San Francisco, the "Baghdad by the Bay", is one place which has struck gold literally and continues to draw many as a glittering beacon for finance and the arts. Add to that its charming location by the sparkling blue bay, the world-famous Golden Gate Bridge, and the elegant rows of pastel-coloured houses nestled on its quaint vertiginous streets, it is no wonder that the influx of settlers persisted despite the 1906 earthquake and 1989 tremors.

And so it was with an enthusiastic sense of anticipation that I descended upon this cosmopolitan yet relaxed city that was the birthplace of the hippies. It certainly did not disappoint. Except that I had first to get my bearings and orientation right and figure out the transportation. Ah, the throes of backpacking...

It was not too difficult after all. The streets were neatly set out in a grid and each bus seemed to travel on one particular street, so that I only needed to switch buses if I was changing direction. Although, ahem, I did have a slight hiccup in my first attempt at alighting, when I kept pressing the "Stop Bus" bell stupidly, wondering why the doors didn't swing open - until somebody told me to step down on the alighting stairs to trigger the mechanism...

At last, I had "mastered" the necessary "street wisdom" to begin my grand adventure in San Francisco. Starting with (applause, please): a wait in a long queue. Well, this is a fave destination after all for tourists, make that raving-mad tourists. There is a reason why they need those big burly men to operate the popular cable cars, that is, to cram the crazy folks into the fanciful trolleys and to keep them from trying to dangle out precariously. Okay, I am exaggerating. Possibly, the rationale has more to do with the strength needed to shove the car from one rail to another when

Taking a stroll on the colourful Fisherman's Wharf at the Waterfront is a must to soak in the relaxed ambience. Apart from the usual assortment of gift shops and

And, of course, the cliché thing to do is to walk on the Golden Gate Bridge, which proved something that I had suspected all along. Attractions of mammoth proportions are best admired and

A far more pleasant walk is to explore the lovely Golden Gate Park, designed by Frederick Olmsted who also created New York's Central Park. It is a great place of recreation for the residents, with many roller-bladers and picnickers. The

alcatraz

One trip that I highly recommend is the excellent Alcatraz tour. Departing from Pier

Because of its strategic and isolated location, this fortress has a fascinating history from being a defence stronghold, a military prison, to finally the maximum-security federal prison when it confined the notorious likes of Al 'Scarface' Capone, 'Machine Gun' Kelly and the 'Birdman'.

Rangers from the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which the isle is part of today, are on hand to give a detailed guided tour. For the cell house, the audio

So near and yet so far. It is therefore no surprise that 36 men had tried to escape from Alcatraz in 14 separate attempts. Some of the escapades were bloody, some amusing, but all unsuccessful, save possibly for one - the ingenious attempt of 1962 by 3 inmates who patiently chipped holes through the rear walls of their cells and erected dummy heads on their beds to fool the guards during head counts. The 3 escapees were never seen again, but were believed to have drowned in the swift freezing waters of San Francisco Bay.

muir woods

The Muir Woods National Park in nearby Marin County offers wonderful hiking trails for lovers of nature and especially trees. Very tall ones. This is redwood canyon where, at the time I visited in 1995, the ancient trees were considered the tallest in the world. Since then, loftier specimens have been discovered in Tasmania down under, but the magnificent soaring redwoods in Muir - the largest at 253-feet tall and 13-feet in diameter - left an indelible impression on me.

I arrived by bus at the Pantoll Ranger Station, from which I hiked down the Stapelveldt - Ben Johnson Trail to the Muir Woods Visitor Center. The woods were very quiet and cool. I later learned that the shade afforded by the canopy gives little

The specimens in the Nature Trail at the Visitor Center were taller, thicker and more beautiful. Their incredible survival depends on the hundreds of gallons of water a day from the meandering Redwood Creek originating from Mt. Tamalpais. I returned

I departed from Pantoll tired out but with a sense of reluctance, leaving this remarkable coastal redwood area, aptly named after the famous conservationist, John Muir, who was responsible for raising the country's awareness of the importance of preserving its untouched natural parts, giving rise to the many great national parks in America.

yosemite

My next destination, a few hours' drive from San Francisco, was the Yosemite National Park. This preserved stretch of the Sierra Nevada along California's eastern flank evidences the extraordinary handiwork of mother nature. Some 500 million years ago, the region once lay beneath the ancient sea. The thick layers of sediment eventually folded and twisted above sea level, with molten rock welling up beneath it

It is an understatement to declare the park an incredibly beautiful place. In fact, it is simply impossible not to be swept away by the grandeur of it all. And I guess, it helped that we were blessed with three wonderful days of clear autumn weather, even though we only managed to cover but a small fraction of this remarkable region. Lucky me.

After a night of getting used to snoozing in a sleeping bag in a freezing camping tent, our guide insisted on starting day one with a bang, that is, a pleasant hike to a stunningly clear May Lake, followed by a punishing strenuous climb up to Tuolumne Peak at 10,845 feet. I

This being my first major hike on rough terrain, I was unfashionably unequipped, to say the least. It was here that I first learned the importance of wearing hiking shoes

But it was well-worth the effort. Apart from the triumphant top-of-the-world feeling and sheer jubilance at having made it, the views were simply marvelous. The sky was startlingly deep blue

Day two was physically mild in comparison. Surprisingly, I had made it down Tuolumne Peak in one piece as well, without rolling all the way, that is. Now that we survived, our guide was considerably kinder and brought my campmates and I to Yosemite Valley, the heart of the park, for a DIY tour on our own.

The 'Incomparable Valley', as Yosemite Valley has been called, is indeed unparalleled. More than anywhere else in the area, the granite carvings effected by

The U-shaped valley was created when alpine glaciers which pushed through the canyon of the Merced River, melted to form the ancient Lake Yosemite and then filled up with sediment to form the valley floor and the meadows. The shaping of Yosemite by the wondrous workings of nature continues today as the same process is happening at Mirror Lake at the base of Half Dome.

Exhausted from the exertions of the day before, we were nevertheless roused by the breath-taking scenery in the valley and galvanized our reserve energies to walk up the Trail to Vernal/Nevada Falls. It was an enjoyable hike with pretty streams and falls, and yellow autumn foliage framing the distant views of the by-now familiar silver mountain ranges. Even though the waters were considerably dried up in the fall, it was still quite a sight to witness the waters crashing down to the valley floor from the summit of the Trail.

The Valley Visitor Center, one of four in this huge park, is also worth a visit, with interesting exhibits on the formation of the Yosemite Valley and, of course, to pick up the obligatory postcard.

Just as I was getting used to living in a campsite and having bonfires, not to mention a foraging bear in the middle of the night (which I unfortunately missed, being too cozy to get out my snug cocoon of a sleeping bag), it was the final day and time to pack up. Sigh. On this sad last day, we went to Mariposa Grove to see the Giant Sequoias, the largest living things in the world.

And they are gargantuan all right. As well as ancient. The Grizzly Giant at Mariposa is thought to be the oldest living sequoia at 2,700 years old! The amazing thing is that they need fire to survive. Well-intentioned conservationist efforts to protect the trees from fire almost resulted in disaster. Apparently, sequoias are fire-resistant and the previous frequent natural fires actually helped to eliminate competing plant species, leaving rich mineral soil and sunlight for the germinating sequoia seedlings. Fortunately, the enlightened park rangers now use prescribed fires to return fire back to the ecosystem. May we get it right this time, amen.

Another damaging human intervention is the cutting of tunnels through two trees in the late 1800s. It is a wonder that these trees can still grow. Resistant to fire as well as disease (but not humans), the sequoia has the amazing ability to continue growing

And with this fascinating visit, we bade a fond farewell to Yosemite to return to the civilization that is called "San Francisco". It almost felt strange to see modern buildings again, but it was time to move on from here as well. I was to depart from colourful San Francisco reluctantly the next day, to set out for the final stop in my American trek - the Grand Canyon.