An Afternoon In Alcatraz

“Break the rules and you go to prison,
break the prison rules and you go to
Alcatraz,”
– Author Unknown

We’ve all heard of Alcatraz. A prison located on a very small island off the San Francisco Bay, where there was no chance of escape and if you did, then you had the sea to battle next.  A prison that housed the likes of Al Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, and Mickey Cohen. Walking through, the cells are tiny and dismal and the entire prison has a harsh feeling to it compared to modern day prisons.

The best room of the place was easily the kitchen, where it’s said that prisoners were served the best food in the entire United States prison system. Not only that, but they had a small glimpse of the freedom that was just beyond those walls.

THE SKYLINE

Another hazy view of a distant San Francisco skyline that could be seen from peering out of one of the small windows, now gritty with dirt.

Alcatraz has a history that began with Native Americans who used the island to collect bird eggs from the many birds that called the island home. From there, it became the defense location to protect San Francisco during the Civil War, was used as a military prison and finally became the Alcatraz prison that it is most famous for today. Despite it’s largely war and criminal related history, the location of this prison is unlike any other. From outside of the prison walls there is a beautiful view in each direction that you turn.

The remnants of what used to be the warden’s house and the lighthouse.