I’ve been all over the country in my lifetime, and during those trips I always enjoy taking in the sights, sounds and culture. But after showing up to Las Vegas during the summer of 2014 wearing a sweater from Target and plastic flip flops, I realized that if I wanted to continue my travels, I would have to adjust myself according to the culture.

So on Saturday, June 20th, I boarded my flight to San Francisco with what used to be my long, curly hair cut to my shoulders and room in my suitcase for whatever I would find during my two-week trip to California.

The day after we arrived, my family and I caught a cab to Pier 33 to visit Alcatraz. We boarded a ferry and made our fifteen-minute journey to the prison, where we picked up a complimentary audio tour that boasted its “Award Winning” status. We spent about an hour touring the island, listening to stories of escape attempts and hearing the voices of former guards and inmates. But the vilest part of the tour was where it ended- in a gift shop.

I have grown accustomed to expecting to be dumped off in a gift shop in places like Disney World and Universal Studios, but I never expected to find one in a notorious high security prison that formerly housed some of the most dangerous criminals in United States history.

Inappropriately placed gift shops are something that has always managed to baffle me. After spending weeks researching Alcatraz and the people who were imprisoned there, I entered the prison with a tone of seriousness and left with a bag full of distasteful tourist merchandise and a half empty wallet.

I am sure Al Capone, famous gangster and former Alcatraz inmate, would be glad to hear that his mug shot was featured on a ceramic mug that was on sale for $9.99, plus tax.

But the cherry on top of this particular cake was not that the tour coincidentally ended in a gift shop, but what was featured there. Replicas of the dinnerware that the prisoners would eat with, playing cards with mug shots adorning them and even bottles of water designed specifically for Alcatraz were some of the things on sale for gullible tourists.

The most popular seller was a sweat jacket with the words “Alcatraz Swim Team” adorning the front, poking fun at the men who tried to swim to freedom after escaping and were ultimately recaptured or killed.

But until the fog clears over Alcatraz Prison and the gift shop staff is relocated, I will continue to laugh at the idea that the only thing separating an amusement park from a prison is that those who enter can actually leave.