After a quiet night in Sacramento on Saturday, I caught a plane to LA the next day. I spent a pleasant afternoon in Santa Monica. I went to a seafood restaurant for dinner and the first item on the specials board was barramundi from Queensland. Needless to say, I chose something else. The next morning I found a cafe that sold real food and had a very nice omelette that was made from real eggs and mushrooms and spinach that I could recognise and taste. I pottered along the pier, walked along the waterfront etc. Quite relaxing.
The 2 flights to get home were unremarkable. Noel delivered me to my lovely sunny apartment. Now to washing, paying bills etc etc.
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Sunday, July 9, 2017
Road trip 3. 4 states in 1 morning.
On Wednesday the troops arrived back in the evening tired but happy after walking through the river up a canyon for a long way. For some of the return they apparently floated down the river.
On Thur we breakfasted ( I use the term ' breakfast ' loosely. It seems impossible in Holiday Inns to get anything real that has no gluten or sugar. There are lots of pastry things, sometimes some scrambled egg stuff that tastes funny. Wendy says it's made from powdered eggs. There is sometimes little omelette things with a few bits of what maybe vegetables. Filling enough for me. For a change from their normal healthy regime the kids are allowed free rein , so they are happy.) Back to where I was, in SW Utah in a little corner of the USA where several states meet. We drove through the NW corner of Arizona into the SW corner of Nevada and then into California. In the car we had salad stuff for lunch ( a normal practise, bought from Walmart at a reasonable price) but the 2 roadside rest areas we passed were both closed so we stopped at a funny little town. We could not find a park for thE kids to run in. Outside the temperature was a searing 116 degrees F, 45 C. So we had to resort to a peculiar Greek restaurant. Salad for dinner in Visalia.
On Friday we drove into the Sequoia National Park to see the giant sequoias. We went on several short walks, wandered through pine forests with these huge trees, and through lovely meadows. We saw the tree which is reputed to be the biggest tree in the world by volume.
We drove from there to Fresno where we had a very late lunch / early dinner. It was Tahli's 7th birthday . She chose a Japanese Tepanyaki place which was very good. The chef put on an excellent show . One of Tahlis sisters told him it was Tahlis birthday and he made a big fuss of her. The food was excellent. We spent the night in Marioposa, one of the gateway towns to Yosemite. We decided on the way to give Yosemite a miss- too crowded and we had seen some wonderful places and didnot want to rush, wait in a long queue to get in etc etc. The drive to Mariposa was quiet, rural, very pleasant landforms similar to Australia, but with different trees. Mariposa was a nice little town, busy when we arrived in the evening, but completely dead at 9.30 when wendy and I went for a look in a few shops. Only 1 was open. EveryOne else was in the queues in Yosemite.
Saturday we drove to Sacramento and had lunch in an interetsing old warehouse area which looks like it is regenerating. Wendy and Co dropped me at a hotel near the airport and drove onto Lake Tahoe where they were meeting Lachs sister and her family for another 2 weeks of road trip.
On Thur we breakfasted ( I use the term ' breakfast ' loosely. It seems impossible in Holiday Inns to get anything real that has no gluten or sugar. There are lots of pastry things, sometimes some scrambled egg stuff that tastes funny. Wendy says it's made from powdered eggs. There is sometimes little omelette things with a few bits of what maybe vegetables. Filling enough for me. For a change from their normal healthy regime the kids are allowed free rein , so they are happy.) Back to where I was, in SW Utah in a little corner of the USA where several states meet. We drove through the NW corner of Arizona into the SW corner of Nevada and then into California. In the car we had salad stuff for lunch ( a normal practise, bought from Walmart at a reasonable price) but the 2 roadside rest areas we passed were both closed so we stopped at a funny little town. We could not find a park for thE kids to run in. Outside the temperature was a searing 116 degrees F, 45 C. So we had to resort to a peculiar Greek restaurant. Salad for dinner in Visalia.
On Friday we drove into the Sequoia National Park to see the giant sequoias. We went on several short walks, wandered through pine forests with these huge trees, and through lovely meadows. We saw the tree which is reputed to be the biggest tree in the world by volume.
We drove from there to Fresno where we had a very late lunch / early dinner. It was Tahli's 7th birthday . She chose a Japanese Tepanyaki place which was very good. The chef put on an excellent show . One of Tahlis sisters told him it was Tahlis birthday and he made a big fuss of her. The food was excellent. We spent the night in Marioposa, one of the gateway towns to Yosemite. We decided on the way to give Yosemite a miss- too crowded and we had seen some wonderful places and didnot want to rush, wait in a long queue to get in etc etc. The drive to Mariposa was quiet, rural, very pleasant landforms similar to Australia, but with different trees. Mariposa was a nice little town, busy when we arrived in the evening, but completely dead at 9.30 when wendy and I went for a look in a few shops. Only 1 was open. EveryOne else was in the queues in Yosemite.
Saturday we drove to Sacramento and had lunch in an interetsing old warehouse area which looks like it is regenerating. Wendy and Co dropped me at a hotel near the airport and drove onto Lake Tahoe where they were meeting Lachs sister and her family for another 2 weeks of road trip.
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
Road trip 2. 4 states in 4 days
On Sunday, after breakfast in the NW of Texas we drove into New Mexico, kept going through New Mexico and stopped for the night in Gallup in the west. On Monday morning we passed into Arizona and spent some time in the interesting Petrified forest and painted desert national park. Weird moonscape sort of landscapes. More driving and we got to Tusayan, the nearest town to the Grand Canyon for the night.
Tuesday morning we spent wandering around the southern rim looking down into the amazing Canyon. So many amazing views of different colours and shapes. Late lunch in the car, more driving and we got here, Springdale, Utah, the nearest town to Zion National Park in the evening.
This morning, Wednesday, after a late start ( what a suprise, everyone was quite tired) we went for a walk in the Canyon in the SE of the Zion NationalPark. Again, amazing but in a far more personal way. We walked along the edge of the small river that runs through the Canyon with high high walls either side. I left the others to continue on the walk up the river and came back to the hotel to catch up on a few things. So, maybe more details later on the wonderful places I have seen. Maybe not.
Tuesday morning we spent wandering around the southern rim looking down into the amazing Canyon. So many amazing views of different colours and shapes. Late lunch in the car, more driving and we got here, Springdale, Utah, the nearest town to Zion National Park in the evening.
This morning, Wednesday, after a late start ( what a suprise, everyone was quite tired) we went for a walk in the Canyon in the SE of the Zion NationalPark. Again, amazing but in a far more personal way. We walked along the edge of the small river that runs through the Canyon with high high walls either side. I left the others to continue on the walk up the river and came back to the hotel to catch up on a few things. So, maybe more details later on the wonderful places I have seen. Maybe not.
Sunday, July 2, 2017
Road trip. Mostly Oklahoma
On Friday I spent the day pottering with Wendy as she raced around doing jobs.
On Saturday morning we all left their home to travel West. They have a 7 seater car . At first , while we were still in the Orzarks, it was a bit hilly and very dense scrub, but then it was flat for the rest of the day. Miles and miles of crops, some black Angus. We went through Oklahoma, had dinner in a little town just East of the border with Texas , and soon we will set off again after spending the night just in Texas. Wendy and Lach share the driving, I sit, look and relax.
On Saturday morning we all left their home to travel West. They have a 7 seater car . At first , while we were still in the Orzarks, it was a bit hilly and very dense scrub, but then it was flat for the rest of the day. Miles and miles of crops, some black Angus. We went through Oklahoma, had dinner in a little town just East of the border with Texas , and soon we will set off again after spending the night just in Texas. Wendy and Lach share the driving, I sit, look and relax.
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