Mission Dolores

Today is Veteran's Day in the US, so banks, some companies and government offices are closed. Having a free day, I decided to check off one of my photography to-do's by visiting Mission Dolores, San Francisco's oldest intact building. The mission is part of the chain of missions spanning California known as El Camino Real. The Wiki about the mission is quite informative. The picture above is of the adobe mission. Next to this is the basilica. It's somewhat confusing if you ask me.

One of reasons I wanted to visit the mission is that it's featured in Hitchcock's film "Vertigo". There's a scene where Kim Novak visits the cemetery at the mission and places flowers on the grave of a fictional "Carlota Valdes". Vertigo is a great film if you want to see San Francisco at its best. I wish I had Jimmy Stewart's apartment in the film 900 Lombard Street at Jones. He had a view of Coit Tower from his living room! Click here for a list of filming locations for Vertigo.

Off to See the Wizard...

Tomorrow I'm off to see the city of all cities - New York! I've been there twice before, but still it will be good to have a change of scenery as much as I love San Francisco. As you can see from the picture above, I'm all packed and just need to put in some items tomorrow morning. I'm leaving the old laptop at home, but fear not! This trusty blogger will try to provide daily updates from the field. I ask for forgiveness in advance for the fuzziness of the pictures since they will be taken with a camera phone. (See previous test post)

As for my progress with Espanol, I now know the numbers from 0-30! Hurrah!

With respect to my Hitchcock film addiction, today I saw Vertigo (again) and 39 steps. Vertigo is one of my faves because it features famous San Francisco sights. 39 steps is one of Hitchcock's earlier films produced in England. In brief, the film is about a man who is falsely accused of a murder of a spy and he has to prevent state secrets from leaving England. There are many parallels to the film "North by Northwest". I highly recommend Hitchcock if you are a fan of thrillers.