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Trip 2005 - Alcatraz Island |
| Most people only know Alcatraz as a prison. Before that, it was a military bases and after it closed it's doors to criminals, it was occupied by Indians. From November of 1969 to June of 1971, 100 Indians from may different tribes occupied the island in an act of defiance against the government. Their occupation ended when they ceased to function as a collective whole. Many non-Indians (hippies and druggies) came to inhabit the island and the symbolism of their occupation was lost. Their society failed, so they eventually all left the island and returned home. |
| The trip to the rock takes about 10 minutes (or less, I was too busy looking around to take notice of the time of the trip) so you have plenty of time to look around at the sights. There's plenty to see, especially if you are a first-timer, so the trip wasn't long enough. Thankfully there's a return trip, or else I would have to remain a permanent resident of this island, something it hasn't seen since 1971. |
| Everything has remained intact since the last prisoner left on Thursday, March 21 in 1963, including signs like this. I didn't really pay attention to this sign because there weren't any prisoners left on the island, so I wouldn't be tempted to break them free. |
| Tim's hair was blowing in the wind and getting in my way as I was trying to look around. I yelled at him and even offered to hold his head under water so that the propellers could give him a quick and easy haircut. He declined, but wore this bandana to hold it back. |
| It must have been rough for people in prison to look across the water and see all of the free citizens relaxing and enjoying their lives in the fine city of San Francisco. I'd be willing to bet that San Fran didn't look this pretty between the years of 1934-1963. The city sure is far away; no wonder no one ever made it to shore... |
| The boat lets you off on the island, and you are free to wander the island at your leisure. A ranger-led tour walks you around the island at specified times, and you can also purchase an audio tour that you listen to on headphones, but since Jenny and Timmy had already been here, I counted on them to be my tour guides. |
| This is the Bay Bridge. It connects the city of San Francisco to the slightly less popular city of Oakland, and also serves as a gateway to every other major destination that lies to the East of the city. Depending on how you read into that, it means that you can get anywhere in the U.S. from San Francisco just by crossing this bridge. |
