Prison and Freedom in California

Obvious tourist sights are not normally top of our list, but the former prison on the Alcatraz island was an exception. It is such an iconic place and you see it from everywhere you look around the bay of San Francisco. It was a must-do.

Weather again was on our side, a glorious sunny day met our ferry trip across the bay, giving amazing views of the Golden Gate and the city. Alcatraz itself was fascinating. We learned what it was like to be an inmate – you lived a tantalising one and a half miles across the water from the hustle and bustle from the city, able to see it (and even to hear the city's sounds echo across the bay) but having forfeited the chance to be a part of it. Meanwhile your cell, a tiny, clanging metal space, provided almost nothing. But then they said that “if you break the rules, you go to prison. If you break the prison rules, you go to Alcatraz.” If you were there, it was generally for good reason.

It was opened in the 1930's when gangster crime was rife thanks to the last years of prohibition in the USA and the public were calling for a new kind of prison to make the country a safer place. Famous inmates included Al Capone, who was there from 1934-39. Nobody was known to have escaped, although there were numerous attempts. One famous try was captured in Escape from Alcatraz (we downloaded it from the net and watched it in our hotel room that evening), Clint Eastwood played Frank Morris masterminding a 3-man exit via the ventilation ducts. They swam into the deadly freezing currents of the sea between the Rock and San Francisco. Their bodies were never found and they were never caught. Who knows, maybe they're ending their days in Mexico...?

A fascinating incident which we had no idea about was a long occupation of the island by native Indians, 6 years after the prison was closed by JFK. There was much dissent among Indians because the government had reneged on agreements regarding Indian territories and in 1969, the lobbyists were looking to make a statement. 400 Indians floated across on various boats and set up a community on the island. Their idea was that by establishing their settlement in the heart of the bay, all ships arriving would know that the first land they saw was Indian. Despite being ejected from Alcatraz, their 19-month stay was one of the steps for new agreements with native American leaders. As one of the occupants said, “Quiet people who follow the rules don't create change in the world”.

We left Alcatraz, took one last drive North over the Golden Gate Bridge and headed towards the Wine Country. Most people think of Napa Valley as the main area but we had been advised advised that Sonoma Valley, close to Napa, was the place to be. We headed straight for Sonoma town, an incredibly calm, cute and laid-back place, and chose a couple of wineries to do some tastings. We set off in stunning light as the Autumn sunshine moved towards dusk and gave the hills amazing colour and shades.

Our motto for the trip is now “It's All About The Contrast”. The two wineries we visited couldn't have been more different.

We started at BR Cohn, who was the manager of Californian rock band The Doobie Brothers for 30 years. The tasting office was very plush and decked out with Silver and Gold records from the Doobies' career (in case you're not a fan like me, you would recognise “What a fool believes” and “Long Train Runnin'”). We were greeted with a 10-dollar price for tasting 4 wines (no fee if you buy a bottle), so we went ahead and went through the list. Great wines, but not that great. Nicki knows more than me and can tell the difference between a good'un and an average one, whereas I am happy if it says “wine” on the bottle... Our tasting guide was not much help as she seemed mostly interested in the sale rather than the experience – I felt we were “tourist-sneered”. It was a stunning winery in a great location with some good wines. But we left feeling it had been a nice place to go but it wasn't very personal – we were processed through the experience.

Thanks to Lonely Planet, we found the Loxton Vineyard – what a difference! We entered a very basic shed with racks of oak barrels full of the ageing wine which was the tasting place and met a young guy who introduced us – for free – to all of the wines from the tiny winery (3000 bottles per year production). We felt really welcome as he explained to us in words that we could understand what differences there were with the wines they made, what tastes and aromas to look out for, and some small details of the process of production. He brought us in and made us feel like we were meant to be there, not just another tourist.

He had been a business student and came five years ago to understand how the wine business worked. He stayed for a harvest and didn't leave. Understandable – Loxton's location was stunning, off the main road and with clear views across hills and hills of vines. We left it happy, knowing more and with a delicious wine under our arm.

We headed back to Sonoma and stayed at the lovely El Pueblo Inn – great bed, free coffee and toiletries, gym and heated outside pool! We sat with salad from the local supermarket and our bottle of Loxton wine, listened to music on the ipod and travel speakers and reflected on a really happy day.