The flight was great! I got a meal in the airport at the gate and two more on the plane. I also sat in one of the seats by the wing which is an emergency exit so has loads of legroom - back of the net!
Got through security after a lot of questions from the border guard. Think all the 'Stans' visas may have caused suspicion! I got my bike and bags and rushed up to the BART train system to get on before the rush hour. I took the BART to the Caltrain station which I took to Palo Alto, where my friend Sam, who I went to school with lives.
I rebuilt the bike in the station car park then cycled to meet Sam on the Stanford uni campus. We caught up, Sam was shocked that I'd been sleeping in drainage tunnels but otherwise very interested in the ride, he helped me plan the first part of the route through the USA. I cycled to Sam's house, met his landlady, had some food and caught up on emails. I reflected on how different it was here! I had a kind of reverse culture shock, getting back to living in a developed country was strange, having been out of the developed world for so long.
The first things I noticed as being strange were:
1. Drivers giving way to bikes, something I hadn't experienced since Western Europe.
2. No honking horns everywhere!
3. Water in toilet bowls, and always a Western style toilet, with paper and soap provided.
4. Being able to speak to people again, and hear their conversations. It makes such a massive difference!
5. Cleanliness
6. Not being stared at and blending in.
7. Polite people.
Sam got back from uni, gave me a San Francisco guide and an American phone to get me started - very kind. Then I went to bed in the spare room, which had a tank with pet turtles in it, I reflected that a tank with animals in a house in China would have probably been for eating!
The next day I went back into the city, checked into the hotel Laura had booked for us and went to the airport to pick Laura up. I hadn't had time for a haircut but otherwise was looking (and smelling) the best I had in months! I arrived about an hour early so I waited around until Laura arrived.
It was amazing to see her after 5 months. We took the train back to the city and got a takeaway pizza and a bottle of wine. We spent the next 3 days in San Francisco, ate well, went to a diner with a brilliant jazz band, cycled over the Golden Gate bridge, looked around union square and fisherman's wharf, took a ride on a cable car through Chinatown and chilled out. Laura was having a much deserved break from working the crazy hours of a recently qualified doctor and I was shattered!
For my birthday, Laura hired us a car and we went for a drive down the unbelievable Route 1 on the Pacific Coast. It's an amazing road with perfect beaches every couple of miles. We saw sea lions at Santa Cruz, then drove up to Henry Cowell State Forest and camped there for two nights under the giant redwoods. It was an amazing place. We walked around the forest and had a barbeque on an open fire. Fantastic birthday present!
We drove back up to San Francisco and stopped at a beach for a few hours for a picnic. Back in San Fran, we returned the car and went for a meal in Chinatown. We saw Alcatraz the next day, really amazing place. The stories of the prisoners who tried to escape on a home made raft and by stealing an army uniform were great. On the last night we ate in an amazingly posh French restaurant who had a deal on because it was Monday.
It was really hard to say goodbye again the next day but this was the last time. Laura's flight was delayed, which meant she'd miss her connection on Chicago so they put her on an earlier one that gave us 20 mins to change terminal and check in. We just made it and there was no time to say goodbye properly. I was really sad heading back into San Fran. Luckily Harry, my flatmate from 5th year at uni was arriving that afternoon so I wouldn't have long to be down!
I spent the afternoon fixing my bike and checked into a cheap(ish) hostel. I met Harry at Powell St station, we had a massive burger that night. Was great to see him again, we caught up, built his bike then got an early night, back on the road tomorrow - I can't wait to get going again.
Got through security after a lot of questions from the border guard. Think all the 'Stans' visas may have caused suspicion! I got my bike and bags and rushed up to the BART train system to get on before the rush hour. I took the BART to the Caltrain station which I took to Palo Alto, where my friend Sam, who I went to school with lives.
I rebuilt the bike in the station car park then cycled to meet Sam on the Stanford uni campus. We caught up, Sam was shocked that I'd been sleeping in drainage tunnels but otherwise very interested in the ride, he helped me plan the first part of the route through the USA. I cycled to Sam's house, met his landlady, had some food and caught up on emails. I reflected on how different it was here! I had a kind of reverse culture shock, getting back to living in a developed country was strange, having been out of the developed world for so long.
The first things I noticed as being strange were:
1. Drivers giving way to bikes, something I hadn't experienced since Western Europe.
2. No honking horns everywhere!
3. Water in toilet bowls, and always a Western style toilet, with paper and soap provided.
4. Being able to speak to people again, and hear their conversations. It makes such a massive difference!
5. Cleanliness
6. Not being stared at and blending in.
7. Polite people.
Sam got back from uni, gave me a San Francisco guide and an American phone to get me started - very kind. Then I went to bed in the spare room, which had a tank with pet turtles in it, I reflected that a tank with animals in a house in China would have probably been for eating!
The next day I went back into the city, checked into the hotel Laura had booked for us and went to the airport to pick Laura up. I hadn't had time for a haircut but otherwise was looking (and smelling) the best I had in months! I arrived about an hour early so I waited around until Laura arrived.
It was amazing to see her after 5 months. We took the train back to the city and got a takeaway pizza and a bottle of wine. We spent the next 3 days in San Francisco, ate well, went to a diner with a brilliant jazz band, cycled over the Golden Gate bridge, looked around union square and fisherman's wharf, took a ride on a cable car through Chinatown and chilled out. Laura was having a much deserved break from working the crazy hours of a recently qualified doctor and I was shattered!
For my birthday, Laura hired us a car and we went for a drive down the unbelievable Route 1 on the Pacific Coast. It's an amazing road with perfect beaches every couple of miles. We saw sea lions at Santa Cruz, then drove up to Henry Cowell State Forest and camped there for two nights under the giant redwoods. It was an amazing place. We walked around the forest and had a barbeque on an open fire. Fantastic birthday present!
We drove back up to San Francisco and stopped at a beach for a few hours for a picnic. Back in San Fran, we returned the car and went for a meal in Chinatown. We saw Alcatraz the next day, really amazing place. The stories of the prisoners who tried to escape on a home made raft and by stealing an army uniform were great. On the last night we ate in an amazingly posh French restaurant who had a deal on because it was Monday.
It was really hard to say goodbye again the next day but this was the last time. Laura's flight was delayed, which meant she'd miss her connection on Chicago so they put her on an earlier one that gave us 20 mins to change terminal and check in. We just made it and there was no time to say goodbye properly. I was really sad heading back into San Fran. Luckily Harry, my flatmate from 5th year at uni was arriving that afternoon so I wouldn't have long to be down!
I spent the afternoon fixing my bike and checked into a cheap(ish) hostel. I met Harry at Powell St station, we had a massive burger that night. Was great to see him again, we caught up, built his bike then got an early night, back on the road tomorrow - I can't wait to get going again.
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