So I'm still catching up due to how busy I was at the end of the semester with uni work and finals; here it goes:
For the Thanksgiving Holiday I went on a road trip up to Northern California to spend Thanksgiving with an American friend Kim, whose family very kindly hosted five of us. We also took the opportunity to see San Francisco and then to visit Yosemite National Park while there.
On the first day of our trip, we drove across the Golden Gate Bridge and took photos!
We then went down to Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39 which is a really cool place by the water with little shops and restaurants, and it overlooks Alcatraz. I really liked the atmosphere of this part as it has a small town feel in a big city. This was the first thing that made me think that if I were to live in the USA I'd choose San Francisco.
Sonnee, Sara and I with Alcatraz in the background:
Pier 39:
We then drove to Kim's house and had a lovely dinner with her family and a dip in the hot tub! Afterwards we went on a midnight walk and saw the stars :)
The next day was Thanksgiving and after a relaxing morning we drove to Kim's Aunt and Uncle's for Thanksgiving dinner, which I have to say was one of the best meals I've had the whole semester. The drive there showed us a very different California than what we've been used to in Long Beach with countryside. I felt like I was on the east coast as it was so different, let alone in the same state. Its great that California itself has so many different landscapes to explore!
On our way we passed through Sacramento, the Capitol of California:
Thanksgiving sunset in the American countryside:
After our dinner overlooking this view we played darts which was really fun and then had an entertaining drive home singing our hearts out! Our first Thanksgiving in the USA was great; I think I might celebrate it every year now, just to eat delicious food! Thanks to Kim's family!
On the next day, we got up very early and went into San Fran to try to fit as much into one day as we could. We had a beautiful day for it, there was no fog, just amazing blue skies and sunshine.
Firstly we went to Golden Gate Park, where we had a wander around and admired the fact that it was so peaceful in the middle of a city.
We then went to see the famous "Painted Ladies" houses in Alamo Square which has an amazing view of the city.
We saw the Mrs. Doubtfire House on Steiner St., which was surprisingly small but exciting to see nonetheless, and there was again an amazing view down the street.
And this is me saying, "Look Sonnee, Robin Williams stood here!"
Next up was the Pacific Heights neighbourhood where we sat and ate our lunch. This again had amazing San Fran style houses and views.
We then drove down Lombard Street, which is the windy road which has eight tight turns in the space of one block. This is the view from the top!
Next, on our way to park the car down at Pier 39, we went down a street with a really cool view of Alcatraz, which was pretty much the only place we didn't seem to visit, but I can do that another time!
Fisherman's Wharf:
We got a San Fran cable car from by the bay, and while we waited we had this stunning view!
Me and Steph on the cable car, ready to go!
Up the hill:
Down the hill:
We got off at Union square which was our next stop.
Next up was the Financial district, where the Transamerica Pyramid is:
We walked from here to the Beat Museum, which I really wanted to visit having read On The Road, a novel by beat writer Jack Kerouac. I loved learning more about it as I find this era of American literature and history really interesting.
A glimpse inside the museum:
The car used in On The Road:
A really cool mural and street art nearby:
We then walked through Chinatown back to Union square and caught the cable car to Pier 39 to get the car. We drove to Haight Ashbury where we had dinner; this was the place to be in the sixties and it still has a lot of its hippie history.
Afterwards we visited Pier 39 again to look at some of the shops and then went to Telegraph Hill/ Coit Tower to see the view of the city at night.
The next morning we started our drive to Yosemite National Park, but along the way we found (what we considered to be) a national treasure, Copperopolis. This was a tiny town which didn't seem to have any one to serve except passing visitors like us, as it was in the middle of nowhere, yet it had two restaurants, an ice cream parlour, a nail salon, a pet shop and a few other shops. People were dressed traditionally and there were horse-drawn carriages doing rides around the square, it was a new town built to look old. It didn't seem to belong in California at all. It was the kind of thing that we thought could only be found in America, and this coupled with the name, led to us realising that many jokes could be made out of the town. And thus, Copperopolis has become a legend amongst my friends.
Copperopolis Town Hall:
Having had lunch in Copperopolis we spent a bit longer there than planned and so didn't have time to see much of Yosemite that day. But we did arrive before dark and were able to take photos at the sign. We also found out when we arrived to our campsite that there was an outdoor ice rink, and so our plans were made for the night!
Our campsite:
Our little tent:
We went ice skating where I had a couple of hilarious falls and then we made smores on the campfire.
The next morning we walked to Mirror Lake, which disappointingly didn't have any water in, but at least we got to walk in it!
Our different reactions to there being no water:
On our way back to the campsite we found this! This was more of a mirror lake than actual Mirror Lake:
After some breakfast we went to see Yosemite Falls. There wasn't much water flowing, due to the time of year, but it was there! The lack of it made it more of an adventure for us and more exciting as we climbed the rocks up towards the base of the waterfall.
After going to see Bridalveil Falls we started our drive back down to Southern California. However, we stopped along the way to see this, which is Tunnel View, one of the most famous at Yosemite and definitely one of the most beautiful. What an amazing end to our Thanksgiving week!
This was a really long post and very late, but I hope you enjoyed catching up on my travels. My experiences have all felt quite surreal while in the US but sitting writing this in England makes it all feel more real and makes me appreciate it that much more! This trip was one of the best experiences of the semester and thanks to Kim and her family we had a great Thanksgiving! Also a shoutout to Steph for driving us around the whole time, thank you. :)
My next post will be about visiting the Queen Mary back in Long Beach! Hopefully it will be up soon now I've got this big one out of the way!
Hope anyone reading had a great Christmas and have a Happy New Year!
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