A maiden trip to USA

CITY HALL, SANFRANCISCO

We realized our dream of our maiden international trip to USA on 29 Aug 2019. We planned  a 12 days trip to visit to Sanfrancisco, Las Angels, Las Vegas, Buffalo, Washington & New York. Our first step was to go to US embassy at New Delhi for the VISA interview.  We went there with full of anxiety like school kids who face there first test in the school.  But to our surprise we found that the VISA issuing officer was so nice and  friendly, when he informed us that ‘your visa is approved’ we felt that as if we touched the moon ! Naturally we felt excited to board our first international flight to Sanfrancisco via Hong Kong. 

Its lovely to see the Hong Kong airport. First time I got the opportunity to see the runway near the coast. The whole airport looks so beautiful as it lies between sea and mountain.

Bay area of Sanfrancisco is really a feast to the eyes as the Blue sky touch the blue water and the mist envelops the whole bay area, gives an awesome look.

City hall is a beautiful structure and one of the tallest building in Sanfrancisco, where city’s administration is being held. The structure’s dome is taller than that of the United States Capitol (Senate Building) by 42 feet. The present building replaced an earlier City Hall that was destroyed during the 1906 earthquake, which was two blocks from the present one.

After that we visited the Lombard Street which is famous for a steep, one-block section with eight hairpin turns. The famous street claimed to be “the crookedest street in the world”. It is a major tourist attraction, receiving around two million visitors per year and up to 17,000 per day on busy summer weekends.

Twin mountains is the spot from where you can have a birds eye view of Sanfrancisco city. From our tour guide, I learnt that twin mountains are not natural mountains but it formed as a result of a major earth quake that devastated Sanfrancisco during 1906.

On the way to Golden Gate Bridge, we spent few minutes to see Golden Gate park which is full of colourful flowers with beautiful lawns.

Golden Gate bridge is a suspension bridge and become the land mark of the city. It connects Sanfrancisco bay with Marin Country which is in Pacific ocean. The main purpose of the bridge when it was built was to bring water to Sanfrancisco from Marin country. It is a steel bridge carried six lanes. Its international organge colour is so attractive and the bridge is visible from long distance due to this beautiful colour.

We also enjoyed Pier 39 Bay Cruise Adventure: This fully-narrated one-hour cruise sails underneath the majestic Golden Gate Bridge, around mysterious Alcatraz Island along San Francisco’s historic waterfront. Enjoy fantastic photo opportunities and breathtaking views. The cruise takes you under the Golden Gate Bridge and around Alcatraz Island to see every angle of this mysterious island.

After the exciting cruise, we visited the Fishermen’s wharff, on the northern waterfront, is one of the city’s busiest tourist areas. Souvenir shops and stalls appear at every turn, as do postcard views of the bay, Golden Gate and Alcatraz. There’s also a colony of live sea lions.

While going around the city we were pleased to see the beautiful houses and colourful trams. We just loved the whole city. After finishing our visit to Sanfrancisco we proceeded to Las Angels.

Golden Gate Bridge, Sanfrancisco