En La Isla De Los Alcatraces

Today Keith and I took the ferry boat over to Alcatraz Island which proved to be one of the highlights of the day, since I walked within 3 feet of one of the best soccer players in the world, David Beckham, and his family. Incidentally, I had seen Victoria Beckham earlier in the day and thought, "Wow, with that haircut and those sunglasses, that lady looks exactly like Victoria Beckham!"

Celebrity spotting aside, the visit to the island was quite good as well. It holds such legendary status in Americana that actually being there, seeing the cells and feeling the cold Pacific winds coming off the bay is almost unreal. I caught myself thinking on more than one occasion that it being there wouldn't be too bad. Of course, I would remind myself that no matter how beautiful the weather, Alcatraz is Alcatraz, and it has that reputation for a reason. The audio tour has become a jumping off point, whetting my appetite for stories from Alcatraz. I spent several hours reading about its history on Wikipedia after returning to Paul's apartment. The story of the three escapees that may or may not have made it is absolutely fascinating. I almost hope that they did, because that would make an already amazing story even more so. Keith was also observant enough to notice that he and one of the escapees use the same hair product. It is also interesting to note that the can for Murrey's Superior Hair Dressing Pomade hasn't changed in seven decades. There was a sign there that said the things in the cell were props from a movie, but I choose to ignore that.

It seemed cruel to put the toughest prison in the country in such a beautiful location, with the city and the Golden Gate Bridge just across the bay; so close that they could hear the sounds of life floating across the water when the wind blew in the right direction. I can imagine that knowledge of the outside only made the long hours a little longer. The families of prison guards who lived on the island spoke of it as they would any other small town.