The Windy City
Trip Start
Feb 13, 2007
1
69
79
Trip End
Jul 24, 2007
Chicago,
Illinois,
United States
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
After Las Vegas - we had a long drive day to San Francisco - we were late leaving the hire car back and incurred a penalty - ah well.
The hostel we checked into was really nice - and there was a free dinner on the first night, which is always a bonus. Vegetable Shepherd's pie was a welcome break from the fast food to which we had become accustomed.
Saturday we met up with one of Sophie's parent's friends who took us on a driving tour around the main sights of SanFran - the Golden Gate Bridge, the parks area, the Alamo and Twin Peaks. It's a really hilly city and so many view points. The weather was really changeable - hot, cold, muggy and rainy. We said goodbye at Cafe Tartine - somewhere I would definitely recommend for cakes and panini's. We also paid another happy visit to the post office to post yet more items home!
Sunday was Julianne's birthday and we kicked-off the day with a trip to Alcatraz, which was fabulous. The audio tour and attempted escapes talk were really insightful. We headed back to the city to experience Gay Pride - which was something of a spectacular - from the Dykes on Bykes to the scantily-clad men gyrating on stage (which the girls particularly enjoyed!) to the Leather Alley. That evening we headed for a nice meal and a bar for a couple of drinks.
Next day we said our goodbyes as we headed for the airport to fly north to Seattle. This was slightly farcical - the taxi driver got lost and then at the airport our flight had been overbooked and we nearly didn't get seats, but all was fine in the end.
Seattle was a beautiful city, and the Green Tortoise Hostel was another fantastic choice. We enjoyed exploring the Public Market on Pike Street, visiting the original Starbucks, ascending the Futuristic Space Needle and visiting some of the museums about the city. The harbour cruise also provided us with some excellent city views, but due to clouds we were unable to get a good view of the impressive Mount Rainier.
After Seattle we picked up the (rather large car) and began the drive to Vancouver....
All for now,
J
