(ENG) On the streets of San Francisco: a real and symbolic path

A month to the Fog City Run, the race I'll be running to remember that anti-cancer therapies are still inaccessible to too many people in the world and that preventing illness is a right for all. Are you ready to (virtually) follow me along the streets of California? It will be an amazing journey full of history and plenty of characters.

The race will start on Buchanan Street, in the heart of the peninsula overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. The course then winds immediately along Green Street, an historic street surrounded by Victorian houses. We are on top of one of the many hills of San Francisco: from here you can see the distinctive and beautiful landscape of this city, a mix of city and sea.(see also post "The Fog City Run: the map, places and histor")

One could view the race as a virtual tour of cancer-related sites.

At the end of Vallejo Street, the runners will find the house where scenes from the film "The Princess Diaries" (starring Julie Andrews and Anne Hathaway) were shot. This is the Disney version of the book series by Meg Cabot. The whole saga of books, introduced in the 90’s, has the theme of young adult cancer and is about the painful illness of the princess’ father.

A bit further down the run, there is the home of California Senator Dianne Feinstein, the only female mayor of San Francisco and the promoter of the Breast cancer research stamp project, one of the most remarkable ideas to raise funds for the fight against cancer. Through the simple sale of colorful (and much appreciated) postage stamps she was in fact able to raise over $75 million to support cancer research done by National Institute of Health.

Runners will then reach the Lyon Street Steps (288 steps) and, after a short stretch, the Presidio, an area used as a military base for centuries and was recently renovated as a public park. Here, surrounded by woods and green hills, in the Letterman Digital Arts Center, there are George Lucas’ companies. George Lucas is well known as the creator of Star Wars, but is also the paladin of the most important battles: Lucas, who seems to have been diagnosed with a rare male breast cancer, is one of the most visible donors for research on this disease. He has also created “Use the Force for Good”, a campaign that calls for the Jedi to use the Force to raise funds for scientific research.

After exiting the park, runners will be again on the streets of San Francisco: from Filbert Street, minds straight at the goal; they will then return to her own starting point.

You can join my run in aid of cancer fight donating here 

*news taken from LILT Bologna newsletter