Weeks 5 & 6 - London

The trip from Heathrow to Chiswick was cold but hassle free as we know this route so well.  It was wonderful to see Stormin (aka Pippy Long Stocking) , Bumczyna, Zar and Pickle.  They looked as gorgeous as ever and hadn’t really changed since 2008 (Bumczyna hasn’t changed since I first met her 12 years ago). The only two remarkable differences were the house – all 7 floors of it - which had been completely renovated since our last visit and Stormin who is in training for the London Marathon and therefore super lean (bastard!).  

We sat around all night catching up and the next day lapped up the fact that we didn’t have to get up and go do stuff.  I personally loved the fact that Big A and I were no longer the source of Middle and Little A’s amusement and they happily played in Zar and Pickles room in the attic (6 floors away).  It was the first time they had been further than 5 metres from us in 4 weeks.  

Middle A, Pickles, Little A and Zar.

New Year's Dinner

New Year’s Eve was just lovely as Stormin and Bumczyna had been out to Harrods to stock up for a very special feast.  Beforehand we had ventured up to the Lyric Theatre to see the Panto “Aladdin” and then headed home where Stormin put the final touches on the NYE banquet.  Entrée: Lobster and smoked salmon; Main: beef and guiness pie; Desert: 4 mini signature deserts – yummy!  We welcomed in 2012 with a toast and watched the London fireworks from the comfort of the living room.  I swear it is the first NYE dinner I have ever had with friends where I didn’t take my (or should I say Bumczyna’s) slippers off …classy!  

Our big day out of the week was to the Tower of London where we took the girls on a guided tour.  Considering how the girls were having sleeping troubles complaining of nightmares and death I’m not sure how sensible it was, but we went along anyway and any concerns I had were quickly abated when 1 week later Middle A would ask, “what does decapitated mean?”.  I abandonded my chicks for possibly the second time in 35 days to meet up with Big Nikkers at the Trout in Hammersmith.  We have been friends since about 1997 when we both worked for a US software company and it was just like old.  The real stand out change was that she was driving so we could actually walk out of the pub without propping each other up.  She had some great news about her family situation and so we did have 1 celebratory toast (I think I had 2!).  Big A took the girls to the Big Easy in Chelsea – his favourite restaurant in the world, to eat his favourite food, Buffalo Wings so it was a great day all round.  Other trips this week included a trip to the British Natural History Museum and La Mancha, one of my favourite restaurants and the best authentic Spanish tapas outside of Spain I’ve ever eaten at.  [La Mancha Website] Don’t go early though as the atmosphere is much better from around 8pm.  I’d forgotten how late Londoners eat (or should I say how early Queenslanders eat!)  

On the weekend they open up the Houses of Parliament for a guided tour so we trundled off to Westminster.  It was amazing and so interesting. I was so impressed with the guide’s knowledge and the building is so ornate and beautiful, they just don’t make buildings like that anymore and it is such a shame as it makes me think that we are not leaving future generations anything that will stand the test of time (apart from overt consumerism and pollution).  The girls were amazing and held it together for the full 60 minutes which I was really proud of.  They did start to get antsy with each other in the last few minutes but all in all for a subject matter so much advanced for their age I thought they were extremely attentive and well behaved.  Believe me they have been less so on other occasions!

Later on we caught up with one of Big A’s best friends and Little A’s godfather, Rapido.  His nickname was acquired from his legendary toilet habits but I’m sure Big A will fill readers in on this below.  We met up with Rapido and his beautiful family of wife and two girls for a session of ice skating and lunch at Hampton Court Palace.

The other big event of the week was a hair cut...

Our old mockers from home.

 It was fabulous to meet up with our old muckers from Brissy and have lunch at Carluccios in Covent Garden (across from an ice cream parlour called Snog) in Garrick Street. [Carluccios Website] Whilst there we watched some street entertainment in the square and checked in on Pineapple Studios just in case Louie needed some extra dancers  (the girls waited outside for Steve and I to finish our audition - any day now the phone will ring I just know it!).

Watching Street Theatre at Covent Garden

I wouldn’t say it’s like home at the Stormin’s family residence but let’s just say we have our own beds, baths and shoe area so it is looks like a duck, walks like a duck and sounds like a duck, chances are…… !  They are just the best possible hosts and we’ve embraced their hospitality – perhaps a little to much.  So, to give the guys a break we decided to head off to Paris for a few nights (as one does!).

 

Big A’s Perspecitive “

I’m home! I love this city like no other and we were greeted with the usual wet, cold and grey afternoon that prematurely fades to darkness covering you like an old woolen blanket.

The Stormin Ganorman’s  (consisting of Storms, Bumczyna, Zar & Pickle) met us at the door of their not unsubstantial London abode and following some proper hugs and kisses (i.e. not posh moi moi pecks!) we were led to our rooms on level 4…yeehaa…finally separate rooms for the kids!!

A quick note on this bloke I call Storms…..I met him in California about 20 years ago. He had just finished his masters at Trinity College in Dublin and before he started a ‘proper’ job he decided to join a few of his Irish friends in the US. Unbeknown to Storms his friends were living with a mate and I in a hovel called the ‘A frame’ in Huntington Beach. The friend of mine, Groin, just happened to be a model who was trying to break into the US …yep… grounds alone to hate the guy….but Groin was a genuinely lovely, lovely guy.

Storms’ initiation was driving Groin and I in our old beetle to the flea market. Storms begged us to drive that pile of junk….so who were we to break the poor little fellas heart?

Unfortunately Storms was subsequently arrested for driving an unroadworthy, unregistered car, without insurance or a license.  Driving at 25 miles per hour in the fast lane when your rear mudguard and engine cover fall off is definitely a case of bad luck but is bound to attract some attention! Wow…. the look of horror on his face was priceless….his bright career suddenly flashed in front of his teary eyes.

Also, naturally being a pasty little lad that was scared of the water Groin and I decided to take him out for a surf ….it took ages for his disheveled little frame to finally drag its way from the surf completely exhausted. In his own words, apparently the only way he had stayed afloat was to ‘grab onto a little boy’…having said that he was floundering around in knee deep surf…but Groin and I slept with one eye open that night all the same!

Having now arrived in London our body clocks for some reason took days to adjust which meant the kids were awake at 3 in the morning and consequently so were we…so much for separate rooms!

A couple of chums at The Dove

Storms and I headed to the Dove for a pint…god I love this pub. It had been my ‘local’ for 10 years and Storms hadn’t been back since I’d left. What a pub to call your local! 

My wish to take my girls on a tour of my favourite city on the planet was far outweighed by the Child Bride’s pre-occupation to shop….for ’absolute necessities’ only of course!

Finally however I did manage to drag them to the Tower of London, Natural History Museum, Houses Of Parliament and Hampton Court Palace…and I even managed to squeeze in a visit with the to the Big Easy….my favourite London Restaurant. ….god I love that place! [The Big Easy Website]

Middle A, Child Bride and Rapido (on ice)...

We also managed to catch up with Rapido, his wife, Coupon Queen and the rest of the Rapido family at Hampton Court Palace. We’d arranged to meet up and take the kids ice skating of al things. After excelling at that we all headed for the nearest pub for a well earned pint and some food.  

I’ve also known Rapido for close to 20 years, having also lived with him in the US and subsequently travelled through South and Central America with him. His ability (or lack thereof) with languages is legendary and surpassed only by the Child Brides…so travelling as we did without a map or a phrase book was really interesting. I cant remember the number of times Rapido ended up with something on his plate that bore no resemblance to what he though he ordered.

Rapido was also legendary when it came to number 2’s….on one occasion he got on a bus from Mexico city with a full set of clothes only to get off the bus in nothing but his shorts and runners…he’d  had a bad case of the ‘dodgies’ and had had to use the rest of his gear when the toilet paper on the bus had run out!

On another occasion in Honduras both of us were very ill with the ‘dodgies’. Staying on one of the Bay Islands, for 4 days we were in a dreadful state. Rapido went for a swim one day and couldn’t hold on… he valianty tried to outrun the brown slick he’d created and swim to shore….however,  he soon had what seemed like a thousand fish around him in a feeding frenzy…and worse still…2 swedish snorklers, ignorant to the cause of the frenzy, were following the fish! Needless to say, once we were feeling better (and 13 kilos lighter) we didn’t eat any fish from the island!

On another occasion whilst learning to ski in freezing sub-zero temperatures he got a case of the ‘dodgies’ as he got off the chairlift at the top of the mountain. In complete disregard for his personal own safety or for anyone else’s he attempted a speed skiing record to get down the mountain to the nearest toilet. Given he had never skiied before this must have been some sight indeed. Unfortunately for Rapido, just as he got the door open and relaxed, having conquered the mountain, he still had to battle with his ski suit, jeans, thermals and undies……suffice it to say, emerging 30 minutes later, only his ski suit had survived the contest.

So as you can imagine, catching up with Stormin and Rapido was an absolute thrill for me.

My enthusiasm for the place couldn’t even be blighted by the ineptness of my banks…3 times I had been into the branch to ask them to reset the PIN on my Natwest debit card and 3 times it had gone astray. My Barclays credit card was also not working but even though I was living in the UK everything had to be sent to my Australian address…where I obviously was not living…..but I was back in London so I was happy to put up with it. 

Week 4: (24 – 28th Dec) Las Vegas

The I-15 from LA to Vegas

The drive from Los Angeles to Las Vegas went down without incident so that was a plus.  The “living the dream” family at home had suggested we pull in to Peggy Sue’s 50 Diner but it is only 2.5 hours out from LA so we decided just to keep going.  We had to stop for petrol a bit closer to Vegas to fill up the hire car and I decided to complete the transaction while Big A filled up the car.  Funny because in the States you pay for the petrol before you get it.  So filling up the car required me to over estimate how much our beastly Corolla would need to “fill er up”.  I put $50 down and it only came to $36, apparently we will only be charged the $36 – apparently! 

Driving into Vegas is surreal.  So much desert and nothingness to suddenly encounter this massive sprawl of highrises. 

We arrived on the 24^th December expecting to find a very over the top Christmas experience in Vegas but it was quite the opposite.  We stayed at Bally’s in the North Tower which, at US $80 p/n was great value and although the hotel was busy, the room was quiet.  Surprisingly, it had no evidence of Christmas anywhere and having just come from Disneyland and LA where it was literally on every corner, it was a bit surprising.  When we spoke to a staff member they explained that Vegas is actually the place a lot of non Christians visit over the holiday season who don’t celebrate Christmas. Apparently there was a dedicated Christmas area somewhere in one of the casinos but we didn’t find it. 

Our Christmas lunch consisted of a visit to the Village Buffet at Rio.  Our research both on line and on the ground had lead us to believe that it was the number 1 seafood buffet in Vegas.  As seafood is our traditional Aussie Christmas lunch we were very excited to be able to keep that tradition alive half way around the world, 280 miles from the sea (what were we thinking).  Some of the food was lovely, like the snow crab legs and cajun fish but Oh My God where did they get the oysters from?  I swear they tasted like they had been retrieved from the Vegas sewers.  The prawns and mini crayfish were so small and the rest of it was average.  We took our quickly deflated elation and drowned it in 2 bottles of wine while the girls played with their American girls, DSI and drawing pads.  The waitress actually asked us to leave 3 hours later as the queue waiting to be seated was now +70 people deep!

So much has been documented about Las Vegas it’s hard to think of anything that would surprise or interest any reader of this blog, however the place is still overwhelmingly larger than life when you are there.  The casinos are big and bright and the number of restaurants, bars, shops and people are extraordinary. One thing that, in my naivety, I didn’t quite realize was how much exploitation of the female body there was.  Everywhere you looked there were billboards of women in diamond encrusted bikinis or just a thong and on every street there were men and women handing single (and not so single) men cards with information about how to get a lady for the night. I was able to ignore it until one day when we were on the strip waiting for Big A and the girls were picking up call girl cards from the street.  One was extremely explicit and I lost it, insisting the girls through the filth away (I’m such a prude).  My shock was probably compounded by the fact that I was standing watching a man seeking donations to help the homeless on behalf of the Salvation Army. 

Joe's Stone Crabs - Yummy

Over the few days we were there, apart from the Village Buffet,  we also ate at Le Café and Le Provencal in Paris casino, the Garden Grill in Circus Circus and Joes Stone Crabs in The Forum off Caesars Palace.   Joes was the standout and a seriously great restaurant worthy of all the praise.  Darryll made us feel extremely welcome (even Little and Middle A).  We had the signature, crab claws and they didn’t disappoint, coming as close to mud crab as I’ve ever tasted.  The girls meals included an amazing hot chocolate fudge brownie with ice-cream for dessert which was so wickedly good and at $8.95 for the entire 2 courses and a drink, great value.  

We contemplated a flight to the Grand Canyon and in hindsight I’m disappointed we didn’t do it, but Big A had seen it many times before, our budget was running in deficient and there was little interest from Middle and Little A so we gave it a miss.  In fact we didn’t do any organized trips or shows but chose instead to just walk around the strip. 

By walking 2.5kms up from the strip, we came across Circus Circus, a dirty smelly Casino with an amusement park in the middle of it and a Circus show performed each hour.  It was awful but it did have a pretty good restaurant called the Garden Grill that had all you could eat ribs.  On our way back from Circus Circus we came across a mock ice-skating rink at the Venetian.  The rink was made of a plastic resin that emulated ice but was not as slippery and the girls loved it.  So much that we went back again the following day.   The Cosmopolitan is the newest Casino and absolutely stunning and polished.  Caesars Palace and the Bellagio are still extremely impressive and well worth a wander around just to get a sense of their grandeur.

As I said earlier we didnt see any shows and that’s probably got a lot to do with Big A who wasn’t impressed by the line up. Aparently Human Nature (yes the Aussie group), Donny and Marie Osmond and Matt Goss (from the “when will I, will I be famous?” duo Bross) just don’t cut it for the big fella.  He did actually ask me on a number of occasions “why aren’t the big acts here?”  “Why aren’t the likes of Elvis, Michael Jackson or Sinatra here?”  At first I didn’t have the heart to tell him they were all dead but in the end I had to. This didn’t stop him from asking.  Even when Celine Dion came back after a short Christmas break he still wasn’t happy – oh well!  Very late on the 28^th December we flew via British Airways to London – yippee…..

Big A’s Perspective   

Vegas…it’s a strange place….somehow I seem  to have a great time each time I go but I can’t seem to understand why.

I’d forgotten how awful the trip is to Vegas from LA….double it if you have little kids….are we there yet, I’m bored, I need to go to the toilet etc etc…and that was just the wife!

Anyway, after about 4 hours we hit the town of Prim, Nevada. What is this place? I have no idea why anyone would build anything here and even less idea why anyone would stop there. An extinct hotel/casino with a disused rollercoaster are interesting relics of seemingly better times …part of the ‘tosser-world’ fun park no doubt.

Anyway, a quick pit stop for fuel and some drinks and we set off for Vegas.

Yee..bloody..ha….Vegas…finally….and just as I was preparing to relax…. a 40 minute traffic jam to get from the highway to our hotel.

 I left the girls at the foyer and headed to the airport to drop the car off…Alamo didn’t have a drop off place on the massive, expensive hotels on the strip!

Airports are not usually the easiest places to navigate around at the best of times but try getting t the new car rental return terminal….wow…it would be easier to find platform 9.5 and catch a train to Hogwarts!

Anyway after a $20 cab fare back to Vegas from the airport I entered the Bally’s foyer with high hopes. However I couldn’t get to my room as I was told that I needed ID as the Child Bride didn’t answer the phone in the room.

However, this was a minor hiccup as within an hour later I was laying on my bed in the hotel room listening to the girls fighting.

I’d always remembered Vegas as being a cheap place to stay and even cheaper place to eat and drink. The casinos offered amazing deals on both accommodation, food and drinks to get you there and keep you there. ……Not any more.

Whilst our room was great, food is now expensive.

Another thing…Vegas is supposed to be a mecca for entertainers…. I saw the Hagler v Leonard fight here. Elvis lived here. Sinatra, Dean Martin…..but for those poor buggers that had ventured to Vegas over the Xmas break they were subjected to the likes of Matt Goss and Human Nature….I’d rather poke my eye out with a needle and give the money to the homeless!

Whilst we did see a few Americans, the whole place is full of Mexicans, Chinese and Indians…it was like being in a shopping centre food court…but wow, how much money did those Mexicans have…by the number of shopping bags they had Abercrombie & Fitch did very, very well out of them!

Caesars Palace Opulence 

Some of the hotels were amazing in a good way…like wow the Bellagio fountain is amazing. Others were amazing in others ways ….like wow this casino is full of people that haven’t had a wash in a week, or wow this carpet hasn’t been cleaned in 30 years….places like the Imperial Palace and Circus Circus are just awful!

I don’t like shopping…no…that’s not correct. I don’t like wandering around shops in an aimless, unfocussed manner. I know what I want to buy; I find a place to buy it; I go there; I buy it. I don’t go to the shops to find something I might want to buy.

And there is a chain of stores in the states that I love….it’s called Ross and there was one in Vegas. It’s like a store that sells out of date food…but they actually sell high end brand names for virtually nothing. Ok, they might not have an enormous range of sizes, styles or colours and some styles might be a touch ‘last decade’…but they were cheap.

The clientele might not be the wealthiest but for me this just adds to the experience…..homeless types in Ralph Lauren…I love it! However, the Child Bride only allowed me to buy some socks there!

As for the Xmas buffet we endured…it didn’t start well. We sat down and the extended family of what I can only assume to be ‘competition’ buffet eaters sat next to us. Even the two babies with them ‘chain-ate’ the whole time.

I definitely think there should be a sign that tells these people they don’t have to

pile their plate to the ceiling with everything available on every trip? Sorry, but its like feeding time at the zoo!

The tours to the canyon are expensive and if you go by any other means than flying expect to spend 90% of your day in a bus getting there and back. We decided to save our money, allow the girls an adventure to savour on their own time in the future.

As for gambling….the Child Bride got within about 10 feet of a table at one point and I spent the whole $5 that was provided to me by the hotel… in about 3 minutes. ..and that was that. I don’t have enough money to happily give it away to people I don’t even know without at least relieving my guilt or getting a poppy or a pin in return.

So overall….I have to admit I enjoyed it…. and I didn’t seem to have the same aversion that my wife did to images of naked women being flaunted in my face every minute of every day. ..sure its sleazy and I don’t really get the place….but its easy and interesting.

Week 4 - Disneyland, Universal Studios and LA

Week 4 (19–24 Dec) Disneyland, Universal Studios & LA

We got the red eye to Disneyland which was great as it saved a night’s accommodation.  Of course arriving in LAX at 5.20am with little to no sleep and a day ahead of us at Disneyland wasn’t something I’d want to do everyday.  By 7am the Disney Express pulled in. It happened to be a guy and a white minivan with a dodgy sticker on the side and not the Disney character adorned bus we’d been expecting but having waited 90 minutes we were just happy to be on our way.  We stayed on site at the Grand California Hotel because we had a 3 day ticket and only 2 night’s accommodation so needed to be close to the action. Wow what a grand hotel it is with an amazing lobby a bit like a ski resort but due to the season adorned with these amazing Christmas decorations, tree and santa (see photo).  I just loved it.  I just wish the staff were a bit more attentive as they left us to struggle with our backpacks which really wasn’t cool.  In fact I’ve found that a lot.  It seems that if you wheel your luggage into a hotel, the porters rush to your aid, but when you carry it on your back they’ll happily rest back and watch.  Maybe porters are going soft as well as the rest of us! This aside,  I highly recommend the hotel if you can afford the extra per night as I think it is the most expensive of the 3 on-site hotels at around $400 per night.  Get a room overlooking the California Adventure Park (one of the two parks at Disney) as you get a great view of the park with a massive Mickey Mouse ferris wheel in full sight and it’s really quiet at night.  We stayed in 4322 which had a great location.  The Grand California is also very easy to access both Disneyland, the California Adventure Park and Downtown Disney (which is a bit like a pedestrianized street filled with restaurants and shops).   There’s not much to add to this blog about Disney that most people won’t know, but those newbies (like me) you must go on the following rides:  California Adventure Park – Hollywood Tower of Terror,  Screama, Sourin and Ariel and Disneyland: Spacemountain, Star Tours and Indiana Jones.  I’m sure there are others but we didn’t get to all of them as we co-ordinated our trip with the park’s busiest days.  We get on these one though and they were great, especially the Hollywood Tower of Terror, Sourin and Screama.  Make good use of the FastPass system as it can almost double the amount of popular rides you can do if you plan it well.  Also if you get a ticket to Mickey’s Toowntown Madness you must go.  Middle and Little A both loved it and went crazy to meet Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofey and Pluto in their homes.  It really was a lovely morning and if you have a special ticket you get in before the crowds – which was nice.

We didn’t really savour the restaurants in Disney as we just ate when we were hungry however whatever it is, if it’s busy, expect to wait in line for a table – even when there are plenty of vacant tables inside.  The American’s it’s fair to say LOVE to form a line and seem more than happy to wait 5 to 15 minutes to be seated in a restaurant that’s almost empty rather than be taken to the table straight away.   We don’t get it. 

We left Disney on the 22^nd and hired a car to drive to LA.  We stayed at the Best Western Sunset Plaza on Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood in room 119 which opened up onto a lovely pool and grecian themed courtyard.  The front of the hotel was covered with follage and it really is one of the nicest hotels I’ve stayed at for the price ($220 p/n).  We stayed on “the strip” however everything felt a long way away – too far to walk with a couple of princesses anyway.  We drove to Universal Studios and had a great day there although I’m sure it’s because we didn’t try to fill the day.  If you go you must do the Studio Tour and go on the Simpson’s ride and House of Horrors (even our extremely brave Middle A who has been on the Claw and Buzzsaw at Dreamworld, and loved them, was terrified).  We didn’t do much else as I think we were theme parked out but there was plenty to do and we all even got to play in the snow in Whoville with the Whos and get a quick photo with Spongebob Squarepants.

On our way back to the hotel we drove down Hollywood Boulevard and past the Kodac and Grauman’s Chinese Theatres and Hollywood Walk of Fame.  As an avid watcher of the Oscars it was cool to see where all the action is broadcast from.  It’s funny as while we were in Disney we asked a local from LA what was good to see in LA, she said “nothing” and I asked her if she’d ever seen a celebrity and she said “no”.  Having driven around for only 2 days I can honestly say that I see what made her so negative about her home town.  LA in general is an ugly city.  It seems that the glitz and glamour is really reserved for small pockets of the massive sprawling town and even around Hollywood Boulevard the roads, buildings and landscape have been severely neglected.  We even drove past Chateu Marmont (where I nearly booked us to stay as it is such an icon) and from the street line it did not nearly match it’s reputation.

That evening we headed to The Grove to the My American Girl shop and Farmer’s Markets.  The Grove at Christmas time was just spectacular with the a huge tree at the entrance and all the trees covered in fairy lights.  It was so magical and beautiful to walk amongst. 

Big A will cover off his experience of the My American Girl shop but for me (apart from the challenge of how on earth we are going to carry these things) it was wonderful seeing the girls finally get to choose their dolls, get their ears pierced and pick out a special outfit for them.  Anyone who has “invested” in the Baby Born dolls knows the kind of $$ these “special” toys command and the My American Girl is no different .  They even have a hospital and grooming section where you can pay up to $20 to have your doll’s hair styled or cut.  But you can acutally choose a doll “just like you” which makes them very special and Middle A and Little A are both overjoyed by their new little babies.

We put them away for Christmas as the girls bought them with the money they got from their grandparents so at least they’ll have something to look forward to on Christmas day.

The Farmer’s Market was a great surprise as I wasn’t sure it would be open.  It is an open air food court with fantastic food from oysters to ribs.  There is also a butcher and deli there which would be great if you were staying longer in a self catering apartment.  We had the BBQ chicken and ribs which cost around $22 for two meals and more than enough for 4 of us.  It was just nice to feel like you were part of the local community and not in an overglossy tourist area for a change. 

The next day we had to head to Vegas and decided not to go down Rodeo drive in case we got caught in traffic (we already had a 4.5 hour drive ahead of us).  On the way down Sunset Boulevard we saw the Hollywood sign and stopped to take a photo.  The chance sighting was kind of cool and for me a bit like every time I drove past Buckingham Palace when I lived in London (something I never took for granted).  Turning onto the I – 101 South we were on our way Barstow/Las Vegas.

Big A’s perspective: 

Having lived in Orange County for a number of years back in the early 90’s I wasn’t overly looking forward to returning to California. However, the girls (all 3) were so excited about visiting Disneyland and although I don’t particularly enjoy vomit-inducing theme park rides I took to Disneyland with them with added gusto.

For me Disneyland is sooo American…everything is bigger and better in America…and I genuinely thought Disneyland was exceptional. The attention to detail is amazing. The buildings and rides are just wonderful.

Nothing is left to chance…they tell you where to line up, where to stand and they have more disclaimers than an ad for Viagra!

And speaking of lining up…wow…you line up for everything…the ‘fastpass’ is a must but it stressed me out…I was constantly thinking about the ways I could avoid the ‘standby’ lines and fastpass those rides we wanted to do to ensure we minimized the wait times…it meant rushing from one fastpass ‘distributor’ to the next and one ride to the next for the whole day!

Somehow the girls managed to get me on the Space Mountain and Tower of terror and whilst these rides do not compare to those at Dreamworld they were enough to ensure I didn’t feel hungry for the rest of the day after having to swallow my own vomit!

The evening World of Colours was extraordinary…wow.

The Grand Californian was great…my ratings : room – good size 7.5/10, price – expensive 4.5/10, location – perfect 10/10, facilities – great 9/10…so overall about 8/10.

We hired a car for the trip to LA having paid $80 for the trip from LAX. Given we had to get to Vegas and wanted to tour LA it worked out at least $200 cheaper than mini buses and doing the tours etc.

However, it is quite intimidating driving in peak hour in LA in the dark without a GPS…so after just over 90 minutes we had managed to travel about 35 miles…suffice it to say the kids were not happy!

The Best Western Sunset Plaza was a welcome surprise after the awful Best Western Waikiki even if finding the car park was an exercise in frustration.

My ratings are: room – good size 8/10, price – not the cheapest 6/10, location – pretty good 8.5/10, facilities – decent breakfast, nice pool area (not that we used it)- but crap internet AGAIN 8.5/10…so overall about 8/10.

Universal Studios has changed a bit since I was last there….about $80/person and $15 parking and less focused on the studio and more on the rides. The studio tour was still interesting and the rides were pretty good……but life in California is about lining up…so be prepared to wait…a long time! I endured the Simpsons ride with my eyes closed to avoid a repeat of the Disneyland experience….judging from the screams of the people around me and the agonising groans from the dad behind me I made the right call. I did open my eyes 3 times on the ride and each time shut them just in time to avoid embarrassing myself and my kids…awful!

The House Of Horrors was a win for Daddy…somehow I managed to escape any of the antics the other 3 were subjected to …ha….the other 3 were scared, especially middle A (who just happens to be the bravest rider I know).

We headed back to Sunset via Hollywood Blvd where every serious crackpot should aim to perform……it didn’t disappoint.

We decided to ‘hit the town’ that evening and caught a cab to The Grove. The lights and stores were just beautiful…very Christmassy.

And for any Dad wanting to waste 2 hours of their lives is a dolls shop for people with to much money and no life…go to the American Girl store at the Grove. Why did we spend a fortune on a 18inch doll for each of the kids when we are travelling around the world with our packs on our backs?....read the Child Bride’s comments and you might find out….I have no idea and the whole excursion was the most frustrating part of the trip so far and made me question what we were doing….dedicating a huge department store-sized shop to a bloody doll offended me!

Still smarting over the doll purchase we headed to the Farmers Market….lively, bright, good food and drink….this was great and provided some respite.

The next day we headed off to Vegas…as it was Xmas and we had been told the traffic would be horrendous we decided not to venture to Rodeo Drive first…..although we did stop off to view and take photos of the famed Hollywood sign.

LA is not on my shortlist of places to go back to….maybe because I’d lived there…maybe not…..I just don’t see the value in wasting your life in lines…you just can’t seem to avoid them wherever you go!

Week 2 & 3 - Hawaii

Week 2 & 3 (5 – 19 Dec)

Aloha.  We’ve just come from 2 weeks in Waikiki.  What can you say about Hawaii that hasn’t already been said, written and photographed.  It is the picture perfect postcard with great beaches, sunshine, shopping, plentiful food and lovely people.  From a tourist’s perspective Hawaii has everything you’d need for a great holiday.  The only down side to Waikiki for me is the crowds and luxury shopping that dominates the streets.  For a family back-packing around the world, leaving our “luxurious” life behind, the last thing I needed was to be “sold” how much more beautiful and successful I would look if I had a little piece of Louis Vutton,  Hermes, Prada, Bally, Coach, Tiffany & Co, Chanel etc in the my life.  The first time I saw them in 2010 I was shocked that there were so many.  They are not there for the locals or visiting Aussies, Canadians or Americans because from what I saw only the Japanese were buying.  There a significant number of Japanese living in Hawaii and many more tourists.  Which means there are some really great Japanese restaurants but we didn’t visit any of them on this trip as, having just come from Japan, Big A was over Japanese food (read my  Week 1 - Tokyo blog for more on why!).  

The food in Hawaii is really good with plenty of options from Denny’s cheap American fare to the high end Japanese restaurants like Nobu.  We found great value in the Cheesecake Factory.  We must have eaten there every other night during our two week stay and never spent more than $70 for dinner.  This would typically include 2 Edamame, 2 beers and kids drinks, a burger for the girls to share, a salad or couple of appetisers for Big A and I to share and a Lynda’s Chocolate Fudge cake to take home and eat the following day.  The Cheesecake Factory is located in the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Centre opposite Jimmy Buffets and Macy’s on the main street.   We also ate at Wild Buffalo Wings which is on the way from the Hilton Hawaiian Village to Ala Moana Shopping Centre and Roys which is voted (on Tripadviser) as the Number 1 restaurant in Waikiki.  Roys had the best service I’ve ever experienced anywhere and the food was ok as well although I ordered Mahi Mahi and forgot how dry this fish is and wish I’d ordered something else from the menu.

We had booked into the Sheraton Waikiki for the first week and Best Western Coconut Waikiki the second (which saved us about $180 a night).  The Sheraton was booked due to it’s location right next to the Royal Hawaiian in the heart of Waikiki on the beach.  It had a fantastic pool with kids slide and plenty of space.  Right on the beach it was easy to move from one to the other and the staff around the pool were great.  The rooms at the Sheraton were really average both in size and design.  I like minimalist décor but this was simply bland and uninspiring.  Given the extent the Sheraton has gone to to ensure the public spaces are so well appointed it is a shame the contrast to the rooms is so great.  It was lucky for us that we had an ocean front room with a 180 degree of the Pacific Ocean (nice).  We certainly made the most of the view while we were there and prepared for our departure from ocean front comfort to the corner of windy and noisy at the Best Western Coconut Waikiki.  Over all this hotel was nice enough but all the things we loved about the Sheraton, pool, location,  free wifi – the Best Western failed to deliver.  It did have a pool, was located on the water and had wifi but the pool was rectangular, the water was the canal and the wifi only worked when I stood in the doorway.  They did offer to move us but we’d already unpacked and couldn’t be asked.

The two weeks were filled with much of the same bliss of long days at the beach and Sheraton pool, afternoon rests and then out for dinner.  We were lucky enough to have met up with the ‘McNightmare’s’ (Kona and Mrs) and they were just lovely.  Big A and Kona shared some bonding at their better halves’ expense but Mrs McKnightmare and I deflected their jibes with grace and dignity (well that was until the 2^nd or 3^rd bottle of wine!!!).  They invited us out for a fabulous night at the Outrigger Canoe Club and we spent a few more days and nights in their company which turned out to be such a great addition to our family vacation.  Speaking of family, yes even in Waikiki I can bump into someone from Rockhampton.  This time our kids had been playing for 2 or 3 days when the girl’s mum ‘Wilma’ came over and introduced herself.  It wasn’t until the father ‘Fred’ turned around that I recognized them from Rocky.  I probably haven’t seen them for +15 years so there was a lot to catch up on and even better to get to know them again as parents and “grown ups”.  Weird though as Fred and Big A swapped “poor bloke” stories (they have 3 daughters) Wilma and I could have sworn they were swapped at birth (along with Kona). 

We actually spotted Mark Occhilupo the Australian surfer on our last day in Hawaii and introduced our new found friends and relatives to him for a Kodac moment.  I’m sure 2 hours later when we dragged our collective children away from him he regretted being so nice to us, but he’ll get over it – eventually.

Big A’s perspective

I’ve been to Hawaii about 15 times now probably as I always used to fly via the US to Europe and from Oz when I lived in the US….and I love it….I just find it a really easy place to relax . Lazy days with the girls at the beach and pool…life really doesn’t get an y better. Then add hot buffalo wings, the Cheesecake Factory and the Outrigger Canoe Club ….just fantastic.

My ratings regarding the Sheraton – room – dated & sparse 5/10, location – perfect 10/10, facilities – pool was great 9/10, price – expensive 5/10…so overall 7.5/10.

However, for me the Best Western Waikiki was awful. Located on the corner of Noisy and Windy, tiny, unusable pool ….and really crap breakfast. Ratings : room – OK 7/10, location – awful 4/10, facilities – pool was tiny, internet useless 4/10, price – 7/10…so overall 5.5/10….I’d stay at the Aqua Wave and save $30/night.

Cheesecake factory – fantastic but be prepared to wait. No reservations so you HAVE to wait…and you might have to and around for an hour or more. But order 1 meal for 2 …they are huge so your bill ends up being less than one of the cheap crap places like Chilli’s, Senor Frogs or Sunset Bar and Grill etc.

Rental cars – Hanauma Bay and north Shore was great.….once we found them…road signs and directions are not the greatest.

The Shrimp Shack was OK but for me overpriced for what is was.

Kids amazed me at Hanauma Bay. Sunset and Pipe were awesome even though they weren’t at full bore …only about 6-8 Hawaiian (25 foot faces). Waimea wasn’t working but shore dump is worth the visit …watch the Japanese, English and Canadians get hammered in some of the biggest shore dump you’ll ever see…cracked me up!

The rental car was a heap…but lots of fun…and what do you expect from $40/day.

Hooked up with the McNightmares from Victoria, Canada - surely one of the nicest places in the world - these guys and their gorgeous daughter ‘Duracell” were just brilliant…’Duracell’ entertained our kids enabling both sets of parents a few minutes break each day.

Child Bride ran into another set of relatives…..I swear everyone in Rockhampton is related to everyone else…..and they keep in touch! Great family though….and with 4 girls on holiday to provide for,  how Fred still has a sense of humour and any hair is beyond me…having said that his girls are amazing, especially the eldest who helped occupy seemingly 10 kids on the last day!

So overall…Hawaii ….loved it.