California Dreamin (2): The Golden Gate

Of course, no trip to San Francisco would be complete without a closer look at one of the famous landmarks here: The Golden Gate Bridge. For me, whenever I think of the Golden Gate Bridge, it's usually in reference to the James Bond film 'A View To A Kill' where Bond and the villain have a fight on top of one of the Bridge cables. Very impressively done. Anyhow, the bridge is a Suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate - the entrance from San Francisco Bay into the Pacific Ocean. Costing over $27 million dollars, the bridge was constructed from January 1933 to April 1937, opening in the May of that year. Given that this was during the Great Depression, the bridge was sometimes thought of a a beacon of hope that the US would recover from it's economic slump. It is sometimes also cited as an example of US determination - essentially, if they can build a bridge like this during the Great Depression, then the sky is the limit. For me, I just think it's an incredible structure - very recognisable and more a feat of engineering. Whatever you may think of it, it's certainly worth a look.

A view of the bridge from Pier 41

Approaching from Route 101

Crossing from South to North

Your humble author, at the North side

The Bridge from the North Side

Pretty impressive, don't you think? If there was one thing that i wanted to see whilst in San Francisco, this was probably it.