mybigadventures.com

Whilst Dani has been finishing her marking, I thought I'd add a bit more content to the site. During our American adventure in 2013, the site was down and so there was no blog content. When I redeveloped the site a couple of years ago, I uploaded the photo albums but was a bit disappointed there was no description of our trip that I could link. However, on each of our big adventures -  Europe, America and Japan, we have kept a journal, which we've later turned into a photo book. So today I added the journal entries to the site and linked them into the relevant albums. It's still a work in progress, but should be complete over the next day or so, then I might look to do the same with Europe and Japan. You can find all the new entries under July and August 2013, or by following the tag #America2013

So a couple of years ago we went on a big summer holiday to America. Having been teachers for a while we thought it was about time we made good use of the holiday before they eventually take it off us, and so we headed off to America for 4 and a half weeks. Unfortunately the website was not up and running at that time, and so we weren't able to document the trip on here. Now that everything is running fairly smoothly and to celebrate a brand new shiny gallery, I've added some more photos. There's quite a few, organised into the different cities that we visited during the trip to please have a browse. Sign up, leave some comments and let us know what you think. 

For those interested in the new gallery - its powered using the FanscyBox 2 JQuery library. It was pretty straight forward to add in, although there was a fair bit of head scratching involved to get the photo comments back up alongside images. I'm pretty happy with the results though. Enjoy the photos

Today, we had a reservation to visit the Statue of Liberty at 10 AM, so we had to get up early to get there on time. Remarkably, we managed to negotiate the subway and, perhaps through luck rather than actual understanding, we took the right train to South Ferry. Were a little confused about where to go when we came out of the train station, however, due to the lack of signs - no surprise there really! We took, what appeared to be, a plausible route, which turned out to be the right one (we later noticed that if you were a pedestrian going in the opposite direction, there were actually quite effective signs - typical!). 

We walked through Battery Park to the ticket office, where we went straight up to an assistant, who printed our tickets out, got on the ferry and got ourselves a prime spot for viewing. Once settled, I went to the ferry snack bar (as we had missed breakfast) and I got a hot pretzel and a hot dog for breakfast. When I got back up to the deck, Ben suggested we move to the other side of the boat – looking at New York – as there was a strong chance that the boat would turn around en route – and it turned out to be fact. So, we ended up with uber-prime spots and admired Liberty as we passed her by.

Getting off the ferry, we picked up our audio guide and nipped into the gift shop to get a sew-on badge for our collection. It wasn’t something they stocked, however. So, a bit disgruntled, we went out, via the other gift shop and – guess what? – sew-on badges! Who knew? Clearly, a more tasteful shop.

We walked up to the entrance to go up into the statue itself. We found out that to go up to the Crown - which we had paid for - we had to leave all our belongings, except for a camera each, in a locker, which we had to pay for - it all seemed to be a bit unfair.

Anyway, snapped out of being grumpy and went on into the museum. You went in past the original flame from the statue, which was replaced in the 80s, as it was corroding badly. Originally, it had little tiny panes of yellow glass – a bit like leaded lights – and it was lit from within. But, it still didn’t light up powerfully enough, so, when it was replaced, the restorers went back to the original plans and made one to be gilded instead, rather than lit.

From there, we went up inside the statue. You could see the structure that supports the copper exterior – apparently, the actual molded sheets of copper are only the width of two pennies. It took a lot of different pieces to make the whole statue – it was a gift from France during Napoleon 3rd’s reign, as an emblem of liberty and democracy.

We went up to the first layer – the top of the granite base - and had a little look around and then joined the short queue to go up into the Crown itself. We only waited for a few minutes and then went up a very, very narrow spiral staircase for a few hundred steps. It was good job it was cloudy today – otherwise, we would have been very hot, sweaty masses when we finally arrived at the top! It was much smaller than we expected. Only about six people would fit. Some of the little windows (openings in the crown) were open for air, and you could see fantastic views out. And the people on the lower levels looked tiny! The view of downtown Manhattan was lovely – all the skyscrapers nestling together. We spent some time up there and then made our way down. One of the Park Rangers ‘guarding’ up there told us to look back up, about 10 steps down, from where you can see her face, so we did – and we could! It was quite strange to see her from behind the mask, as it were – and amazing to think she is sculpted from metal.

When we got down to the lower level, we wandered around and took photos, then we headed towards the cafe for some lunch. We both had panini’s – I had mozzarella and tomato and Ben had chicken fajita – both came with a vast pile of lettuce and tomato – by way of a side salad! Vast portions again!

We went back into the statue to look at the museum, to find out more about the designers – one of whom was Gustave Eiffel. Fancy that! Made some purchases in the gift shop and collected our free certificate for visiting, and then joined the queue for the ferry back. It did try and rain a bit again – as earlier – but it didn’t come to much. Both ferry crossings were very calm and smooth as well, so happy days all round.

Once off the ferry, we made our way into the Financial District to have a look round. We saw the big bull – like the one in the bullring, in Birmingham – near Wall Street. Then we walked up to the site of the World Trade Center. It’s currently a big building site, as the World Trade Center is being rebuilt around a memorial park. We queued briefly for free passes and then went into the park. It was beautifully laid out - a really peaceful contrast to the buildings and bustle around us. They’ve created two huge square fountains at the site of each of the two former towers and they are designed so the water falls into seemingly endless holes, with the names of the victims inscribed all around the edge, so it all seems quite endless – an endless tribute.

We went to get the subway – we’re becoming pros at this! – and headed back to 7th Avenue. We popped into Macy’s, so Ben could get the toilet bag he’d admired. We managed to get 10% off, as it had little mark on it and it was the only one. Then we went to K-Mart to buy the small wheelie case we had seen earlier in the week. We also got another Lego set!

We headed back to the hotel and dumped our stuff, heading back out again for tea. We got some pizza from a local place – they sell by the slice – and we went back to the hotel to scoff. While catching up on some journal and writing some postcards, we rented a film – The Internship, about two middle-aged men who become Google interns - and stayed up quite late, watching films and scoffing.

I started off my birthday by opening my cards. I had opened one late last night, from my bean, and he had drawn a picture of a horse and carriage – one of today’s birthday activities. I had a lovely little Scottie dog brooch from mum and dad and some spending money from Rhi and Rachel. Slothed about for a bit before getting showered and dressed. We left the hotel at about midday.

We went to Penn Station to get the subway, buying some breakfast at a cafe. I bought a lemon and poppy seed muffin and Ben got a half-dipped cookie, and we took them with this. We got on the ‘A’ line – the express, as it turned out. It went to 59th Street and we are expecting to get off at 72nd, however, the train hurtled on to 125th without stopping – just about 50 blocks too far! We then had to get the ‘C’ local line back. So that was an exciting start!

Eventually got off at 72nd. This took us into Central Park, by the lake, as our first birthday activity was ‘messing about on the lake’ in a rowing boat! Walked through Strawberry Fields, where there is a tribute to the Beatles – a stone circle on the floor with ‘Imagine’ engraved in the middle. Apparently, Yoko Ono’s apartment overlooks this part of the park and she contributed to its landscaping. Strawberry Fields is a ‘quiet’ zone, so it was quite peaceful walking through. From there we walked around the lake, trying to find the boathouse. It turned out we were going slightly in the wrong direction, so we had to walk back and round.

Made it to the boathouse, and join the shortish queue for the boats. We had to queue for about 10 minutes and then paid ($12 an hour and a $20 deposit) before we were in the boat, and we were off!

Ben did the rowing, so I was the official photographer and ‘crash averter’. We were just rowing along, when Ben spotted what he thought was a turtle on a tree root, sticking out of the water. We went closer and it turned out to actually be a turtle! A real turtle! In the wild! Awesome. I took lots of photos. We then saw a few more turtles as we made our way around the lake. We also got a bit wet – there was a mini-island which had a water spray on it, and it got us on our way round! As we rowed, we saw more turtles and we explored the lake thoroughly, even nearly getting grounded twice! We also managed to see a few key sites from the boat – the Bethesda Fountain, one of the biggest fountains in the Park. We also stopped by the bank to listen to a busker, who was entertaining the crowd on the grass. He did quite a range of songs and even got another boat actively involved as they did the drum solo on their boat. There was also a wedding taking place so the busker performed an impromptu first dance for them, which was really sweet.

We were getting close to our time, so Ben started to do super-speedy rowing back to the boathouse. We very nearly had a collision with a gondola – we were both going in the same direction and, as it was near the boathouse, there were loads of other boats wiggling all over the place and often veering out of control! But we made it back safely – a little late, so we paid an extra $3 for the extra 15 min we had. Not exactly breaking the bank!

From the boats, we went to find a horse and carriage for a ride. We had seen some earlier, but there didn’t seem to be any available, so we strolled down to 59th Street where they congregated, according to a helpful lady.

As we walked, we had a lollipop each from a stand. The park was really busy and there were also a couple of baseball games going on. People were sunbathing and playing frisbee – a typical day in Central Park!

We made it to 59th Street by about 4:30 PM and enquired about prices for the horse and carriage rides. There were two options – a long ride for about $100, plus tip ($120) or a short ride for $50, plus tip ($60). Obviously, they kept trying to sell the long ride by telling us all about the sights we’d see – but we’d already seen them by walking around, so we stuck to the short ride. It was more the experience that we wanted anyway, as I’d never been on one before. It lasted about 20 min and the driver told us a few bits about the places around us. It was very enjoyable and the horse made very satisfying clippy-cloppy noises!From there, we headed for the subway, to go back to the hotel to change before dinner. Ben had made a reservation at a place called ‘Robert’ in the Museum of Art and Design, which has magnificent views over Central Park. He had booked it a month ago to secure a window table.

Having showered and changed, we headed back to the subway at about 6:45 PM, arriving near the restaurant by 7:10 PM. We had a bit of time before our table at 7:30 PM so we wandered in the Park for a while. When we did go up to the restaurant, we were shown to our window table, with lovely views over Central Park and the surrounding area. We overlooked Columbus Circle and it gradually dawned on us that it was a memorial to Christopher Columbus.

We had iced water while we perused the menu and then I had an Olmsted cocktail – Hendricks gin, with sprigs of rosemary and thyme - while Ben had a Heineken. We were then bought a bread basket, with some warm mini breads – a rosemary one, a white one and a rye one. We were then brought small portions of shrimp cocktail, ‘compliments of the chef’ – a very refreshing, fresh tomato and pepper-based sauce with prawn pieces. We then shared an appetiser of burrata (a very soft mozzarella-type cheese) with big chunks of tomato, baby figs and balsamic dressing. As the main, I had roasted duck breast with cherries and a really nice fruit and wine jus. I had mashed potatoes as a side – and it was good mashed potato – and we shared sauteed ‘snow peas’ (mangetout). Ben had a pork chop, that seemed to be as big as his head, with red pepper mash and a mango garnish. It was all absolutely delicious. It made a great change from burgers, chips and pizza. In celebration of this (and also my birthday!) we decided to go all out, and have dessert too – so, in keeping with the cherry theme, I had cherry clafouti with ricotta ice-cream and Ben had a scoop of cherry, and candied walnut ice-cream (they didn’t have his favourite chocolate). Finally, by way of a fifth course, I suppose, I was presented with some little blueberry shortbread biscuits, with a candle and ‘happy birthday’ inscribed in chocolate on one side. It was really sweet and they have a good pastry chef as the biscuits were lovely. $190 later, we were a lot fuller, our wallets were a lot lighter, and it was probably the best meal of the trip yet!

To walk it off a bit, we walked in the park for a while. It was very quiet – almost eerie in parts – and Ben took quite a few pictures of the skyline from amongst the trees, capturing the shadows and the lights. From there, we went catch the subway home.

Got up a little later today, as we had planned to take it easy and do a bit of shopping. Headed out just before midday and headed over to ‘Five Guys’ – a renowned burger joint recommended by Chris. It was a little on the expensive side – however, on receiving the food, it was clear why. We both had cheese and bacon burgers with everything on, with a coke each and a large fries to share. Everything was massive. The burgers were double burgers, standing about 4 inches high and the fries filled a small bucket (at least, a large drink cup). It was all very nice - very filling - costing about $30.

After lunch, we decided to head over to Macy’s and ended up popping into K-Mart en route. In K-Mart, we saw a small wheelie suitcase for $39.95, that we thought may give us a little  luggage space for the journey home. We also saw some Lego we liked, but decided to leave both until later in the week.

From there, we headed to Macy’s, which seem to be running a one-day sale. We spent some time looking at the men’s wallets, as they were between 30% and 50% off. I eventually chose a Tommy Hilfiger one, as mine is looking a little tired. I also had a quick look at belts and, on the way to cosmetics, spotted a yellow leather Fossil wash bag, which I liked, and decided to think about it. We had a quick look at the luggage on the top floor to see how it compared to what we had seen; it turned out that their cheapest cases were about twice the price of the one we’d seen, so we decided to move on. Took us a while to find the women’s section of the store, as the whole shop is split over two buildings and only certain floors are connected. Eventually found the Clinique counter and Dani bought some bits as they are a little cheaper than back home.

After Macy’s, we headed along 5th Avenue to look at some of the shops. Along the way, we turned off to go and look in Grand Central Station and stayed there for a while to take some photos. Them we continued up 5th Avenue, dropping into Saks to look at some very expensive clothes ($900 for a small blue cardigan). We also stopped in Abercrombie and Fitch and the large underground Apple store. We finally reached Bloomingdale’s, having realised it was on Lexington Avenue, not 5th. Again, Bloomingdale’s was very expensive and very difficult to navigate. Once we managed to make our way out again, as it was already late afternoon, we decided to head back to the Rockefeller Centre in time for sunset. We caught the subway there as it was much faster and saved our legs – it was only $2.75 each.

We got to the top a little before sunset; it was very busy and you couldn’t really get towards the edge. I was also annoyed by the Kodak photographer, who asked us to move at one point, as we were in the ‘perfect spot’ for a photo! What cheek! As it got darker, it did get a lot quieter and the views again were spectacular. Took lots of photos using the gorilla pod and admired the lights across the skyline for ages as the sun went down.

Headed down a little after 9 PM. We went to nearby Applebee’s for a light dinner, sharing nachos (which turned out to be massive) and a Blue Ribbon Brownie and ice cream for dessert (as it turns out, ‘light’ dinners don’t really exist in the US!). It was about $50, including beers. After, as we walked back to the hotel, we stopped to take some night shots of Times Square on the way. Did some journal before bed.

We got up at about 8:30 AM, in preparation for our train at 11:02 AM to New York. We sorted out the rest of our stuff and headed down to breakfast, to take advantage of it before we left. I had fruit and a toasted bagel with cream cheese, and Ben had two chocolatines. We gathered together our stuff and then got a taxi to the station. The taxi driver was very friendly and was chatting eagerly to us, mainly about football. The taxi to the station was about $12, but, as the driver was so friendly, we tipped him quite happily.

We got into the station and went up to the ticket office to enquire about our tickets – we apparently had reserved seats, but we had no idea how to find them! Seemingly, there are five ‘reserved’ coaches, so you just got on and found a seat. Easy. And it actually was! We had to wait at the ‘gate’, like in airports, where we had to wait. A queue quickly started to form by the gate, and then suddenly, we were released onto the platform. We found a seat, hooked onto the free Wi-Fi and off we went! Caught up on some journal, did a bit of Skype-ing, ate the Subway that we bought in the station and, three and half hours later, rolled into Penn Station, New York. Love Amtrak trains!

We were further surprised to find our hotel to be - literally - a few minutes walk from the station. We hadn’t even broken a sweat walking there in the bright sunshine. Result! Checked in and went up to our room. It must be our lucky day as our room with merely metres away from the lift. Perhaps our smallest room so far with just a double bed, but it will do!

And so our New York adventure begins...

We began by walking up 7th Avenue, walking past the Pennsylvania Hotel that Ben and his family stayed in, when they came a few years ago. We popped into Macy’s to have a look around. Unsurprisingly, they are renovating, so it was completely baffling - we had no idea how to get from floor to floor, let alone different departments! Managed to find our way to their gift section after a while and browsed for potential gifts.

Then, we made our way out and carried on up 7th Avenue, crossing onto Broadway. Came out in Times Square and admired the lights and dazzling adverts. Went into Toys “R” Us – they have a ferris wheel just inside the door, with life-size toy cars to ride in – amazing! We then went in a few ‘tat’ shops in search of sew-on badges, but it wasn’t a very successful search. We only found a couple of quite basic ones. In the square itself, we noticed that some staged seating had been set up (facing the New Year’s Eve Ball side of the square) and, at the back, there was an interactive scream for you to pose in front of, but we just sat and people watched from the steps. It was a good point to take photos from, although people did keep standing in the way!

Decided to move on, after a while. Went into Hershey’s, as I wanted to try some of their chocolate. We bought a small selection box, as small bars don’t seem to be their thing, but after the first one, we weren’t convinced about the taste!

Made our way from there to the Rockefeller Centre – it took a bit of finding, despite it being a huge building! When we finally found the building itself, we were at the wrong side! Typical! Found the ticket office and bought the ‘Sun and Stars’ ticket, for $40 per person. This meant that we got to go up twice, once in the day and once at night, over a 24 hour period. As it was nearly 7 PM, we were aiming to see a bit of sun and stars, and then again tomorrow! We had to wait a while for our timed ticket, but once through security, the journey up was really quick. The elevator shaft was lit up, so you could see where you were going, which was pretty exciting.

Once out of the lift, we went up a further two floors and, then, we were at the top. It was spectacular from the top! We could see or miles – Central Park to the North and the Empire State building to the south, with the Statue of Liberty in the distance. We stayed up there until about dusk, so the colours began to soften and everything began to look hazy and ethereal. The views were amazing!

Starting to feel both weary and peckish, we headed down to ground level. We had picked up a coupon for TGI Friday’s (15% off), so we headed in that direction. It was allegedly their ‘grand opening’, but it appeared to be a well-settled restaurant. However, the food was good – we had potato skins with cheese and bacon to share, and then I had a bacon cheeseburger and Ben had chicken and tomato pasta. The service was pretty poor, though, as they tried to bring our mains out before our appetizer and, consequently, our mains sat on a hot plate for a while. We were a bit disgruntled about it so left a minimal tip (the whole tip thing  continues to be both baffling and irritating).

Turned our tired footsteps towards our hotel and turned in, feeling very weary.

We got up to the alarm, as we had timed tickets for the Capitol Building today. We gave ourselves a bit of a lie-in - having decided last night to get a taxi there. It was quite a long walk otherwise and we were both still suffering a bit with bikes. Upon checking the timed tickets, as we left the room, we realised it said to get there 45 min early, to allow time to get through security. Given that it was 9:15 AM and we were still at the hotel, and the timed tickets were for 10 AM, we realised that this was never going to happen. Nevertheless, we decided to skip breakfast and get going. The bellman got us a taxi for a fixed price of $12, and we arrived about 9:50 AM. It wasn’t very busy and we got straight through security, collecting our passes in time. The tour was led by a person speaking through a microphone, which was picked up by our headsets - although only when you are very close which meant we kept missing what he was saying. The tour lasted just under half an hour and included a 30 minute video on the history of the Capitol building. Although the tour was free, we didn’t find it particularly good as you only really go into two main rooms. The Dome room and another anteroom, containing statues gifted by the individual states. Our guide was from Florida; their statue was of the man who invented air-conditioning. There was also a statue of Rosa Parks and a trick where you could whisper in one part of the room and hear it across the room. (In the Dome room, there is a statue of Reagan and it was mounted on a layer of pieces of the Berlin Wall).

After the tour, we went to the shop and bought a sew-on badge, then headed over to the Library of Congress, which, in comparison, was awesome. We managed to get a free official guided tour, just as we arrived, with a guy called Ray. He was very knowledgeable and took us all around the library, explaining everything. The group whittled down somewhat, until only about five others were left. The tour ended overlooking the reading room - which appears in the National Treasure film. Apparently, the books on the second floor were painted on by the film company.

Feeling hungry, we went back to the cafe in the Capitol building. There was a wide selection to choose from. Dani had a salad (that they weighed) and a chocolate bun, and I had chicken and chips. It cost about $25 and was very filling. After lunch, we headed over to the station, which was nearby, to ask about luggage. Turned out we would be fine with regards to our luggage on our train journeys, and on the way out, we picked up a new map, and an Australian tourist gave as a bus ticket for the bus tour that he no longer needed, which still had time on it.

From here, we headed over to the Capitol area again, to locate the Shakespeare Folger Museum it was easy to find, as we realised it was actually located on our map! We went in and a quite abrupt security person gave us the basic info. Feeling a bit confused, we went down the corridor until we came to a main room, containing some artefacts. After about 1 minute, a different woman came in and told us where we were and what there was. There were various items from Elizabethan England - a letter from Elizabeth I to James I (as he became) about Catholicism in England; some China; and then some texts from the time. But, most impressively, the first Folio edition of the works of Shakespeare’s plays (only 36), published posthumously by two of his friends! Quite exciting! You can actually look through it, with an electronic version that you could interact with. It was prefaced with a poem by Ben Johnson. Unfortunately, the main room of the museum was closed for restoration (this is becoming a running theme!) so they only had a limited collection available. The Folgers were/are avid Shakespeare fans, who were fascinated by the Elizabethan era, and collected as much material as they could.

At the other side of museum, they have the Folger theatre, which has been constructed to resemble an Elizabethan theatre. The woman, seemingly in charge of that side, talked to us about the theatre and the reasons behind it. When she found out we were from the UK, she confused us a bit by talking about the recently discovered theatre in London - we thought she meant the Globe, but we weren’t sure! We left and had a quick look in the reconstructed Elizabethan garden to the side and then headed back down the grassy mall to head back to the hotel.

We were walking quite casually, until we became aware of a helicopter flying back and forth. It appeared to be the presidential helicopter! So we hurried on, at top speed! They kept appearing as if it was flying away, but it kept going in circles and coming back, so we kept going, heading towards the White House. We made it to the grass patch in front of the White House, and were glad that we hadn’t tried to get nearer as it was cordoned off. We watched as the helicopter landed on the White House’s main lawn and squinted to see if anybody got out, but apparently not. It lifted off and flew away, only to repeat the whole thing again several times! Eventually, we decided to head off - we then heard a policeman telling another bloke that they were practising manoeuvres while the President was on holiday. Never mind - it was nearly a spot!

Once back at the hotel, we slothed for a bit and made our way to ‘Matchbox’, (having worked out where it was this time!) up 14th Street. We both had pizza - I had spicy meatball and Ben had chicken - and then we had a vast trio of desserts to share - sorbet, chocolate brownie and pancake balls, with dipping sauce. Despite very itchy bites, a very good day!

Had a slightly more relaxed start to the day, as we didn’t have a timed ticket for anything. So, we were up at around 9 AM, showered and went down for breakfast. We made the most of the free breakfast - Ben had cereal and I had fruit and yoghurt, then we both had a toasted bagel. We got going shortly after that, aiming for the Smithsonian National Zoo, heading out a bit after 11 AM. Unfortunately, whilst getting ready, the hairdryer (the hotel’s - not mine!) blew up, and dented the bathroom sink, shorting the electric! Oops!

We walked to DuPont Circle, taking it quite steady as our bites were very irritated and irritating. We managed the Metro ticket machines better this time, allowing the extra dollar for the paper ticket. We got on the train and went merrily on our way. At the second stop, we realised we’d gone too far! We’ve been expecting a fair journey, but it was only actually one stop and it took less than a minute. So, caught the train back again, feeling surprised.

We followed the signs to the zoo - a 10 minute walk from the station. We were greeted by a man in a cubicle, who told us about the daily events and sold us a map/guide for one dollar - considering the actual zoo is free, this didn’t seem too excessive! The zoo is separated into different sections, so we followed it quite methodically. First, we went to see cheetahs - who were having a nap in the grass, so the view of them was only partial. But there were some huge frogs in the pond, sitting about on lily pads and frogging about. Then we saw a vulture in with some African deers, who are close to extinction in the wild. It was nice to see some of the animals mixed together in the enclosures, similar to how they may be in the wild. We also saw some zebras, although they seem shy, staying at the back of their enclosure.

We then moved on to the Panda Trail and then the Asia Trail. The female panda has been confined, as it were, due to pregnancy, and unfortunately the male panda seems to have gone out, as despite searching, he wasn’t to be seen. A shame, as I’ve never seen a panda. We moved on, wandering around. We saw some short clawed Asian otters - they were little youngling otters too! They were wiggling all over and through an old tree stump, some napping upside down and others simply piling up. At one point, they all wiggled over to the edge of their enclosure, peering over the wall into the passage and squeaking a lot. Then they went back to piling up! While we were watching them, a very vivid red bird was flying around - a little smaller than a blackbird and with tufted feathers on its head. Ben got a couple of photos, although he was very nippy (the bird that is!). We also saw a fishing cat and clouded leopard, which I particularly liked - especially the fishing cat kitten. Had some lunch at the Panda cafe.

We admired the elephants in their huge enclosure, and then followed the American Trail, watching a beaver snuffling about, an Eagle - a bald eagle, no less - and some sea lions. Unfortunately, the bears were having their afternoon nap, so we didn’t get to see them. We also saw lots of turtles, just after the big cat section - some huge and some tiny! So cute! We were really impressed overall by the zoo. The individual enclosures were all big and clearly a lot of thought has gone into the flora and fauna for the animals. It was all very green and was over a vast space.

Feeling very weary, we left about 6 PM, heading back to the subway. When we got back to DuPont Circle, we popped into a CVS pharmacy to get some drinks, as we felt very thirsty, and made our way back to the hotel. After a bit of a sit, we headed out for tea. We decided to go to ‘The Pig’, another hotel recommendation. There was going to be a 45 minute wait for a table, but there was room to sit at the bar, so we decided to do that. The barman recommended ordering a number of different dishes from the different sections of the menu, as they were designed for sharing. We decided upon two of the small appetizer dishes and two of the larger courses. We had mac and cheese with a crumb top, and ‘spoon’ bread which was bacon, courgette and onion, baked with chunks of bread. Both very nice. The larger courses were spicy pork masala and pork Spaghetti Pomodoro. For dessert, Dani had chocolate pudding and I had two scoops of chocolate ice cream (which came in two separate bowls). It was all very nice and altogether cost about $90, including tip. Feeling very full, we tottered back to the hotel and watched some TV before heading to bed.

Didn’t sleep too well, as it seems some bugs had bitten me at some point yesterday. I’ve been bitten either side of my ankles and the itching woke me up! Got showered and had a quick breakfast downstairs in the hotel bar/restaurant. There was a decent selection of pastries, cereal and fruit, so I had a chocolatine and Dani had a bagel. We then headed out at about 9:30 AM hoping we would make it to the National Archive in time for our timed ticket at 10:15 AM. After a bit of a route march, we got there just after 10 AM. There was a big queue outside, but, after checking with security, we went in a different exit - for special events. Feeling a little sweaty, it was good to get into the air-conditioning. The guard ticked our name off his list and we went through security (metal detectors and X-ray) and were in.

When we got through, we went first into an exhibition of photos from the 70s. It was an exhibition echoing a similar exhibition from the 70s, aiming to highlight the impact of industry upon places and people. There were great photos and really interesting subject matters. We also could recognise some of the places in the images, as they were places we had visited. It was quite scary to see the impact of industry - people living virtually on top of industrial sites, and rivers that had been infected by industry, but with children still playing in them.

We spent a long time looking at the photos and the 70s music was also easy listening! From there, we went to see a copy (one of the originals) of the Magna Carta, which was pretty cool. They also have an electronic version that you can play with interactively. From here, we had to queue a little, but only for about 5 minutes, to see the last three documents - original copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. It was really interesting to see the actual documents, although due to age, they were hard to decipher. Especially the declaration - it was in a fairly terrible state, due to having been posted in direct sunlight for many years. It was a shame, but you could still see the title! The constitution was also very faded; we could make out the signatures at the bottom - G.Washington and Benjamin Franklin - so quite exciting! We spent a while there, reading the information accompanying each document.

From here, we went into an exhibition on the archives themselves. There were lots of examples of archive documents; from soldiers in the Vietnam War, for example, and documents from the war. We spent some time in there and then headed towards the cafe. We popped into the shop, buying a sew-on badge of the Declaration. In the cafe, we had a brownie each and a Coke to keep us going until lunch a bit later. The brownies were lovely - really gooey and crispy on top. They also raised an interesting question about tax - we seem to pay tax everywhere, in varying amounts. In the shop, the assistant told us that we wouldn’t pay tax, as it was a federal building; however we paid tax in the cafe, in the same building? Tax is becoming quite mysterious!

From there, we headed out; back into the humidity, which was a shock after the cool museum. We sat in the National Sculpture Garden for a bit, admiring the fountain in the middle. The water jets kept getting bigger, eventually spraying us - quite refreshing! We then started to walk towards the Natural History Museum, although turned around to go to the National Air and Space Museum first, as then we could walk back towards 14th Street. Had to go through security again! We went first to the air section. They had exhibitions about the first developments in flight, celebrating the Wright brothers, with several of their early planes - quite awesome! Spent quite a while looking at the further exhibits - flights through the World Wars and beyond, going into a plane from the 50s/60s. We spent a fair bit of time (and money!) in the shop, buying Henry, our flight pilot bear, among other things.

Went to the McDonald’s at the end of Museum, having a meal before heading back into the space side part of the  Museum. We weren’t as impressed by the space side as the exhibition seemed a little random and bitsy, so headed out. We made a brief stop at some steps, so Ben could re-apply some bite stuff, as he was suffering a bit! We walked on, towards the Smithsonian Castle, which, although it’s only visitor centre, is a bit like the leader of all the Smithsonian museums. It looks fantastic - very Gothic - all red-brick and turrets. We went in, having a look at the relief model of the area and in the shop.

Moving on, we went across the mall to the Natural History Museum. Going in, we were confronted by a huge African model elephant. It was awesome! Towering above us, and huge. We wandered around a few of the exhibits - the ocean scene and the dinosaurs, but the exhibitions seemed a little sparse, compared to previous museums we’ve been to. Some interesting specimens, but not quite as good as the museums in London, for example. We went to the shop to get a sew-on patch, but they didn’t have one! Bit of a nightmare! Went into the American Museum and - phew! - got one from there!

Feeling quite tired, we headed back to the hotel. We did a bit of washing in the bathtub and slothed about for a bit. We then decided to head out again, to see some of the sights in the dark. We both had got bitten now, so had earlier bought some new bite cream, as our stuff seemed ineffective. But, the new one didn’t seem much good in the humidity as it seemed to make the itching worse. So we popped into a CVS pharmacy to buy some more.

Then we walked down to the White House. Used the gorilla pod to take some photos surreptitiously from the pavement, until another man got told off by the White House police for using a tripod - no idea why! So we put it away sneakily and walked off!

Headed down towards the Lincoln Memorial. It was further than we thought, but we made it eventually. Like many significant buildings in Washington, part of the statue was clad in scaffolding for some reason - a little annoying. But, otherwise, it looks pretty spectacular with lights casting quite a soft glow inside, among the pillars. Ben took lots of photos and we had a bit of a wander about. We had a wander down to the reflecting pool, which wasn’t lit as you might expect, but it did reflect the Washington Monument very effectively. We began to walk back, but were conscious of lots of midges so we’ll have to wait and see. Decided walking would take us ages - as it was already about 11:15 PM at this point and Ben’s bites were playing up again - so we hailed a taxi. It was only about $12, which we were really surprised by, as it seemed low considering how late it was. Got us back speedily and we shuffled into the hotel, feeling very tired. We ordered a pizza from a local place - a pizza called ‘Golden Supreme’ and two cans of Coke - $25, including a tip. It was really nice and super-speedy. Pretty awesome end to a good day!

Woke up just before we were due to land. It was getting lighter and, for us, it was still about 3:50 AM, although in local time, it was getting on for 6:30 AM. We had been woken up at a couple of points to get a drink, but we haven’t had anything else to eat, so it was a good job we had eaten beforehand. Ben watched a bit of TV and I half-watched and half-dozed. I woke up properly as we started to land. We bombed off the plane at superspeed as we haven’t put anything into the overhead locker; a few people tried to get in front of us, but we weren’t having any of it! We got off the plane, walked down the corridor and walked through a door - which turned out to be a door onto a bus! It was so weird! The door just shut and we drove away from the terminal, towards another terminal. It was like the Indiana Jones film, when they accidentally drive into a lorry which drives off! Wicked!

Made use of the facilities, as we went towards baggage reclaim, and then went to collect our stuff. We didn’t have to wait for long as our bags came off early. From there, came to a bit of a halt, as we weren’t really sure where to go. We hadn’t planned our route from the airport into DC. We had assumed that we could get a bus or something, so followed the signs for the flyer bus into DC. We went past the ticket office, which was empty - it was coming up to 7:30 AM, and the bus was due at about 7:32 AM. So we hovered outside, near other people who seemed to be waiting. A short while later, a coach turned up and the bus driver told us we had to buy tickets inside - apparently, someone should be there now -a bit irritating! So, I loaded our stuff into the coach luggage locker and Ben went into the office to buy tickets. It seemed a bit pricey at $10 each, but we didn’t have many options. After sitting stationary for a while, the woman from the ticket office came on board - to check the ticket we just bought - taking them off as again - how pointless!

Anyway, the coach got underway. It was a fair way, into the city, and we were glad we hadn’t gone for the taxi option, as it would have been expensive. We had expected to be going to one station - Rosalind, I think - but we didn’t get that far and the coach stopped instead at West Church Metro station. Possibly, this is the reduced Sunday service? Made our way into the Metro station and stood in front of the ticket machines. It was a bit like our experience in San Fran - you have to use the list to check the fare, according to your destination, and then reduce the default fee from $20 - a little bizarre! It took a couple of goes to work it out, but we got there. Made our way to the only platform and waited about for 5 minutes, then got onto a virtually empty train. I guess Sundays in DC start later!

An easy journey - only a few stops - and then we made our way out. Got stopped by the exit machines - apparently our fare was lacking! Went to the machine and we were one dollar down each. Apparently, you have to pay one dollar for each paper ticket (obligatory) and we should have added it manually - it doesn’t default. A tad ridiculous! Also, slightly awkward as we only had $20 bills and the machine only gave change up to 4 dollars. So we asked the man in the booth, who, generously, although very half-heartedly, just let us through.

We had used the free Internet at the airport to track our way to our hotel, but we had accidentally turned it off on the train, so we had to use a combination of memory and street maps to make our way to the hotel. Found it, with a bit of luck, and went to see if we could check in early. We couldn’t, unfortunately, so we left our luggage in their storage and got directions to somewhere to eat. Along ‘P’ Street (originally, the names were alphabetized), we found a Starbucks and went in, for a panini and orange juice each (about $20).

We had a few hours to kill before we could check in at about 2 PM-ish, so we thought we’d go for a wander. We went back to the hotel to get some stuff out of our bags, only to discover the shampoo had leaked in Ben’s bag. It hadn’t done too much damage, as it was outside the waterproof bag, but everything was a bit gunky in the toilet bag. Sorted ourselves out and then headed off. Walked down 14th Street towards the main sites, although we were feeling increasingly tired. It was incredibly humid, which didn’t help - hot, but damp and it just made us feel sweaty and tired. Passed in front of the White House, which looked suitably white and imposing and took some pictures, but were too tired to hang about. Decided to head to the National Aquarium, in search of air-conditioning. It cost us $10 each, which seemed a little steep. It turned out to be very steep, given the quantity of things to see. They had various tanks of fish, snakes, a couple of alligators and some turtles, but otherwise, nothing very exciting. We did take advantage of the sitting opportunities however, but, due to the low lighting and increasing levels of exhaustion, Ben nodded off on my shoulder for a few minutes. Although only about 1 PM, feeling absolutely shattered, we headed back to the hotel, squinting against the brightness of the sun, which essentially meant we were walking with our eyes closed. Not ideal. Stopped, for an air-conditioning break and a drink. We went into a CVS pharmacy and I got a gallon bottle of water and Ben got a 2L bottle of Sprite, in an effort to wake up. Sat on a bench for a few minutes and then went on.

Got to the hotel and, fortunately, they had a room available, on the 10th floor. It seemed quite a trendy-looking hotel and we went up, albeit in a slow and rather cranky lift to our room. It was very nice - bathroom to the left and the bedroom part was in an alcove, leaving the main part of the room to be a sort of sitting area. Very spacious and clean. Zonked out on the bed and slept until about 6:30 PM.

Dragged ourselves out of bed, showered and went in search of food. Ben had seen a recommendation for a place called ‘Matchbox’ down 14th Street, so we thought we’d try it. After walking fruitlessly for about 30 minutes, and having seen a few places to eat (only rather expensive hotel restaurants) we turned back.

We stopped at somewhere called Birch/Barley/Churchkey, which was still serving food upstairs in the bar. It turned out to be a place where they specialised in many different beers. Slightly baffled by the choice, we asked the barman to bring a selection of tasters to share, each containing about a third of a pint - some more like blondes, a couple of light lagers and a darker one. Some smelt lovely - like elderflower and ginger, and we both preferred different ones - which was quite handy. We had food too - Ben had a ‘brat’ burger with chips and I had chicken flatbread with fries. The fries were amazing! We were pretty pleased to have found somewhere and we went back to the hotel, still fairly shattered and turned in.

We got up and showered about 9 AM, packing the remaining few bits before checkout. We took all of our stuff down and checked out, then headed over to the Bell desk for the left luggage store. It was free to leave luggage, so we left everything apart from the camera and Dani’s handbag. Then asked about the shuttle service to the airport. It was going to cost $7 each and they went every half-hour. We decided to aim for the 4 PM shuttle which would get us to the airport in plenty of time for our 7:20 PM flight.

We then headed off to get some breakfast, and decided to go to McDonald’s, upstairs in the resort. Ate and then headed down to the casino to do a bit more gambling. We spent a lot of time between the blackjack table and roulette, with some ups and downs in some large bets on double or quits roulette - I think the largest bet was thirty-two credits (32 times 25 cents equals $8 dollars) - somewhat smaller than when Dani accidentally bet $11 on a single hand of blackjack! We ended up winning some money back today and finished up by about $20!

We walked around to the lobby to see if we could connect to the Internet and ended up connecting outside Starbucks, which was closed. We had a sit at the tables outside Starbucks and caught up on a bit of journal and I wrote a postcard for school - as Tom had requested one from Vegas.

Having posted the postcard and made use of the nearby facilities, we decided it was time to make a move. We went and picked up the luggage and asked at the desk where we needed to go to get the shuttle. Turned out we needed to have booked a ticket - a small, but rather important detail that the other person at the desk had neglected to mention. Either way, the man on the desk said it would be the same price or less to just get taxi - so that’s what we did. We got a taxi from just outside the hotel. The airport is really close and it cost just under $14 to get there. It seemed very quiet with very few cars about and, once inside, there were hardly any people about. We got checked in okay and they put our rucksacks in large plastic bags to protect all the buckles. It turned out we didn’t have to pay for the luggage after all. Before going through security, we sat on a bench in the large empty airport and ate crisps and finished the water and coke we were carrying. We then had to catch a short train to security and the gates. There were a few shops and places to get food in the departure lounge, but not a great deal. There were also a number of slot machines - in case you haven’t had your fix of gambling. There’s free Wi-Fi so we had a sit and I spoke to Lorna on Skype for a short while. We decided to get something to eat as we were feeling quite hungry by this point. We didn’t have a lot of time so we ended up getting a sandwich to share. We went back to the gate and sat down to eat - the sandwich was very deeply filled and ended up being a little messy. About 10 min later, we ended up boarding. We had to queue for a bit, as we were virtually last to board, but we got settled into our seats quickly. We had to pay to watch TV/films - the back of the chair had a swipe card machine embedded to pay - so once with had set off we paid for it on my TV ($5.99) and began to watch ‘42’ - a film about the first black baseball player for the international team in America. Flying out over Vegas night was amazing. Not only could you see the lights of the strip and all of the vast hotels, but we watched the sunset over the mountains, the light reflected in the pools on top of the mountains. It was all a vivid orange and looked beautiful.

We had a complimentary drink and settled down to watch the film. It was literally about 40 min later, when, to our surprise, the final announcement was called - making the final approach into LA. It’d seemed very quick. The landing was very quick - it did feel as if we were coming into land very fast. So, leg one of the journey was complete.

Headed off the plane and into LA airport to await our connection. We were a little surprised by the airport itself - it had a very temporary feel about it and seem to be just departure gates without any shopping or eating facilities. We had hoped for a ‘tat’ shop, as we haven’t been able to get a sew-on badge in LA, to add to our collection, but there was only a very expensive WHSmith- type shop, which did sell ‘tat’, but not what we were looking for.

Decided to investigate a little further and went down an escalator, signing a different terminal. At the bottom an old chap in a buggy asked where we were going. A little anxious that perhaps we were in the wrong place, we just vaguely said we were having a look around, looking for something to eat as we waited for our flight. At this, he offered to drive us to the next place, down a long corridor. Awesome! So we got a ride on one of those golf cart-buggy things! He dropped us off, directing us up the escalators. We got to the top; there was more choice, but, also, no suitable ‘tat’ shops. We settled for McDonald’s, sharing a double cheeseburger meal, as we weren’t sure what the food arrangements for the flight would be. It wasn’t long before our flight was due to start boarding, so we walked back down the long corridor to wait at our gate.

The gate had filled up considerably - people were clearly ignoring the ‘please do not queue until your group is called’ signs - you are assigned a boarding group, here. I think the plane was a little late arriving as boarding started late, although our actual departure time wasn’t really affected. They began to make announcements about how people in group 4 (us) and 5 may want to take advantage of an additional complimentary checked baggage opportunity - basically, they implied they were concerned about the lack of space and needed less carry on. So we checked our little wheelie case, taking the camera bag out to carry on. Boarding was uneventful and we got settled, snuggling under a complimentary blanket. Again, we had to pay for TV/film. Ben decided to get it again, to finish watching the film, but I thought I’d try to sleep. This turned out not to be so easy, however; I had the travel pillow tucked under my chin, but legroom was minimal. I did doze on and off, and Ben eventually tried to sleep as well.

As we had packed up our stuff last night, when we got up around eight, we were ready very quickly. In preparation for our flight from Vegas, we had tried to sort out our stuff really carefully, even laying out our clothes for today! So, we were ready to leave about nine-ish. Packed up the car and then went to check out. Checkout was very straightforward - the staff were very friendly and we were allowed to keep the key cards, which have beautiful pictures of the canyon on, unlike the slightly less-PG key cards from the Luxor hotel (containing pictures of semi-naked women!).

On the first step of the journey, we drove back through Kaibab National Park. It was very picturesque and we saw a number of birds of prey hovering, with whiteheads. We think they may have been bald eagles. A couple also had white beaks, so we’ll have to look them up when we get home. The journey was straightforward - very straight roads and light traffic. We got to Kingman around 12 PM and stopped for lunch. We went to Denny’s and it was a very friendly and typical small-town diner. I had a salad, which turned out to be vast! Mixed leaves with grilled chicken, apple slices, dried cranberries and glazed pecans, with balsamic vinaigrette - delicious! Ben had a club sandwich with fries, and it had virtually a whole turkey in it, it was so vast. As we hadn’t had breakfast, we decided to treat ourselves to desert. I had pancake puppies - little balls of pancake batter, with syrup for dipping - for $1.99. Ben had a huge chocolate ice-cream sundae, with Oreo cookie chunks and cream - a bargain at $2.99. The whole lot only came to about $25, including a tip. Amazing!

Having had lunch, we crossed over the road to get some petrol. We put in $30 and it didn’t completely fill the tank - it seems a little more expensive to fill up than the previous rental car. Once back on the road, the rest of the journey was really good - more straight roads and easy directions. Once again, we stopped at the Hoover Dam to go up on the bypass bridge to look down to the dam. Although was very hot, it was windy, so the air wasn’t so ‘heavy’ feeling. The view from the Bridge was spectacular and we caught Bruggers on camera again! There was some interesting information about how the bridge was constricted and why - as a bypass to connect Vegas to Phoenix more easily and ease congestion around the dam. We approached Vegas at about 4 PM. We found a petrol station and put in another $15 so that it was full for return. As we headed into Vegas, the directions were leading us towards some particularly heavy traffic, but we recognised where we were, so we diverted, making it back by about 4:20 PM, in plenty of time for our 5 PM deadline.

Up in the Luxor car park, we unloaded the stuff by the door to minimise carrying it in the heat. Ben parked the car, while I waited by the stuff. Going into the hotel, Ben checked the car back in while I joined the queue for the hotel check-in. Ben wasn’t impressed that no one was available to check the car over with him, to authorise that no damage had been done and hence we couldn’t be charged. We dislike the way that they just hold you over a barrel. The check-in to the hotel was also less than impressive. The woman was less than helpful - lacking the necessary skills and communication - and barely told as anything. We went up to the room to dump our stuff, and discovered that we had got a room in the pyramid - with a view over the five pools. As there was no fridge in the room - you could hire one for $25 a day, but we didn’t think this was worthwhile - we collected ice from the ice machine and filled the sink, chilling a bottle of water and Coke - perfect!

We headed down to the casino floor and gambled a bit, and then headed out, to take photos of the hotel at night. We went to the bridge over to the MGM, to take photos down the strip, a slightly different viewpoint from before. It also got the MGM building in, although there was work being done on the main building, so their lights weren’t on.

From here, we went into the Disney Palace, visiting a gift shop, for more ‘tat’ items. However, found some awesome items and ended up going back again to get more gifts! Went to McDonald’s for some tea and then went back to the room to grab the tablet in order to check in online for our flight tomorrow. We headed down to the lobby to get onto the Wi-Fi - the hotel has now sorted Wi-Fi access, but it’s limited to only two hours. We got connected, but struggled to check-in. I had to go to get the charger plug as the battery on the tablet was critically low. Ben tried to get Lorna to help, but it wasn’t happening. We gave up and ended up heading back to our room to phone. I inadvertently called 911 in my attempt to ring out, but eventually succeeded and very helpful woman from United Airlines sorted us out, resolving the issue with our check-in. We finished the evening back in the Luxor, gambling on our favourite blackjack and roulette machines. Though we were up at many points, we took some heavy losses, having gambled big and lost (we are talking about $0.25 machines here!). We called it quits about $40 down.

Neither of us slept very well, in anticipation of our early getup. Before we knew it, it was 4:30 AM. Dani’s alarm went off, but my phone had died during the night so didn’t. We hurriedly dressed and gathered our things, having laid them out the night before for speed. We managed to leave the room by 4:40 AM, to make the short walk over to where we would catch the bus to Hopi viewing point. Having checked it out last night, we decided to walk and catch the bus, rather than getting the connecting bus from Maswick Lodge. It meant we got an extra half an hour in bed, but also meant we had to find our way to somewhere we hadn’t been before, in the dark. We took the tablet with us for directions and it turned out to be surprisingly easy. It was only about 5 min walk and before we knew it, we were sat in the bus stop with a number of other tired-looking people, to wait for the bus.

It quickly became apparent that it was cooler than anticipated and, although Dani was wearing a jumper and I was wearing my hoody, we were both a little cold. The bus arrived about 10 minutes later at about 5 AM and the journey only took about 10 to 15 minutes, arriving at Hopi. Getting off the bus, we got our first views of the Grand Canyon. The sky was starting to lighten in anticipation of sunrise and you could see quite a long way. It was very impressive and awe-inspiring. We set up the gorilla pod and camera on the metal railing that stop you from falling in the canyon. The sun came up at about 5:40 AM; it was a very soft light that started to fill the canyon, initially making it look very misty. It was fantastic to see the changing colours of the canyon as the light crept over the different layers. We stayed for quite a while with more people arriving just before and just after sunrise.

Having taken lots of photos were decided to head off about 6:30 AM. We had to walk around to the Powell viewing point, a few minutes walk around on a clear trail, as the bus only stopped there on the way back. We took the opportunity to have a look from that viewing point, where there was a monument at the end - I think it was a memorial to the first explorers. Having heard a bus, we ended up running back from the point, to the bus stop, arriving just in time as it was about to leave. We arrived back at our room just before seven, where we dumped our stuff and headed over to the lodge to get some breakfast. On the way over we saw some mule deer, walking through the car park. There was a mummy, a daddy and three babies. Dani was very excited about the baby deer and got a little bit giddy when she saw them bouncing around in the woods, just next to the car park. We took a few photos and then headed on to breakfast, also seeing some small squirrels/chipmunks? We both had a ‘Grand Canyon breakfast’ consisting of bacon, 2 eggs, breakfast potatoes and toast. It was very tasty; we sat and ate it in the shared food hall (it was about $15).

After breakfast, we went back to the room, showered and got ready for a day out. They recommended you didn’t hike between 10 and four so we decided to do the 25 mile desert view road trip, along the south side of the rim. We drove along, enjoying the air conditioning, stopping at various viewpoints on the way, all of which offered fantastic views of the Grand Canyon. We kept seeing big birds flying above, but we think they were actually crows or something similar. Still on the lookout for another condor.

At the end of the road trip, was the desert view watchtower, an ancient-looking tower, although in reality a modern replica, designed to look like an original Native American Indian tower so as to blend into the landscape and look authentic. We parked and wandered over to the visitor centre. Before we got there, we got attracted by an assortment of weeds, in a lovely pale pink; they were covered with butterflies and what appeared to be hummingbird moths - stripey little beetle-looking creatures with a long-beaky thing and extremely quick wings. Ben took lots of photos! We had a look in the visitor centre, which had an interesting relief model of the canyon, showing us where we were in the different points along the route.

From there, we went down to the tower, went up the spiral staircase looking at each floor as we went. Inside there were lots of murals and paintings, designed to look like a native Indian paintings. On each floor, especially at the top, there were 360° views across the canyon and the desert. Pretty spectacular! You could also see the Colorado River, weaving through, looking particularly muddy. We had a good look from all of the available viewpoints, taking panoramas and watching the lights on the different layers of the canyon. Had a look in the gift shop at the bottom and then bought a Coke to share at the cafe, sitting and watching a squirrel wiggling around. Walked back to the car, stopping at the general store to buy an ice-cream and we treated ourselves to a reusable Grand Canyon bag!

As we drove back along towards the lodge, we stopped at a couple of different stops. At the Lupin viewpoint, where you get a particularly good view of the river, we happened upon an impromptu geology talk by a ranger called Brian. It was really interesting - he talked about how the canyon had been formed, in the different layers of rocks that formed the canyon and how the river actually created it. He answered loads of questions we had, plus he implied that we looked 20-ish, so that was awesome too. Took more pictures and then moved on.

We also stopped at Mather Point, one of the main viewpoints at the canyon. We parked in the visitor centre car park and then walk to the viewpoint. It was distinctly hotter by now, so we didn’t spend a long time there. Admired the views - from a different angle again - and took some photos of Bruggers in front of the canyon. We drove back, feeling very tired, and stopped when we saw a wolf/fox-type animal, slinking across the road and into the woods. We also saw a woodpecker, right next to the road and some bluebirds - very vivid blue with tufted feathers. Took some photos, but all of them moved too quickly for a clear picture. Also saw some Elks - casually crossing the road.

Got back to our room and felt shattered. Slothed about for a bit, and did some washing, and then headed over to the main lodge for tea. I had fettuccine in tomato sauce, with sausage and peppers. Ben had fettuccine with tomato sauce and meatballs. Nice, though a little odd, in my case. Finished up with lemon meringue pie again - yummy!

As we were also planning to see sunset over the canyon, we got ourselves organised to go about 7 PM-ish. We walked down to the bus stop in the village, but there was a huge crowd waiting to do the same thing - we assumed that even with more regular buses, we probably wouldn’t get there, so we set off on foot. There was a clear path and although it was going uphill, we managed to cover about 2 miles within about 30 min! Impressive! We were planning on going to Hopi Point, but given the number of other people also heading that way, we stopped at Powell point instead - not quite as far around, but with as good a view.

There were quite a few people about, but we got a good seat! Ben set up the camera on the gorilla pod and we waited. And it was worth the wait! Amazing! An orange-flooded sky, with amazing shadows being created by the light. It was beautiful. We stayed around for quite a while, thinking we would wait to see the stars coming out. As people left, it started to feel very isolated, so we decided against it - with no lighting and potentially a very dark walk back, it didn’t feel very safe. So we headed to the bus and managed to get a seat. At the next stop, however, at Hopi, loads of people were waiting to get the bus. So, it was lucky, in more ways than one, that we only went as far as Powell! Feeling peckish, we headed to the main house for a slice of pizza. It was really busy, but we got a table. I waited, while Ben ordered a pizza slice and beer each. He got ID at the cash desk and the rather flustered waitress was embarrassed to discover that we were both nearly 30! Enjoyed our pizza and people-watched. After, feeling tired, we headed back to our room and sorted our stuff, ready for our journey tomorrow.

Got up and showered and went down to the Avis car rental desk at the hotel lobby, for about 9 AM. We filled in the paperwork, a little unhappy about having to sign for the car before checking it. We asked about GPS systems, but they had none. We also asked about putting Dani on, as an additional driver, but for a cost of $11 a day, we decided against it. Before fetching our stuff from the room, we went out to check the car. It wasn’t quite as nice as the previous one, but still very big. Despite our efforts, we couldn’t work out how to move the drivers seat back, so we went back in and, again, stood in a queue at the Avis desk again, for help. The man behind the desk wanted us to try again, but I said that I wanted someone to come and look with me. Whilst I waited, Dani went to get us some teas from Starbucks, and then went back to the room to make sure we were all packed and ready to go, as checkout was 11 AM and, despite our early start, it was already getting on for 10:30 AM.

It turned out that the seat movement was electronic and controlled by a small switch on the side of the seat. I also asked about the parking brake whilst the Avis man was there, but I was told that we wouldn’t need to use it. Satisfied, I went back to the room, where we drank tea and gathered our things. Dani had filled out the express checkout envelope, so we wouldn’t need to queue again downstairs.

We spent quite a while waiting with all of our things in the Spa and Lobby area, trying to get on the Internet to get directions, but they seem to have turned off the Wi-Fi. A little disgruntled, we queued for the concierge desk for answers. Unable to help otherwise, she printed out directions for us and we were eventually able to get on our way.

The car was longer than the previous one and the boot easily accommodated all of our stuff. Despite limited directions, the journey out of Vegas was quite straightforward. We stopped at the Hoover Dam after only about 40 minutes into the journey. We decided against the tour, as it was very hot and already lunchtime, so thought we might do it on the way back. Instead, we paid the $7 to park and walked across the dam, taking photos and occasionally stopping in the shade. It is quite a magnificent structure. We saw people walking along another bridge, way above the dam, and thought we might do this on the way back. We stopped for a drink at the snack bar which was relatively cheap ($4) and came in a souvenir plastic cup. We were there for about an hour, stopping in the gift shop to buy a few bits before setting off again.

After about another 40 minutes, we stopped for lunch, as time was marching on. We went to KFC and had a two-piece chicken meal each, which came with a sort of scone that they call a biscuit? We also went in Walmart, which was at the same services, where we bought two large bottles of water for about $0.84 each, and Coke for just over a dollar a bottle. We also bought a USB car charger that we thought might be useful, for about $14.

Got back on the road and drove most of the way. The roads were pretty clear and the journey itself was straightforward. Not many cars on the roads, and the roads were decent, with quick speed limits. So we zoomed on! We stopped for some petrol about an hour outside Grand Canyon. Had a momentary panic when we realise that we didn’t know for sure if the car took diesel or unleaded, but asked a woman inside, who said it would be standard (unleaded gas)

We headed on, through the Kaibab (or kebab, as we called it) and towards the Grand Canyon National Park. As we were driving, Ben saw a red-headed, vulture-like bird, which we later found out was a Condor. So, an awesome spot!

Found our way to Maswick Lodge really easily! It was like a little village, with a main house and large houses around it. Check-in was easy and efficient and we were directed towards ‘Mesquite’, where we found a really decent two-double bedroom, with bathroom and balcony! Luxury! We dumped our stuff and lay for a while. Temperatures here are much more bearable, though still warm and considering we are still in a desert, it is all really green. We had a look at the map and guide that we are given on arrival to the National Park (like Yosemite, there was an entrance fee of $25). We were particularly looking forward to seeing a hump-back chump (a kind of fish) just because of the awesome name!

Headed over to the main house to find some food. Looked in the gift shop, as it was also there, and found some really nice things. Bought a poster of the National Park and some postcards, and also a couple of sew-on badges and a magnet for Audrey. Dithered at some attractive tiles that there were decorated with images/symbols of the park and also of the Native American Indian history. They were really colourful and we were really tempted - will think about them!

Went through into the cafeteria. It’s a main eating area, with different sections to choose from, from all-day breakfasts to full dinners. We weren’t that hungry after our late lunch, so opted for a cup of chilli each, with chopped onions and cheese - which seems to be what they accompany their chilli with. With a bottle of beer each, it was surprisingly filling and quite spicy, and for a bargain price of about $4 each! After we’d eaten, we stopped at the information desk to try to get a grip on what to do tomorrow. Noticed that they offered both sunrise and sunset tours of the Grand Canyon for $21 per person. After consulting a map, we decided to do it ourselves, using the park’s shuttle buses to get there. Not really knowing distances and timings, we estimated leaving about 4:30 AM - either brave or foolish - not sure which!

With this in mind, we headed to our room, however got sidetracked by the amazing night sky - so many stars! The lights in Grand Canyon are restricted to help get a better view of the sky, and for environmental reasons. Took some photos using the gorilla pod and a very slow shutter - they were blurred due to the movement of the earth, but still show an immense sky! Headed off to bed, feeling pretty pleased with the visit so far!

Got up particularly late today - not surprising given our late nights! Took quite a long time to get ourselves organised and out. I felt quite hungry so we went into Starbucks - I’ve possibly forgotten to mention the number of Starbucks here - there are three within the actual hotel! Very nearly a Starbucks on every corner! This particular franchise had a limited supply of goods - Ben ended up with a bottle of orange juice and I got a turkey sandwich -  a little overfilled where the turkey was concerned but okay, if expensive. Sat in the corridor for a bit - sounds weird, but it seems to be the only place to access the free Wi-Fi in this so-called ‘luxury’ hotel. Checked bank accounts and totted up the money so far, and I e-mailed mum and dad as we haven’t been able to chat on Skype for a while. Not the comfiest place in the world to sit however, so kept it brief.

Then went in search of some ice cream - some quite elusive ice-cream, as it turned out! On Sunday, we had seen a Haagen-Daaz counter (Ben’s favourite chocolate ice-cream brand) and we wanted to get some. We thought it was in the Disney Palace, so checked literally every corner, in search of it. Had a go on the slot machines en route, but otherwise spent a good hour searching! Were on the verge of giving up in Disney Palace, and we were about to go next door to the New York New York hotel - when lo and behold, there it was! Success! To celebrate our achievement, we both had ice-cream - Ben had his favourite Belgian chocolate and I had peanut butter and chocolate. Well worth it! Sat and ate them in the very small seating area, before moving on.

Went across the pedestrian walkway to the MGM Grand hotel, one of the bigger and more well-known resorts. Have been struck by how much more interesting the other hotels are than ours; this one, for no apparent reason, had a rainforest-themed restaurant as you went in - I guess it adds a slightly unique touch. We went down into the casino and managed to win some money on the roulette machine. Result.

From there, we went back to the Disney Palace, to try our luck on the machines there, but had only limited success, with a bit more failure. So, decided to head back to our hotel and the trusty blackjack machines. Lost a little, but then seemed to pick up, doubling our money on roulette. I also accidentally bet $10 on one hand of blackjack, but it came through, virtually trebling our money!! Amazing! Cashed out and left it there. Went to the hotel’s public house, the same place we went to on Sunday, but this time with a two-for-one voucher, so the prices of the drinks didn’t make us wince quite so much!

From there, went to dinner. We had decided to go to Buca Di Bepo, an Italian restaurant, mainly because Ben liked the name. We had to wait about 10 min per table, but it wasn’t bad. It was designed for families - the dishes were designed to be shared rather than ordered separately, so we took the plunge and ordered an appetiser to share and then a main. Our bruschetta starter came with a large bowl of tomato and mozzarella topping, enough for the 12 pieces of bread that came with it. We then had a huge chunk of lasagne - rather dominated by ricotta cheese so it wasn’t quite what we had hoped for. Needless to say, we didn’t eat it all! It was okay in terms of price, but the portions were too big! We decided to call it a night after this, as we’d have a long drive tomorrow. Grand Canyon!

Got up late after our late-night - just before midday. Showered and got ready, then headed down to get something to eat. Our plan for the day was to see more of the Strip. So we started off with brunch! Using our welcome vouchers from the hotel, we sought out something other than pizza or burger and chips. In the Excalibur hotel (we call it the Disney Palace) we found a sandwich/salad place. I had a turkey Cobb salad, and Ben had a chipotle chicken wrap. My salad was huge! It had egg, bacon, avocado, tomato, turkey and salad, with Caesar dressing and croutons. Very tasty!

From here, we headed out onto the strip. Our hotel is set quite far back on the main road and it’s hard to see the Strip from it, so it took us a while to locate the right direction. Plus, it was like being in a fan oven, as it was so hot, so we were quite eager to get into the next air-conditioned building. We stopped at the CVS pharmacy to get a bottle of water to help combat the heat.

We headed north on Las Vegas Boulevard. As we walked, we popped into the different hotels and casinos. We went into the Monte Carlo, which was very glamorous, with strings of jewels hanging in swathes, with lots of glass and mirrors. We had a little dabble on a roulette machine and lost a little bit, but then won it back.

As we wandered up the Boulevard, we stopped outside the Bellagio - the one with the fountains. Ben took some photos and then we started to walk up the side passage to go inside, but, overhearing some people talking about the water show, we decided to hang about. When the show began, it was amazing! The water was actually dancing to music, wiggling and weaving about. And there was also water fireworks - spurts of water that shot out, with a thundery-type noise. It was brilliant!

We then went into the Bellagio itself, past all of the designer shops - so it’s clearly the posh one. We lost $5 straight away on a roulette machine - we hadn’t realised it was $5 a bet! We then found the one dollar version and trebled the money we gambled, so we were up by about $10!

After our gambling, we wandered to the lobby of the Bellagio, to admire the luxury! There were glass flowers covering the ceiling, which was so colourful - stunning! There was also a conservatory with some exotic birds in a large aviary. One of the birds looked like a little, tiny duckling - it was just a yellow ball of fluff! There was a wedding taking place - a pretty setting, but it must be quite annoying to have random people in the background of photos!

Outside again, we went a little further on, towards Caesar’s Palace and took a few photos down the Strip. Crossed over - all the pedestrian routes go over the Interstate, via bridges, so we had to keep going up and over! Then wandered down the Strip the other way. Outside the Paris Casino, we admired the Eiffel Tower and the model hot-air balloon. It is all very theme-park-like, but with less rides - it’s like an adult Disneyland. We went into the Paris Casino, but weren’t impressed to find neither blackjack or roulette machines! What kind of Casino is this? Lost quite a bit on the fruit machines, so left a bit disgruntled. Walk further along and had a similar experience in Planet Hollywood! Oh dear! So gave up for a bit.

Dropped into McDonald’s for a drink as we felt very dehydrated - it’s like a fan oven - I think I’ve said that already! Spent a while drinking and resting our weary limbs. We had decided to go to Hard Rock Cafe for dinner, so decided to start heading over. As we walked that way, we went into a few ‘tat’ shops, looking for a sew-on badge for Las Vegas. We bought some postcards and keyrings as potential presents, and after a fair bit of searching we found a Las Vegas badge, although it wasn’t the nicest! Made our way to the Hard Rock Cafe and had a look in the shop first. Found a nice sew-on badge! Straightaway! We admired a little bear, which was really soft and wearing a Hard Rock hoody, but we didn’t buy him - yet…

Went upstairs and waited to be seated. While we waited, we played with the interactive wall, which displayed information about their rock music memorabilia. We had a pager, which, when it buzzed, meant we had to go and have our picture taken and then be seated. Our server was very enthusiastic, recommending all sorts of things on the menu. I had a cocktail called Gini Hendrix - gin and Cointreau, among other things! Yummy! Ben had a beer in a free glass, except the beer was pretty expensive! He had an ‘ultimate burger’, with everything in, and I had a pulled-pork barbecue sandwich with beans and coleslaw. Then we shared a chocolate brownie dessert. When it came over, the waiter got them to take a photo of me with cream on my nose! A little cheesy! It was all very nice - about $81 all in. We had to collect Ben’s free glass on the way out from the shop below.

We walked along a bit and had a look in the Coca-Cola shop and the M&M shop. Both had a spectacular range of merchandise - who knew they made so much! We headed back along the strip, past the Bellagio again, where we watched the night version of the water show and took some more photos. By this point, we were getting very tired, so plodded on towards our hotel. Feeling very tired and thirsty we dropped into Excalibur for a drink. We then hobbled onto our hotel casino where we played blackjack unsuccessfully and then recouped a bit on the roulette wheel before heading up to our room. Were surprised to find a room hadn’t been cleaned? A bit strange. Went to bed very tired, about 2 AM again!

I got up to the alarm, while Ben ignored it. I went down to Starbucks to get breakfast - they were particularly busy, so I had to amend our order. We had tea and I had a yoghurt granola pot and Ben had a classic sausage sandwich. While drinking our tea, Ben had a bit of a chat with Audrey on Skype and I got ourselves organised to leave.

We headed down to check out, posting our postcards on the way, at about 11:15 AM. Checked out, paying $125 (for parking). In the garage, we had to get a valet to move the car blocking us in, and then we were off!

On the way out of LA, we stopped to get petrol at the 7-Eleven and we also got some drinks and chocolate chip cookies for the journey. About 90 minutes in, we stopped at an out-of-town shopping centre for lunch. There was a Walmart, which we went in as we wanted to compare the prices. It was quite an odd place - food seemed to be very minimal - it clearly prioritised other items, from fishing rods to TVs. We had a look at the Lego - a bit disappointed to see the Lego set we had bought for less, but nevermind. We were going to buy some more, but decided against it. Bought some other bits and then went to the in-store McDonald’s for lunch. We were served by a teenager who seemed new, and consequently the service was a little slow… Ben had a Big Mac meal and I had a bacon cheeseburger. The regular size came with large drinks by UK standards, and, it has to be said, most of the other customers were quite large... We had to wait for our number to come up to get our food - slightly unusual for ‘fast-food’! Took our food out to the car to eat as the actual McDonald’s was a bit quiet and depressing.

Got back on the road again and almost immediately got stuck in a huge traffic jam. The SatNav kept telling us the road ahead was closed and suggested a diversion that would take an additional three hours. Despite this, we persevered on the original route and stayed in the slow moving traffic for about an hour before we hit the cause of the delay. There were a number of fire engines and helicopters carrying water, that seemed to be dealing with a smouldering hill. Traffic gradually picked up speed again and we cracked on for another hour, stopping for a break at another McDonald’s before we tackled the desert stretch. It was already very hot, so we had an ice-cream each (an Oreo McFlurry) and enjoyed the air conditioning in McDonald’s.

Set off again, planning on diverting off the interstate to go up Death Valley Road for a bit, to see the ‘infinite road’ (the road that seems to go nowhere!). However, about 30 minutes on from leaving McDonald’s - having gone in the wrong direction for a junction - we slowed to a stop. We were on a dual carriageway, with no alternative route, as we were going through the Mojave Desert. We crawled for over an hour, covering about 10 miles. It was nearly 6 PM and we still had about 170 miles to go. It was quite frustrating, not to mention hot. We had to keep turning the air conditioning off to prevent overheating. But we did manage to take some fun photos of Bruggers ‘driving’ the car. Eventually, we got going. Even once we got going, cars kept weaving in and out, which kept slowing everyone down, so we didn’t get up to speed for ages. We decided against going up Death Valley as we were already much later than planned.

The final stretch seemed very long, but we finally saw the lights of Vegas emerging. Followed the signs to the car rental return, which was so easy! Remarkable, in fact. ‘Checked in’ with the car rental, as it were, got our stuff and left, with a little receipt. Got into a taxi, and $17 later we were at our hotel.

Joined the substantial queue at check-in, but didn’t have to wait too long. We were disappointed to not be staying in the pyramid itself, as it is on a first-come, first-served basis. We instead got an ‘upgrade’ to the tower; a few extra feet and a bath. Whilst checking in, we tried to reserve a pyramid room for the night after Grand Canyon, and although the receptionist put us down for it, it is not guaranteed. Headed up to the room and dumped our stuff, a little underwhelmed. We have to pay $18 a day for services - which we can’t really use, as the Internet is wired. We went downstairs to get something to eat, heading to the food court. We had chicken and chips and then had a wander around the casino. We won a few dollars on blackjack and had a drink in the bar. We were appalled to find our 2 pints of lager cost nearly $20!! A little staggered, we decided to venture out, to explore some of the Strip. We walked through to the adjoining Excalibur hotel and casino, which looks a lot like a Disney Palace. We had a go on some fruit machines and roulette with mixed success. Went to bed about 2 AM, a few dollars down, I think.

Dani set her alarm last night in an effort to get us moving a little earlier. We snoozed in for quite a while before eventually getting up at about 9 AM. We put some clothes on and headed down to Starbucks with the journal and some postcards to write, whilst we had breakfast. I had an orange juice and a chocolatine, whilst Dani had a blueberry scone and vanilla latte. After breakfast, we headed up to get dressed and showered, ready for a day out. I spoke to Mum for a bit on Skype whilst we were getting ready; she was just having tea. We picked up the car from the car park and headed out towards Beverly Hills.

The plan was to drive up Rodeo Drive, home to all the expensive shops. Once there, we decided we would park up and have a walk around for a bit. We tried an underground car park; there were no spaces, but then we happened upon a multi-storey car park that was free for the first two hours - bonus! It was opposite the Warner Brothers media gallery. It was on the road running parallel to Rodeo Drive. We spent about an hour and a half wandering up and down. The weather was lovely and warm and there were lots of expensive looking cars buzzing around with open tops, blacked out windows, etc. We saw a Bugatti Veyron (a very expensive car) parked outside a shop on Rodeo Drive. It was getting a lot of attention and lots of people were taking photos, including me. On the way back to the car, we stopped at ‘The Ice Cream Lab’. The ice creams were five dollars for small tubs, but they made the ice cream fresh, on the spot, using dry ice, I think, to freeze it. I had Mulholland Mint, with chocolate chips, and Dani had Blue Velvet,  which had little tiny cupcakes with cream frosting mushed into it. We sat outside to eat and watched the world go by. After, we headed back to the car to drive to our final destination for the day - Santa Monica.

We joined the Santa Monica Boulevard almost immediately, as it was just around the corner and then ignored the SatNav, as it kept trying to get to turn us around, despite Santa Monica Boulevard being a straight road into Santa Monica - funnily enough. Tried a car park that turned out to be full, so parked in a space on the road, before realising that said car park suddenly had spaces again. We managed to get a space right near the entrance as someone was just leaving. It was three hours maximum parking, but the first 90 minutes were free! Amazing!

We wandered down towards the beach, which wasn’t far, as the car park was only on 4th Street. We found a spot near the lifeguard station and ate leftover pizza from yesterday, by way of lunch. We spent a while looking out to sea at the yachts and swimmers. There were also a couple of planes that kept looping around, advertising Bud Light. Dani went for a paddle and some pelicans flew over head in a flying V. We then started walking along the front, to the pier, which turned out to be a little disappointing, with lots of tacky theme-park-type attractions. We followed the pier back into town, looking for postcards, but in the end didn’t bother.

There were a number of street performers along the front, including a guy with lots of parrots who was giving them to people to hold; one girl was cradling a parrot like a baby! We walked back along 3rd Street Promenade - the pedestrianised shopping area. There were a number of street performers and also a number of monuments to recognise contributors to the Santa Monica Education Program (they were cast in bronze; one was a pile of books, another was a desk - they looked very good). We had a quick look in a gadget shop before heading back to the car. The parking cost $1 as we had only been 2 1/2 hours. Bargain!

The drive back was pretty straightforward and we were back in the hotel by 7 PM. The car park was very full as there was a wedding in the hotel and a concert nearby. We parked at the back of a double space where we would be blocked in. The valet attendant said there would be someone to help us in the morning.

We dropped our stuff and went to Little Tokyo for tea. There was karaoke in the main square which was quite funny, and some popular songs were getting murdered by a range of keen amateurs. A lot of the restaurants were quite busy, and we eventually settled for one in the back corner, where we took a number (32) and waited to be seated. I was a little anxious, so Dani did the ordering. I had chicken teriyaki with vegetable tempura and Dani had the beef version, but with a mix of vegetable and shrimp tempura. We had soup to start and green tea ice-cream to finish. We did a grand job using chopsticks and I only dropped the tempura into the dipping sauce by accident a couple of times. It cost about $37 and was very nice, apart from the ice-cream, which we both left the majority of.

We headed back to the room and Dani did some packing, whilst I watched TV. A little later we tried to visit the Japanese roof garden again, but it was closed due to the wedding. Instead, we went to the little minimart around the corner again, where I got an ice-cream and Dani had an almond Snickers bar. We had a beer, watched telly and went to bed.

We got up much later than we had planned today, so put on some clothes and headed straight down for breakfast at Starbucks again. I had a chocolatine and Dani had a bacon, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich. We both had tea, although they got it wrong and gave us Earl Grey. Nevermind! Made full use of the table in Starbucks to catch up on the journal and write a number of postcards while we had breakfast. After breakfast, we had showers, dressed and had a chat to Dani’s parents on Skype, although the connection wasn’t great and we kept missing words and the video kept breaking up. We didn’t end up leaving the hotel until gone one o’clock!

We headed out to the valet service at the front of the hotel to get the car. Yesterday, when parking, we were stopped by an attendant who told us the car park was full, so they were valet-parking the cars, because that way, they could block cars in. So if we wanted to park, they would have to park for us and take the keys. We were a little tentative handing them over and by morning, I was feeling quite concerned about the whole thing. Nevertheless, one of the valet attendants brought the car up to the front of the hotel without any problems.

So, eventually we were off. We decided to head over to the Griffith Park Observatory and, later, to drive through Chinatown. The journey there was as eventful as ever, with the Sat Nav defeating us with its confusing list of commands to turn left or right, but either too early or too late. We ended up getting stuck in a one-way system, which took us a long way out of our way and completely confused the SatNav, which couldn’t decide which road we were on. Eventually, we got there, despite said SatNav and the poor/non-existent signage for the most part. The main car park was full for the observatory, so we ended up parking along the road at the bottom of the hill. We had a bit of a panic about whether we were allowed to park where we had, as there was a traffic cone near by, and we eventually decided to move and park in another space across the road. By the time we were done faffing about, another car came along and parked in the space we had just moved from. Oh well, these things happen! Our new space was more convenient - facing the right way and in the shade.

Set off for the observatory - we assumed it was upwards, but, as usual, there were no signs! Went up quite a steep path (!) - it was like being at Yosemite again! But, it was quite short and when we got to the top, the views were amazing. Walked on a bit further, to the top of the trail and a viewpoint, where there were well-positioned benches to see LA, the mountains and the Hollywood sign. We sat on one bench for a while and then moved on to the next, looking at the different views. It was very peaceful. I spotted a lizard and then Ben took lots of photos of it - it stayed in one small area, catching flies. We did try to get Bruggers in a picture with the lizard, but it clearly found Bruggers very intimidating, as it kept running off! Bruggers just wanted to be friends :-(

Having spent a good while at the viewpoint, we moved on towards the observatory. The views were stunning - we spent the the afternoon and early evening just looking and wandering around. There was an obelisk, to Galileo, I think, which we sat on for a while, before Ben spotted about three hummingbirds darting around. He took lots of photos - they came very close, sucking the nectar from the flowers next it us. There were so pretty - a shimmering green with bright pink under their beaks. Had a little panic with the camera, as all the photos seem to disappear - but it turned out that they’d simply gone into a new folder. Panic over!

We decided to get something to eat and drink from the cafe, which had a private seating area overlooking the view. We had some crisps, coke, and a Cobb salad to share. The salad included chicken, bacon bits, tomatoes, beans, blue cheese and, of course, salad leaves and a vinaigrette dressing. We ate, drank, and enjoyed the view. Afterwards, we had a look in the shop. It was a little disappointing; there wasn’t very much that was specific to the park. We did, however, buy a few postcards and a badge (sew-on). We then continued to have a look around the observatory. There was some interesting information inside and again nice views from the top. It got late surprisingly quickly and when we next looked, it had gone 6:30 PM. We had noticed that the telescope would open at 7 PM, so we decided to hang around and have a look. After a short queue, we looked through the telescope at Venus, which appeared as a bright white circle. We also looked through a telescope on the front lawn, at the sun, through a special filter. Dani couldn’t see anything, but I saw the bright orange bottom edge. The sun was setting by this time, so we stuck around to take a few photos of the sunset and then some night photos of LA. It was still hazy and, although it looks beautiful with a pinky-purple sky, it looked quite gloomy in the photos. But, well worth seeing all the same!

We then decided to head back and immediately set off in the wrong direction! Went all the way down the hill to realise it was the wrong way. It was fairly dark and with minimal street-lighting so it was very easy to go astray. Found our way back thankfully, after a panicky moment. Used the car bleeper to locate the car - very useful - and headed back. It was very easy journey back - the best yet! Parked in the hotel car park again and went up to the room. Dithered about tea and ended up ordering a takeaway pizza from a local place (about $30). Ate about 11:30 PM - late, but it would have been too late to go to a restaurant. Turned in a little earlier than last night.

Woke up quite late today - the hotel room has Japanese-style shutters and curtains so is quite dark. Comfy and cosy though! Threw some clothes on and went down to the Starbucks beneath the hotel. Bought hot teas (I still find it weird to have to ask for ‘hot’ tea) and had a breakfast sandwich each - sausage, egg and cheese in an English style muffin. Just under $10. Sat at our leisure for a while, before going back up and showering.

Dithered about what to do today - we had planned to have a look around the local area today, but as we had a bit of a look last night, we thought we’d investigate Hollywood instead. Went down to use the Internet to look at the availability of tickets for the Warner Brothers tour. Managed to get two tickets for 4:30 PM today ($110, including admin costs, for two tickets). We sorted ourselves out with passports as ID, and then went to the car. It was costing $30 per day to use the hotel car park, so we thought we might also check out the parking competition later.

Drove towards Hollywood. For a short journey, it took a long time, and included a fraught journey on the I-101 towards Hollywood! Used the SatNav to find some parking - a little expensive at $10 flat rate (particularly because there was no ‘in and out’), but we didn’t know an alternative. But, it was super-handy for the Walk of Fame, so it’s all relative…

Wandered along the boulevard, checking out the stars on the Hall of Fame. Walk past Emma Thompson and Colin Firth, and had a picture taken with Johnny Depp and Russell Crowe! Had a look at the Chinese Theatre, which is very attractive, with lots of decorations and celebrity handprints in the cement at the front - including a Harry Potter ensemble! Walked as far as the stars went and then headed back, in search of the elusive Hollywood sign. We had already had a bit of a wander up Highland Avenue, as allegedy you can see the sign where Highland meets Hollywood Boulevard - but we couldn’t see it. However, on this corner there is a shopping centre-type place, so we thought you might be able to see it from there. I asked the security guard and, yes, it could be seen from here - three floors up - so we did find it! Looks just as you might expect - it was quite hazy in the heat - but I guess it feels like proper LA now we’ve seen the Hollywood sign! We took quite a few photos and admired it for a while.

Time was marching on a bit so we decided we ought to head off to catch our Warner Brothers tour. It was just as well we left in plenty of time - traffic was a little slow, but that was nothing compared to the complete lack of signs or anything helpful when we were approaching the place! We could see the logo and the film posters - but no entrance. Our SatNav seemed unable to locate either road required by the directions on the ticket confirmation! Very frustrating! Ended up asking a local, who set us on the right track. We made it with minutes to spare!

We passed through security, where we chatted with very friendly security staff and then we joined a short queue to actually pick up our tickets. With minutes before our tour began, the only two people serving seem to be dealing with issues and consequently we were standing there for a while. Luckily, this didn’t seem to be a big problem (the timing) and we got onto the tour and into the auditorium for the pre-tour film, in the nick of time.

The film was an introduction to the history of the company; neither of us realised there were four brothers originally, starting the company so that was a fun fact. They also shared loads of clips from films and shows that have been made, to tickle the taste buds, as it were! We then went off in smaller groups to do the golf-buggy-tour bit. Our tour guide was called Noah, and you had to love his enthusiasm! He was very good at his job. He drove us (a group of nine) around various sets and streets that are permanent fixtures - and also many ‘everyday’ parts of the site that are always left neutral to be dressed as required. There were several highlights: we went into a museum of artefacts from different shows/films and they had an array of Harry Potter stuff, including the Marauders Map, one of Arogog’s descendants, Hermione’s frozen body from ‘The Chamber of Secrets’, and a little Dobby. Also, they had costumes and props from ‘Hart of Dixie’, ‘The Big Bang Theory’, the new ‘Batman’, ‘Chuck’ and ‘The Hangover’ films to name but a few. We also went to see some cars being stored; the Ford Anglia from Harry Potter, several Batmobiles, and Clint Eastwood’s car from Gran Torino. At another point, we went to see the Central Perk set from ‘Friends’ - the original - and we sat on the sofa for a photo. The two final highlights of the day were seeing Leonard from ‘The Big Bang Theory’ and the filming of ‘Hart of Dixie’! So exciting! At least, we’re fairly certain it was Leonard, and, as for the filming, Noah told is it was filming for ‘The Mentalist’, but all the props were from the set of ‘Hart of Dixie’, and we are fans, so we know!

I’ve  just thought - we also went into a soundstage, set up for filming ‘Marley and Mike’ - a new sitcom and Noah explained how it all worked. A five-day schedule for sitcoms - reading, rehearsing, and then filming, with the networks being involved to veto the scripts. So, all in all, a fun afternoon session! We bought our souvenir photo, taken in front of a green screen; it seemed quite a bargain at only $5.40. We also bought a ‘Big Bang Theory’ T-shirt each, as a souvenir. He he! So cool!

It was getting on when we came out so we located a restaurant through the SatNav - ‘Bob’s Big Boys’. In true American style, we had vast portions - Ben had a Big Boy Special - a little like a big Mac - and I had what turned out to be a burger covered in chilli. Tasty, but there was a lot of it! I took some of mine home in a doggy bag!

We headed off, back to the hotel. Traffic was heavy on I-101, so it took longer than expected. Got back to Little Tokyo and started to look for alternative parking, but found nothing. One car park closed in 30 minutes and didn’t do overnight parking - given that it was already 11:30 PM, it was odd that they thought we wanted to park for only 30 minutes! At 11:30 PM?! Gave up and parked in the hotel car park instead.

Got up just in time for breakfast today and determinedly stood in the queue to make waffles. It was much quicker today and we managed to make a waffle each. Ben covered his in cream and chocolate sprinkles and I had a bit of cream with Cherry compote, and a small pot of syrup for dipping - quite successful! We didn’t burn the waffles and they didn’t stick! Result!

Spent quite a while packing up our stuff before loading it into the spacious car boot and heading off. We stopped off just down the road in Mariposa, as we wanted to take a couple of pictures - it looks quite Western in style, with lots of wood and overhanging balconies. Pretty cool!

The journey itself was fairly straightforward. It took about an hour to get out of Mariposa country and leave behind the winding mountain roads and then we hit the freeway. Long, long, straight roads with just fields for miles.

We stopped for some lunch at an out-of-town shopping centre in Tulare. We went to Denny’s and had quite a big lunch… Ben had a Philly sandwich - a steak and cheese melt with onions - and I had a hickory chicken sandwich, both served with a heap of fries. We both felt like we weren’t eating enough for our server, as she kept asking if we wanted anything else! Felt quite full, so went for a wander among the shops. Went in a few to check out the prices and compare them to prices back home. Went into Toys “R” Us and bought some Lego! A Lone Ranger set - pretty awesome given we haven’t even got the film yet back home. It was about $41.

Headed back to the car and went on our way. The journey was pretty straightforward, just long, and we had to stop twice for petrol. Decided to stop off again within an hour of LA, and stopped at Starbucks. Had a little chat with a trucker from Minnesota about cookies and went on. The stretch into LA itself was fairly horrific - a five lane interstate, with very heavy traffic. The Americans also seemed unable to give way, so moving lanes is interesting! It took about an hour to go about 10 miles! Ben was very relieved to get off it, as it made him quite nervous.

Found the hotel after a few wrong turns and got parked in the hotel car park, in the early evening. Checked in before recovering our stuff from the car. Because the hotel is in Little Tokyo, it has quite an oriental feel - possibly the poshest hotel room so far. Had a rest and then went for a wander around - ended up in Little Tokyo; looking around, we thought about getting something to eat, but everywhere seem to close just as we got there! In the end, we got some snacks from a mini-Mart and headed back to the hotel.

We investigated the Internet/Wi-Fi, but it was $10 per day, except in the lobby where it’s free. So instead we used the ‘business room’ downstairs for the use of the hotel guests, to plan for tomorrow. We also spent a little bit of time on the tablet in the lobby area. Went upstairs after and discovered our free Internet connection was still active! Get in!

Dani woke up early and had a bath before waking me up. It was gone 8:30 AM and, with breakfast ending in half an hour, we hotfooted it across to the breakfast room. We stood in the queue for waffles before giving up as it was taking far too long (maybe tomorrow?). Instead we had some toast and I had a cold boiled egg, and then we had a couple of pastries. We also sorted ourselves out with a couple of teas. After breakfast, we gathered our things and headed off in the car to Yosemite National Park. It took longer than we expected to get to the park and we arrived at the parking for the main visitor centre after about an hour and a half.

We were given a map at the entrance and another at the car park information, and, after catching a bus from the car park to the visitor centre, we got a third. It wasn’t very clear where to start even with all the maps and having asked for information at the car park. Dani asked about the Yosemite waterfalls, but due to the dry weather both the main falls were apparently pretty dry. When we asked again at the visitor centre, the man was a little more helpful, directing us towards the Vernal Falls which involved hikes of different lengths depending on how far you wanted to go up.

It first involved catching one of the shuttle buses that run around the park. The shuttles take you to the main trail heads around Yosemite village. We caught the shuttle to stop 16 and when we got there we thought we better eat the crisps we were carrying, having read warnings about carrying food (due to bears). We also bought some chocolate cookies from the food kiosk and filled the water bottle from the water fountain. Finally, we got going on what turned out to be a much more strenuous walk than we had anticipated! It took about an hour and a half, walking uphill all the way, with a few stops for water and to catch our breath. We saw a little lizard darting about and a pretty impressive butterfly, and lots of little squirrels. Close to the top, when we were having a rest, a boy came past on his way down and cheerfully told as it wasn’t much further - we must have looked like we were on the verge of giving up (we were)!

And he was right! Minutes later, we arrived at the bridge and enjoyed the view of the waterfall, taking a few obligatory “we were here” photos. We sat around under the trees by the bridge for a while to recover before setting off back. We filled up our water bottle again and started the journey back, past a squirrel that was splattered on a rock looking knackered. It looked how I felt.

The walk down wasn’t too bad; certainly easier than going up. Once at the bottom, we joined the queue for the shuttle bus. There were loads of people waiting at the bus stop, as it seemed late, then three came at once: you know what they say about buses. So, we caught the bus back to the visitor centre. We got off at ‘Curry Village’, having spotted some deer from the bus. We took some pictures before heading to the gifts and grocery store where we bought Burt the bear, some Pepsi, a fridge magnet, a sew-on badge and a postcard.

We’d already decided that we wanted to go to Glacier Point next, via Tunnel Viewpoint. This involved a drive. And a much longer one than we expected, as it turned out! We stopped a couple of times along the way, including at Tunnel View, which offered fantastic views across the park. The car park at Tunnel View filled up shortly after we arrived, with a number of coach parties and we left just before we got blocked in by another coach. The drive to Glacier Point took much longer than expected, due to the slow winding roads, but we did see a wolf by the road on the way, which was fantastic. We stopped at a viewpoint shortly before Glacier Point which was pretty busy. Somebody offered to take a photo of us sitting on a rock against the panorama, which was nice. We also saw some more of the blue birds we’d seen earlier and took some more pictures before heading back along the winding roads.

From Glacier Point, our next stop was due to be Mariposa Grove, home to the huge Sequoia trees. Time was already marching on and we started to get concerned whether we would make it in daylight. Again, it turned out to be a really long drive (the park is massive); it took about an hour and a half and it was gone 7:30 PM when we arrived. The light had already started to fade so much that Dani had already taken a picture of the sunset just before we arrived. The trees were incredible, and absolutely massive. Disappointingly, they were fenced off to protect the roots, so you couldn’t get too close. We had a bit of a wander, and it was dark before we left to head back to Mariposa.

It took about another hour and a half to get back along winding hill roads. We went straight to a restaurant in town called the Charles Street Dinner house. It was very nice; I had fettuccine and steak and Dani had honey barbecue baby back ribs. Again, the meal came with a side salad and also some very nice garlic bread. It was all very nice and cost $75, including tip. Back at the hotel, we had a quick look at photos, but the Internet was going too slowly to be any use, so we went to bed, ready for our road trip to LA tomorrow.

Got up a bit late, after our late-night pizza! I went down Starbucks to get tea and, despite having to relay my order several times to different people, managed to get two teas and chocolatines. They still seem incapable of leaving any room for milk, despite being asked!

Got all of our stuff packed up, and toddled down to check out. Had a two dollar bill for the local phone calls (the pizza) - last of the big spenders! Made our way down to the car park to retrieve the hire car - a fairly easy-going walk downhill from Van Ness Avenue to O’Farrell. A friendly parking attendant helped us out, with the pay machine and indicated where the lifts were, and we were away! As we drove out of San Francisco, we happened to pass the car rental offices and, low and behold - a massive queue. No surprise there really! Poor things.

Left San Francisco via the Bay Bridge, which has some intermittent views, but the walls were too high to see over most of the time. The route east was painless and we reached Berkeley easily. Used the SatNav to locate some parking, but found one on our own, just opposite the US Post Office. It was $2.50 for the first two hours, which seems reasonable. Interestingly, there was the ongoing protest outside the post office, to say no to the privatisation of the post office. Quite interesting, given the same question being raised back home. It turns out that the building is being sold, rather than the actual service, but people want to preserve the historic building.

We began to have a little wander, nipping into the post office to buy some stamps. We then found the high street, almost immediately stopping to buy an ice cream from Papa John’s Ice-Creams - we thought we’d start lunch with dessert. Tempted by the promise of a scoop for a dollar, we both had one! Ben had choc’ chip and chocolate, in a chocolate-dipped waffle cone and I had avocado and ube (sweet potato and yam apparently) in a small cone - I’ll be honest; I picked mine for the colours! As the ice cream dripped down our hands, we pottered on. Went in a couple of bookshops, looking for an American Atlas and eventually happened upon a deli, where we bought some huge sandwiches - roast chicken and cheese, which we kept to eat a bit later.

Having returned to the car, we drove out of Berkeley, passing through the University. We were trying to find a renowned beauty spot called Grizzly Peak, but it turned out to be elusive. We drove around for at least an hour, suffering from the distinct lack of British brown signposts to send us in the right direction. Eventually, happened upon Lakeview car park. Sounded promising… But not a real view of the lake, more of a car park. Sat and ate our sandwiches in view of a very symmetrical portaloo! The sandwiches were very nice, however!

Drove on, seeing some spectacular scenery. Ironically, all the places you can stop along the way have views of nothing but trees, whereas you can only drive past the fantastic panoramas! They need a bit of National Trust input!

Travelled on towards Yosemite and our motel in Mariposa. As we went, we couldn’t help but stop along one of the straight, seemingly never-ending roads, with barely any cars. There was nothing to see for miles, apart from pistachio trees and wheat. Stood in the road for photos! The whole journey didn’t take as long as we might have expected and we arrived in Mariposa. Check-in was easy and we had ourselves a room with two queen beds - room for a party! Had a little sloth around and then headed to the Miner’s Inn restaurant. An hour later and we were stuffed. We shared potato skins as a starter, although there were four, which was quite vast, and then I had meatloaf and Ben had southern fried chicken. We were baffled as to why the main courses came with either soup or salad and opted for salad, as a lighter choice! Nevertheless, the portions were massive and we didn’t eat it all. Good value at $45, but huge! How do American people manage this?

An interesting day so far! Woke up early, but lazed.. Ben went down to Starbucks to get tea and we drank it with our leftover muffins from yesterday - a very tasty start to the day. We were picking up our hire car at around/after 10 AM, so we moseyed down at around 10:45 AM, heading towards Union Square.

When we arrived at ‘Dollar’ (the hire place) there seem to be a sizeable queue, so we went on, nipping into Macy’s to use the restrooms. Got back to the queue at about 11:50 AM and got in line, standing outside - it was quite cold! An hour later, we had made a bit of progress - a couple of metres. Rumours were rife - people had been there for three hours… And it sounded like there was a wait to actually get the car too…

Two and a half hours later - we were served! Incredible! In answer to the “and how are you today?” question, a rather curt, “ I don’t think you want an honest answer to that”, put an end to the small talk. It took about 5 minutes to actually get the paperwork sorted, which makes it staggering that we waited so long. It cost a further $70, as we needed to increase the breakdown insurance to cover towing away and replacement.

Left the place rather dazed, having lost a good chunk of the day to a queue. Decided not to get the car immediately as we hadn’t had any lunch. Went to Subway to pick up a sandwich to take with us - though where we are actually going was yet to be decided as the day has drifted away! Popped into a T Mobile shop to enquire about an American Sim card, but no joy. So, headed to get the car. They couldn’t find the key for the designated car, so we think we got an upgrade. Anyway it’s a Chevrolet Sprint - a big saloon (quite dwarves our KA!). Had a quick lesson in automatics from one of the managers and then set off.

Headed south, vaguely towards Santa Cruz, but stopped off in Palo Alto, home to Silicon Valley (Google, etc). Pulled over for a break and decided to wander. And we were glad we did! A really pretty little place - very leafy and lots of little restaurants. We fell into The Cheesecake Factory, and decided to order dessert, by way of dinner. I had the plain cheesecake with some strawberries, and Ben had chocolate cheesecake. We both got most of the way through, but took a doggy bag home. So full!

On the way back to San Francisco, we passed by Google International and the place where we think Facebook is, though it wasn’t marked, so we stopped for a photo opp. We tried to have a look at Microsoft, but got entangled in some concert parking.

Had a very good journey back and Ben negotiated the traffic and the car beautifully! We parked in a LAZ car park we had spotted before, a couple of blocks from the hotel, which was much more reasonable than the hotel parking ($45) as it only charged $25 overnight. Got a bit lost coming out of the car park, but made it. Dumped stuff at the hotel, and then headed out to Chinatown to see the lights. A little disappointed, however, as it wasn’t as bustling and well-lit as we thought. Took some photos and then walked back - up all the hills of California Street! Ordered a pizza from the village pizzeria again and scoffed at about 11 PM.

As we had got in late yesterday, we had a slightly more leisurely morning. We did wake up quite early, but dozed for a while. I went down to Starbucks next door and got tea (I keep forgetting that you have to order ‘hot tea’ here, and you need to ask them to leave ‘room for milk’ as they don’t drink it like us Brits!) and chocolatines - they had even warmed up the chocolatines, so they were extra-tasty, chocolatey goodness! We had showers and then had a chat with Lorna, Audrey, and mum and dad via Skype, catching up and telling them about our activities.

We headed out, planning to withdraw some cash for the day. Started to use the cash machine, although found out that it would charge us a flat fee of $5, so changed our mind. Then changed it back again - instead, we decided to withdraw more, to make the fee more palatable. So, we nipped back to the hotel to leave the extra cash in our room safe.

Then, we headed out properly. We got the tram to the Ferry building and switched onto the F-line around Fisherman’s Wharf, getting off near the bike rental place we had seen before. Stopped to use the restroom on the way, only to end up waiting for 10 minutes as they had closed them for ‘cleaning’ and they were the only local loos! Some American bloke and his kid also tried pushing in, but an loquacious American woman started on him - quite a bit of excitement so early in the day!

Went to the bike shop and got hooked up with a tandem and snazzy helmets! The lady chatted on about some directions, but there were quite a few and, by the end, I couldn’t even remember which way we were supposed to leave the shop! Dani decided she would take the back seat, so I took the helm though I did find it quite difficult to get my leg over the bike frame - I blame the jeans - clearly, not biking gear! So, we set off on our ride - somewhat wobbly to begin with.

We cycled around towards the Golden Gate Bridge, stopping for photos a few times. We used the gorilla pod to take one of us and the bike, and a lady offered to take a photo when we got to a pier just before the bridge. Whilst at the pier, we had a little sit and a hot dog from ‘Let’s Be Frank’, a hot dog stand - it was very tasty. We then began the cycling part of the journey again.

There were some steep bits to get up to the bridge and, once there, there were lots of people in the bike lane, so Ben kept ringing the bell. A little further along, we got stopped by a bridge man, who told us that we were supposed to be cycling on the other side (pedestrians on one side, bikes on the other). I think the lady at the shop might have mentioned this - oops! So, once on the right side of the bridge, we got up some big speed. There were a few hairy moments, but we managed not to crash - result! It was a bit windy on the way across and, when we got to the other side, we decided to cycle back again, rather than waiting for the ferry. On the way back across, we stopped to take some pictures of a tall ship that was sailing under the bridge. We kept on zooming on, after a ‘Kodak moment’ and sped back down - it was distinctly warmer off the bridge!

We rode back towards Fisherman’s wharf, stopping at a Safeway (of all places!) on the way - Ben looked after the bike whilst I went in, getting some muffins, crisps and water - a mini crap run! Were planning to go across to the Golden Gate Park, but we realised that it was still a good distance away and it was already gone 5 PM. So we continued along, back to the bike shop - there were a few hairy moments when Ben zoomed downhill at super-speed, but I just closed my eyes! Returned the bike, suffering slightly from saddle bottom. It had cost $60 for the day.

Having dropped the bike, we decided it was beer o’clock - we went to Applebees for a drink, sitting on the balcony, under a heater - nice! After, we strolled to the F-line stop, having figured out where it goes now! Except the tram was packed when it came past! Managed to find a different stop by following the tracks to a different point. Made it back to Union Square. We looked around for somewhere to eat, but places seemed quite expensive. Decided to go to the Cheesecake Factory in Macy’s - but it was absolutely rammed! Totally rammed! As our feet were tired, we made it down a level, to Macy’s ‘Burger Bar’ and settled in. We had a pitcher of Budweiser and three mini-burgers each, with fries and onion rings - about $70, including tip. A little pricey, but we walked away - stumbled, might be more accurate - very stuffed! And so, to bed!

Woke up early again. Ben put some photos on Facebook while I snoozed for a bit. Then we got up, to face the world. Went across the street from breakfast, to a patisserie/cafe type place for breakfast - called Dolce Amore. We had their signature bagel: scrambled eggs, bacon, cheese, tomato and avocado, with a mango and strawberry garnish. It was very tasty - about $8 each - with a glass of fresh orange juice.

From here, we went to catch the tram on California Street (the day pass was $14 each). We got off at Powell to catch a connecting tram. Wandered around a little, to find the right tram stop and then waited. But, when they arrived, the trams were so full we couldn’t get on. Waited a bit, watching as a few packed trams went past, then decided to walk along the route, intent on catching one as we walked. We passed along ‘Taylor Street’ and looked in a bike rental place. Ended up walking all the way to Fisherman’s Wharf, as trams seemed few and far between.

When we arrived at the Wharf, we walked along to Ghirardelli Square, which we had missed on our tour of San Fran, yesterday. Went to the Ghirardelli chocolate shop for an ice cream - Ben had mint-choc chip, and II had chocolate and butter pecan, both with a chocolate dipped waffle cone. It was a little confusing ordering them - we had completely missed the menus as we came in, so we had no idea what they sold!

We sat on some steps, people-watching and scoffing. It was cooler today, although the sun tried to make an appearance. Walked along the path to a pier, and walked out along it. Stopped to take pictures of a catamaran (part of the America Cup) which was sailing around the Bay. It leaned over dramatically, virtually lifting out of the water! Which, for such a huge boat, was quite a feat. While we watched, a flock of what appeared to be pelicans flew past. We also saw a seal, wiggling around in the water. Stood and watched for a while and then headed back along the walls. Pretty good for sightseeing!

We were ultimately headed to Alcatraz, but we stopped off for a drink on the way at ‘Jacks Cannery Bar’ . We both had a beer and sat people-watching for a while. From here, we got a tram, having walked a good distance along the wharf, and headed towards the Ferry Building stop. While travelling, we thought we would stop off at the cable car museum, as the trams around here are amazing, so stopped to have a look.. A little disappointed to find it was only a room with memorabilia in - part museum, part shop. We bought a nice poster of a cable car at night, then headed out. We thought we’d look inside the Ferry Building, and it turned out to be a host of little boutique shops, mainly selling food. Had a little look around and then headed to Alcatraz.

It had dropped colder, so we stopped in the Alcatraz cafe for a cup of tea. We waited till about six - our boarding time - and were surprised to see a lot of people already queueing. Seemed odd, but showed our tickets and joined the line. Had an obligatory photo taken, in front of an image of Alcatraz, which you could buy later for ‘only’ $22. Got aboard the boat and set sail. The fog had crept in, so the coastline looked quite eerie.

The Rock’ itself is huge and home to lots of different birds, some of them rare. We had a bit of a tour up to the prison, with a guide, then it was an audio guide inside. Had a good look around all the cells in the different sections, taking a few pictures of Brugges (on tour) - he did a lot of posing just inside the cell bars. It is all starting to decay, but gives a good indication of how grim it was. I was too cold to stay outside long, but Ben took lots of pictures of the Bay in the twilight. It looked really good, with the fog looming over. We had to rush a bit to get the return ferry, but made it and headed back to shore.

We tried to get a tram, but they just drove past as they were packed, so we ended up walking all the way down Battery Street, until we reached California Street. Got the tram from there - the day ticket is worth it, just for the uphill stretch! Got back to the hotel and phoned a pizza delivery place - Ben had quite a chat with them, working out their menu! We ended up with a massive pizza - we had ordered ‘medium’! We tried (and failed) to eat it all. They even sent paper plates for us. As we had only arrived at the hotel at about 10 PM, we fell asleep soon after the pizza!

So not much of a lie in; we woke up, around 7 AM, ready to start the day. Despite the early wake-up we didn’t leave the hotel until 9.30 AM. We decided today that we would do a walking tour of San Francisco, to check out some of the main sites. We started by heading over to Union Square. It’s about a mile from the hotel, so it took about 20 minutes. We both wore jeans today as it was pretty cool out and I was wearing a jumper, and Dani, a coat. At Union Square, we headed into Macy’s department store to get some breakfast from the in-store Starbucks. I had a cup of tea and a chocolatine and Dani had a cinnamon roll with a vanilla latte. It was $11, which we thought was okay. After breakfast, we had a look at the cheesecake factory on the top floor (Rhi had told us about this). We didn’t have any cheesecake, but we had a look out from the balcony over Union Square and took some pictures. We didn’t spend much time looking in the shops, but we did see a flat pop-out tram (the pieces pop out and slot together to make 3-D model). We didn’t get it but thought it might make a good present for someone.

We headed out from Macy’s to start our walking tour. First, it took us through Chinatown. It was really colourful; there were people playing traditional Chinese music and at one point, a van pulled up full of watermelons, which was quickly surrounded by lots of people. Next, we headed up to Lombard Street (the most crooked street in San Francisco). I think it’s because the incline is much too steep to be straight, so it wiggles all over the place. It looked really colourful, with big hydrangea plants planted all the way up. There were lots of people taking photos - including the people in the cars, driving down! There was also an amazingly vivid pink bougainvillea growing up a striking blue house, which was stunning.

We trekked up the 250 odd steps and admired the views for a while. From there, we headed to Fisherman’s Wharf. We had a wander among the historic ships and then went to Pompeii’s Grotto for lunch. I had a clam chowder in a sourdough bowl and Ben had a BLT with fries - with a local beer each, called Anchor Steam. It was really nice - about $35. It was starting to get sunnier as we had lunch and the mist seemed to have cleared.

We carried on walking along the wharf, stopping off at Pier 39 to look at the local sea lion populace. We then headed up to Goit Tower, up a great many steps - we had to ask two different people how to find our way up, as it wasn’t marked. So, exhausted and hot, we admired the views when we got to the top, although it took us a while to recover from the climb! We decided not to go up in the tower itself - the queues were epic and the observation level seem to be enclosed in glass, so we weren’t bothered. Wandering around the outside, we saw a hummingbird - quite exciting!

From there, we headed back towards Union Square. We were going to get an ice-cream on the way, but didn’t see anywhere. We were getting very weary and were keen to find somewhere to sit! On the way up to Starbucks in Macy’s, we had a look at the pop-out tram, but it was $14 which seemed quite expensive (it’s by some designer). Once in Starbucks, we discovered it was packed - no seats and people standing. We tried a couple more Starbucks that were nearby(they are quite literally on every corner!) before settling in an Irish pub. We had a couple of drinks, which were surprisingly expensive ($7 for a pint!)

We had a look in our tourist booklet for places to eat, and settled on Lori’s Diner, which was nearby. It looked like a proper American diner, complete with a cut out car on the front! We sat at the counter next to some other Brits. You could see the food being cooked as we waited. Dani had a Lori ‘signature’ burger and I had a Big Bopper (bacon cheeseburger). We also had onion rings to share, and a couple of cokes. As it turned out, the portions were massive! I finished my burger, but Dani didn’t, and there were lots of onion rings left. It cost $40 with a $5 tip. From there, we headed back to the hotel, feeling shattered. We watched a bit of TV and looked at some photos before nodding off. Alcatraz tomorrow!

So, I’m writing this at what is essentially about 5 AM, after what felt like, and virtually is 24 hours of travel. We travelled all the way from the UK, flying from Manchester to Heathrow, and then Heathrow to America. We slept okay in the TraveLodge and got up around eight-ish to sort ourselves out. I had to empty out my carry-on bag, to ensure all the things that I had randomly stuffed in it yesterday were ‘safe’ to take on the plane.

Then we went to get on the shuttle bus (£7 for the two of us). The driver helped us load our stuff and checked that we wanted to get Terminal 3, to which we nodded, but we didn’t actually know for sure!

Turned out it was terminal three! Got checked in for our Heathrow flight and for our San Francisco flight. The very helpful lady at check-in gave us a printout of all of our flights on our ticket for us to refer to and then we had to go to a different place to deposit our rucksacks (as we did in Europe - they are classed as ‘soft’, although they’re pretty solid due to the amount of stuff!) We then wiggled through security. Ben’s bag got stopped for a ‘random check’ - the mini suitcase was swabbed for any chemicals used for bombs, etc. But, it passed the test, so we wiggled on.

Once through, we found a seat and scoffed the remaining chocolatines and a couple of bananas. We had a bit of a wander and found a better seat, with a view of the runway. Got a couple of bottles of water from WHSmith’s and sat. And waited. For a while…

We got the call for our gate and scuttled off. Got on the plane - to find we were almost the last people on, apparently - although we were there just after the call. Clearly, everybody else was super-prompt, as we got going ahead of schedule. The flight was pretty quick, with a complimentary drink and snack. We arrived at Heathrow 15 minutes early and followed the purple signs to meet our connection. Ben recognised the terminal when we arrived - having sat and waited there when he went to Spain (on a school trip) recently. We had a wander around and admired all the designer shops and the Harrods ‘boutique’, but were surprised by the lack of places to eat as we expected more variety; clearly, Heathrow is above such things as McDonald’s and Burger King! We sat down to share a toasted steak and cheese ciabatta, which was really nice, from EAT, and then, when our gate was called, we went on the little train to get to the gate. So far, so good.

Arrived at our gate and settled in at a window seat with a nice view, which was slightly hampered by a Polish couple, who stole my seat when I went to the toilet. But, when Ben went to the toilet, our row was called - it’s all go!

Got onto the plane and sat in our little couple seat (specially selected during online check-in yesterday) and Ben lined up the films he wanted to watch. As the flight got underway, we began watching, but the complimentary headphones didn’t do much to block out the noise of the plane. So, most of the dialogue went unheard! We decided to try the headphones from my MP3 player which worked much better, though obviously we only had one pair. So, we whiled away the 10 hour flight by watching films, going to the toilet and eating! First meal: a chicken and vegetable risotto, which was very nice - perhaps more like a savoury rice pudding, but tasty all the same. Had a mini bottle of wine for me and a mini keg of Heineken for Ben. Second meal: chicken Caesar sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and jam, and, weirdly, a mini tub of water! Saw some fantastic views as we flew over Canada - lots of mountain ranges complete with snowy blanket.

Landed at San Francisco - slightly panicky moment when looked for a minute like we were going to land on water! - but a very smooth landing. Everyone applauded when we landed - presumably due to the recent incident at San Francisco! (There was a recent crash landing at San Francisco airport, reported on the news - the wreckage was still visible from the runway where we landed). We disembarked, spent about 30 minutes queueing at customs, had to give fingerprints (!) and photos, and we were out!

Got the BART (train) into San Fran - a 25 minute journey ($8.25 each) and then walked - further than we anticipated - to the hotel. Had a rather strange experience at check-in, as the woman seemed to want to chat, but then alternated with trying to get rid of us. She worried us a little by asking us for a voucher for our stay - which we didn’t have - but, she reluctantly agreed to copy our itinerary instead, with all the necessary references and reservation numbers on.

Our room is on the 19th floor, commanding a good view of the city. We had a sit and then went out - at what felt like four in the morning, although it was actually only 8 PM US time. Bought some pizza slices from a nearby pizza place - $17 for four big slices. Started feeling very flaky, so wandered back to the hotel and turned in.

I still had to go to school today - until 2:30 PM, at least. So, I left Ben at home with a tiny little list of jobs to complete…

Arriving home, I discovered Ben lolopping on the sofa with the laptop - ‘surfing the net’. Prompted into action, he leapt (slowly) up and we got on. We did some last minute printing, some last minute shoving-things-into-bags, and created some contact details for our neighbours. After a brief chat with Pete and ‘her in doors’ (next door), we made ready for the taxi. Having arranged a pick-up for 5:30 PM, we assembled ourselves and all of our baggage on the drive, ready for the off. Because we are slightly OCD, we took pictures of ourselves setting the alarm and locking up, for peace of mind and, obviously, for posterity.

Bundled into the taxi, we made it to the train station a full hour before our train, so we had a bit of time to people-watch. Dani bought some chocolatines from Sainsbury’s local for tomorrow’s breakfast, along with some Maltesers, so we sat and scoffed while we waited. The train was marginally late and it took us a little while to get settled (what with all our baggage), but otherwise the journey was fine.

Upon arriving at the airport, we skipped the queue for the shuttle (to transfer) and got a taxi for the same price of £7 to the airport TraveLodge. After check-in, we did have a few issues with the key card for our room, so we ended up moving rooms. The hotel is undergoing a refurb, so the decor was a little bit rubbish. Nevertheless, the room was fine and we settled in our room to eat some  sandwiches and crisps. After watching a bit of TV, we headed down to the bar for a pint. Headed back up to the room and settled into bed - the room had been pretty warm, but had cooled a bit by now. We had pre-booked the shuttle bus booked for 9:00 AM tomorrow (for the big adventure to begin, so probably time to get to bed. Cheerio, ta ta!