I pointed out to Ash that, on the board that listed the languages in which you could have an audio guide, next to ‘English’ was a picture of the stars-and-stripes flag of the USA. As an English person (who does have Indian heritage but nevertheless is English, thank you very much) this made me do a good and British “Harrumph!” I then proceeded to point out all the ways in which ‘American’ is just a lazy version of English, to the amusement of Ash and the annoyance of Americans around me. And that is why I’m going to become an English teacher.

I found this room quite eerie. It was very easy to image prisoners milling about sullenly. The decor of the building matches San Francisco as a whole in a way that I can’t quite describe. It’s very Hitchcockian.

When we entered the area where the prison cell blocks are located, I was taken aback by the  sheer number of cells. The audio guide really helps to give a sense of the atmosphere here. All of the original flooring is still there, so bullet marks from escape attempts and the infamous ‘Battle of Alcatraz’ are still visible.

But perhaps the scariest part of the tour was D Block. This is where the high security prisoners were kept, and that was made obvious by the solidity of these cells which had a door as well as the metal bars for extra safety.

There have been a few successful escapes from Alcatraz, too. You always hear reference to escaping somewhere by digging a tunnell using spoons. Two prisoners actually did this!

It’s incredible what the human brain and body can do when faced with incarceration and a threat to survival. We were told that it was highly unlikely that they survived the escape, as the water between San Francisco Bay and Alcatraz Island can be rough. However, it is interesting to think that they might have found their way to shore, changed their names and identities and have lived out full lives in the USA.

In short, it was an eye-opening visit for me. We wandered outside after going around the whole prison, visiting the library and kitchens on the way, through the visitation areas that consisted of screens between two walls and telephones, just like the movies. We visited the yard which had over 10ft high concrete walls, though the deep blue of the sea and the San Francisco skyline was visible from the top of the steps, enough to increase the feeling of isolation for any prisoner. Lastly, there was this, which I thought was a stunning image of the criminal justice system of the USA and the apparent freedom that the country tries (and, in my opinion, fails) to embody.

We got back to SF and finished the day with a bowl of clam chowder, ready to embark on a two-day journey to Las Vegas. Time in the USA was fast running out, and all too soon we would have to resume ‘normal life’ in the UK once more.

Day 110: San Francisco

This morning, we woke early, ready and raring to go on an open-top bus exploration of this intriguing, colourful city.

We walked down to the Hilton Hotel, which was our closest bus stop. The sun was out and the city was abuzz with tourists and locals alike, with the smell of fresh coffee being carried through the wind. The sun in San Francisco is, as we found out, deceptive; it can look like the most glorious summer day outside, and the forecast may say that the temperature is going to be in the hundreds, but the wind never stops. Soon i was regretting my choice of short-shorts, and was glad I had brought along my Phillip Island Penguin Parade hoodie.

There are a few companies doing hop-on hop-off bus tours around SF, but we went with Big Bus. We flagged down the huge scarlet double-decker and hopped on, collecting our headphones as we did. The headphones plug into the wall next to your seat, or the seat in front. A cool, calm, male American voice was our audio-guide for the trip.

The further we went, the more the character of SF became apparent. We passed all sorts of interesting buildings, not uniform houses that fit in with the street like in the other big cities of the USA but strange, quirky and delightful builds that made you wonder who lived inside.

My personal highlight was Haight Ashbury, where we got off the bus for a look around. This is hippie central of SF, which stems from an affinity with the Swinging Sixties. You’d know that as soon as you enter the main street, with Jimmy Hendrix murals painted onto brick walls, colourful shops and even a Ben and Jerries shop dedicated to the hippie cause.

We walked past the legendary Amoeba Music and made our way to a supermarket to find some lunch. Ash went with a huge sandwich, made to order, and I went straight for the cakes. We sat on a bit of grassland outside the shop and ate, watched the people pass us by. There were a few homeless people wrapped in blankets, nestled in the corners of the park, up against some trees. It’s a sadly common occurrence in what many consider to be the greatest nation on earth.

We finished our food and went to wait for the bus again. This time, we got off at the museum sight, where we walked around the gardens a little. The area was so vast, and the gardens so extensive, that we knew it couldn’t be covered properly in a day when we still had the Golden gate Bridge to tackle. So, after a little walk in the sunshine, we got back onto the bus and got off just before the Golden gate Bridge.

It is completely, and exactly, how I imagined it. Exactly as it appeared in the Hitchcock film Vertigo, which was my first exposure to the city of San Francisco, it is a remarkable sight, a sign of human capability, artistry and nature, all at once. A symbol of the individuality of SF, and Americanism.

We started to walk along the bridge, I looked over the red railings and saw a number of black dots sitting on the surface of the water, rising and falling with each crashing wave that frothed the deep blue. I even glimpsed a very happy-looking seal, swimming its way under the bridge and doing multiple twirls in the water.

We made it to the other side and waited for the next bus. We hopped on and took in the gorgeous sunshine as we made our way to a gorgeous, very european-looking side of town full of uniform houses painted in pastel colours like something straight out of a movie. We got off and walked to the top of a very steep hill, where we got the most amazing view of San Francisco, all its lines and curves on full display.

This really is a beautiful city, and from somebody who is really more of a country girl, that’s a big compliment. There is such a peaceful, optimistic feel to San Fransisco and it’s contageous.

We got back onto the bus, headed for the city centre. On the way we saw some more interesting builds. It had been a tiring but succesful day in San Francisco.

We went to a sports bar on Pier 39 for dinner, and listened to the seals as we took a walk in the darkness. Today, we had really got a feel for San Francisco and I had already decided that I would visit again.

Day 109: Did they paint it grey?

We woke up in our little hotel room to the stench of garlic, which was coming from my half-eaten pizza left over from last night. I still hadn’t got used to the claustrophobic nature of hotel rooms in the USA, when the only view the room window gave was into a kind of tunnel running up between the building. I could see into two other hotel room windows and brick walls. No wonder they make such a big deal of getting a room with a view here.

We got dressed and discovered that we really needed to get our laundry done, with a matter of urgency. I had to buy more clothes in Hollywood as a last resort a few days prior, and now I had literally no clean clothes left (other than the ones I was wearing, of course). We asked the lovely Carlos where we could find a laundrette, and he pointed us to a place down the road to a nice little place which would do a full service wash, giving us the day to explore San Francisco.

We dropped off the laundry followed a map Carlos had so kindly provided for us, and we decided to follow it, right to the Ferry Building Marketplace on the bay. We perused the food stalls, offering everything from Mexican street food, to fresh pastries and cakes. Obviously, my first instinct was to go for a cake, but I thought better of it and went for a salad, instead.

The thing about America, or rather the USA, is that even if you choose a salad, it will probably be the most unhealthy, fatty, least nutritious and most genetically modified salad you have ever eaten. And boy, did it taste that way. The food just seems so…fake? I think that’s the correct way to describe it. Anyway, we went outside to sit on a bench facing the bay, where we were faced with an enormous grey bridge – exactly the same shape as the notorious Golden Gate Bridge, which is red – and were very confused.

Now, I would never claim to being the sharpest tool in the shed (namely because when I try to say that phrase, I often say ‘Sharpest bulb in the shed’) but I never thought I was actually this stupid. Mind you, both of us were equally confused, staring at this grey bridge muttering ‘Did they paint it grey? Wouldn’t we have hears about that?! Why did they paint it grey?’ Thinking back, that might be why a number of San Franciscans were sniggering at us.

We decided, after lengthy debate and a quick search on Google, that this was a different bridge. The Golden Gate Bridge was further down, a good bus-ride away. We walked back through the town, and I noticed for the first time just how colourful San Francisco is. There are buildings dotted around of all colours, with peculiar shaped roofs and little details of character. We saw the famous tram, which the Americans call a cable-car, going up and down the steep roads, crammed with people all smiling and waving. This, it seemed to me, was the old-age America, the part of America which kept its class, and its hope. I got the sense that San Francisco was America at its best.

We collected the laundry and went back to the hotel before planning a busy day of sight-seeing tomorrow.

That evening, we grabbed some food and went back to the hotel. Tomorrow, we would get a proper tour of San Francisco,

Day 108: The Gem of the West Coast

We had to be up quite early to pack, eat and get to Union Station. We stopped off and got a pepperoni pretzel on the way. It was delicious.

From Union Station, we lugged our backpacks down to a Denny’s diner and waited for the bus. More and more people appeared, waiting for the same bus. It was a very hot, sunny day, so I waited in the shade of the Denny’s Diner, trying to resist the temptation of food. We had been a little disappointed by American food so far, and the best thing we had eaten by far was the Mexican cuisine.

Finally, almost half an hour late, our bus turned up. The driver didn’t even wait to check our tickets. We just got onto the bus and – hooray – realised I could get a WiFi signal. Ahhh, so the next six hours would be productive and not at all boring. Then, as we pulled away, I realised the WiFi signal had been coming from the Megabus parked in the Denny’s car park.

The next six hours were spent looking out of the window and thinking about how beautiful the U.S.A. really is.

By the time we reached San Francisco, it was evening and getting dark. When the city finally came into view, the setting sun was glinting off the sky-high buildings, making for an excellent sight. It was charming and exciting, to enter a city that was world-famous and adored by so many people. A huge grey bridge came into view, though I saw no red bridge. That would come later, I thought, a little disappointed.
We got off the bus and grabbed a cab to the hostel. Driving through San Francisco, I was taken in by how different it is from LA. It was so colourful. Not only were their buildings of so many different colours, the roofs of which fell diagonally as they sat on incredibly steep hills, but also culturally. We drove through an area of designer shops such as Gucci and Armani, through Chinatown and Little Italy, to the hostel which was sandwiched between two…well, two strip clubs.

The area itself wasn’t that unattractive, but the pubs with blaring music, photographs of nearly-naked woman and giant neon signs was a little off-putting. Sighing, I went inside.

It turns out that we were at the wrong hostel. There were two in the city, owned by the same people, though one was a little more up-market than the other. The up-market hostel was the one we had arrived at. I wondered if this was the posh one, what on earth would the other one be like?!

Reluctantly, we got a taxi to the correct hostel, which cost us another $10. Not the best start to our time in San Francisco.

We arrived and were met by a lovely man called Carlos, who was a delight to speak to. He advised us in just the best, slightly camp american accent that the reviews left for the hostel about homeless people around were misunderstandings.

“People say ‘Oh, there are so many homeless people that are so scary!’ Honey, they are not homeless. I talked to one guy one time, and I asked him, ‘Why do you do this?’ He said [scrunches face up and raises shoulders comically] ‘Sir I make $200 a day sometimes’. You go ten minutes up the street this way [gestures left] POOF they disappear. You head ten minutes down the street that way [gestures right] POOF! They’re gone! Always say a firm ‘NO!’ and keep walking, and you’ll be fine.”

He then told us that there was a lovely pizza place down the street that was still open for food, and that they are personal friends of his. So off we went. Despite Carlos’ comforting words, it didn’t feel safe. I waited patiently for my pesto calzone, and we speed-walked back to the hotel. I’d made a bad decision with my calzone, as a) it had mushrooms, which I hate, and b) it was possible the most garlicky pizza I have ever, ever tasted. So much so that the room stunk of garlic for the rest of our stay.

That night was spent watching excellent episode of Gordon Ramsay’s Hell’s Kitchen, American edition, and going through the map which Carlos had kindly provided. In LA I had to buy a t-shirt as an emergency, as all of our clothes desperately needed washing, so laundry was high on the list of things to do tomorrow. So far, though I liked San Francisco and it’s multicoloured persona.

DAY 107: Endeavour & Enchiladas

This morning, we didn’t have any real plan for the day. Ash was really keen to see Endeavour, the space-shuttle that was currently on display in a museum in LA, and we also really, really needed to do laundry. It was at the point where we were having to buy more clothes because we didn’t have any clean ones left. A bus to San Francisco was booked for tomorrow morning, so until then we had a day to spare.

After the past two day’s tourist indulgences, we went back to doing what we do best: exploring. Getting a train to Union Station, we stumbled upon what I can only describe as Little Mexico, which I now know is an area named El Pueblo. It was beautiful. Here, there was colour everywhere. The whole of this Little Mexico was confined to a few streets which were lined on both sides by a number of Mexican eateries, though instead of a commercialised chain, they were cosy tavern-esque places full of character. Spanish was being spoken everywhere, which was a welcome sound. The middle of the streets were filled with market stalls, selling all manner of handmade items from leather bracelets to shoes, little figures of a Mexican man with moustache and sombrero, leather purses and bags of every bright colour. There was a general hustle and bustle about the place, and it was the only part of LA in which I had felt safe, so far.

The smell of food pulled us into one particular eatery (they weren’t big enough to be called restaurants, but not small enough to be a street vendor,) with a simple interior that still managed to boast cultural distinction. We ordered enchiladas, and watched our food being freshly made by an elderly gentleman tending to his kitchen, greeting customers in Spanish and conversing in the language, laughing and smiling as he worked. It was truly lovely here. We received our food quickly, ate and paid. I would have loved to have spent a full day there, but we were due to leave for San Francisco tomorrow and wanted to cover as much ground as possible. So, we left the pleasant sound of Spanish, the colourful markets and smell of food for Union Station.

At the desk, Ash asked about Endeavour, and we were told which train to get on. So, we took the subway again. It was a lovely hot day again in LA (What else?) so the cool of the station was welcome.

On the train, it was very quiet. The areas we went through were also very quiet. So quiet, in fact, that we both started to feel quite unsafe. It’s a strange thing when travelling, that being surrounded by strangers, even if they are all ignoring each other in typical western style, is comforting. We passed something called The Staples Center (I can spell, but ‘center’ is the way they spell it over there as opposed to the correct ‘centre’) which I thought looked like a bloody big stationary shop. Then I found out that it was actually a concert venue (it is probably used for other things too…maybe even a sport…but I just imagined a band playing in between the isles of paperclips and files.) Before we knew it, we were at our stop.
“Depart here for Endeavour-”
Ash gave a little squeal of excitement and off we went.

The outside of the museum was really rather beautiful. A great big garden with an assortment of perfumed flowers and a grand fountain decorated the area, with the American flag waving proudly above the ornate buildings.

We went into the museum and asked how much it would cost. Lucky us: it was free today! Wonderful. Now, we had been to a couple of museums in the last few months. Ash absolutely loves them, whereas I like to see the original stuff and can easily leave the rest. We started off by going through the different exhibitions about science. You know, the usual information for children: precipitation, evolution, etc etc. Then we turned into the Endeavour exhibition. Ash was entirely in his element. It was really interesting: they had an entire control room set up for you to immerse yourself in, and even a space-toilet! Because let’s face it, that’s what we are all interested in, really.

Ash was so excited by all this that he couldn’t wait to go and see the Endeavour in all it’s glory. So, after a look through the Nature exhibition, we made our way downstairs to a giant white warehouse-like building outside. We walked in to this.

It really was grand to behold. To think that this huge piece of complicated machinery had been out there, into actual space, is quite amazing. The most striking thing about the Endeavour was the detail, which you don’t really think about if you are the sort of person who generally doesn’t think about NASA operations. This was especially clear to me when standing underneath the Endeavour, and I noticed a serial numbers etched onto every single tile that coated the ship.

The size of the ship is staggering, too. We both spent a lot of time just looking at Endeavour in awe.

I read a little about the communal effort that was required when transporting the Endeavour home to California, right there to the warehouse. Imagining pulling this gigantic ship through the tightly-packed streets of LA, with masses of people coming to watch, because, why not? I’m sure if somebody wanted to push a space ship through Stoke-on-Trent, the whole city would be out to watch.

Once Ash had got his fill of the childhood dream of being an astronaut, we left to go back to Chinatown. Tomorrow was a day we were both looking forward to. ‘Beautiful’, ‘cultural’, ‘colourful’ are just a few words people have used to describe San Francisco to us. I have been dying to see this iconic city, which I remember being fascinated by when watching Hitchcock’s Vertigo when studying film at college. It looked so…European! Like a little bit of every European country has been injected into it. That is the impression I got from a film shot decades ago. Walking over the Golden Gate Bridge and indulging in some good food were on the list. Tomorrow, San Fransisco baby!