San Francisco. The requisite photo identifying the San Francisco Bay Area is the iconic Golden Gate Bridge. While visiting San Fran for an academic conference I did a little adventuring and one of my favorite days was a morning hike around Muir Woods followed by an early lunch at the Trident in Sausalito and then a walk from Vista Point in Marin County across the Golden Gate Bridge and back to the financial district ending with drinks at Per Diem. Walking across the bridge provded some pretty great opportunities to see the city and differing landscapes between the Marin County & San Francisco; along with a unique view of the bay and Alcatraz.

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Bureaucratic hurdles for immigration. There's really no other way to describe the decision by a certain English/French speaking country to require everyone, irrespective of their native tongue to take an English language proficiency exam. I was born in the Mid-Atlantic portion of the United States; English is my native language. In order to apply for permanent residence I have to take an English proficiency exam, which oddly enough is not designed for native speakers. But I've yielded and submitted and I'm taking the test.

One might question why the a native speaker would think twice about the exam. Regardless of unnecessary expense; when you have an extremely proficient command of English you read into nuance and require more information to process context more than simple words. It's difficult to deprogram your brain from looking for context or reading into simple statements because the majority of communication is nonverbal and not the actual words and rather contex, including body language and tone and the story. It's like asking an graphic designer or artist what color is something. You're expecting something like blue as the response and you get a response like midnight aspen blue or Pantone 2767 CS. If there was a certification process for native speakers I'd happily comply rather than begrudgingly comply.

Oh bureaucracy...

*Grammar and spelling errors and even missing words I'm blaming on IPhone.

Muir Woods and the big trees (Coastal Redwoods) were pretty amazing with lots of little side trails that were quiet. The~ main trails were a bit crowded for my taste; but an earlier in the week trip may have been better. The trees were amazing; I'd like to find a place with them where one could do off trail hiking. I think the groves in Humbolt County and the Valley of the Giants may be a experience; but I definitely got my big tree fix!

These are a few bases of the Coastal Redwoods; they often grow in grooves.

The groves of the Coastal Redwood create a calm area with fresh air; a cool feeling.

These clover like plants are actually not clover but spirgela<sp> species that flowers.

These trees, the plants, and creek and trails were great. I would definitely have enjoyed spending more than 90 minutes in the space.

A log from a fallen tree.

And now to lunch in Sausalito at The Trident!

And now for the walk across the Golden Gate Bridge (didn't think to bring my running shoes today) :)

I like nature. I like the outdoors. My favourite place on Earth (to date) is Rocky Mountain National Park, hiking around Bear lake. It's a transcendental place for me; I am able to commune and reset. Today I'm hoping to find another place akin to RMNP...Muir Woods. It's a tall order; I'm working to keep my expectations reasonable. As long as I can remember I've been fond of woods and trees; they're old souls have seen much history and they roots keep them grounded in perpetual communion with life and Earth. In my youth my friends and I or me alone would disappear into the forests surrounding my home for a day of adventure with the prime directive, 'be home by dark'! :)

The largest trees I've seen are new growth forests on the east coast and mostly maples, oaks, willows. Today I'm going see big trees, big big trees - Redwoods and Sequoias I'm hoping! I fill like a kid anticipating Disney World for the first time... :) This is a bucket list item for me; though I also want to travel up to the Humbolt area and see the bigger trees. Today is a good start. Muir Woods with San Francisco based Tower Tours is about to commence and I'm squee'ing on the inside!