I left my plane in San Francisco
high on a hill, it calls to me
to be where... ... little cablecars climb halfway to the stars.
... the weather is permanently London in March - fog, wind, sun, chill and showers (though it's been pretty sunny so far).
... the residents talk about the weather more than Londoners do.
... the city may only be 7 miles square, but it has more contours than the whole of South East England put together.
... a huge breakfast is one meal too many, unless you're a local.
... the gyms are full, presumably because breakfasts are so big.
... there are great views from Twin Peaks, which is the highest point of the city and not somewhere that serves cherry pie.
... mobile phones are rare and text messaging just doesn't happen.
... the 49 mile Scenic Drive is a great way to see all the sights, and that bridge is spectacular.
... garages advertise 'smog & lube', which sounds kind of interesting.
... half the population have a dog, often of a small and yappy variety, or a large and husky variety.
... all the plug sockets and most of the light switches look like they're out of the 1950s.
... only us tourists ride the cablecars.
... nobody lives in fear of an earthquake (and don't worry Mum, no rumblings yet).
... the locals are undoubtedly ripe for exploitation by any new natural health products company you might care to set up.
... there's only one real newspaper everyone reads, though news means 'happened within 10 miles of here'.
... the locals carry umbrellas because when it rains it pours (thankfully last night that was overnight).
... only the tv presenters have cloying insincerity - the locals are great.
... for the centre of Silicon Valley, it's surprisingly hard to find an internet cafe.
