Alcatraz Island is located in San Francisco Bay in the United States, it appears often in media and popular culture due to its unique geographical feature and dramatic history.
It is a big bathroom with many sprinklers once you get in the penitentiary, everyone must be cleaned before they are jailed.
Since the penitentiary is very big, the audio guide will provide a visitor route, just following the sequence of the numbers.
After closure, the penitentiary hasn't encountered any major renovation or dismantlement, its condition is well preserved.
The audio guide is not only a straightforward narrative, it also inserts some sound recordings of the prisoners and staff in the old time, which make the guide interesting as radio drama, no wonder it has won an award.
There were many escape attempts during its 29 years of operation, but the penitentiary claimed that no prisoner successfully escaped.
In 1962, three inmates used plastic dummies made with human hair to fool the guards, and escaped through a hole chiseled by a metal spoon, interesting and dramatic as Hollywood’s movies.
The official report on the escape concludes that the prisoners drowned in the cold waters of the bay, but rumor said that they had escaped to South America, their whereabouts still remained a mystery.
The penitentiary closed in 1963 due to the extremely high cost for operation and the severe erosion by salt water.
There is a souvenirs shop in the exit, selling souvenirs related to the penitentiary such as tableware, clothes and comic books.
