20th July - San Francisco - Highway One, Monterey, San Luis Obispo.
Steven woke me up at 6am. I was in such a heavy sleep it took me ages to work out where I was. He cooked us porridge for breakfast so we wouldn't get hungry and stop off everywhere, drew us a map to get to highway one from his place, packed up the car and we took off. The map was easy to follow - Stevens house in San Bruno is not far from highway one.
We first stopped at Pigeon Point at a lighthouse. We took photographs but the lighting wasn't that good. A bit foggy and overcast. Drove through Santa Cruz - didn't stop as we didn't think there was much to stop for, even though it is famous for it surfing. Looked cold. Second stop was in Monterey. WAlking to the wharf we came across a drunk asleep on park bench - I took a photo, but then felt guilty as next minute 2 fire paramedics, 4 cops and 2 ambulance drivers were there with him. I wondered if he was dead - but we saw him move - thank goodness. All up he had about 8 people attending to him.
It was FREEZING in monterey. I bought a fully lined jacket to keep me warm for $20. So cheap - made in China, but it did the job of keeping me warm and I'll be able to use it in NZ again. We wandered down the wharf keeping a look out for wildlife. Monterey is famous for whale watching, sea otters, harbour seals (spotted). I managed to get a few good photos of spotted harbour seal. I eventually wandered over to another part of the wharf and spotted a sea otter - was so excited about getting one in the wild I didn't check my camera settings - so not sure if it will turn out.
I lost Mike while at this wharf - so headed back to the car to find him waiting for me. He had bought a great coffee - mexican latte. Because I had taken so long I had to forfeit my chance of a coffee, however his coffee was fantastic - and fortunately for me he was driving and forgot he had it - so I drank most of it anyway!!!
Back on the road we stopped a few more times. The views were incredible. Just before the Hearst Castle we stopped in a viewing area to stretch our legs, and saw what we thought were chipmunks. We fed them - they were gorgeous. We were later told they were ground squirrels. However we still found them fascinating and I took some good closeups. They were taking
food out of our hands and they would let us stroke their paws.
Up to Hearst Castle. The castle is absolutely stunning with some very rare pieces of art from Europe/china. Incredible tour by a very knowledgeable guide. Bought a few knick knacks in the shops then carried on to San Luis Obispo to David and Diana's place. We found the Men's Colony (prison) okay, but still managed to get lost after that but eventually found our way.
David and Diana's house is really beautiful, and it was great catching up with them again after the reunion and we had a very enjoyable evening. We loved the pukeko's and kiwi's in the garden. I also saw a couple of hummingbirds but couldn't get close enough to photograph them However glad I just saw them.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Day 11 - 18th July - Sacramento - Lake Tahoe - San Francisco
Were up at 5.30am, packed up, carried luggage downstairs, cooked up some porridge for breakfast, had one teaspoon of it, then the shuttle arrived, so had to bin breakfast and get into shuttle. Damn - I was hungry. Shuttle cost $39 for the three of us (another hosteller came with us - Raul - also had a hearing impairment, that we met the night before. He asked if he could come with us and we said yes.
Shuttle dropped us off at the rental car place. We had ordered a midsize car - but they didn't have one ready, so they upgraded to a big SUV! Very comfortable - even bigger than the van we had going from Montreal to Chicago in 2006 - very nice too. Not too gas hungry.
I drove first. Everytime I went to indicate to turn, I turned the windscreen wipers on, but apart from that I was okay. Drove all the way to Lake Tahoe - stopped for breakfast at Tahoe City as we were starving by then. IT took two hours to drive up. After breakfast drove down the side of the lake and found a carpark. Walked to the beach to find a booth selling tickets for a boat trip on the lake, leaving in 10 minutes. So we decided on the spur of the moment that this would be the best way to see the lake. The ticket 'boy' asked if I was over 55. I told him that just for insulting me, he could give me the discount anyway. He did!!!
The boat trip was beautiful. Very blue water, hot and sunny. Mountains all around, even with a bit of snow up top still in mid summer. Place was crowded with lots of Americans holidaying there. The lake is the 2nd largest body of water in North America - isn't that big in square miles (92), but very very deep. Apparently if the USA ran out of water, it could supply every single american with enough water for 3 years. If it emptied, it would take 700 years to refill naturally.
The boat took us to emerald bay - very very beautiful. Took loads ofphotos as usual.
Back to the car after the trip (2.5 hours), and left Tahoe and made our way back to Paul's. We dropped Raul back in Sacremento - Mike was driving this time - several times he drove on the left, so I will probably drive the next leg down. Arrived Stockton about 5.00pm Google maps are excellent for navigating around USA. We picked up our luggage we had left there, said our goodbyes to Paul, then drove to San Francisco to Steven's place in San Bruno. It was great to see Steven again - he hasn't changed a bit - doesn't look a day over. The only difference is he now sports two cochlear implants (blue ones) on his ears. I asked if that made him 'bi'? We talked until Midnight. Fantastic.
Am very sunburnt from the lake trip -because we had no idea we would go out on the boat, I didn't pack the sunscreen. I have a touch of sunstroke - which is uncomfortable but not as bad as Tahiti 2 years ago. San Francisco is cold - 12C compared to the 38C in Tahoe!! Foggy. Tomorrow it's just washing, and taking it easy for a day!!
We start driving to San Luis Obispo on Sunday, we'll be back in SFO on the 25th - so no internet until then!!
Shuttle dropped us off at the rental car place. We had ordered a midsize car - but they didn't have one ready, so they upgraded to a big SUV! Very comfortable - even bigger than the van we had going from Montreal to Chicago in 2006 - very nice too. Not too gas hungry.
I drove first. Everytime I went to indicate to turn, I turned the windscreen wipers on, but apart from that I was okay. Drove all the way to Lake Tahoe - stopped for breakfast at Tahoe City as we were starving by then. IT took two hours to drive up. After breakfast drove down the side of the lake and found a carpark. Walked to the beach to find a booth selling tickets for a boat trip on the lake, leaving in 10 minutes. So we decided on the spur of the moment that this would be the best way to see the lake. The ticket 'boy' asked if I was over 55. I told him that just for insulting me, he could give me the discount anyway. He did!!!
The boat trip was beautiful. Very blue water, hot and sunny. Mountains all around, even with a bit of snow up top still in mid summer. Place was crowded with lots of Americans holidaying there. The lake is the 2nd largest body of water in North America - isn't that big in square miles (92), but very very deep. Apparently if the USA ran out of water, it could supply every single american with enough water for 3 years. If it emptied, it would take 700 years to refill naturally.
The boat took us to emerald bay - very very beautiful. Took loads ofphotos as usual.
Back to the car after the trip (2.5 hours), and left Tahoe and made our way back to Paul's. We dropped Raul back in Sacremento - Mike was driving this time - several times he drove on the left, so I will probably drive the next leg down. Arrived Stockton about 5.00pm Google maps are excellent for navigating around USA. We picked up our luggage we had left there, said our goodbyes to Paul, then drove to San Francisco to Steven's place in San Bruno. It was great to see Steven again - he hasn't changed a bit - doesn't look a day over. The only difference is he now sports two cochlear implants (blue ones) on his ears. I asked if that made him 'bi'? We talked until Midnight. Fantastic.
Am very sunburnt from the lake trip -because we had no idea we would go out on the boat, I didn't pack the sunscreen. I have a touch of sunstroke - which is uncomfortable but not as bad as Tahiti 2 years ago. San Francisco is cold - 12C compared to the 38C in Tahoe!! Foggy. Tomorrow it's just washing, and taking it easy for a day!!
We start driving to San Luis Obispo on Sunday, we'll be back in SFO on the 25th - so no internet until then!!
Day 10 - 17th July - Sacramento
We were up early and walked with our luggage the 4 or so blocks to the hostel. Much much nicer - clean, airy - an old victorian villa. It was fantastic and only $23 a night. While we are not exactly 'youth' we could still stay there. Our room wasn't quite ready - so we placed our luggage in storage and hit the streets of Sacramento. First up was breakfast. We found an amazing place called Jim's Denny's, a little outpost a few blocks away and a very historic landmark. Breakfast consisted of a pancake - bigger than the dinner plate it came on, and some hash browns. NOt very healthy I know but we were hungry. People there were really friendly, and I finally got a cup of tea I could call 'tea'. We couldn't eat all our breakfast so got a 'doggy bag' to feed the squirrels down in the park.
Walked to the State Capitol building and tried to feed the squirrels, but they weren't interested. Didn't even want to be photographed, so dumped the doggy bag in the trash and carried on. Wandered through the State Capitol building, home of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Very impressive. Then wandered back up the other way to Enterprise Rentals and booked a mid size car for tomorrow.
Back down past Capitol Building and wandered through a mall that took us to Old Sacramento. Very interesting - old buildings, fantastically historic place. Very hot - about 37C by 2.00pm. Mike wanted to walk through a museum. I had had enough though - the heat had sapped all energy and we had been walking since 8.00am. We headed back to the mall and air-conditioning. I wandered through Macy's but couldn't find anything I liked, but I did find the shop for those nice body lotions and got a few presents. Wandered around the mall until about 5.00pm. Walked back to the hostel. I was too tired for dinner so just made up some porridge. Mike went out with another hosteller, and hit the sack - was asleep by 9pm!!!
The bargain of the trip was a pair of Guess Sunglasses. They were $40.00. But they had a sale sticker on them so I asked their price. They scanned them and they were $8.57. I took them!!!!
Walked to the State Capitol building and tried to feed the squirrels, but they weren't interested. Didn't even want to be photographed, so dumped the doggy bag in the trash and carried on. Wandered through the State Capitol building, home of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Very impressive. Then wandered back up the other way to Enterprise Rentals and booked a mid size car for tomorrow.
Back down past Capitol Building and wandered through a mall that took us to Old Sacramento. Very interesting - old buildings, fantastically historic place. Very hot - about 37C by 2.00pm. Mike wanted to walk through a museum. I had had enough though - the heat had sapped all energy and we had been walking since 8.00am. We headed back to the mall and air-conditioning. I wandered through Macy's but couldn't find anything I liked, but I did find the shop for those nice body lotions and got a few presents. Wandered around the mall until about 5.00pm. Walked back to the hostel. I was too tired for dinner so just made up some porridge. Mike went out with another hosteller, and hit the sack - was asleep by 9pm!!!
The bargain of the trip was a pair of Guess Sunglasses. They were $40.00. But they had a sale sticker on them so I asked their price. They scanned them and they were $8.57. I took them!!!!
Day 9 - 16th July - New Jersey - Philadelphia - Houston - Sacramento
Got up early - zipped u luggage and sat talking to Jazzy for a while. We then packed up the car and took us to a nearby town called MontClair (Upper). We walked around the town taking photos of the historic buildings then had a cold drink in a diner before heading off to Newark - Penn Station to catch our train back to PHiladelphia.
For some reason catching the train is the hardest thing for me to do, and I was very nervous. When asked why - I narrowed it down to not hearing where the train was, missing my station, and ending up in Alaska somewhere. My fears were unfounded. We sat next to a guy also travelling around USA who was getting off at the same station. He just happened to live in San Luis
Obispo where we were heading on the 20th.
The train was 20 minutes late, and when we got to the station, we had to catch another train to the airport. Because of construction the trains were going every hour, instead of every half hour. This cut our airport check in time very close, but we managed to arrive at the airport at 4.10pm before our 5.40 flight. Queues for security were long though. Mike got stung with a $50 fee for overweight baggage - 12 pounds overweight. I was also slightly overweight by about 4 pounds, but was allowed to take 2 pounds out of my luggage to put in my backpack and thus didn't have to pay the fee. Weird - it's weight still being carried on the plane!!!
Arrived in Houston - had dinner at Wendy's as it was the only thing open that was 'okay' as far as food was concerned. Caught another plane to Sacramento. When we arrived we 'lost' our luggage, but found we were standing at the wrong carousel!!! Once we had the luggage, we caught a super shuttle to the Hostel we were staying at. On the way our shuttle had a crash on the freeway. Trying to merge into a lane while someone else was merging and had a side on crash. We had to wait for the cops to come, then give statements - we our now registered with CHIPS!
By the time that was sorted out (about 2 hours) we arrived at the hostel to find it CLOSED. No one there to open up at all. So the shuttle driver drove us around and found a dive of a place for us not far from the hostel. However, it was 3am and we were stuffed and a bed is a bed. Our alternative was to sleep in the park!!! It cost us $72 usd for this dive - not bad I guess!!!
For some reason catching the train is the hardest thing for me to do, and I was very nervous. When asked why - I narrowed it down to not hearing where the train was, missing my station, and ending up in Alaska somewhere. My fears were unfounded. We sat next to a guy also travelling around USA who was getting off at the same station. He just happened to live in San Luis
Obispo where we were heading on the 20th.
The train was 20 minutes late, and when we got to the station, we had to catch another train to the airport. Because of construction the trains were going every hour, instead of every half hour. This cut our airport check in time very close, but we managed to arrive at the airport at 4.10pm before our 5.40 flight. Queues for security were long though. Mike got stung with a $50 fee for overweight baggage - 12 pounds overweight. I was also slightly overweight by about 4 pounds, but was allowed to take 2 pounds out of my luggage to put in my backpack and thus didn't have to pay the fee. Weird - it's weight still being carried on the plane!!!
Arrived in Houston - had dinner at Wendy's as it was the only thing open that was 'okay' as far as food was concerned. Caught another plane to Sacramento. When we arrived we 'lost' our luggage, but found we were standing at the wrong carousel!!! Once we had the luggage, we caught a super shuttle to the Hostel we were staying at. On the way our shuttle had a crash on the freeway. Trying to merge into a lane while someone else was merging and had a side on crash. We had to wait for the cops to come, then give statements - we our now registered with CHIPS!
By the time that was sorted out (about 2 hours) we arrived at the hostel to find it CLOSED. No one there to open up at all. So the shuttle driver drove us around and found a dive of a place for us not far from the hostel. However, it was 3am and we were stuffed and a bed is a bed. Our alternative was to sleep in the park!!! It cost us $72 usd for this dive - not bad I guess!!!
Day 8 - 15th July - Quiet Day
Had a quiet morning sorting out luggage and printing out maps for the next part of our trip. Booked a hostel in Sacramento. Jazzy went to the gym, and when she got back she dropped me off at a masseuse to work on my terrible feet. So swollen. The masseuse was wonderful - the team masseuse for the New Jersey Jets.
I was picked back up again half an hour later. Jazzy took us to an ATM so we could get more cash, then took us to lunch at a family restaurant. Lovely. After lunch she drove us to her sisters in Winchester County where we spent the day by the pool swimming and talking and having a great day.
After dinner we had had dessert - the Great American Apple Pie. Jazzy then drove us to Macy's where I managed to pik up the fossil watch I had wanted last xmas, for $61. It was $120 on sale in NZ so I was pleased with that.
Back to Jazzy's to pack - spent until 2.30am finalising Sacramento and helping Mike pack and throw out lots of stuff that wasn't necessary to cart back to NZ.
I was picked back up again half an hour later. Jazzy took us to an ATM so we could get more cash, then took us to lunch at a family restaurant. Lovely. After lunch she drove us to her sisters in Winchester County where we spent the day by the pool swimming and talking and having a great day.
After dinner we had had dessert - the Great American Apple Pie. Jazzy then drove us to Macy's where I managed to pik up the fossil watch I had wanted last xmas, for $61. It was $120 on sale in NZ so I was pleased with that.
Back to Jazzy's to pack - spent until 2.30am finalising Sacramento and helping Mike pack and throw out lots of stuff that wasn't necessary to cart back to NZ.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Day 8 - July 14th - New York City
We left to go into NYC about 9.30am after rush hour. We went over the George Washington Bridge and drove down the Hudson Parkway along the river. Very pretty. It's quite exciting to see the city again, although I wasn't as excited as my first time 2 years ago, but it was nice to see Mike really excited - like a kid in a candy store!!
Jazzy parked at the Museum of Natural History carpark. You think parking expenses in Auckland is bad - but this was $27 for two hours!! Entry to the museum was free as Jazzy is a member of some sort. We decided to spend no more than two hours at the museum as we only have one day in NYC to see it all!! We decided to see the Dinosaurs, the African Animals and Great North American birds, finishing with the Ocean life.
The Dinosaurs were incredible. I have to admit I thought they would be boring - but the display was amazing, and I've never seen such complete skeletons, and so massive. Hard to believe vegetarians could get so big!! The African Animals were quite incredible too as the diaramas were over 100 years old, history bringing Africa to New York many years ago. The newer diaramas of the North American Birds were not so good, and they were not as old either, which is probably why! Ocean Life was okay - with a blue whale above at life size, making you feel small in comparison.
We left the museum at midday, and Jazzy dropped Mike and I off at B and H Camera/Video. This big shop was even bigger than last time I was there as they had added another floor. Now there are about 30 counters just for SLR digital photography, and another 25 or so for digital point and shoot. They were full too. They have a great system, you go in and tell them what you want, they order it, attach a slip of paper to a carton on a conveyor belt, which is sent round collecting the goods from each department that they order online. When finished you pay at a checkout, then proceed to the exit where you pick up your goods on the way out. Anyway - I told them of my problem with my focusing on my Canon - and it WAS the spot metering as I thought it was. The guy fixed it right there and then so I once again have a perfectly working Canon 20D, and there was no need for me to upgrade to the 40D. (Drat!!) I did buy some memory cards (2 x 4gb), and a bean bag tripod, and a gorilla pod for an SLR - smallish items that don't take too much room.
Mike bought a camera - a Sony H50 point and shoot with all the bells and whistles. Very light and compact - quite impressive. Has a zoom equivalent to a 500mm which is lovely, but still not fast enough for bird photography - so I'll stick to an SLR!
After we left B and H we bussed down to the Soho/Greenwich Village area and walked around the local shops. We heard some explosions or muffled sounds, and the ground shook, then about 3 minutes later about 25 cop cars came screaming down the street in a procession. We still have no idea what it was all about, but our thoughts did turn to 9/11. The ground shaking WAS probably a subway train underneath, but allthe cop cars did make us wonder... However, we carried on in the opposite direction, and stopped for lunch at Max Brenners. Yum. The hot chocolate was to die for!
After lunch we walked to the Empire State Building via Madison Square. We stopped for a while as we found some very tame squirrels that entertained us. I managed to take a photo of two of them having sex in the park. I'm going to call it 'Sex in the City'! A New Yorker was ignoring the signs 'Do not feed the squirrels', and feeding them Brazil Nuts, and gave us a few so we could feed them too. Very cute. Yeah Yeah - I know they're rats with tails - but they're still cute!
Carried on to Empire State building and decided to go up it. $19 (ouch), and lots of people so long queues for the lift. It went up the first 80 floors in 1 minute. My ears did not like it. More queues for the next 6 floors so they opened up the stairwell and we climbed the last 6 floors in the heat! That was actually quite tough going. Up outside - it was all push and shove - too many people and you could hardly get a spot to take photos. In that regard, the Rockefeller Centre that we went up in 2006 was much better. However, I managed to push and shove like the rest of them and got some decent photos! Back down 80 floors in 1 minute - by this time my ears really hurt!
My feet were sore too from all the walking, so we got a bicycle taxi to Times Square. It was a great way to see New York, and we forgot to tip the guy! I still can't get used to tipping and this tax they add onto everything! We wandered around Times Square for a while, it was getting dark and once again I felt this buzz, or sense of excitement that you only find in NYC. Amazing place. We did go into the M and M shop, 3 floors of M and M's and tubes and tubes of them from ceiling to floor filled with the same colours, so you can choose your favourites! I didn't get any though, it's far too hot and they would melt too quickly!
We then wandered back down to 42nd St and 8th Av to the Port Authority and caught the bus back to Jazzy's at 9.40pm. The bus driver was REAL grumpy. I got on and asked for a ticket to Little Falls.
'Where's your ticket?' he asked.
'I'm buying it now from you'. I said.
He was about to kick us off, but I calmly explained that I was from NZ, didn't know anything about pre-buying tickets as no one had told me about it, and we had been to the information centre. He grudgingly sold me a ticket on the bus. I then asked him to tell me when we were at our stop as I'm new - but when he we got there, he wasn't sure about it and couldn't help at all. Fortunately I recognised the landmark from 2006 and got off at the right place.
Came in and got online and booked the hostel at Sacramento for 16th July.
Jazzy parked at the Museum of Natural History carpark. You think parking expenses in Auckland is bad - but this was $27 for two hours!! Entry to the museum was free as Jazzy is a member of some sort. We decided to spend no more than two hours at the museum as we only have one day in NYC to see it all!! We decided to see the Dinosaurs, the African Animals and Great North American birds, finishing with the Ocean life.
The Dinosaurs were incredible. I have to admit I thought they would be boring - but the display was amazing, and I've never seen such complete skeletons, and so massive. Hard to believe vegetarians could get so big!! The African Animals were quite incredible too as the diaramas were over 100 years old, history bringing Africa to New York many years ago. The newer diaramas of the North American Birds were not so good, and they were not as old either, which is probably why! Ocean Life was okay - with a blue whale above at life size, making you feel small in comparison.
We left the museum at midday, and Jazzy dropped Mike and I off at B and H Camera/Video. This big shop was even bigger than last time I was there as they had added another floor. Now there are about 30 counters just for SLR digital photography, and another 25 or so for digital point and shoot. They were full too. They have a great system, you go in and tell them what you want, they order it, attach a slip of paper to a carton on a conveyor belt, which is sent round collecting the goods from each department that they order online. When finished you pay at a checkout, then proceed to the exit where you pick up your goods on the way out. Anyway - I told them of my problem with my focusing on my Canon - and it WAS the spot metering as I thought it was. The guy fixed it right there and then so I once again have a perfectly working Canon 20D, and there was no need for me to upgrade to the 40D. (Drat!!) I did buy some memory cards (2 x 4gb), and a bean bag tripod, and a gorilla pod for an SLR - smallish items that don't take too much room.
Mike bought a camera - a Sony H50 point and shoot with all the bells and whistles. Very light and compact - quite impressive. Has a zoom equivalent to a 500mm which is lovely, but still not fast enough for bird photography - so I'll stick to an SLR!
After we left B and H we bussed down to the Soho/Greenwich Village area and walked around the local shops. We heard some explosions or muffled sounds, and the ground shook, then about 3 minutes later about 25 cop cars came screaming down the street in a procession. We still have no idea what it was all about, but our thoughts did turn to 9/11. The ground shaking WAS probably a subway train underneath, but allthe cop cars did make us wonder... However, we carried on in the opposite direction, and stopped for lunch at Max Brenners. Yum. The hot chocolate was to die for!
After lunch we walked to the Empire State Building via Madison Square. We stopped for a while as we found some very tame squirrels that entertained us. I managed to take a photo of two of them having sex in the park. I'm going to call it 'Sex in the City'! A New Yorker was ignoring the signs 'Do not feed the squirrels', and feeding them Brazil Nuts, and gave us a few so we could feed them too. Very cute. Yeah Yeah - I know they're rats with tails - but they're still cute!
Carried on to Empire State building and decided to go up it. $19 (ouch), and lots of people so long queues for the lift. It went up the first 80 floors in 1 minute. My ears did not like it. More queues for the next 6 floors so they opened up the stairwell and we climbed the last 6 floors in the heat! That was actually quite tough going. Up outside - it was all push and shove - too many people and you could hardly get a spot to take photos. In that regard, the Rockefeller Centre that we went up in 2006 was much better. However, I managed to push and shove like the rest of them and got some decent photos! Back down 80 floors in 1 minute - by this time my ears really hurt!
My feet were sore too from all the walking, so we got a bicycle taxi to Times Square. It was a great way to see New York, and we forgot to tip the guy! I still can't get used to tipping and this tax they add onto everything! We wandered around Times Square for a while, it was getting dark and once again I felt this buzz, or sense of excitement that you only find in NYC. Amazing place. We did go into the M and M shop, 3 floors of M and M's and tubes and tubes of them from ceiling to floor filled with the same colours, so you can choose your favourites! I didn't get any though, it's far too hot and they would melt too quickly!
We then wandered back down to 42nd St and 8th Av to the Port Authority and caught the bus back to Jazzy's at 9.40pm. The bus driver was REAL grumpy. I got on and asked for a ticket to Little Falls.
'Where's your ticket?' he asked.
'I'm buying it now from you'. I said.
He was about to kick us off, but I calmly explained that I was from NZ, didn't know anything about pre-buying tickets as no one had told me about it, and we had been to the information centre. He grudgingly sold me a ticket on the bus. I then asked him to tell me when we were at our stop as I'm new - but when he we got there, he wasn't sure about it and couldn't help at all. Fortunately I recognised the landmark from 2006 and got off at the right place.
Came in and got online and booked the hostel at Sacramento for 16th July.
Day 7 - Philadelpha - New Jersey
Now starts the vacation part of the trip. Kim woke me up at 3.00am to say a final bye as she left to go to the airport to catch her flight home. She emailed me later to say that the hotel wanted to pay for the whole room, even though Cathy had already paid my share of it, and had the receipt. They ended up having to wake Cathy up at 3.15am to come down and sort it out, and apparently Cathy was really pissed off with the Hotel (and quite rightly so!) While this was going on I slept upstairs blissfully unaware of the problems I was causing!!
We meet Jazzy at 8.30am for breakfast in the hotel. Ate, got luggage, packed up car, checked out and vroomed up the freeways to New Jersey in Jazzys hot sports car. Unfortunately we couldn't put the top down as we had too much luggage. It took about 90 minutes to get to Jazzy's home in Little Falls, New Jersey. I actually recognised landmarks as we got close to her place so obviously my memory is still intact!
We unpacked a bit and then Jazzy took us to a New Jersey diner for lunch. Great food, not expensive and NJ diners are meant to be very unique in the USA. She then took u to a mall and I bought some New Balance running shoes for $34.00 (eat ya heart out running team!!), and also 3 pairs of Levi's. No tax on clothing in NJ and Levi's are wonderfully cheap. Back to Jazzy's for a lovely swim in the pool then got onto emails - have to yet book a hostel in Sacramento, and a rental car. I wonder if we could persuade USA to drive on the left for 3 weeks while I'm there???
For dinner we were taken to a moroccan restaurant in MontClair, NJ. It was absolutely divine food and finished with a refreshing mint tea - almost a syrup.
We meet Jazzy at 8.30am for breakfast in the hotel. Ate, got luggage, packed up car, checked out and vroomed up the freeways to New Jersey in Jazzys hot sports car. Unfortunately we couldn't put the top down as we had too much luggage. It took about 90 minutes to get to Jazzy's home in Little Falls, New Jersey. I actually recognised landmarks as we got close to her place so obviously my memory is still intact!
We unpacked a bit and then Jazzy took us to a New Jersey diner for lunch. Great food, not expensive and NJ diners are meant to be very unique in the USA. She then took u to a mall and I bought some New Balance running shoes for $34.00 (eat ya heart out running team!!), and also 3 pairs of Levi's. No tax on clothing in NJ and Levi's are wonderfully cheap. Back to Jazzy's for a lovely swim in the pool then got onto emails - have to yet book a hostel in Sacramento, and a rental car. I wonder if we could persuade USA to drive on the left for 3 weeks while I'm there???
For dinner we were taken to a moroccan restaurant in MontClair, NJ. It was absolutely divine food and finished with a refreshing mint tea - almost a syrup.
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