When ever one thinks of U.S.A. , that promising land of bright prospects and prosperity to modern youth , the Statue of Liberty looms large before our eyes holding a torch high into the air. I heard of another symbol of pride and prestige of not only the state of California but U.S. as well-- the Golden Gate Suspension Bridge built over the bay waters of the Pacific providing connectivity between San Francisco city and the Marine County.
We started from Sunnyvale, an industrial township, thirty-seven miles from the busy city of San Francisco. The whole route was busy with so many vehicles speeding on the thoroughfare at the weekend. The tall trees and cultivated gardens in front of the corporate offices and distant surrounding hills dotted with vegetation and rows of houses lent a blend of ultra modern and natural sights. As we neared the city, multi-storied buildings with big name boards came into our view. San Francisco is one of the most well-known financial and business centers in America. It has more than thirty international financial institutions. It has three air ports and nine sea ports for transport and trade. There are more than two thousand and eight hundred companies in Bay Area for manufacture of computers semi-conductors, scientific equipment, electronic systems and components. As the main hub of Bio-Technological products, it has nearly one third of bio-tech workforce employed in nearly three hundred bio-tech companies and farms. It is one of the topmost tourist centers generating nearly an income of 6.73 billion dollars a year catering to the diverse interests of different types of visitors.
This city spreading over an area of nearly forty-six square miles has the privilege of having many industries producing many kinds of products like electronic machines, electric machinery,pharmaceutical products, glass items, paints, confectionery, textiles and bio-tech products.Eminent aerospace institutions like NASA and Lockheed set up research centers in California. In spite of having a huge population of nearly seven and a half lakhs, the city ranks as the third healthiest city adopting green technology and anti-pollution measures and serves as Recycling Market Development Zone. It is ranked as the eighteenth among the cities in the world in the manufacturing sector and is credited with ninth rank in the united states of America. It is the thirteenth most populous city in U.S, and is the fourth most populous city in the state of California.
In spite of this immense industrialisation, this located near the Pacific bay area has the unique advantage of possessing beautiful scenery with its various undulating hilly regions, lakes,woods, parks,aquatic and marine scenic spots besides shipping and transport facilities. The population with ethnic
diversity added more variety and color to this cosmopolitan fast thriving city. There are more than fifty
hills within city limits and more than two hundred parks that are maintained by San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department. In this city one can also see many museums such as Asian Art Museum, The Palace of Fine Arts and De Young Museum in the Golden Gate Park.
Our car went along the Golden Gate Bridge, a huge towering orange-coloured structure with supporting steel chords. This suspension bridge was built across the sixteen hundred meter strait that connects San Francisco Bay with the Pacific ocean. The tourists were enjoying a stroll along the road while some were enthusiastically riding bikes breathing cool and fresh sea breeze in sunny weather. The green and placid waters of the Pacific with sailing boats with distant slopes of the surrounding hills added a touch of charm to this architectural miracle of engineering skill. This bridge is the most beautiful and certainly the most photographed bridge in the world.
This bridge links San Francisco city located on the northern tip of San Francisco peninsula with
Marin County. The construction of this bridge was started on 5th January, 1933 and was completed on
19th April , 1937. Joseph Strauss (1870-1938) , a German - American Structural Engineer, assisted by Irving Morrow and Charlis Ellis accomplished this wonderful and mighty project that was executed by
Mc Clinic- Marshal Construction Co. Irving Morrow hit upon the idea of painting the bridge with orange
vermilion called international orange instead of customary dull grey forth clear visibility and brilliance.The two beautiful art decor towers, each 250 meters tall , form a clear contrast to 90 feet wide six-lane road.
As we passed to the other end of the bridge, we saw the bronze statue of Joseph Strauss on a
pedestal inside a garden. Many people stood beside this great genius and got themselves photographed.
Joseph Strauss , himself a poet , recited his poem "The mighty task is done" on the occasion of the opening ceremony of this bridge. The figure of Dana Bowers(1909-1977) is seen on a metal plaque at
one end of the view point. As a supervising landscape architect and California Way Beautification , his
contribution is clearly seen which is very much commendable.
The Golden Gate Bridge is the second longest Suspension Bridge in U.S.A. and is the ninth longest
Suspension Bridge in the world. A hefty amount of thirty-five billion dollars raised through bonds and
later realised through collection of toll tax has been spent in construction of this magnificent structure.The weight this bridge is nearly 8, 87, 000 tons and 83,000 tons of steel were used in building this bridge. This bridge is nearly 75 meters high from the cold waters of the Pacific. The length of the bridge is 1.7 miles and the height of the bridge is 746 feet. This bridge is ranked as the fifth most popular structure by the American Institute of Architects. Nearly forty million people use this bridge every year. This bridge was designed in such a way as to withstand the rush of sea winds which could blow at a speed of more than one hundred miles per hour.
Next we went to the pier no. 39 to board the Blue & Gold Fleet Bay Cruise to sail around the
Alcatraz , an island located in the middle of the bay and it had been used for military defence and as a
prison for war criminals during the American Civil War. In 1934 it was turned into a security prison
and was later closed in 1963. This 22-acre island , a colony for roosting pelicans , was discovered
by a Spanish explorer in 1775. Later the American army established a fortress for defending the Bay
Harbour.
Set amidst blue waters this hilly island with dense greenery and semi-circular white fortress with
many chambers captures the attention of passengers on the cruise as we go around it. This island has
been featured in many cinemas , t.v. shows,cartoons and comics. One can view different kinds of birds
and species of plants in the gardens planted by the families of military guards long ago.
After sailing right under the Golden Gate Bridge and circling round the island of Alcatraz , we returned to the shore. The cries of massive sea-lions each weighing 1500-2000 lbs. are heard near the
pier as they swim around with their mates and leap on to the pier moving their flaps. During the cruise
trip a live audio commentary was given describing the various places one could view from the ferry. Most of the passengers preferred to go on to the deck to enjoy the fresh sea breeze and take photos with their near and dear against the natural backdrop of the sea. Flocks of the sea gulls were seen
floating on the waters to catch their prey.
This cruise trip gave us a chance to have a beautiful view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the island of Alcatraz sailing through cool and placid waters of the blue Pacific.
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Soma Gutala
