Friday, June 03, 2011

The Not-So-Secret Gem of the Golden Gate

After visiting the Golden Gate Marin Headlands, like I had wanted to do forever, my completely uninterested in the Golden Gate bridge boys begged and begged to go play in this used to be military watch ground are called Battery Spencer, built to protect the Golden Gate.
I delayed and delayed, but when we were finally ready to go, I was stunned by the variety,
texture,


and color.



I love old things like this and places rich with history, and while the boys played,




 I wondered if anyone lived here, who needed a fireplace in a cement room,
why were there iron bars for windows and no doors,

do my boys realize the history of what are they seeing and playing in and the lives of who worked here,


did the people who stood guard here get impressed with what they were doing each time they looked out the peep hole of their bunker, did they go to work or wake up in awe at the beauty surround them each day,





who were these people, who had made the decision to build this to protect the Golden Gate bridge, and why was it abandoned in 1943, just two years after Pearl Harbor? These are the things that crossed my mind as we walked in an eerie silence through this completely people free area, and the feelings I get when I read the history and see photos of Battery Spencer in operation here.While everybody else enjoyed the bridge as we had just done, it seemed like we found a quiet piece of profound, breath-taking history just for us that day.

6 Comments:

Karena said...

Very intriguing post!! The images of the bridge are amazing!

I would have asked myself the same questions! So Good to find your site..

Come and enter my amazing $250 Giveaway from Tracy Porter!

xoxo
Karena
Art by Karena

Dominique said...

I love seeing the bridge from a definitely different perspective! I didn't know about the Battery area.

Bre said...

Those are some fantastic photos! I have not been to The Golden Gate Bridge yet but this old structure seems like it would capture my attention more.
Cheers,
Bre

Unknown said...

what a neat adventure!

dash dot dotty

Pink Sun Drops said...

Karena - So glad you stopped by and said hi! Yes, history definitely makes me wonder like that.

Dominique - That might've been the most fun of it all -discovering something we had no idea was there!

Bre - So glad to hear how much you would love it as well. Can't wait to hear about it when you do go!

Dotty - Thanks, girl.

athena said...

this is definitely on my list of things to see in SF. this place looks fascinating, and the tidbits you provided about its history make me want to find out more. there is an abandoned military complex -- fort ord -- right by my house. i'd like to explore it but for safety reasons it's a restricted area. still hasn't stopped me from taking photos from the outside :)

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