Blogs
So last night was spent at the theatre watching The Lion King. Had tickets in the 3rd front row smack in the middle. The theatre wasn't really that big (which was a surprise) so the seats were pretty awesome and gave us a view of everything. Really enjoyed the show as whilst it was a musical there was also some dialogue as well. And the animals/costumes were pretty awesome.
Today was up the Empire State. It is a nice view, but not as nice as the top of the Rockefeller. The Empire State is very crowded and the observation decks are very narrow whereas at Top of the Rock it's not and there are 3 decks.
After that it was downtown to catch the free Staten Island Ferry to view the Statue of Liberty. Which isn't very large at all. Then back to head past Wall St and to where Ground Zero is. Walking past Wall St was quite interesting given the financial situation. News trucks pretty much everywhere and very crowded/busy. On that *OMG* at the AUD which now only buys $0.63 USD! It dropped like 5 cents overnight! An every day is a new cycle where panic seems to drop every market lower. In the lift up the Empire State it had one of those TV screen things, and it said the Dow dropped 500 points in the first 5 minutes of it opening!
Then it was a walk to Chinatown where some 1 <3 NY shirts were bought. And a snack or two. Confusing moment when I was trying to order a drink but they didn't speak English and I don't speak Mandarin.
On to Union Square and a look at another Apple Store then back to the hotel. The Rockefeller Ice Rink is open from today so swung by that this evening to take photos and will go tomorrow morning for a skate. It's somewhat odd because it's outdoors but it isn't really cold yet here.
Anyways that's it for now...
Spotted on the steps of the Met... Deline happy that she is still on holidays. Little does she know that there is just only over 2 weeks left before the return home.
Okay that probably doesn't make much sense to many readers, but Em and Trish you probably will get it. They had construction on the steps though. I think there was a reference to that in the first ep of this season - will have to re-watch when I get home...
Anyways, am in NYC now. For the rundown of the flight across read scroll down to below the -----. For a insight into it, it was written during a 5 hour wait at the airport... an hour of which consisted of sitting on the plane!.
Arriving a little later than expected once the bags were dropped it was off out and about. Being somewhat addicted to GG a walk past the 'Palace' was required, and since it was pretty much almost round the corner the first stop (not really in the Upper East Side). After that a hot dog on the way to the Rockefeller Center to go to Top of the Rock which is an observation deck at the top. There are 3 levels and it gives you views out over all of Manhatten. Was pretty cool to look out at night.
Next was the Apple Store at 5th avenue then on to Times Square... Times Square had lots of flashy signs. Not sure if Vegas copied Times Square or Times Square copied Vegas. Unfortunately no Naked Cowboy was present. Then a stroll back to the hotel.
This morning was going to head up the Empire State but it was too hazy/foggy so decided to try tomorrow for a better view. So headed up towards Central Park for a walk around which was quite nice then checked out shops on 5th avenue.
Back at the hotel now for a bit of a rest but heading back out to Broadway/Times Square in the evening as watching the Lion King tonight.
Top of the Rock
Times Square
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So this is being typed from SF airport to be posted later. We're having a TAR moment... it's just on 8am have been at the airport since 4 something and the flight was meant to leave at 7:20am. If not for a faulty air conditioning part. And there was no definite answer for like more than an hour... instead something like 'We don't know if it is cancelled or is just delayed yet. There is a part at LA or maybe another plane but no decision.'. Which isn't actually helpful. So after a bit of waiting jumped in the customer service line as well as trying to phone United. Except the line was long and the phone service was all automated and didn't like me.
In the meantime there's 'a plane has arrived from LA, we have to check if the part is on it...' Hmmm how hard is it to know if they packed the part or not? Anyway, eventually it was confirmed, they were fixing it, and we're now leaving at 9:15am. Ironically everyone tried to book onto the next JFK flight which is full and it is leaving pretty much at the same time as us now.
Yay to flight delays... meh and they don't serve food domestically here in the US even when the flight is just short of 6 hours.
So this is probably the last post from San Francisco. Heading to a hotel near the airport tomorrow afternoon/evening because of the early flight to NYC the next morning and it has no free WiFi.
Today was pretty much a casual day around. Got a cable car down towards Fisherman's Wharf in the morning. Surprisingly at 8:30am in the morning there was already a queue! Hate to think what it is like on a weekend. Down at Fisherman's Wharf again, I decided to get a numberplate... just for randomness of the driving through 4 states.
After that onwards to the Golden Gate Bridge and then to Golden Gate Park. A bus ride back towards Civic Center went through a couple of suburbs that looked rather hippie-ish and then it was time for laundry washing. Which in this case required waiting for it to finish given the somewhat dodgyness of this area... the part of SF with high population of homeless and substance addicted peoples.
Other than that was quite shocked at how much the dollar has dropped overnight - 1 Australian dollar = 0.7152 U.S. dollars! And that means the actual cash conversion rate is probably under 70 cents! So on that a little bit glad that there is approx a week left in the States.... at 70 cents USD to 1 AUD things start getting a little bit pricey.
Next post maybe from NYC if the free WiFi in the hotel lobby works... After that no idea what the net access is like... Must say Australia is very behind in this free WiFi thing...
Have to ask that question considering how steep some of the streets were. With the exception of the hills, San Francisco is a very easy city to walk around as things aren't that far away. Headed to Alcatraz this morning then walked to Coit Tower/Telegraph Hill then onwards to Lombard St which has a section that supposedly is "the crookedest street in world".
After that it was onwards to Fisherman's Wharf. It's pretty much catered for the tourist - seafood/fish and chip joints, souvenir stores and what not. Oh and what I reckon were giant seagulls. I swear they were like at least double the size of the Australian sea gull. Oh and the sea lions at one of the piers...
Then onwards to Chinatown to get some cake for afternoon tea and a stroll back to the hostel as the bus stops were way too crowded.
Tomorrow it's time for the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park and whatever else happens. Was going to hire a bike, but from the boat to Alcatraz it looks quite far to ride over to the other side of the bridge, so that idea is scrapped.
Anyways to give a perception of how steep some streets are... on the "crookedest street" there has to be a series switchbacks so the cars can actually get down the hill.
So made it to McCarran Airport checked in and all. Got to security screening and yay I'm marked SSSS. Which meant I had to get the special screening. Body pat down, bag searched (even though x-rayed), shoes checked and swabbed for stuff (I'm guessing explosives?). Will be interesting to see if I get checked over to NY. If so it probably means my name s similar to one on the watch list. Or I just have an really odd name to the Americans.
Today was a road trip to Flagstaff and Sedona for the day. Nice relaxing road trip. Not much of a post today as have to pack.
Probably next blog from San Francisco, or maybe the airport... we'll see...
Moved on from Page to the Grand Canyon and Williams today. The Grand Canyon is pretty impressive due to its size and the fact it was created from the Colorado River. That said, I think I still enjoyed Zion much more. Whilst the Grand Canyon is indeed grand, I think there is not as much to do. Partly probably due to it being the top of a canyon so any recreation activities like walks etc are aimed for serious hikers and can't really be done in a day. Still it was very nice and pics will come soon... (now added, 1 only 'cos tired)
So the GC was pretty much covered in a day, when 2 were planned. So tomorrow are first heading back to the GC for sunrise then deviating from the trip a bit. Road trip to Flagstaff and Sedona is now on the cards...
Anyways short post tonight, as early start tomorrow for the sunrise... Will probably blog tomorrow, then not sure as back in Vegas for a night before San Francisco.
So here's the rundown on Zion which was checked out yesterday and today. The park is part of the Grand Staircase which is part of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Zion forms part of the top of the Grand Canyon system and has the Virgin River running through it.
Don't know how to describe Zion as it was quite spectacular. Definitely glad to have visited this park instead of Death Valley National Park (especially since Death Valley would have been > 40 degrees celsius!). You enter the canyon at the bottom which gives a awesome view of the canyon walls and its colours.
Due to limited parking there is a shuttle system in place that brings you up/down the canyon where you can get off and look around, join trails etc. There are also a number of different trails in the park and checked out 3 of them (easy/medium of course!) which was fun and provided different views.
Left the park/Springdale a bit before 12 noon today to head across to Page, Arizona. As an interesting note Arizona is on the same time zone as Utah but don't observe daylight saving so we jumped back in time. Page is pretty much a small town just of U.S. Route 89. There's a dam which also has a hydroelectric plant and some shops, motels and fast food joints.
Anyways as usual, here is the pretty pictures for todays blog..
Driving into Springdale, Utah
Bottom canyon view
Weeping Rock
View from accomodation at Driftwood Lodge - Springdale is pretty much at the entrance to the canyon
Next few are views from Emerald Pools trail
From a viewpoint along the shuttle route
Where I am still recovering from the fact that timezones were crossed without knowing it and have been operating one hour behind for the whole day! Strangely enough getting to Utah was driving through Nevada then a teeny bit of Arizona to plonk out at Utah on central time.
So checked out Zion National Park today (and more tomorrow), pics later as had to madly do laundry as confusion of timezones stuffed things up a little.
But for the rundown of Vegas which I pre-typed... (pics now added at the bottom)
Vegas as expected, had a complete lack of free internet. The hotel had a rate of $11.99 (USD) per day! This would have been the same at a number of hotels on The Strip as in Vegas it seems that two hotel groups own pretty much all the hotels.
Day 1
Left Anaheim early to avoid traffic and the heat driving out to Vegas. As we arrived in Vegas mid morning and we couldn't check in yet, we headed straight for one of the outlet malls. And here began the shopping expedition of the next 3 days (or part thereof)...
Checked into the hotel in the afternoon and then walked the strip north checking out the casinos. After dinner we tried to catch the Treasure Island show but the wind was to great and it got canned. So headed back south down the strip to take photos, check out more casinos and shopping some more. I think the length of the strip was underestimated and by the time bedtime came it was after 1am.
Day 2
Headed out to Red Rock Canyon this morning. It's a State Park with a one way trail through the canyon wth stop points to park and join trails, take photos etc. Didn't do any of the trails here as the weather was quite hot - around 40 degrees celisus each day! - so took photos and stuff. Red Rock was pretty awesome, and if there was more time would've been an awesome place for a sunrise/sunset. Along the way to Red Rock a Walmart superstore (even bigger) was spotted and this was visited on the way back along with another outlet mall.
This evening was the highlight night in Vegas - a feast at 'The Buffet' at the Bellagio then to watch O by Cirque du Soleil. The buffet was completely awesome, it was about $38 USD p/p as Fri/Sat nights cost more, but it was well worth. The tenderest roast turkey, lamb chops, prime rib you will have ever tasted, peeled prawns, smoked salmon, raw salmon/tuna, sushi, pre-opened crab leg not to mention the deserts and everything else! When compared to the prices of normal meals in Vegas, it wasn't that pricey as a decent meal seemed to cost $17-$30 USD. And once you added drinks you soon almost reach the cost of the buffet. So nice was it that will be heading back to it on the one night in Vegas before flying out to San Francisco.
Caught the Bellagio fountain show before heading to O. O was impressive and is to hard to detail here, but it was a water based show and it was worth it just for the setup alone. Imagine a stage, which is also a pool and the top moves as needed to make it just floor, shallow, deep. There was high diving, acrobatics, syncronised swimming, dancing, fire twirling...
Day 3
The laid back day in Vegas which still was quite full. Checked out some other casinos, shopped some more then tried to pack all the stuff bought. Forgot to mention that a second luggage was bought back on Day 1 in Vegas... Tried to catch Treasure Island again tonight, but a storm front overhead brought even stronger wind and it got canned again. Will try again next Fri night and if it doesn't happen it wasn't meant to be. Heard a man there tonight say last time he was in Vegas he tried 3 nights in a row and it got canned 'cos of the wind (pyrotechnics are used).
So all in all, Vegas is a pretty awesome place. The weather was crazy hot, but with shopping and all the tacky yet awesome casino experiences it was a place I really enjoyed.
And Mum (or anyone wondering)... the shopping rundown is something like:
2 pairs jeans, 2 pairs shoes, 3 jumpers, 2 polo shirts, 5 t-shirts, 1 pair shorts, all the stuff from Disneyland (tater, mug, Mickey stuff) and magnets (yep I remembered them). That said, not all the stuff is for myself...
Welcome to Las Vegas...
Paris casino/hotel
Fountains at the Bellagio
m&m's at m&m's world
Red Rock canyon - photos of the red portion of canyon on a different camera so this for now...
Reading note: Posting is a reverse of the last two days... (being typed during the commerical breaks of the first episode of Grey's Anatomy Season Five).
Today was a visit to the happiest place on earth - otherwise known as Disneyland. Considering I wasn't really thinking of going to Disneyland until a couple of months before leaving for holidays, I have to now say that it is awesome! And really could quite possibly be [one] of the happiest places on earth. And because Halloween is in about a month here, the park was decorated in a Halloween theme!
Going in September was really good as it wasn't really crowded at all. Covered all the major rides without waiting more than 15 minutes. By 12 noon (park opened 10am) had ridden (in order) Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain, Indiana Jones, Buzz Lightyear and Space Mountain. And in the afternoon it wasn't too bad either. Fastpast-ed Indie ride and had to wait 30 min for Splash Mountain but that was it. Pretty much everything else (except for some reason the little kiddie rides like Dumbo) had a 5 minute wait time. Space Mountain though made me a bit dizzy and had to have a bit of a break after it - hot weather and no breakfast I think didn't work well.
The second time on Splash Mountain though was well worth the wait. The first time in the morning I barely got a splsh of water- actually I don't think anyone in the log did. But in the afternoon I managed to get the front of the log, and the log practically got flooded on every downhill bit. Like a wave of water coming over the front and by the end was totally soaked head to toe - a relief from the weather which was quite hot. Everyone in our log this time got soaked for some reason.
Oh and I had to get Mickey ears, as they had free embrodiary of your name, and where am I ever going to find my name on anything? So I was quite :-)
Some pictures:
Yesterday was driving out from Santa Monica to Anaheim time. Some car hire related issues to detail at a later stage, but the drive wasn't that bad really. LA traffic isn't too bad - it's pretty much like Sydney except with more lanes.
Dumped our gear the motel and as we had nothng planned checked out a shopping mall and a Walmart which is like a Big W and Woorlworths in one. And it has a pharmacy and Macca's and this was a small Walmart.
Anyways that's the main rundown for the last few days. Tomorrow brings Vegas, and apparently there is not much free Internet there (if any) as all the casinos charge for Internet 'cos they can. So am probably disappearing from the web for the next few days. Next update will probably be from Utah.
