Another early start in Sonora! Up at 6.30 to have bags ready by 7am! Set off time was 8am but first we had to have breakfast! Now, this was the oddest breakfast yet! The breakfast items were laid out in the hotel lobby but Craig had suggested that we take it back to our rooms as there is no seating area there! Well, they went across and had a really wide choice...cereal or toast and tea, coffee and fruit juice! So with juice, coffee and toast they set off back to their rooms but decided to be really European and eat it beside the pool!
Soon they were off again and today they were heading to Sacramento. It was about a 2 hour journey there. Sacramento is the capital city of California and if you asked most people they would probably pick one of the large, major cities as the capital! This was to be another short visit. They wee going to the 'Old Town' which has been preserved as it would have been in the 1800's. The streets are wide and the shops and buildings have the wooden board walk pavements that you would expect to see in a cowboy film! There was a wide variety of shops and businesses. They also went to see the Sacramento River which ran past the old part of the town. Amongst the boats that were on the river was a paddle steamer which obviously runs river cruises up and down the river. The railway also ran alongside the river and in and around the station there were quite a few people dressed up in costumes from the 1800's! They mingled with the tourists and added a real touch of authenticity to the proceedings!
After a look round they had to be back to the pick up point by around 11am! This was so they could get a group photo to keep as a souvenir! A had asked if there was a chance of getting a grip photo and the guide had said we could do one in Sacramento! So 41 people lined up along the side of the bus and the driver and the tour guide had a large collection of cameras laid on the pavement in front of them and one by one they went through each camera and took a photo! I decided that for once I would go n a photo with other people and had one of my very rare photos with A and L!
Back on the bus they were now on the way to San Francisco? As the bus made its way along the freeway Craig went over the details for the next few days so everyone was aware what they would be doing. Today they would end up in the city and would have lunch in Union Square. After they were picked up after lunch they did a short tour of the city! They saw the federal district with the government buildings and museums and then went to have a drive along the waterside where all the piers are located. These piers are full of tourist shops and cafes and on a Sunday they were just moving with people. Hopefully tomorrow they will be quieter once everyone is back to work! They then moved on to visit the bridge! Well, this was a bit of a amble as San Francisco is famed for its mist - especially along the seashore. You could see the mist in the distance and Craig said that if it looked like a ate of time then they would give it a miss. This was not what they wanted to hear as if you are in S F you want to see the bridge and take some photos!
They got there after a few minutes drive and the car park was full of cars and buses. Aaron. Ads his way in and slowly inched round the car park until he got a spot where he could park. Craig said they could have 15 minutes but was not sure it was going to be worth it! Well, about half of the bus got off and ventured down to see the view. After all, you cold not make it this far and NOT go to see! However, the mist was down and you could see it swirling round the bridge and round the view point. However, due to the strong winds they kept catching glimpses of the bridge. People frantically snapped away and tried their best to get as much of the bridge in their pictures! However, they still never saw the far off tower of the bridge despite the fog swirling about and revealing patches of the bridge as it moved! However, they got some good photos and I managed to get a good one with me in it. It is Alcatraz tomorrow and hopefully it will be clearer and they can get pictures of the whole bridge!
After leaving the bridge area they headed round some of the city areas to see some examples of the Victorian buildings that are located in the area. We also skirted past the most expensive street in the U.S. in Broadway and Pacific Heights.
By this time people wanted back to the hotel and we finally arrived there about 4.15pm. They had time to sort out some of their luggage and get down to the lobby for 5.30 when there was a drinks reception for the visitors. A lot of the group were going on a visit to Chinatown for a Chinese meal and A and L, who were not doing this optional, hitched a ride on the bus and joined the group on the tram down to Chinatown before leaving them and heading off to Union Square for a meal.
The tram ride was great fun! The tram picked them all up and made its way along California and up Nob Hill towards Chinatown! The wine from the reception must have kicked in as everyone was in a joyful mood and were enjoying the journey up and down the streets of San Francisco on the tram! On the way they passed a wedding group getting photos taken and cheered them as they went past and then wondered why there was suddenly so much security and police in the vicinity and even TV News vans moving about! Then they remembered that Craig had told them that Mitt Romney, the Republican Presidential Candidate, was in town this afternoon for a visit and he was holding a special dinner for supporters in the area! Seats were supposed to be selling for between $10,000 and $20,000 dollars each! He is not expected to do well in California but needs to visit to drum p as much support as he can in this area.
They arrived in Chinatown ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinatown,_San_Francisco ) and they left the group and headed off on their own. They ended up in Union Square and went to Macy's for their meal. Although the shop was closing they were going to go to 'The Cheeaecake Factory' (http://www.unionsquareshop.com/pages/macys.html ) which is on the 8th storey of the Macy's shop? They got up to the correct level and the place was heaving with people. We asked about a tale and were told we would have a wait of up to an hour before we would get a table. S they said yes and went for a look round the shop. The surroundings and the decor was lovely and the only thing that could have made it better was a window seat!
After their meal they headed back to the hotel and met a group of their fellow bus companions in the bar next to the hotel after their trip to Chinatown. They joined them for a whole before heading off to bed!
Tomorrow: Alcatraz Island followed by a free afternoon and then the farewell dinner tomorrow night. They are happy to have the two a extension will not be picked up till 4.30pm on Thursday to go to the airport!
More tomorrow!night!
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