Spring Break '18: Sunday Afternoon at the Museum

Pssst. Hey you! Wanna buy some tickets?

You have to take a ferry from Pier 33 if you want to visit Alcatraz Island.

Char has gotten seasick before, so we were hoping to get a spot on top where she could get some air. The top deck was full by the time we got up there, but the captain saw us looking around. He pointed to the life jacket storage and said, "You can sit on there. It's not a problem." So, unintentionally, we ended up with some really good seats.



The ferry takes you to and around the island.

Here's where you disembark. You'll be greeted by the park rangers (Alcatraz Island is now managed by the National Parks Service and is a national park).

This sign struck a chord with Charlotte. She repeated the quote many times during the tour.

Once you pass these open showers, you are given a pair of headphones.

The headphones provide an audio tour that guides you through the penitentiary. It is narrated by actual Alcatraz guards and inmates, and the track also features jail house sound effects. The audio tour is well done.

These are the cells that were used when Alcatraz was a military prison. By the time Alcatraz became a federal prison in 1932, these became storage units and office rooms. I have no idea where Char's pose came from.

I think most people are fascinated with the escape stories. The most famous escape, in June of 1962, is recreated with TV props from an episode from America's Most Wanted. The three men who escaped will be consider fugitives until they turn 100. On the audio tour an inmate says something like, "Before the escape, they were learning Spanish. Word is they went to South America."

I can appreciate the creativity behind making a vacuum motor into a drill.

The dummy heads that were made from a papier-mâché-like mixture of soap and toilet paper creeped Daphne out.

Here's a look into the utility corridor behind the escapees’ cells.

Luckily, we could leave whenever we wanted.

We paused our audio tour players and spent sometime outside enjoying the view of San Francisco.

Now I know why the call this the "slammer".  The sound of these cell doors closing have been used in movies like Star Wars and Jurassic Park. I can see why. It's an intimidating sound.

Because of daylight savings time (the night before), our "night tour" didn't get dark until ferry ride home. 

That might seem like bad timing, but I was able to use the sunset's light to take some nice photos.

We had a great day at the museums.