San Francisco, California USA

Published 10 May 2013, by Jess

San Francisco is located in the US state of California. You will most likely recognise it from the numerous shots of popular sites seen in many television shows and movies from Full House (popular in the 80’s) to more recently, The Five-Year Engagement.

San Francisco is a great city, for us Aussies though, be warned that the wind chill is cold! I travelled during the summer months on both occasions I visited and when the wind kicks in, you’ll feel it believe me!

Alamo Square – Painted Ladies

Getting There

Departing Vancouver, Canada the flight is approximately 2hrs & 45mins. Flying Westjet (Canadian airline) my flight in 2012 cost $304.92 AUD.

Departing Los Angeles, USA the flight is approximately 1hr & 20mins.  Flying American Airlines my flight in 2012 cost $294.37 AUD.

Where to Stay

If you do your research into San Francisco, one common thing that all travellers who have been to San Franscisco agree on is this, do not stay anymore than 2 blocks outside of Union Square.  The reason is because San Francisco has an extremely large homeless community, as you venture outside of Union Square this becomes noticeably more apparent, and the area is quite unsafe.

Your other alternative is to stay down by Fisherman’s Wharf which is also a nice area.

In 2012 I stayed at;

Sir Francis Drake Hotel

Standard Triple room for 3 nights stay cost $856.42

The hotel is located right in the heart of Union Square, prefect location.

In 2011 I stayed at;

Nikko Hotel

Double Queen room for 4 nights stay cost $564.00

The hotel is located 2 blocks from Union Square and also in a great location.

Union Square

Union Square is a public plaza and is central in San Francisco for shopping and hotels and is also the theatre district.

The main plaza consists of 4 monuments in the shape of a heart decorated in individual artwork.  I believe that university students enrolled in Art in San Francisco can put their name into a draw and if they are drawn they design and paint the artwork on the monument as per the below pictures.

Fisherman’s Wharf

Is a neighbourhood in San Francisco down by the Northern waterfront.  The area has many restaurants, shops, museums and other attractions which makes it a very busy tourist area.

Pier 39 on Fisherman’s Wharf is also home to numerous California sea lions which you can view on the marina docks in large numbers.  Quite a sight to see!

Alcatraz

http://www.alcatrazcruises.com/

$32 – Last tour boat of the day.

The tour leaves from Pier 33 on Bay Street, before boarding the boat you will have your photo taken by staff which is available for purchase when you return.

Quite possibly one of the best informative tours I have ever been on!

The story of Alcatraz is really quite interesting, and the self audio tour allows you to go through the prison at your own pace.  The audio tour itself includes the voices of actual prison guards and prisoners who experienced Alcatraz first hand.  Many of the jail cells have been left in their original condition or house original items owned by prisoners of those cells.

If you are travelling in the summer months, you definitely have to book in advance (weeks not days) as the tours sell out very quickly.

You cannot visit San Francisco and not check out Alcatraz, it is a must see.

Golden Gate Bridge

Ride A Bike – You can hire bikes all along Fisherman’s Wharf.  It will take approximately 1.5 hours (stopping along the way) to ride from Fisherman’s Wharf  up to the Golden Gate bridge, ride across it and then into Sausalito, San Francisco.  There are some really great photo opportunities along the way.

In the summer of 2011 they were doing some construction to the Bike lane on the bridge and therefore pedestrians and cyclists were together on the same lane.  This didn’t work so well, the pedestrians weren’t very patient or aware or their surrounds so it was a little frustrating during the ride over the bridge.  The construction was finished in the summer of 2012 when I was there and it seemed to work much better. 

Once you cross over the Golden Gate bridge to Sausilito there are some great views from the other side of the bridge.  You can then continue riding into the town and if you wish, you can take the ferry (with your bike) back to Fisherman’s Wharf.

Vintage Fire Engine ride – Such a great idea for a very unique way to see the Golden GateBridge and Sausilito.  The tour departs from the Fisherman’s Wharf neighbourhood and costs $50.00 per adult.  As you jump on the Fire Engine you will notice there are fire fighters jackets you can put on and wear, I was lucky enough to get myself an Australian Fire Fighters jacket, he had flown over to help fight the recent Californian fires at the time.  I suggest you definitely put one of the jackets on, even in summer going across the bridge in an open vehicle the wind was freezing!

The tour guides are fantastic, although it is a little cheesy as they get you to sing along to songs and wave to those walking by, it is all to get into the spirit of things and have a great time, which is exactly what we did!

Lombard Street

According to some San Francisco tour guides I met while in San Francisco, Lombard Street is actually the 2^nd most crookiest street in the world, the other also being in San Francisco but it is not as pleasing on the eye and therefore San Francisco has passed the title onto Lombard Street.

Lombard Street has a steep, one block section with eight (8) turns in it.

Powell Street Tram Stop

The Powell Street Tram stop is quite a sight to see if, like me, you do not have trams in your city.  The tram stop is where the trams come through in abundance and rotate to go back up the hill on Powell Street.  Change over of those riding the tram happens here also with many people waiting to get on the trams. 

Napa Valley Wine Train

$129

http://winetrain.com/

The Napa Valley Wine Train is basically a whole day excursion.  Leaving from Fisherman’s Wharf you will take a ferry then a bus to get to where the train departs.

We opted for the glass roof carriage to have even better views and to do the trip in style.

The food and service on the Napa Valley Wine Train was exceptional.  The whole tour was definitely worth the money and we also got to enjoy so beautiful wines from the NapaValley (additional cost).

Lobster Bisk Soup

Lamp Chops

Places to Eat

Lori’s Diner – There are a string of these around San Francisco that you’ll find. Lori’s Diner is a very authentic diner with great food and wonderful service. 

Milkshakes at Lori’s Diner

House of Nanking – Is a well known Chinese Restaurant with locals in San Francisco.  If you would like to dine here, it’s essential you make a booking or you’ll be waiting a while for a table.  Our group weren’t to sure on the menu when we arrived and therefore when the waiter arrived to take our order he suggested we do what most locals do and allow him to order for us. 

The food was amazing, he ordered things I would never think to order and our bill at the end of the night with a tip was under $25 US each.

Reykjavik, Iceland

Published 3 May 2013, by Jess

Reykjavic is the largest city in Iceland and also the Capital. It has a population of approximately 120,000 in the inner city and 200,000 in the outer city area.

Iceland is quite an expensive city.  While they did experience hardship from the 2008 economic crisis which made the city a little more affordable to travellers, it was still rather expensive while I was there in 2009.

Iceland has a lot to offer and for this reason I would definitely recommend more than 3 nights, as this is all I stayed and our time was quite rushed and we didn’t get to see everything and really take in the city.

My first experience of seeing snow

Getting There

In 2009 I paid $381 AUD to fly from Copenhagen, Denmark – Reykjavik, Iceland.  The flight is approximately 3 hours 10 minutes from Copenhagen.

Currency

Iceland possesses its own currency, the Icelandic Krona.  The Icelandic Krona is also referred to as the Icelandic Crown and in May 2013 converts as follows;

 $1 AUD = 119.91 ISK

$1 US    = 117.03 ISK

$1 CAD  = 116.08 ISK

1 Euro    = 154.13 ISK

1 Pound  = 181.99 ISK

Blue Lagoon

http://www.bluelagoon.com/

The Blue Lagoon is a Geothermal spa in Reykjavik and is the most visited tourist attraction in Iceland.

The lagoon is rich in sulphur and silica and extremely good for your skin, in particular it helps with those suffering from skin diseases. The water temperature is approximately 37-39C or 98-102F. 

During my visit the outside temperature was -1C and extremely windy.  When you think of a spa you think relaxing and calm however because of the wind the lagoon was far from relaxing.  I suggest you visit on a day when the wind is not a factor, the outside temperature really has no bearing because the water temperature is so warm and your whole body (apart from your head) is submerged.

Around the outside of the lagoon you will notice buckets that contain the silt from the floor of the lagoon, this is extremely good for your skin and I recommend you rub this on your body and face.  You will notice the difference in your skin over the next few days, its amazing!

Definately a must see!!!

Enjoying the warm waters of the Blue Lagoon

Golden Circle Tour –

Duration: 8-10 hours

Price: Approximately 9,405 ISK or $78.50 AUD

The Golden Circle Tour is a really great way to see Iceland if you don’t have a lot of time.  The tour is 8-10 hours and covers a 300km loop from Reykjavik to central Iceland and then back to Reykjavik again. 

The stops include the following;

• Kerid volcano crater
• Hveragerdi greenhouse village
• Skalholt church
• Nesjavellir geothermal power plant

Enjoying my first ever time touching snow

• Thingvellir National Park (main stop)

Troll monument in Iceland

• Gullfoss Waterfall (main stop)

The Gullfoss Waterfall – It was absolutely freezing here.

 

• Geysir Geothermal Field (main stop)

Stokkur Geysir about to erupt.

Eruption of Stokkur Geysir.

NightlifeIcelandic’s are known for their crazy partying ways, in particular they know how to party all weekend.  It all starts on what is known as ‘Friday Night Madness’ and some Icelandic’s are known to go all weekend.

Generally locals start partying late (around 12am) and it is not unusual to see a very empty club fill very quickly! Clubs and Bars stay open until 4:30am on the weekend and 1am during the week. It is also quite common for Cafes/Restaurants to turn into bars later in the evening.

If you are in Iceland, make sure you are there for a weekend, you won’t want to miss it!

The Amazing Race Montreal – Canada

Published May 2 2013 by Gemma

Saint Joseph’s Oratory

If you are looking for a fun and unique way to see a cities sights you can’t look past Amazing Race in Montreal (http://www.amazingracemontreal.com/).

I have to say this is one of the best experiences I’ve had as far as sight seeing is concerned. The organisers have put together an excellent tour!

The organisers met up with us at the hotel and presented us with a map and our 7 clues for the day and to make things interesting we decided to split up into two teams to make it a real competition. We even took it one step further and wore “team” t-shirts which came in handy when asking locals for help as they realised we weren’t a bunch of crazy Aussies running around asking random questions.

Like the real Amazing Race you can only open up the next clue once you have reached the location of the current clue. 

You will have to navigate through Montreal using various forms of public transport, make sure you chose the right one otherwise you can find yourself on the back foot very fast.

Most of the clues are quiet easy to figure out but there are a few curve balls and you may find yourself running around like a chook with no head asking locals for help and them being just as clueless as you are, but to be honest this makes it all the more fun.

We finished the day with big smiles on our faces but that might of had something to do with the fact that we were victorious.

I highly recommend that anyone going to Montreal should sign up for the Amazing Race and see this beautiful city in an action-packed, fun, unique way.

Extra information

Tours available:

Montreal Pot Luck – A cross-section of Montreal destinations which feature its diversity
Tastes of Montreal – For all of the foodies out there, tour Montreal by enjoying our local foods!

Price: $55

Perth, Western Australia – Part Two

Updated on 14 March 2014, by Jess

In 2013, Perth ranked in the top 10 most liveable cities in the World by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), coming in at 9th position.

Perth is beautiful, clean and friendly – all three factors I believe to contribute to a great city particularly for travellers/tourists.

Perth CBD & Waterfront

The Perth CBD has something for all ages offering art museums, retail, cafes, entertainment, small bars, fitness options and big open spaces.  The CBD is undergoing many changes, adding an even more inviting and tourist friendly atmosphere to what is already a very beautiful and friendly city, in my opinion. While many of the heritage buildings were pulled down decades ago to make room for more modern buildings, some of the heritage buildings still remain and are simply stunning.

Kangaroo statues outside of Council House and the Supreme Court Gardens

St George’s Cathedral

Retail

The CBD offers a wide variety of retail options with a great mix of department stores and unique designer brands.  The city is made up of many arcades lined with shops including the older Carillon City, Piccadilly Plaza and Trinity Arcade and the newer enex100 and Wesley Quarter.  Hay Street and Murray Street offer a large selection of jewellers, fashion retail and souvenir shops where as King Street is for the more sophisticated and well lets be honest…those that have money to burn.  King Street offers the high end brand names including Fendi and Tiffany and Co.

London Court also offers a variety of shopping in a European setting.  This arcade is beautifully designed with ornate clocks and European style facades.  London Court is popular among tourists and locals alike and a chance to see some of our older architecture.

London Court at Christmas time

Monday to Thursday	9am – 5.30pm (some retailers open later)
Friday	9am – 9pm
Saturday	9am – 5pm
Sunday	11am – 5pm
Public Holidays	11am – 5pm

*Extended shopping hours apply during the Christmas period.

Coming Soon

The construction of Elizabeth Quay is underway and is intended to merge Perth’s waterfront with the city and bring our focus back to the beautiful Swan River.  Construction is due for completion in mid 2015 and will see newly built inner city residential options, hotels and significant commercial space. For more information visit the link below;

http://www.mra.wa.gov.au/Projects/Elizabeth-Quay/About-the-Project/

Waterfront

The SwanRiver divides the city of Perth into two areas.  Perth locals will often make reference to this when asked what suburb they live in by responding either “North of the River” or “South of the River”.

The city waterfront presently has made very little use of actually building on the waterfront, only opting for views of the river (however this will change significantly with the construction of Elizabeth Quay).  The area known as the Barrack Street Jetty is however located on the waterfront and is where you will find the BellTower.

The Bell Tower is uniquely designed as a result of a major architectural competition and boasts some historic content – the Swan Bells, given to Perth as part of the National Bicentennial celebrations in 1988.

The Bell Tower

Fountains in front of the Bell Tower

Barrack Street Jetty is also home to ‘The Lucky Shag’, a pub on the SwanRiver that is very popular during the summertime (December – February) for “Sunday Sessions” (Sunday afternoon drinks).  Bookings and reservations are not accepted, and if you have attended a private function on a boat that departs the Barrack Street Jetty, it is highly likely you will be refused entry.  The pub in my opinion is very Perth – laid back, traditional pub food and a relaxed atmosphere in a beautiful setting.

East Perth Waterfront

Has become very popular in recent years with the construction and renovation of bars and cafes along the waterfront. A definite must for a relaxing drink with lovely views.  Sunday sessions at The Royal are also popular among the younger generations.

View from The Royal

St Mary’s Cathedral

Located in the centre of Victoria Square, opposite the Royal Perth Hospital, St Mary’s Cathedral is a Catholic church.  It is officially the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. 

The church was constructed in 3 phases;

Phase 1 – Completed in 1865

Phase 2 – Repairs originally to commence in the 1920’s but these were halted due to the Great Depression and instead completed in the late 1990’s early 2000’s.

Phase 3 – New design added and completed in late 2009.

Even if you aren’t religious, the cathedral is a beautiful piece of architecture worth seeing.

The Perth Mint

The Perth Mint offers guided tours for;

$10AUD – Adult

$4AUD – Child

$26AUD – FamilyPass

The Perth Mint is Australia’s oldest currently operating Mint and played a central role in the development of WA’s gold industry.

Perth Mint created in October 2011 the world’s largest, heaviest and most valuable gold coin at approximately 80 centimetres in diameter and 12 centimetres thick, 99.99% pure gold. It features a red kangaroo on the front of the coin and a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II on the reverse. It is legal tender in Australia with face value $1 million AUD, at the time of minting it was valued at $53.5 million AUD.

Fremantle

Fremantle is a suburb in the Perth metropolitan area and was the first area settled by the SwanRiver colonists in 1829.  The Fremantle port serves as the port of Perth

Places of Interest

The Harbour

Where you’ll find many restaurants including the award winning Ciccerello’s, famous for their amazing Fish & Chips.  The Harbour is also home to the Bon Scott statue, a tribute to the late Bon Scott of ACDC fame. The Harbour provides a great relaxed atmosphere and is particularly beautiful on a summers day.

Bon Scott Statue

Round House

The Round House is the oldest public building in Western Australia, it was completed in 1831 and originally used to house colonial and indigenous prisoners until 1886 where they were moved to the Fremantle Prison.

Fremantle Prison

The Fremantle Prison was built in the 1850’s by convict labour, used from 1886 as a gaol for locally sentenced prisoners, it was closed as a prison in 1991 and then reopened as a historic site.

The gallows in the prison was the only legal place of execution in Western Australia between 1888 and 1965, the last prisoner to be hanged was Eric Edgar Cooke.

Tours through the prison are available and are really quite interesting.  You will visit the gallows in the tour, if you think this may be distressing to children, talk to your tour guide who I am sure would be happy for them to continue on through to the solitary confinement yard.

Day tours, night tours and tunnel tours are available. See link below for details;

http://www.fremantleprison.com.au/Visit_Us/tours/Pages/default.aspx

The Gallows

Little Creatures

Little Creatures is a local brewing company originally established in 2000.  It has won a number of Australian International Beer Awards and other awards.  The brewing site is open to the public with a restaurant/café offering great meals and outdoor dining.  Next door to the Little Creatures brewery is The Loft – also a part of Little Creatures and offers a great alternative in the winter months (June-August), play Pictionary, Scategories or Connect Four board games with your friends while you drink.

Fremantle Markets

A public market on the corner of South Terrace and Henderson Street and was built in 1897.  The markets offer some great food options, I suggest you try the chocolate coated strawberry skewers – they are amazing!

Places to Eat

The Fremantle cafe strip can be found on South Terrace and is an entire street lined with cafes,restaurants, pubs and bars.  My recommendations on the strip would be Cafe Bella Rosa for their amazing pizza.  Other places of interest include Cicerello’s for the best fish n chips in Perth and Little Creatures.

Nightspots

Crowne Casino – Formerly Burswood Casino, has recently had a makeover in 2012 and is now the Crowne Casino. There are many and various bars to choose from;

Groove Bar: Offers 80’s & 90’s music from the live band

The Merrywell: Relaxed chill and chat bar or to have a really good meal

The Carbon Sports Bar:  For all sport lovers

Minq Bar:  The cocktails are amazing but they have the price tag to match – A Peach Bellini will set you back $19 AUD.

There are also some amazing restaurants including Nobu, The Merrywell, Yu Chinese Restaurant and 88 Noodle Bar.

Northbridge – The main nightclub and bar precinct in Perth.  Northbridge offers a variety of entertainment spots for all ages and all tastes.  I’m not sure if it is the whole “Older and Wiser” scenario but the older I get, the less appealing Northbridge has become.  Police patrol the streets but that doesn’t seem to stop the pointless fights and brawls and girls seem to be joining in on the action these days too.  In my opinion, do not go to Northbridge by yourself, if you do go, pick a club in Northbridge and stay there all night, when you leave, walk to the taxi rank and be aware of your surroundings.

Recommendations: Mint (Top 40, 80’s & 90’s music), The Shed (For a very stereotypical Aussie vibe).

Subiaco – Frequented by the more “sophisticated” and some would say “pretentious” crowd, Subiaco offers a variety of bars, nightclubs and pubs.  The dress code is quite strict so make sure you do your research first.  Clubs have long lines so expect to wait.  Subiaco is also frequented by the local Australia Football League (AFL) team, The West Coast Eagles as their home playing ground is in the Subiaco suburb.

Recommendations: The Subiaco Hotel, Llama Bar and Gold Bar.

Subiaco Oval – AFL ground

West Coast Eagles vs Fremantle Dockers AFL Match

The City Nightspots

The Perth CBD has come a long way in terms of nightstops. It has a Melbourne vibe to it now offering laneway bars and small wine bars and eateries.

With the construction of Brookfield Place on St Georges Terrace came the influx of small but trendy bars.  These are generally very busy on a Friday night for after work drinks and frequented by the “suits” crowd.  The bars are somewhat expensive however they are the norm for Perth these days, finding a cocktail for under $15 is a struggle all over the city.

Wolfe Lane located just off Murray Street offers some small bars along a small hidden laneway and is also a great spot on a Friday and Saturday night.

Recommendations: The Stables Bar, Ginger Nightclub, The Aviary, The Belgian Beer Café, The Trustee Bar, Tiger Lils, Print Hall and Halcyon.