Golden Gate Bridge (USA) – description, history, location. The exact address, phone number, website. Reviews of tourists, photos and videos.
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The Golden Gate Bridge is the most famous landmark in the city, a symbol of San Francisco and the entire US Pacific coast. The handsome man hovering over the bay managed to appear in a good hundred films, acquire his own website and acquire, alas, sad fame, an ideal place to settle accounts with life: 75 meters of free flight into the waters of the Golden Gate Bay and a farewell glance at the lights of the big city. However, the vast majority of tourists visit the bridge with a much more positive attitude – as evidenced by the popular excursions to the Golden Gate and smartly sold souvenirs with the silhouette of the famous red arches connected by ropes.
A bit of history
The idea of building the Golden Gate Bridge arose in 1933, during a period of great immigration in San Francisco, when it became obvious that the existing transport system could no longer cope with the transportation of an increasing population. The project was headed by American architects, however, as you might guess, the business was not done without ours: a native of Odessa supervised the mathematical calculations. Four years later, the grand opening of the bridge took place, and for the first twelve hours it was given over to the power of pedestrians. Then motorists took over – and to this day you can walk along the “Golden Gate”, and ride a car or a bicycle. Until 1964, the San Francisco Bridge was the largest suspension bridge in the world with a length of almost two kilometers (1970 m).
The authentic color of the bridge is called “international orange” – it was chosen after long consultations with architects, designers and security specialists and meets all the requirements: in harmony with the colors of the landscape, perfectly visible in the fog and, last but not least, looks beautiful in photographs.
Where to have a snack
In addition to the numerous catering establishments on the San Francisco side of the bridge, treat yourself to Californian cuisine or just kill a worm at the Bridge Cafe, located at the southeast pillar of the Golden Gate.
What to watch
There are many options for exploring the bridge, from a relaxed taxi ride to a bike ride to a walking tour. In the latter case, we recommend taking into account the length of the Golden Gate – a little less than 2 km, so the forces should be calculated in advance. Car traffic is distributed over six lanes, but not three in each direction, but according to the traffic load on the highway – two and four, or, in particularly difficult cases, one and five.
There are cycle paths along both sides of the bridge, east and west, but they operate on schedule: as a rule, from 15:30 to 21:00 travel is possible on the west side, at other times of the day – along the east. But pedestrians are allowed to walk only along the eastern, city-oriented side.
In the tourist pavilion, located at one of the pillars of the bridge from the side of the national park of the same name, you can learn everything about the history of construction and the eventful life of the Golden Gate, visit an exhibition dedicated to the bridge and buy souvenirs with the famous silhouette. Here you can also join an organized excursion lasting 45 or 60 minutes or take a photo at the top of the bridge support – of course, not without the help of Photoshop.
The assortment of the gift shop for the glory of the bridge amazes no less than the attraction itself: from banal magnets and T-shirts to winter clothes and even branded chocolate.
In 2014, the Golden Gate Bridge will celebrate its 77th anniversary (it was erected in 1937 and has become completely pedestrianized several times in its history – for the opening and for the celebration of its 75th anniversary.
Be sure to pay attention to the so-called “Golden Gate” test support presented in the tourist pavilion. The 3.5-meter replica of the bridge support is made of stainless steel and was used for engineering calculations in 1933.
Another interesting exhibit related to the history of the Golden Gate Bridge is exhibited in the open air near the tourist pavilion. This is a real cut of one of the steel ropes connecting the supports. The scale of the exhibit is impressive: the rope is 93 cm wide, and it is twisted from 27 thousand wires! An explanatory plate gives even more surprising details: the length of one cable on the bridge is 2331 m, the total length of the wire is 128 km, and the weight of the cable is 24.5 tons. A triumph of engineering, to be sure!
Address and opening hours
Address: Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, California.
Opening hours: round the clock; before visiting, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the schedule of travel / passage on the east and west sides (latest information: in winter, the bridge is inaccessible to pedestrians from 18:30 to 5:00, and in summer – from 21:00 to 5:00); tourist pavilion – from 9:00 to 18:00.
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