Fading Bridges and the Kindness of Strangers
San Francisco -> San Jose, 11th November 2001.
We had an early start today because we wanted to have a look, and
step onto, the Golden Gate bridge, before leaving San Francisco. I
can't believe we left it so late, one of the most famous landmarks,
and we almost didn't see it!
 Stinge,
Nat & I grabbed a quick breakfast, then managed to get out by 9am,
hoping to catch a bus to the bridge, which is right on the other
side of town. However, we only had a limited bus route map, so it
was almost impossible to work out where the buses went and where
they stopped. We wandered around the streets, heading in vaguely the
right direction, and missing all the suitable buses for 45 minutes.
As it was getting dangerously close to the time of our train, we
decided to head out onto to the shore, and just get a photo of it
from a distance. After following a winding route, we reached a
large, green park, packed with families, and faintly in the distance
we could just make out the distinctive red shape of the famous
bridge. But just after we pulled our cameras out, the infamous mist
began to drift quickly in, and right before our eyes, the bridge
disappeared from sight. Damn! Luckily, 10 minutes later, the mist
rolled back, and we got some quick photos.
We practically ran all the way back the hostel, so we were totally
exhausted by the time we meet Em. Of course, she was still full of
beans and was eager to rush to the bus station, but we took a few
minutes to allow some air back into our lungs.
The bus to Emeryville was much slower & more serene than when we
journeyed in the reverse direction, and we still arrived at the
train station an hour early. The train arrived 30 minutes late, so
we had plenty of time to chill before jumping on the train and
heading back South. The journey was pretty uneventful, except for an
incident with our Amtrak mugs. On our first train journey, we'd all
purchased special Amtrak mugs, these mugs were supposed to allow
unlimited tea & coffee on all Amtrak trains for free. With the
amount of time we'd planned to spend on the trains, we thought this
would be a good deal. However, the guys on this train said this
'Californian owned Commuter train, wasn't Amtrak owned, even though
it said 'AMTRAK' in huge writing on the side of the train. I started
to make a bit of a fuss and complain, and the guy was very helpful
and said we could have one free tea or coffee each (they're big
mugs, so this was acceptable). However, the lady working in the
buffet car was a right dragon, and really resented us having our
free drinks, so was bitter to us for the rest of the journey.
 The
train made up time during the journey, and we reached San Jose only
15 minutes behind schedule. We jumped off the train, and hauled our
bags up a steep entry tunnel to outside the station. As we stepped
into the sunlight, a senior-looking, well-built, friendly-looking
guy with a mobile phone pressed to his ear, shouted, "Simon?" to us.
I replied with a quick, "Yep", and he boomed into his phone "They're
here!"
After a short ride in a new, flash, spacious SUV (Sports Utility
Vehicle) we came to a lovely, clean, peaceful suburb where Rose &
Lee live. The house was huge, comfortable and homey, with polished
hardwood floors and a big kitchen/lounge/dining room on the lower
floor. They knocked out the walls to give the place a more open,
friendly feeling.
We sat down to eat with them, they'd prepared a huge, delicious
meal. The best meal we'd had since we'd been away! An absolute
feast! We were also joined by one of there friends, a lady who
travels the world helping people, working on the Mercy Ships. Soon
after, a young, well-spoken, cheerful guy, who Rose has known for
some time, joins us as well.
We chatted for ages over a long dinner and later into the evening.
Rose & Lee were fantastically friendly and wanted to know all about
our travels, and we wanted to know all about them. We never worked
out their age though, they were full of energy, and had a youthful
aura, but they were also grandparents.
After we had talked about almost everything, Rose & Lee invited,
well, TOLD us that we were staying the night. The girls were given a
spare bedroom, and Stinge & I had the lounge. I let Stinge have the
sofa, and for me they inflated this huge, inflatable mattress, that
was unbelievably comfortable!
It had been a great day. Rose & Lee has been soooo kind to us. Every
time we thought they'd done the nicest thing possible for us (and
remember we're practically strangers) they went and did something
even better! Thanks for everything Rose & Lee! Thanks for giving us
a chance to see American life from the inside and for going out of
your way to ensure we had a great time. Oh, and thanks for the
beautiful Giant Abalone shells you sent us in England. They got home
safely and they're all proudly displayed. (Rose & Lee also received
Go Gap Backpacker Awards of Excellence for their generosity &
kindness, click here to find our more).
That night, we all slept like logs, content as could possibly be...
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