San Francisco, Part 3: The God of Death
Apr. 10th, 2013 09:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jamesqPart of my tour included a solo walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. As one of the tour guides put it, in language designed to not reveal her meaning to any children present, more people have strolled off this bridge than any other.
Of course, I don't need to use such language here. Golden Gate bridge is infamous for being the site of more suicides than any other place on Earth. Of course, I knew that going in. Being a depressive, I find the topic grimly fascinating. I should get this out of the way right now: I was not planning to commit suicide either before or during my trip to San Francisco, nor am I planning to now. Everyone less worried now? Good.
As walking across the bridge was one of the things I had planned on doing, I decided to do it while the weather was clear. It had been fogged in on Saturday morning, which was about the foggiest it was the whole trip - many native San Franciscans commented on the unusually clear weather the whole time I was there. Still, I didn't know it was going to last, so I jumped at the chance to go that day via tour bus. As the tours came every hour, you would typically get off at Fort Point, walk across the bridge to recreation area at the north point of the bridge and catch the next tour bus going to Sausalito. There being no stops on the way west side of the road, that was the only real way to do it unless you wanted to walk back to San Francisco.
An odd quirk of my mind is that when I imagine doing something prior to actually doing it, I picture it with no one else around. I had this odd image of myself walking across the bridge in blessed isolation, or with, at most, a handful of others. Like I would be if I were on any bridge in Calgary during a time that wasn't rush hour. I hadn't counted on the fact that Golden Gate Bridge is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. It was crowded. Not quite start-of-a-footrace crowded, but close.
I can see why the bridge is easy to jump off of. The railing is low and there is a lower landing (I think for bridge workers to stand on while maintaining it) that you can't see in these pictures. One has only to climb over the railing down to the second landing and jump. Hell, the second landing is optional. There is some attempt to prevent jumps though.
The walk was very pleasant, and I had to strip off my sweater it was so warm. The view was brilliant and I quite enjoyed it. Among other things, I saw some dolphins swimming in the waters below. When next I'm in town, I will definitely repeat it. It's a powerful monument to man's ability to work together to create great things.
When I returned to Calgary, I wanted to find out more about Golden Gate's dark history. I watched a documentary called The Bridge that is not for the feint of heart (seriously, you will see real people die). It details the deaths of about ten suicides that were caught on film in 2004. The friends and family talked about the victims and their feelings. Most were sad and grief-stricken. Others were in denial and more than a few were angry. It was one of the most heart-breaking movies I've ever seen.
It's not part of the movie, but I read an interview with the documentarian, Eric Steel. He made two points: First, If there was a two-mile stretch of highway that killed someone every two weeks, they'd do something to fix it. Second, the problem isn't the bridge, the problem is the lack of mental health support in America.
I agree with this. We should nip problems early, by giving people the help they need. That's better than simply trying to stop people when they're at the go-through-with-it stage. When my depression was at it's worst, I was lucky enough to have those resources, and I know that if I ever get that low again, I can do something about it. But I'm very privileged.
Having said that, the authorities could prevent suicides at that location if they wanted to. I know this because the first 100 metres have chain link fence preventing people from jumping onto the buildings underneath the south end of the bridge. The property, it seems, is valuable and worth protecting.
There is only one god, and his name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to Death: 'Not Today'
Of course, I don't need to use such language here. Golden Gate bridge is infamous for being the site of more suicides than any other place on Earth. Of course, I knew that going in. Being a depressive, I find the topic grimly fascinating. I should get this out of the way right now: I was not planning to commit suicide either before or during my trip to San Francisco, nor am I planning to now. Everyone less worried now? Good.
As walking across the bridge was one of the things I had planned on doing, I decided to do it while the weather was clear. It had been fogged in on Saturday morning, which was about the foggiest it was the whole trip - many native San Franciscans commented on the unusually clear weather the whole time I was there. Still, I didn't know it was going to last, so I jumped at the chance to go that day via tour bus. As the tours came every hour, you would typically get off at Fort Point, walk across the bridge to recreation area at the north point of the bridge and catch the next tour bus going to Sausalito. There being no stops on the way west side of the road, that was the only real way to do it unless you wanted to walk back to San Francisco.
An odd quirk of my mind is that when I imagine doing something prior to actually doing it, I picture it with no one else around. I had this odd image of myself walking across the bridge in blessed isolation, or with, at most, a handful of others. Like I would be if I were on any bridge in Calgary during a time that wasn't rush hour. I hadn't counted on the fact that Golden Gate Bridge is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. It was crowded. Not quite start-of-a-footrace crowded, but close.
I can see why the bridge is easy to jump off of. The railing is low and there is a lower landing (I think for bridge workers to stand on while maintaining it) that you can't see in these pictures. One has only to climb over the railing down to the second landing and jump. Hell, the second landing is optional. There is some attempt to prevent jumps though.
The walk was very pleasant, and I had to strip off my sweater it was so warm. The view was brilliant and I quite enjoyed it. Among other things, I saw some dolphins swimming in the waters below. When next I'm in town, I will definitely repeat it. It's a powerful monument to man's ability to work together to create great things.
When I returned to Calgary, I wanted to find out more about Golden Gate's dark history. I watched a documentary called The Bridge that is not for the feint of heart (seriously, you will see real people die). It details the deaths of about ten suicides that were caught on film in 2004. The friends and family talked about the victims and their feelings. Most were sad and grief-stricken. Others were in denial and more than a few were angry. It was one of the most heart-breaking movies I've ever seen.
It's not part of the movie, but I read an interview with the documentarian, Eric Steel. He made two points: First, If there was a two-mile stretch of highway that killed someone every two weeks, they'd do something to fix it. Second, the problem isn't the bridge, the problem is the lack of mental health support in America.
I agree with this. We should nip problems early, by giving people the help they need. That's better than simply trying to stop people when they're at the go-through-with-it stage. When my depression was at it's worst, I was lucky enough to have those resources, and I know that if I ever get that low again, I can do something about it. But I'm very privileged.
Having said that, the authorities could prevent suicides at that location if they wanted to. I know this because the first 100 metres have chain link fence preventing people from jumping onto the buildings underneath the south end of the bridge. The property, it seems, is valuable and worth protecting.
There is only one god, and his name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to Death: 'Not Today'
