- Sunday, July 4th
22.32h PDT - Tosj | INDEPENDENCE DAY - The last complete day in San Francisco. After again a longer sleep, we get up around 10.30h, we take it easy and after a small lunch we visit the Apple Store for the last time. After 2 iSights an iPod and iTrip we now get another iPod and iSight... We drop the stuff at the hotel and start our trip to the tourist area from pier 39 to the west. Around 15.00h we reach our destination at the end of the Powell - Hyde Street cable car. It is not far before that point that we get to see more Stars and Stripes and more 4th of July celebrations. I expected a kind of koninginnedag, but that might also be my mistake. Alex did mention that in Boston the celebrations were bigger last year and that it might also be a historic / geographic difference. We found ourselves a nice spot on the grass and enjoyed the sun as long it was shining.
For a small time we had Koos as a visitor, but because of differences in the need for food we lost each other again during the afternoon. Alex and I had diner in a mexican restaurant in the near area of the bay. We also enjoyed our last beers of the working holiday in the same bar. Around 20.00h we headed back to the bay and found out that already much more people had showed up and that it was getting colder and colder because of the fog that was getting into the bay area.
We found ourselves a good spot and waited until the fireworks would start. We could already see the ship in the bay surrounded by police and coast guard boats and just after 21.30 h the show started with some low firework. Soon after the low ones, the big rockets were sent into the fog which was still in the bay and even worse than it was the whole day. That was a pity, the flashes and the bangs we could see and hear were incredible. Only a few drops of firework rain could be seen. :-(
On the way back we made some cool pictures of the city in the fog by night and the Apple Store. We didn't have the time to update the site by then so I am doing now.