BRIDGING TO CADETTES ~ DAY 2

Everyone was excited for today's adventures.  We were going to go to Alcatraz.  This was the one place that everyone really wanted to see.  So, we got up, got dressed and headed out.

The girls took a little mini break outside in front of the fire pit.  This was right outside our hotel.  There were several of them lined up along the entrance.

We had some time to kill before our boat took off so we made our way down to Pier 39.  It was a short walk from our hotel and it was a beautiful day out.

We had time for a little bit of shopping.

Stopping for some lunch at Boudins for soup in yummy sourdough bread bowls.

The girls stopped for a photo op.  They are so funny!

Another photo op with Coit Tower in the background.

Then we waited to board the boat to go to the island.  We met some nice people from Ireland while we were waiting.  Plus a french couple with a son.  It was fun to meet other people from other parts of the world.

Most of the girls had purchased a t-shirt or hat that said something about Alcatraz so they wore them.

The boat ride over was a lot of fun.  It was a beautiful day out.  the water was pretty and the sky was clear.

We loved watching Alcatraz getting closer and closer.

But, being out on the water was super windy.  If you stood up you felt like you were going to be blown away.  Of course, the girls stood the whole time, loving every minute of it.

Soon we were there.  It almost seemed to short of a boat ride.  However, since we all so excited about getting off to explore it was fine.

We first listened to the guide tell us a bit about where things were.  Then we headed out to explore.

We first walked around and explored the outside, then we headed into the Main Prison area. 

They found everything about the prison to be interesting.  However, they did all say they were NEVER going to do anything to end up behind bars for real. 

I think it's a good thing for kids to see what prison life is really like.  Then they know they don't want to end up there when they get older.

Inside we saw rows and rows of cells.  It was easy to picture how loud it would be in there with everyone yelling, banging and screaming.  It felt cold and very unhappy in there.

The cells were very small.  Picturing having to live in there for made us all uncomfortable.  No one would enjoy being here for real.

We all got headsets to listen to as we walked around.  The recording was by some of the real guards and inmates that actually worked and lived there.

We got to actually step into the cells of the inmates that we were listening to as they told us what life was like back when Alcatraz was open.

Going into the "Hole" or solitary confinement was a scary feeling.  We saw how when the prisoners didn't follow the rules they would be locked up away from everyone, with no light, no windows, no furniture. 

They slept on the cold, hard floor and had to go to the bathroom in a hole in the ground. 

They had some cells set up just as they were back when they were open.  Each inmate got a very limited amount of items. 

The beds had to be made daily, the cell clean and tidy.  There were a lot of rules that had to be followed and if they weren't the inmates were quickly punished.

The inmates were allowed visitors but had no contact with them.  They had to look through this tiny window and talk on a phone.  Visitors were very limited and the time was short that they had to visit with their loved ones.

We also heard about how inmates would try to escape.  How they used dummy heads they made to fool the guards when they would walk by at night.  Of course they got caught or killed.  There was a few that actually made it off the island but they were quickly found and returned.  One was never found.  It's not known if he was killed in the water or actually made it to freedom.

There is a light house on the island too.  The island was first used by our Military.  The prison was first built to hold prisoners at that time.  When they closed down the Military location, they kept the prison running to hold them.

Then the State purchased the prison to use to hold what was thought to be the most harden criminals throughout the country.

Once Alcatraz was getting to old and to costly to maintain, they moved the prisoners to other prisons.  The Island sat empty.

Indians went over and tried to claim it as their own.  It wasn't long before the State came over and kicked them off and shortly thereafter, opened it up to the public to tour.

While it was open as a prison, the guards actually lived on the island.  Down below the prison area there were houses built for them.  Kids would go on the boat every day to school on the main land.

The houses are no longer standing.  Time, weather and lack of care has all but removed them.  You can still see a few walls that have crumbled down but not much else.

We got to see the yard where the inmates were allowed to go to get some exercise.  I was surprised at how large the yard actually was.  I could picture the inmates out there in groups, talking, playing sports, cards or board games.  Some plotting getting back at either other inmates or guards for something that was done to make them made.

I have no doubts many fights broke out in this yard.  However, while we were there we could actually notice the beauty of the old building and the history of the place.

One thing many people don't know about is behind Alcatraz there are beautiful gardens.  They were planted and tended to by inmates back when the prison was open.  After it closed many volunteers helped to take care of them.

Alcatraz is now also known as a bird sanctuary.

We even got to see a lot of baby birds that were born a short while before we got there.

It is sort of strange to think that a prison could be though of as actually beautiful but there was beauty all around us.

Yet, we all agreed that the most beautiful thing about Alcatraz were the views.  Looking back towards the city was lovely.

As we made our way back to the boat we went through this old tunnel.  It was built back in 1856.  It was fun to think of all the people who had walked through this tunnel all those years ago.

The guard tower was one of the last things we saw as we got on the boat to go back.  No matter how much fun we had, how pretty some things seemed or how lovely the views were, this tower reminded us that this place was an actual prison full of criminals that we are lucky to have never come across.

After Alcatraz we went back to our hotel and got our car.  Then the girls wanted to go to China Town.  We went to the fortune cookie shop.  They actually make their cookies by hand like they have done for years and years. 

We watched the man pull the warm cookies off the machine and fold them with the fortunes in them.  They then got bagged and sold. 
They let us have a sample and they were sooo good.  We ended up buying a bag that had both the normal fortune cookies and also chocolate fortune cookies.  YUM!

After having a snack of cookies, it was time for shopping!

By the time we got there, many of the shops were closing.  Yet, we were able to find enough still open that the girls all bought several fun things.

They all wanted to buy things not only for themselves but also for their family.  How thoughtful!

There was so much to pick from.  Toys, clothes, fans, jewelery... What to get?  What to get?

Once they all bought what they wanted they were in a hurry to head back to the hotel as they all wanted to go swimming. 

What?  They could go swimming back home.  Why would they want to spend their time going swimming on vacation?

On the way back to our hotel we took a little detour to go down Lombard Street.  Known as the crookedest street in the world.

Yes, that's us in the black mini van.  Michelle got out of the car to run down and take our picture.  We laughed so hard at her.  We had a blast going down. 

It normally is so busy on that street that it goes so slow but we were lucky, no one was in front of us and only a few cars came after us.

It was so fun, we wanted to go again.  So we went around the block and this time NO ONE was there.  The street was empty except us.  So, we let the girls get out with Michelle this time and run down the street. 

They had so much fun.  Laughing the whole way down.

We ended up going down about 5 times before we headed home.  We made sure to follow the girls running so no other cars would be able to get to them.

The girls were tired from our long day and again asked to go swimming.  So, we drove back to our hotel room.

Along the way we all noticed the lovely old buildings.  They were all so pretty.

Once back to our hotel, the girls quickly got in their bathing suits and I took them to the pool while Maureen and Michelle walked to get sandwiches for dinner. 

The girls were so excited to swim they didn't even want to eat dinner but of course that was part of the deal if they went swimming. 

So they ate dinner then got right into the water.  Let me tell you, once they started to eat I think they saw they were hungry as they all ate every bite.

These girls had so much fun swimming.  I think the fact we were at a hotel, away from home and it was night time that it made it much more fun then swimming at home.

When it was time for the pool to close, we went back to the room.  Everyone was super tired.  We took showers and got ready for bed.  Watched a little tv and packed.  We couldn't believe it was going to be time to go home in the morning.

Thankfully we had a late flight and would have time to still have some fun before going home.

Our last day in San Francisco will be told in the next post.

BRIDGING IN SAN FRANCISCO ~ DAY ONE

Bridging to Cadettes is a special thing.  It means the girls are growing up.  They are now old enough to travel further away from home.

The girls have been dreaming about going to San Francisco for two years.  Ever since they became Juniors. 

They worked hard to earn enough money to go.  They spent hours and hours selling cookies and Fall Products.  They went door to door and stood outside for hours at booth sales.  They also got up early so we could hold our garage sale.

With all their hard work, it paid off.  We got to go to San Francisco.  Well, four out of our six older girls got to go.  Sadly, one girl decided to drop out of girl scouts and one had parents that did not want her going.

We all got up super early and made it to Long Beach airport so we could be on the first flight out.  We wanted to get to San Francisco early so we could spend as much time there as possible.

We had a budget of $500 per person and we were able to stay on that budget.  Our flight was booked early.  We got a good deal of only $138 per person flying on Jet Blue.

Even though we were all super excited for our trip, getting up early meant we were all still sleepy while we waited to get on our plane.

The girls were pretty quiet there as they tried to wake up.  Most listened to music, talked quietly or just people watched.

The time waiting passed by quickly.

Soon, it was time to get on our plane.  One of the fun things about going out of Long Beach is, it's a super small airport.  More like they used to be years ago.  No walking forever to find your gate.  No getting lost as you search for where to go. 

Also, we had to walk out to the plane and go up the ramp like everyone did way before these girls were born.

So there weren't any arguments over who got to sit where, I just had the girls sit in their assigned seats.  The ones it said on their tickets.

We were sitting right in front of each other and an adult sat in the same row as two girls.  It worked out great. 

On the way home, they sat with different girls.

Our flight was great.  No problems at all.  Once we landed we took the tram to the rental car location.

We rented through Thrifty Rental Car and we got a large mini van that held all of us and our luggage.  The cost was $200.  Not bad at all.

We made our way to the Golden Gate Bridge.  We got out and took lots of pictures.  Then we got a snack.  After all, walking across the bridge was going to take lots of energy.

It was the Golden Gates 75th Anniversary.  So, it was a very special year to bridge.  Not only was it the Golden Gates special Anniversary but it was Girl Scouts 100th Anniversary.

After we explored and checked out the sights, we got back into our car, drove around the area a little bit. 

Then it was time to go bridge!!!! 

Once you are actually at the Golden Gate Bridge you see how long it actually is.  The girls were tired from not getting much sleep and they wanted to see as much as they could on this trip. 

So, they voted to just drive over the bridge rather then walk it.  We could not have had more fun then we did.  We all cheered, laughed, screamed, whooped and hollered.  We had a blast!

The girls all had put on their bridging t shirts I got them while we were at the airport so they looked really cute too.

Once we reached the other side of the bridge, we got out,  the girls got their new vests and became official Cadettes. 

We took lots more pictures.  The girls were actually excited to be Cadettes now.

Everyone agreed that driving over the bridge was so much fun, they were happy they didn't walk as they felt they would not have enjoyed it 1/2 as much.

We then drove to Muir Woods.  It is a beautiful place that is home to the worlds tallest Redwood Trees.

It is so green and pretty.  However, the photos do not do it justice.  At least none of mine did. 

This is the location where the famous photographer, Ansel Adams, took his black and white photos.  They now sell for thousands and thousands of dollars.

We spent several hours there.  We did pay to get in but, after we did, we noticed that no one would have known if you paid or not and it was clear that most people didn't. 

However, since we are all honest girl scouts, we were happy we paid.

Some of the trees were so big that all four girls were able to stand in a hallowed out trunk.

We came across one tree that had fallen and was hallowed out too.  All four fit in there too! 

These trees are really big.

Every bridge we came across the girls did another bridging ceremony.  I guess this way they felt as if they actually got to walk across a bridge.

We spent several hours walking around and then everyone was hungry again.  So we had lunch at the only place there to eat. 

It was all healthy food.  Everything was organic.  There were no sodas.  No water in bottles as they felt the plastic was bad for the world.  No chips or junk food.

But, we were hungry and so we all found something to eat. 

We all agreed we wouldn't eat there again.  It wasn't very good and it cost way to much for what we got.

I'm not sure if it was excitement for being on vacation, the joy of bridging, the fresh air or what.  But, we were all laughing until we cried.  We had so much fun, making jokes and then we would make faces and laugh some more. 

We loved Muir Woods but it was time to go.  We still had not checked into our hotel yet.

We took the shuttle back to our car.  The parking lot there is very small and so they have you park down the mountain and they drive you up in a bus.  There is a cost for the shuttle but it was worth it because the roads are very narrow with lots of curves.

We then drove back over the bridge.  There is a fee to go one way over the bridge but one way is free.

We found our hotel.  We stayed at the Sheraton near Fisherman's Wharf.  The hotel was the biggest cost of our trip.  Everything was so costly there and we had to have two rooms to fit all of us.  Plus there is a $50 a night parking fee and the taxes are super high. 

Silly me, didn't take any photos of the hotel.  Guess I was to busy trying to get everyone checked in.

Once in our rooms we were not happy with the rooms they gave us.  So, they switched us.   We had connecting rooms and so we had the girls all sleep in one room and the adults were in the other.  Since we left the connecting door open we were able to go back and forth with ease and could hear everything going on in the other room.  This worked out great.  The girls felt like they had their own space yet, we were right there to make sure everything was ok.

After we moved and got unpacked it was after 5:30pm.

The girls had wanted to go on ghost hunt but the tour started at 6:00pm and we had to drive to the place.  We figured out we would not have enough time to make it plus, if we went that meant we wouldn't have dinner until after 9:00pm. 

So, we skipped the ghost tour and went to dinner.

We walked down to Fisherman's Wharf for dinner.  We voted and everyone decided that Italian food was what we would have.

The food was very good.  We had pasta, pizza, chowder and chicken strips.  We were all full and so we paid (the bill was very high and they even had some strange taxes on there to help pay for medical cost for the low income) then we went to explore the shops.

We found a wonderful candy shop.  It had so many fun things in there.  The girls loved these extra large candy bars!  Yes, they were all real.

Each girl went crazy picking out just the right candy. 

A little bit of this and a little bit of that!

They had so much to pick from it was hard to decide.  I think just the smell of all the sugar and the thought of having whatever they wanted was to much for them and they started to get down right crazy! 

Yes, you guessed it.  We had lots and lots of laughs!

After we got all the candy everyone wanted, we walked around some more.  We came across Ripley's Believe It or Not.

We didn't pay to go in but they had some strange things we could look out without paying.  Like this two headed calf.  Strange!

We ended up at an old penny arcade.   They had some wonderful old machines there.  Sadly, we got there just as they were closing so they asked us to leave and come back another day.

We were allowed to put 50 cents into this big old machine and all this clown/lady did was rock back and forth and laugh...and laugh...and laugh. 

You couldn't help but laugh too.

Since everything was closing up we headed back to our hotel room.  Everyone took showers and got ready for bed. 

We watched tv until everyone was to sleepy to stay awake any longer and soon the sounds of heavy breathing and snoring was all we could hear...oh and the air conditioner.

Tomorrow will be all about our 2nd day in San Francisco.  Our first day was so much fun, I wasn't sure if we could top it.  But, we did!