Week 5 has hit the summer dreamer, and the J1 season is certainly starting to heat up!!!!!
The weekend just gone was certainly an experience as gay pride hit San Francisco and what an experience it was. A very crazy and liberating experience for the gay community to come out and celebrate their sexuality. The weekend was in ways much of what I would expect for a gay pride parade, there was vasts amounts of nudity, rainbow flags flying high. I think like any big event in any city, it's an opportunity for a drink fueled celebration which of course leads onto chance encounters with people you may or may not connect with. It really is an the perfect excuse for a drink, drugs and sex weekend but then again this is the norm for any festival not just because it was a gay pride weekend. From the Irish perspective it was liberating to be part of the celebration and San Francisco did itself proud with the events that were planned. It was amazing to see families take part in the parade from the grandparents to the police departments. The parade may seem a bit over the top in ways but it is the point of such events. Pride is something for any gay person to celebrate, it is the images of same sex couples marching in parade with their children, having over come the inner demons of coming to terms with ones sexuality. The 2012 San Francisco gay pride events were a very liberating experience to be a part of.
The summer is ticking away a bit too quickly for my liking with week 5 of the American dream fast approaching, there is so much to do but the Irish J1 season has kicked in and so too have the hangovers, but this was to be expected. I have now come to terms with being a summer commuter from Berkeley. It really isn't that bad and it's a great way to balance out my love for the great American cheese burger. I rather enjoy the power walk from the Powell St bart station to Fisherman Wharf. Walking through the city on a sunny morning just makes me smile, embracing the sounds of the city and the fast paced lifestyle excites me more and more as I get to know the city more.
San Francisco is fast becoming one of my favorite cities I have been to so far and the people are amazing. Berkeley is a hip little town I have to say with some very interesting characters. The thing I have learned in the past month is that anything goes in California, everyone can have a place in this society and this is the liberating attitude with which people think.
Summer dreaming is no longer a dream but a fast paced reality that I am loving.....
Until next time
S :)
Wednesday 27 June 2012
Saturday 2 June 2012
So arriving in San Francisco to live the American summer dream involved a few goodbyes, a bit of flinging clothes out of the case at the airport, a stopover in New York with some people watching but then it came touch down in San Francisco!!!!
The first night was a mix of a can of Fourloko, lack of sleep, a sidekick in the form of Aisling Moran and so began the J1 2012 and the endless craigs list searching for a house. Arriving at The "Best"hotel in Tenderloin was a bit of a blast of reality, countless homeless people lining the street,a few prostitutes and some drug addicts into the mix made for some interesting days to come.... As it turns out it was in fact the most dodgy part of town for two J1ers to be walking around made for part of the thrill of city living!!
The thrills soon wore off as the house search continued and the hangovers got worse but we were lucky enough to land 2 jobs in a restaurant on the pier as 'Hosts'. I agreed to the job hoping a host wasn't some weird job as it turns out it's a job for a sociable character. I can live with that, I have been called a lot worse in the past :p :p
So with Day 1 in the new job over it was time to resume the search and we had given up hope and sold out to a summer rental in The Tenderloin which meant a summer of dodging junkies and trying not to get my kidneys stolen and sold to the highest bidder and as cliche as it sounds we had the luck of the Irish when walking through little Italy and stumbled upon summer rentals beside out favorite Irish bar La Rocca's, they have kind of adopted us as we were so down and out during the week
So with jobs secured and now having a set of keys to a pad the summer is certainly into swing.. Have met some pretty cool people so far and of course some mental fellow J1ers... So San Francisco it's pretty safe to say, you have won me over and I think this could be the start of a long affair.
Until Next time this summer dreamer is off out to explore the highlights of some of the social scene this amazing city has to offer
S
The first night was a mix of a can of Fourloko, lack of sleep, a sidekick in the form of Aisling Moran and so began the J1 2012 and the endless craigs list searching for a house. Arriving at The "Best"hotel in Tenderloin was a bit of a blast of reality, countless homeless people lining the street,a few prostitutes and some drug addicts into the mix made for some interesting days to come.... As it turns out it was in fact the most dodgy part of town for two J1ers to be walking around made for part of the thrill of city living!!
The thrills soon wore off as the house search continued and the hangovers got worse but we were lucky enough to land 2 jobs in a restaurant on the pier as 'Hosts'. I agreed to the job hoping a host wasn't some weird job as it turns out it's a job for a sociable character. I can live with that, I have been called a lot worse in the past :p :p
So with Day 1 in the new job over it was time to resume the search and we had given up hope and sold out to a summer rental in The Tenderloin which meant a summer of dodging junkies and trying not to get my kidneys stolen and sold to the highest bidder and as cliche as it sounds we had the luck of the Irish when walking through little Italy and stumbled upon summer rentals beside out favorite Irish bar La Rocca's, they have kind of adopted us as we were so down and out during the week
So with jobs secured and now having a set of keys to a pad the summer is certainly into swing.. Have met some pretty cool people so far and of course some mental fellow J1ers... So San Francisco it's pretty safe to say, you have won me over and I think this could be the start of a long affair.
Until Next time this summer dreamer is off out to explore the highlights of some of the social scene this amazing city has to offer
S
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