The Streets of San... and other California, CA Things to Do Tips

San Francisco - We flew to San Francisco to start our two week fly/drive holiday. As soon as I saw these steep streets, which I had seen in films and in the tv programme 'The Streets of San Francisco' we knew we had arrived!

This photo is taken at the junction of Lombard Street, in the district of Russian Hill. Its known as the 'crookedest street in the world' because it has 8 sharp turns and is also very steep. The flower beds on the way down are beautiful.

There is a tourist information office near Union Square in the Hallidie Plaza at the corner of Market and Powell.
Open weekdays 9-5.30pm
Saturdays 9-3.00pm
Sundays 10-2.00pm
Tel No. 391 2000

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Address: Lombard Street

The Golden Gate Bridge - wow what a sight, especially as we were on a boat on a tour of the bay. You get a great view of San Francisco from the boat of this beautiful city. The building of the bridge started in 1933 and opened in May 1937. It is nearly 2 miles long and links San Francisco with Marin County. There is a toll charge from Marin County. We went over the bridge by car a few times, and on one occasion, it was so foggy that as we drove over we couldnt see anything below us, but above us everything was so clear. It was quite spooky really and in fact I didnt like it! There is a point on the Marin County side where people stand to look at the bridge, but because of the fog below us, I made my husband go back!

There are lots of boat companies on the wharf offering tours of the bay. No need to book.

Down on Fishermans Wharf, there are many attractions, including restaurants, bars, shops, museums, but my favourite was pier 39, where you can see hundreds of sea lions basking in the sun on pontoons. In fact you can hear them before you can actually see them.

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Address: Fishermans Wharf
Directions: Bay Area

Alcatraz - This very famous prison, opened in 1933 until its closure in 1963. It was supposed to be 'escape proof'. Some of its infamous occupants were Al Capone and the 'birdman of Alcatraz'.

It is 1.1/2 miles from the shore and there are tours to the island in which you can visit the prison and see inside.

This photo was taken while on the boat tour. As we were not able to get on a tour of the actual prison itself.

Booking in advance is very important.
Red and White Ferries do tours of the island/prison.

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Phone: 546 2700 for tickets
Directions: Red and White Ferries run from Pier 41 on the wharf.

Travelling from San Francisco down Highway 101 on our way to Monterey I happened to read about the Nasa Ames Research and Moffet Field which is situated a couple of miles south of Palo Alto. As my husband is really interested in any kind of air travel there was no way we could go past with stopping for a visit.
The land for the Moffett Field was commissioned by the United States Government in 1933, and was originally to serve as a base for the navy dirigible the U.S.S. Macon. The Nasa-Ames Research Centre researches hyper-velocity flight, and it has a gigantic wind tunnel which is used for research. This is a photo of my husband and son in front of a scaled down version of the Shuttle.
Palo Alto is also the home of Stanford University.

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Phone: 604 6497

Monterey is about 100 miles south of San Francisco and lies on a peninsula, jutting out into the pacific. It was once a thriving sardine canning business area from the first world war until stocks of sardines were depleted and this industry ended there in the 1950's.

Now these buildings are used for restaurants, bars and shops.

Also in Monterey is the Stevenson House. Apparently Robert Louis Stevenson came to Monterey in 1879 and met his wife to be. It was here that he wrote Treasure Island.

John Steinbeck also wrote a book called 'Cannery Row' about the life of people working in the fish canning industry and their lives. It was a best seller and gained Steinbeck and Monterey a wider public. A statue of Steinbeck can be seen here. He was born in Salinas on 27th February 1902 and his parents had a cottage in Monterey. He was married 3 times, his last wife being the former wife of film star Zachery Scott. Besides being a writer of many novels, he also went to the Vietnam war as a reporter for 'Newsday'. One of his sons was already involved in the war in Vietnam at the time. On his return he became ill and died in December 1968. He is buried in Salinas, which is about 17 miles away.

As I have just read the novel 'Of Mice and Men' by John Steinbeck and because my friend Jen (vt member Craic) comments that I have not mentioned him, I have added this just for you Jen :-)

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The sea all around this area is protected by the National Marine Sanctuary, looking after sea otters, dolphins, seals and whales.
Rock pools are great to explore in and also to paddle!

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17 Mile Drive winds through Pebble Beach which is a private and very affluent estate. There are entry gates where non residents have to pay approx $8 per car to enter, this includes a guide map.

There are golf courses, a 5,000 acre forest and upmarket hotels and stunning coastal scenery.

The Lone Cypress Tree is the logo of the Pebble Beach Company.

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Driving along you see deer roaming freely. Along the coast on the rocks in the sea you will see many species of birds including pelicans, and also sea lions.

Its well worth the detour from the highway to drive through this beautiful peninsula.

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I had never heard of Carmel until Clint Eastwood became its mayor! So a visit to this beautiful seaside village was a must. It has a lovely beach and the buildings are so quaint and picturesque. In August when we visited everywhere was a riot of colour with so many flowers blooming.

To retain its appearance, pavements (side walks) and street lamps are not permitted. And residents living in the centre are not allowed to have mail boxes and have to pick up their post at the post office.

Parking metres are also not allowed and parking can be difficult. Please make sure you are parking in a designated area.

There is a visitor information centre at the Carmel Business Association, situated above the Hogs Breath (please see my restaurant tip) on San Carlos between 5th and 6th.

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Phone: info 624 2522

Morro Bay - Besides being a tourist area, Morro Bay is a very active fishing community.

In the bay is a huge rock which is millions of years old and is home to peregrine falcons and herons.

To the north of the Morro Strand State Beach which is sandy and has campsites.

To the south of the embarcadero is Morro Bay State Park. Here there is a small marina where you can hire canoes and kayaks for about $8 per hour. My husband and son spent a lovely time here canoing, I stayed on dry ground!
There is also barbeque areas on the grassy front.

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