Leaving your heart in San Francisco - part 1 - 2011 · Tuesday August 30, 2011 by colin newell
San Francisco, California – established as a Spanish fort in 1776, experienced a gold rush in 1849, a devastating earthquake in 1906 – has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in North America and, arguably, the world.
Picture at left – Street Cars – they are historic and you should learn the basics of the San Francisco transit system if you are going to maximize your experience – click on photo for bigger view.
We had the great pleasure of visiting San Francisco for 7 days in August 2011. And as it turns out, many people that we know are either heading to San Francisco or planning on going there in the near future. Fact is, it is a readily accessible city – and it’s close… a mere 740 miles or 1200km – we flew via West Jet but there are other options like United and Air Canada.
What was important, leading up to the trip, was a bit of planning – based on our personal preferences.
Whether you are going for 1 day, 3 days, a week or a month… it is very important to get some books in your pocket, some online resources bookmarked and a few key things purchased (apart from air fare of course!)
The Ferry Building (photo left) – great food, water access, farmers market and Blue Bottle Coffee!
Here is the thing: Unless someone is driving you and yours around in a limo all day long you might want to get acquainted with the transportation infrastructure – and it’s a great and efficient one.
As cities go, San Francisco is eminently walkable – but mind bogglingly hilly. Nob Hill, where we stayed, is 402 feet above sea level – and only 1.3 km away from the water! If that sounds like “straight up”, it seems like it. Thank heavens for cable cars! More on those later.
Photo left – The Golden Gate. If you are going to San Francisco, get over it or go under it. Andrea and I did both! All photos on my Panasonic Lumix.
Hot Tip! Before we went we bought a couple of things online. And I will classify these as very important – must have items if you are staying more than 3 days.
Number 1 item! San Francisco City Pass – Do not leave home without it!
For starters, you are going to want to ride the cable cars. And you are going to want to ride the historic electric street cars along the “F” line that start at Fisherman’s Wharf and zip through the Embarcadero to the Ferry Building and onto the terminus in the Castro district.
Photo left – Ritual Coffee! We went to this place, Sight Glass, Blue Bottle, 4-Barrel and the Tartine Bakery… All amazing!
And if, like us, you are staying at any hotel on Nob or Russian Hill, you are going to need a cable car pass – because individual rides are $5 (according to the website – I think they may be $6 a ride now – which is amazing even to the cable-car grips.) With the city pass, you have “all access” – so you do not need to carry change or dollar bills. You can buy the MUNI-Cable Car pass separately, but this represents great value (more on that subject later too!)
The City Pass, in addition to giving you hop on / hop off access to the cable cars, and the MUNI and the classic electric rail in the city, you get a 1 hour water tour into San Francisco Bay (under the Bay bridge and around Alcatraz Island) – called the Blue & Gold Fleet Bay Cruise It is a fun filled and informative guided tour of some of San Francisco’s colorful history. The boats are big, safe, fast and equipped with a bar and food items… Yes, a booze cruise. It’s San Francisco after all!
With the City Pass, we also took in the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) – yea, not everyone is an art fan – but while we were there, there was a comprehensive Picasso exhibit and some great photo galleries + plus a lot of contemporary American art. Check the gallery schedule of course.
Consider the city pass – for $69 for adults and $39 for children (San Francisco is a very child friendly and pet friendly place)
Hot Tip #2 – Buy a couple of travel books on this city a minimum of 30 days in advance to absorb some of the things you might want to do.
Farmers Bakers Market at the Ferry Building three days a week!
We got Frommers San Francisco A very good read with good sections and apparently some fairly honest and bias free reporting. The Frommers San Francisco Day by day was also a very useful resource – especially for carrying around.
Jump to chapter two – The planning phase!
Summer about Victoria 2011 At the digital cinema · Friday August 12, 2011 by colin newell
We visited Cineplex Odeon Westshore cinemas 900 2945 Jacklin Rd in Langford for “Cowboys and Aliens” featuring Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford.
It’s a Western. And it’s a Science fiction story – two of my favorite genres.
But this is not a movie review.
It is a technology review.
I have not spent a lot of time rambling on the subject of the transition from film projection to digital – there are a lot of people in the industry and in consumer World that bark like otters about this evolution.
My opinion differs slightly.
Starters, modern theaters are too freaking loud. I am clearly middle aged and I pack ear plugs with me to Silver City (and to a lesser extent the other theaters) – because the sound is too loud and it gives me a sonic headache in short order.
It astounds me the number of people that bring children to these noisy shows who have ears that are significantly more sensitive than mine.
Bottom line: Go to any of these shows and you are permanently degrading your hearing and the future of your ability to hear quiet sounds in the future.
But don’t take me word for it.
Digital projection. Cineplex Odeon raves about their ability to download and project digital movies – the savings over film are staggering – and guess what? The savings are passed directly on to the stakeholders at Cineplex Odeon – not the consumers.
There was a time, when film was king, that the only way a theater could make any money was with the concession goods; the absurd lake-sized drinks and waste barrel capacity popcorn selections could set you back a mortgage payment if you were treating the entire family.
The food prices are still stupid but now there is money to be made with the technology. Because it is simpler. And being a person who designs and builds labs and classrooms at a University and actually helps maintain a movie theater (UVic’s venerable Cinecenta [I have worked on the digital and film cinema side of the house]), I know how much stuff costs. And Cineplex Odeon is making a killing on the savings as it were.
And as much as “industry” would like us to believe that digital cinema is “awesome” and sparkles like a jewel – it doesn’t. It is not capable of it. My home Sony blu-ray and LED back-lit Bravia flat screen TV is as capable of showing spectacular video, with breathtaking surround audio. Digital projection onto giant screens has some fundamental flaws – lack of contrast and muted, often dreary color – and jittery scene transitions.
I know this sounds like a bit of a whine. I do come from an old-school movie viewing population where 35MM and 70MM film (and IMAX) was king. My feeling is, the technology is moving forward at a good clip – but it is simply not there yet.
But don’t take me word for it.
Today we drove from Victoria East (Rockland area) to the West Shore cinemas for a Friday matinee – taking surface roads would have made much more sense – The Island highway was inching forward from Tillicum to the Millstream exit – pretty sad. But it was Friday at 3:30 in the afternoon. We made it to the theater with 9 minutes to spare. Would we go again? I would still like to have the “AVX” experience… whatever that is – if the right movie comes along.
Today’s movie was in Cinema 4 – 200 seats maybe… there were, perhaps, 12 people in attendance. Matinee after all.
Final thought. I love the movie going experience. I think it is important for people to get out to movies – to support the economy, develop some social skills as well, eat out and such – especially important for young people and children.
Anyway – enough from me… and enjoy the show!
Sneaking a peak at my coffee plant nursery 2011 · Monday August 1, 2011 by colin newell
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Victoria Summer 2011 Theater with the Blue Bridge Who's afraid of Virginia Woolfe · Friday July 15, 2011 by colin newell
As much as I enjoy a well written, filmed and acted movie – whether it be drama, comedy or action adventure, it never comes close to live theater – especially when it is great theater – like most of the productions that Victoria’s own Blue Bridge Repertory have been delivering.
Blue Bridge Repertory Theater, established in 2008 is led by veteran producer and director Brian Richmond. The founders of B.B. were convinced that the City of Victoria would support a professional theater offering its residents and visitors the opportunity to see world class productions of the great plays while offering early professional artists, many from UVic, the opportunity to work with some of Canada’s most respected directors and actors.
Andrea and I have been supporting Blue Bridge for the last couple of years. With this latest production, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolfe?, we feel they have simply outdone themselves.
The story revolves around associate professor George (played by the massively talented Andrew Wheeler) and his boozy and combative wife, Martha (played to breathtaking perfection by Meg Tilly) as they wind their way through an evening with a younger faculty member, Nick (in the role a dyed blond Alex Plouffe…) and his capricious and often bubble-headed wife, Honey, (again played to perfection by the skilled Celine Stubel).
“Who’s Afraid” is as much gut-wrenching drama, with impeccably timed witticism and repartee as it is a oddly comedic study on the nature of human romantic and sexual relationships… and their eventual and epic decay into sadness, loss and frustration.
And as much as I expected Meg Tilly, as Martha, to steal the “show”, that would be unfair to the rest of the ensemble cast – the truth is, Ms. Tilly puts everything on the line with her character. Martha is a gin soaked, bombastic whirlwind whose unrelenting cannonade of cyclonic verbal abuse leaves the average viewer, inexperienced with any form of domestic calamity, in a sensory coma. The literacy of the two characters, Martha and George, and their collaborative seduction and corruption of the two guests create a sense of team folly – that keeps us guessing as to their motives and their true feelings for each other.
“Who’s afraid” is a three act play with two 15 minute intermissions – and the intermissions are as as much an opportunity for the audience to grab some oxygen and ground themselves as they are for the cast to take a breather.
For the two of us, neither of whom have ever seen the movie (with Liz and Richard), I had no idea of what to expect. “Who’s Afraid” is a hurricane of journeyman acting and the key to balance is equal participation of all four members. It’s not for the faint of heart or those with delicate sensibilities. There is a visceral sexuality and open-wound emotional vulnerability that would, if not unchecked with the brilliant dialogue, lead to overload in short order. Most of us survived. The audience did dwindle after the end of the 2nd intermission – but that was more a product of the late start and the average age of the audience – many of whom were way passed bedtime.
Meg Tilly’s portrayal of Martha demands complete physicality, full-on, safety off, emotional release. Watching her from the 4th row of the “Mac” wind up and unleash a fury of frustration infused verbal abuse upon an all-to-eager to expiate and thoroughly pecked George… was exhausting – and the relief would come in the final moments of the final act with a completely unexpected and dazzling dénouement.
Andrea commented after the standing ovation – “How does one sleep after a performance like that – how does anyone have anything left to give?”
I have never seen anything like it in my life – like many people, I have witnessed some domestic fireworks in my childhood, most of which began and ended within seconds or minutes and did not involve any physical harm to anyone – But “Who’s afraid” takes you to a place you have never been before, a place you don’t want to be – and it’s only the artful skill of the thespians that allow you to witness the complete extreme of human pain and domestic discourse without completely being blown from the theater.
Meg and the cast of “Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolfe” were utterly brilliant and delivered “the goods” – their interpretation of timeless sexuality infidelity and complete sadness within the context of the drama was flawless. If you were lucky enough to get tickets to this show… Enjoy… and I use that term loosely.
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