12th day

 Silicon valley and San Francisco bay


Leaving Monterey, we had still a short stretch to drive along the coast. Wheather was really nice compared to the day before. We visitied a light tower, which is a compulsory program for a proper coastal drive.....   

Leaving the costland faced to inland, we drove the Mulholland drive connecting to the Silicon Valley. Here we could see some Red Woods already. In a later blog I ll write about these huge organisms in detail.

Silicon valley
Silicon valley started to rise in the 1950's thanks to Stanford University i.e. the Stanford technological park. More and more spin off companies started their busines here staying close to their origins, the university. Today the world biggest high tech companies are residing here offering around 500000 high tech jobs. Silicon Valley has the highest average high-tech salary at $144,800. In 2013 Silicon Valley received 41% of all U.S. venture capital.  
We visited some them.....

Golden Gate bridge

Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate strait, the mile-wide, three-mile-long channel between San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.

The bridge is one of the most internationally recognized symbols of San Francisco. It opened in 1937 and had, until 1964, the longest suspension bridge main span in the world, at 4,200 feet. he construction budget at the time of approval was $27 million.

The Golden Gate Bridge's clearance above high water averages 220 feet (67 m) while its towers, at 746 feet (227 m) above the water.

More pictures here