Stopped of in Cambria, a small town with some arty and memorabilia shops, and spent about half an hour looking around. I was still tired from last nights trip and had forty winks in the car - Dad said I was like one of those cuddly toy Garfield window stickies with my arm and face stuck up against the window.

Arrived in Ventura, our destination for the evening, at about 6pm and settled into our room. We went for a stroll along the beach front and observed a group of youths hanging around looking suspicious. As we walked past them I heard the sound of a walkie talkie. About 2 minutes later, two police cyclists rounded the corner, closely followed by another youth who proceeded to follow them, at a distance, all the way up the beach - a lookout???

We hastily retreated to the safety of the historic downtown area and found somewhere for our evening meal - packed with yanks celebrating their day off from work! Unbelieveably, Dad was defeated by a salad! Ok, it was the biggest salad you will ever see, but still ... a salad?

With little else open, we spotted a cinema that was playing the new Robin Williams film, "Licence To Wed". T'was a funny film and then we negotiated our way back to the hotel, crossing the road every so often to avoid alcoholic vagrants begging for money.

Turned on the TV and was greeted by the most disturbing news stories so far - no, not "American Wins Hot Dog Competition By Eating 66 (With Buns) In 12mins", which I believe to be fairly normal over here, but "Mother Cooks Baby In Microwave" and then the following story; "Mother Gets Baby Drunk On Vodka" - what a nation!!!

Actually that reminds me of the programme we were watching the other night; "NBC Datline.com - To Catch A Predator". This involved setting up potential paedophiles online by pretending to be 13 year old boys and girls, asking them to come over to their house, having actors play the kids to get them in the house and the host jumps out and confronts them. Many pleaded for forgiveness, some brought lunch, and one was even caught in the same trap for the second time - yes folks, this IS a series!! - after the host showed them up he told them that they were free to go - only to be arrested as they walked out the door by about 30 police officers! One didn't get down on his knees quick enough so they shot him with a taser - well they did ask him nicely first ... comedy TV at its best, if it wasn't for the seriousness of the subject matter.

We were just dropping off to sleep when the first, of what was to prove many, trains went past the hotel. The railway line ran about 10 yards away from the building and American trains are seemingly endless. It was exactly like the scene from Joe Pesci's "My Cousin Vinny" - even the walls were rattling! Unsuprisingly, Dad slept on ...

Coastal Road 1

Coastal Road 2

Coastal Road 3

Ventura Beach

Quite an eventful flight back with us sitting in the middle of the most obnoxious Israeli family in the world! The crew were brilliant in their handling of the situation, even giving us free alcoholic beverages to ease the pain.

Thanks again for following our adventures, we're off to have a much needed rest ... well Dad's in for work tomorrow, but I'm sure I'll be able to have a lie in!
]]> Tue, 10 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=1094 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=7862 0 51.4666667 -0.45 Had breakfast at a place round the corner and have come in here to make our final entry in the USA. Next we plan to go back to the shopping outlet to change a shirt that was a bit too small and then, if we have time, go to Venice Beach before having a farewell meal at In-N-Out Burger and returning the car.

We would just like to thank everybody who has followed us on our journey through the States and even taken the time to make some comments. I hope the blog has given you some insight into the fun that we've had in our 2 and a bit weeks here - I'm sure that you'll hear about our adventures first hand in the near future.

We'll make one final entry when we return to England just to let you all know that we're back - which might fill some people with dread.

Once again, thank you. It's cost us a fortune to keep this blog updated, but it's been worth every penny!

All the best,
Adam & Steve]]> Mon, 09 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=1094 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=7861 0 34.05222 -118.24278 As we carried on walking, the crowds began to build up and we noticed that the road ahead had been closed off. We found out that it was the premiere of the new Harry Potter film and with there only being about 2hrs until it kicked off, we decided to stay. Some people had been there since 2am, the time was now 4pm, and we had just as good a view of the action - obviously we had a height advantage. Two women even offered us $20 each if we would lift them on our shoulders ... Dad said he would pay them!

The stars turned up and wandered around the crowds, we got some pictures and some brilliant video footage, and then it was all over. There was a bit of action next to us at the end when a girl collapsed and the paramedics had to rush in and carry her off to hospital ... I, of course, filmed the whole thing and offered to sell it to NBC News who missed it. Come on, I'm not that bad!! ... or am I?

With the battery on my camera almsot depleted and Dad's bladder fit to burst, we walked back up to the hotel for half an hour. Next we drove up quite close to the Hollywood sign to take some pictures, although the light was wrong for having a person in the foreground.

We then tried to find something to eat, trusting the Sat Nav to decide. Now if you remember, last time we trusted the Sat Nav we ended up at Ruth's Chris Steak House (see Palm Springs) and this time was no better. 3 different restaurants it took us too, each with something wrong - closed, no parking etc - until finally we settled on a takeaway Pizza Hut pizza and chicken wings - very nice they were too!

He must have starred with ...

... in some film that's not in my collection.

Harry Potter Premiere

Hollywood

I was under the impression that there were lots of rollercoaster-type rides but instead there were many 3/4D experiences - which were just as fun.

A quick round-up of the attractions that we went on:
Studio Tour: Very interesting although a VERY over-the-top tour guide!
Mummy Returns: Back and Forward Rollercoaster - In the dark - Good but it says something when the bloke who jumps out dressed up in a mummy outfit when you walk out at the end is the scariest part!
Shrek 4D - Brilliant
Terminator 2 3D - Good with actors playing Arnie
Back To The Future - Another "experience" ride, but worth a go as they are getting rid of it in September.
Animal Show - I swear I saw Dad's long lost brother in this one ...
Waterworld - Full blown live action show ... with water!!
Fear Factor Live - Dad wanted to audition for this but unfortunately the lycra wouldn't stretch that far!
Special Effects Stages - A good insight into the numerous effects that make a film.
Back Draft - Come on ... who doesn't like a good fire?

We didn't leave the park until 9pm and then went into the Universal City Walk where we had dinner at The Hard Rock Cafe whilst listening to the worst band ever - although I'm sure Amy would love them!

Universal Studios

I knew we shouldn't have parked there ...

Guess the Film 2

Guess the TV Show

Guess the Film 1

There's always someone who turns up in the same outfit!!

I don't think anyone noticed when Dad let one go ...

Next we raced over to East L.A. to pick-up something for someone - I hope they appreciate that we risked our lives to get it for them - don't tell me that you've never heard of all the shootings in East L.A.!!

Checked into our final hotel of the tour - an emotional experience (sob) - and was a bit worried after the smell in reception. Luckily, the room was fine and we have a large bathroom - just as well.

The game was scheduled to start at 7:40pm but Dad wanted to be sure that we made it ... we left the hotel at 5:30pm. Little did he know, but the ground was less than 5 minutes drive away - oh well, good job it was the "All You Can Eat Stand ..."

A really good atmosphere in the ground and it seems that the stadium is really hot on not allowing beach balls. Therefore, every man and his dog brings at least a dozen and blow them up at regular intervals, hit them around the stand and the stewards have to run around trying to catch the ball. The crowd appear to enjoy teasing the stewards by knocking it all the way to one side of the stand, wait for the lone steward to run all the way down there, and then knock it back the other side!

We got given a BobblyHead character of one of the team members each on the way-in ... haven't got a clue who he is, but it will look nice in my cupboard of collectables. We were also in the stand known as "Souvenir City" because that's where all the baseballs head towards for home-runs and the players throw practice ball in there to the crowd - in fact it was at these moments that the crowd became most animated!!

Unlike Coventry, they have a large screen and they know how to use it - getting the crowd pumped up and really playing on their home advantage. Like Coventry, they start badly, promise so much and then through it all away at the end. We were treated to a 3 1/2 hour marathon with two extra innings but the Dodgers finally lost 6-5. They did, however, win two more fans!

Dodgers Stadium

Let's Go Dodgers!!!

Our Kind Of Stand ...

These outlets are massive - they put Bicester Village to shame - and are set out in a circle. You get halfway round and then notice a cut through which leads to another big circle of shops - they go on for ever ...

After spending a good few hours and a good many dollars at the outlet, we headed into Los Angeles to our hotel which is right by the airport and the same as the first one of the trip. We approached the check-in desk with apprehension as on our previous visit there had been a "toilet malfunction" in the room leading to the past guest's waste resurfacing in the bowl - nothing to do with me ... honest! Obviously it's an embarrasing problem, so we had failed to report it at the time - of course this meant that they might think it was us when they discovered it. This didn't realy bother us, because at the time, we thought that our four day return stay in Los Angeles would be spent at an entirely different hotel - unfortunately, we had failed to notice the voucher hidden in the back of our book showing a one night stay at The Sheraton - oops!

Luckily, we didn't have a black (or brown) mark against our name in their records and we were allowed into the hotel.

We took the same walk as we did the first day, up along past the airport - noted the new security notices - and to the drug store where we purchased a large supply of Animal Cookies!! - should keep me going for a month or two.

Finished the day off with an In-N-Out Burger.]]> Thu, 05 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=1094 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=7857 0 34.05222 -118.24278 Dad was glad to navigate his way safely out of the city centre in the rush hour and then we hit the open road, every so often having to take a coastal route along the edge of cliffs - I'm sure it would be a lovely view if there wasn't so much bloody fog!

Having reached Carmel, we decided to do the 17 Mile Drive, which again I'm sure would have been very scenic if it hadn't been for the bloody fog!

Next we drove up to Monterey and wandered through their own Old Fisherman's Wharf - basically a poor mans version of San Francisco's. Then on to Carmel which was a very quaint shopping town - a bit like Bicester Village ... on a hill!

After having a look we drove back to the hotel, via the Safeway's (!) to pick up some more of the Animal Cookies (yummy). On a hunch, we checked on the internet to find out if Santa Cruz, which we had passed earlier in the day, was actually where they filmed one of my favourite films, The Lost Boys. It was and although it was getting late, we decdided to pass up on an evening meal and drive back the 40 odd miles in order to have a look.

The place is almost identical to the location in the film, though no reference is made to the movie at all in the town. We found out later that they were upset at the time because in the film the town is given the moniker of 'Murder Capital of The World', when in reality Santa Cruz had been struggling for a decade to get rid of this tag.

It was quite creepy in the dark and we even walked up the pier, which was very dimly lit - all in the name of research you understand. It was all still there on the Boardwalk - the famous Big Dipper Rollercoaster and the Carousel.

We were getting a bit hungery and were happy to find that because it was the 100th Anniversary of the Boardwalk, prices on fastfood had been frozen at 1907 prices - 75 cents an item - limited to 8 Hot Dogs per person per visit.

Monterey Harbour

Adam filming for "Adam & Steve - The Documentary", coming to a cinema near you soon!

Wheely Good

The Lost Boys Big Dipper

Woke up early for a City Bus Tour which provided us with a real insight into the city. I'd have loved to have had some of whatever the bus driver was on - he never stopped singing, shouting, joking etc all the way through the tour!

Saw all the major bits and pieces although we weren't told when we went past Mrs Doubtfire's house - bugger!- although we did see where Robin Williams lives. Other points we visited included the school where O.J. Simpson and Joe DiMaggio were taught to play sport, the highest point in the city, Golden Gate Bridge and Fisherman's Wharf.

In the afternoon we had a pre-booked trip to Alcatraz which was really interesting. It was fascinating to find out about all the different inmates, especially one known as Vince 'The Mince' Mason who always ended up picking up the soap.

Bumpy ride back to the mainland where we wandered around Pier 39 for a couple of hours before hailing a cab to North Beach for an Italian meal - which was recommended by our all singing, all dancing tour guide ... thank God he wasn't there!

After the meal, we discovered that we hadn't the faintest idea where the hell we were and it was getting dark! Not wishing to accidentally stroll into the Tenderloin, or for that matter the Rainbow District, we hailed another cab. Somehow, whenever Dad and I get a taxi the driver is always a maniac. Tonight's was no exception. Not content with almost taking out a rival taxi, he then preceded to beep his horn for what seemed an eternity when a car pulled out only for him to mutter, "Fucking Tourists!"

Relieved to still be alive, we paid him and in our best American accents exclaimed, "Thanks Buddy!"

The City ...

The biggest erection in San Francisco ... and it's not even in the photo!

Golden Gate Bridge & Old Vagrant

Alcatraz

The Cell Block

San Francisco From Alcatraz

Escape From Alcatraz

To find our hotel we had to drive through some choice areas including the infamous Tenderloin district. We dumped our bags and headed for the cable car down into town. A side note - It's bloody cold!!!

Got on the cable car and managed to sit next to "the nutter on the bus" who collared Dad and explained that he was related to a Knight of the Round Table. We stayed on the cable car to its termination and then quickly decided to jump back on and head back to the hotel having reviewed the gangs of vagrants in the local area. To be honest, this is the most unsafe I have felt on the trip so far.

Had dinner in the hotel and then off to bed.

Cable Car

If you look closely, you'll see Dad in the distance on his bike ...

San Francisco From Hotel Room

We left at 9:45 and when we typed in our destination into the SatNav it estimated our arrival time at 5:13pm!! Dad said he'd have to stop for a pee!!

It's definitely getting cooler as we head West, thank God, and we have started to see some foliage again!! The trees were amazingly tall in the park and Dad had to be on his guard as some of the roads went periliously close to the edge of cliffs.

A fairly uneventful journey, again the changes in the scenery which we have captured on video have been incredible. We did pass a massive landslide which you can see in one of the pictures and just goes to show how dangerous these roads are .

We finally arrived at our hotel about 6:30pm and walked into the local town for dinner.

San Francisco up next, Dad's getting the Lycra, make-up and stick-on moustache prepared.
All together now - "YMCA" and "In The Navy.."

Greeeeeeeen!

Landslide!!

Time for bed said Zebedee ...

The scenery is superb - we could really do with a Jon Cunningham-esque panoramic camera - although we have taken to picking our nose just to see something green!!!

Booked into our Ranch for the evening ahead and then off to Badwater which is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere ... and even hotter!!

Tried to book up for a game of scorching hot golf on the worlds lowest course but we were a bit too late. Went back to the room and woke up at 9:15pm, too late for dinner so back off to bed.

An enjoyable day in which we saw a lot but also caught up with a lot of sleep!

Yosemite's up next!

The Desert

Looking up to Sea Level Marker

The Lowest Point

Whilst we were typing up our last blog, we were drawn to the text that was being typed into the screen to our left. A small asian man, going by the name of Ming (the merciless probably) was perusing a website www.women4head.com and typing out his desires, time and room number to some "minger" via an email. Any women out there interested? He's staying at the Tropicana, Room 23*%!

Made it back to our room last night at about 2:00am and then the alarm clock failed to work meaning that we didn't arise until 10am! But we were out by 11, hitting the strip which we eventually worked from end to end ... which is no mean feat! - I had to carry Dad the last two miles!!

The trip was made encompassed many shops, in fact I seem to be getting in touch with my feminine side and blitzing the clothes shops, looking for T-Shirts. We also meandered through many of the hotels including the Bellagio, Caesars Palace (Sinatra's fav!) and Circus, Circus. I also managed to get Dad on the New York, New York Rollercoaster which you can see in the pics from yesterday.

We caught the bus back to the hotel where we got talking to a couple of English people from Yarmouth, indeed they said if you put a bubble over Yarmouth, you would have Las Vegas ... a bit of an overstatement me thinks!!!

After a freshen up we went for our dinner at a Steakhouse in the GameWorks. Unfortunately we don't have a photo, though I have it on video, of Dad's starter - "Sliders". This was 6, yes 6, burgers with buns and salad ... for a starter!!! Don't worry Michael, Dad only ate the burgers!

After dinner, we purchased an unlimited games card which allowed us to play on all the arcade games until they closed at midnight. We made our way back to the hotel, via the Hagen Daz Baileys milkshake stand and Dad lost $20 on the Wheel of Fortune. Well we had to try didn't we ...

Death Valley next ...

MGM Lion

The Strip

Caesars Palace

Inside(!) Caesars Palace

Le Hotel Paris

Back on the main road and we hit the Hoover Dam. This consisted of a rather large queue for a good 20minutes before we disappointingly saw very little as roadworks had cordoned off many of the roadside viewpoints.

Crossing the Dam marked our entry into the third and final state that we will visit on this tour - Nevada. It was a short drive from here to Las Vegas where we experienced the longest check in queue so far. We also have our biggest room number - 111406. If you look at the picture, we're nearly in the pointy bit at the top!

We've all heard about our fatter cousins over here but up until now we hadn't seen any - that is until today. It seems that if you are over 40 stone you qualify for a free mobility scooter - I can't wait to buy some T-Shirts ... XS!!!

We went out to explore some Casinos and so far have got as far as New York New York and the MGM Grand - the world's biggest hotel! We must ahve walked around that place 5 or 6 times! We were also invited to take part in a special advanced TV screening and then give them our feedback which was a bit of fun and a much needed sit down!

Next we found M&M World ... what a place! Never before have I experienced 4 floors 'choc-full' of M&M memorabilia. You could also pick your own colours, which of course we had to try.

We had dinner and then decided that we would go to the cinema. 'Live Free, Die Hard' came out today over here and so obviously we wanted the privilege of seeing it before all of you lot ... especially with a crowd of excitable Americans - Yippee Ki-Yay, Mother Fucker!!!!!!!!!

Yummy!

Adam And A Mate In Seligman

Hoover Dam Back

Hoover Dam Front

Our Hotel - The Luxor

Dad's Favourite Place!

New York, New York

The Grand Canyon was beautiful and we managed to take loads of photos and video. We then booked into our hotel and drove into the park itself to have a stroll along the rim.

We had dinner at a real American Western Steak House right down to the waiters wearing Cowboy hats - classy! We happened to be served by a cowgirl equivalent of Basil Fawlty who you feared that if your answer to her question of 'Is Everything OK?' was negative, that she would simply reply with 'Tough!'. She was definitely a real Cowgirl, she had the walk of somebody who had been straddling a magnificent animal for a good many hours!

Las Vegas tomorrow!]]> Tue, 26 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=1094 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=7847 0 36.04639 -112.15333 Left hotel at 9:15 with the temperature already well into the 100's - thank God for Air Conditioning!

After the Breakfast disappointment we decided to hit the road and stop off for lunch at place recommended by the Tour Operator. This place is right on the California/Arizona border and called Blythe.

Now as soon as we entered Blythe we should have known it was a mistake ... three legged people walking down the Main Street is never a good sign. We quickly did a U-Turn and headed into the safety of the local McDonalds. For once the people working in McDonalds were considered relatively normal.

Dad also decided it was about time to fill up with fuel. But which type? We plumped for Petrol and to date the car is still running.

Back on Route 10 for another 130miles and we were greeted by some lovely scenery which made the journey fly past. When I opened the windows to take some pictures it was like opening the door of a furnace. We also passed a junction for the State Prison accompanied by a sign warning us to not give HitchHikers a lift.

Eventually we hit some traffic and we knew that we were entering Phoenix. Through Phoenix was Scottsdale, our home for tonight. We've been at the hotel for about 2hours now, rung home and also scouted a location for tomorrow's big American breakfast - the first of the tour.

I'll update you with what we get up to later today on tomorrows blog.

See you at The Grand Canyon - I'm so excited!!!

The Open Road

Some rocks ...

...some more rocks!

Cactus!

Phoenix - America's 9th Biggest City

Stopped off on-route at Desert Hills, an out of town shopping outlet that had every designer label under the sun. Us not being the designer types, I ended up leaving with a Bates Motel 'Phsyco' T-Shirt.

We arrived at Palm Springs around 1pm and headed for the Visitor Centre who advised us to take the Aerial Tramway to the top of the San Jacinto Mountain. It was a long way up there and the actual cable car rotated 360 degrees which prompted many over-the-top reactions from our American co-passengers.

The weather in the morning had been pretty cool and Dad had expressed his disappointment. Little did he know that as we moved away from the coast it becomes bloody hot - they say 105f, I say bullshit! They even said that it would be 40degrees cooler at the top of the mountain but that was in no way the case!

We checked into our hotel and then went shopping, Dad bought some alcohol and wasn't asked for ID, unlike yesterday when he tried to buy some cough medicine. I've also discovered an addiction for Frosted Animal Cookies - I'm sure to be bringing back many packets of these!

We couldn't decide where to go to eat but fancied a Steakhouse - so as we have a SatNav we decided to let it choose where we went. We ended up at Ruth's Chris Steak House...

Words cannot describe how out of place we were in this restaurant. The service was immaculate - bordering on the obssessive. Never before have I been so informed about was has happened to my steak from birth through to plate - and very hot plate at that ... it burnt through the table cloth!

Got back to hotel at 10:15, I was asleep by 10:15:30.

Scottsdale next ...

Our very own Toyota

Well Hello ...

You wouldn't believe that we've just walked a 15mile hiking trail in 120f!

He's Got A Pineapple ...

Dad & I at Heathrow Airport

Hello,
Well we're off and running. After all that worrying, my passport was not a problem - in fact we got waived through many of the checkpoints and then sat there watching many of the other passengers having their personal belongings torn apart.

We're a bit worried having just seen the Captain of our plane who makes Douglas Bader look sprightly - he could also pass for the pilot from 'Airplane'!

Cabin Crew looked as though they had escaped from a Nursing Home - never before have I been seeen so much botox and silicon dripping from a group of senior citizens. Drinks and food kept coming - so can't complain, although it was difficult getting to the toilet as you had to vault their Zimmer Frames.

In the picture you can see Dad and I having a pre-flight drink at Heathrow before we said goodbye to Mum and Nan.

See you in LA.

Adam & Steve

]]> Sat, 23 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://www.blogabond.com/TripView.aspx?tripID=1094 http://www.blogabond.com/CommentView.aspx?commentID=7844 0 51.4666667 -0.45 When the woman found out that we were touring Brits she tried to flog us an SUV for $49 extra per day and more insurance - we politely declined her generous offer. She then told us to go out to the car park and pick up any 'Mid-Size' Car. There was a large selection of Mondeo types and then we spotted an SUV parked in the Mid Size space. I grabbed the keys and quickly ran over to an attendant and asked whether we could choose any 'Mid Size' car, even if some were bigger than others. His response - "If you see something you like, just take it" - We didn't need to be told twice, jumped in and screeched out of the depot at 3mph.

The 5 minute journey to the hotel was quite enough for Dad for today and we decided to walk around the vicinity and purchased a cool box which should come in handy. We then had a nutritious American meal from In 'n' Out Burger - Yum!

We're knackered so it's off to bed now. Sorry for the lack of photos but we will make up for it when we return to LA at the end of the holiday.

See you in Palm Springs.

Adam & Steve

Los Angeles Airport - Saturday Evening

Whoops! Adam gets excited as he unpacks for a night in LA.