San Fran Day 3/4

In order to wrap up some travel sights here are some quick snapshots.

We visited the famous Alcatraz prison and it was actually surreal to imagine that the most dangerous criminals were kept here. It kind of felt like I was walking through a movie set but by far the most creepy were the isolation cells in the most secure block of the prison. An awesome audio commentary accompanied the tour and it was eerie to hear the voices of prisoners and wardens describe the prison and the famous characters through it's walls. They also detailed the multiple escape attempts that occurred and described how the prisoners would be able to see the lights of the San Francisco nightline in the evening and even the sounds of peoples voices during New Years Eve. Those happy voices a taunting reminder of the world they are locked away from.














The gorgeous Crown and Crumpet Tea Room.














Eating ridiculously large chocolate dipped strawberries



























High Tea at Lovejoy's tea room. By far one of our most delicious finds in San Francisco! It's away from the heart of downtown, further into the subburbs, but upon seeing the website and hearing some reviews, I knew it would be worth it to trek all the way out. It was in such a cute area of the city! Lots of cute little boutiques and salons lining the street. The tea shop looked like an eclectic grandmother's living room in the UK and the service and food was excellent. It was also nice to have a high tea in a very non-pretentious atmosphere. Often you have to head to 5 star hotel for high tea but the atmosphere here was so relaxed. I've never had tea choices described to me like wine so Christina and I opted for the signature house black tea to start with and we ended our tea experience with a pot of China rose petal. We munched on cucumber sandwiches, sugar cookies and warm scones with devonshire cream and strawberry preserves.















mmm high tea














After our high tea, we had to book it to make our 2pm performance of Peter Pan. The production is new to San Fran and I thought it sounded pretty cool since it is on the harbour and the special 360 theatre allows 360 images to be broadcast. Thus, when the actors are flying, they are actually flying through the the London night sky! It was so neat to watch the Darlings, Peter Pan, and Tinkerbell swerve left to fly around the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral and other famous London attractions! The show itself was amazingly done with aerial acrobats as mermaids, an amazing puppeteer handling Nana and the crocodile (complete with a ticking time piece in it's wire-framed centre), and singing pirates actually playing their instruments. One of the most magical moments was when Tinkerbell lies lifeless after drinking poison meant for Peter and he beckons the audience to chant "I believe in faeries" to revive her. Adults were hesitant at first but then I heard the sounds of whispering children all around me repeating that phrase with such dedicated fervour! Tinkerbell slowly began to twitch as the volume of chanting escalated until she launched into the air soaring through the theatre. Intermission was lovely too since outside the 360 digital theatre were tents and grassy areas to hang out on. It was a beautiful day and a great way for kids to run around for a bit of a break from the show.














After Peter Pan we walked Chinatown for a bit before heading to the Orpheum Theatre to see Wicked. Christina and I had seen Wicked before in different cities but it was nice to end our trip with something familiar and enjoyable :) Overall, a fantastic trip!