My previous visit to San Francisco lasted five hours.  Drive in.  Park up.  Look at Pier 39.  Buy a Golden Gate Bridge souvenir.  Admire a partial eclipse of the sun.  Drive south towards the Pacific Coast Highway and the hell hole that is Los Angeles.

While limited time was a result of only having twelve days to complete a wide loop from Phoenix Airport, I’ve always had regrets that not enough time was given to San Francisco.

Those five hours revealed a city that felt chilled out to the core.  A band playing on the sea front.  People enjoying sea food next to the bay.  Seals parking themselves on disused docking areas.

I always knew I should go back.  As things like drive on the bridge and visiting Alcatraz weren’t options for our limited time window previously.

And that home of folklore, bird men, escapes and now wildlife has been booked.  $90 for two tickets seems steep, but Alcatraz will be visited, enjoyed and ticked off.  A rare nod to something man built.

Alas, the afternoon timing is a bit of a nuisance.  I think darkness will greet us at our subsequent destination.  Perhaps coinciding with a thought that I still won’t have done justice to San Francisco.

Exercise or Rest?