Guess that's it then...

Well I've not posted in a day or two because we've really had a manic time in LA. The first night we were here we had a long drive here and just went to a nearby shopping area called Westwood as Jonny has said. The second night we also took another drive over to the cinema to see a recommended film called Australia and although it's perhaps a bit long it's very entertaining and well worth a watch. We also spent the day in Universal and generally enjoyed the rides and attractions there as well as getting a glimpse into what happens in a film studio and are a little bit wiser as to how they use the sets in films.

Today we have seen yet another film, Quantum of Solace, which is good and I think it's worth watching definitely if only because it seems to set up a third film to follow on from it. We had a little look around the Universal City (where we saw the film) and had a grand tour of LA courtesy of our Russian car driver called Boris; a man who has been in the USA for 30 years and apparently doesn't like it here. Go figure.

Mid afternoon we went to see Jay Leno's The Tonight Show (episode 3668) and really enjoyed being part of the audience and getting to be part of a live tv show experience. We even saw Tom Jones perform his new single, Come Alive, live!

Tomorrow we fly home, which just leaves us to pack tonight.

Overall it's been a fun time out here, with great experiences that will never leave me along the way. Hopefully we can break the tradition and actually get a flight on time in the USA tomorrow, out of the country. Route 66 has been a blast and although this might not be my very last entry, that's me signing out from the USA.

Stay classy United States of America!

City of Angels (just added three more, honest).

Hey all!

Very sorry for the delay in blogs recently, contrary to what Gary said just before we made it to Vegas this is not because 'what happens in vegas....' etc etc - this is because we had limited (in other words 'not free') internet access while we were there.

So, to follow on from Ste's blog - we had a slower day on our third day in Vegas, visiting some of the hotels on the strip, although really I should be replacing the word 'hotel' with 'city'!  Each hotel starts on the ground floor with a casino, then stretches into (sometimes literally) miles of shops in differing set ups, such as a Venice themed one, with gondola rides on a river THROUGH the hotel, another shaped inside and out as a medieval castle with Jousting going on while you eat, and then another with Circus acts happening above your head as you walk through the casino - the last one happened to be our hotel (the Circus Circus).  Above the shops you find the bedrooms.

It was worth seeing each hotel for the amazing decor etc, but each one was in essence the exact same - a massive casino filled with people, no doubt, on a ride to disappointment; and then a lot of expensive shops and restaurants.

We also saw the Beatles, well ok people pretending to be the Beatles, but they were very good - John Lennon was especially good and sounded just like him both singing and speaking (from what I have seen and heard from recordings obviously - no age jokes allowed)!

The next day we had a good trip (our final one of the 3400 mile journey) from Las Vegas to Los Angeles.  We arrived in good time to go out to the cinema to see 'Australia' - which is well recommended.

Today we were at Universal Studios which, although not as big as we had hoped, was very good. We took the 45 minute tour of the actual studios and lots of films such as Jaws, War of the Worlds, Back to the Future and TV shows such as Desperate Housewives, Hero's and CSI!  It was very revealing to see how some of the shows are put together.

We also were treated to shows about special effects (including large fire displays) and also we did some of the 'rides' which were all of high quality although limited in number!!

In the evening we went to a local celebrity hangout (although I was the only celebrity hanging out there while we were there) for a meal.  It was very good and it was followed by yet another trip to the cinema, this time to see 'Four Christmases', which was also very good.

Now, we are back at the hotel and we are tired!  Tomorrow is our very last full day here in the US of A and we are going on a Mercedes driven tour of LA followed by a taping of the 'Jay Leno' show (to which we got free tickets) - also Tom Jones is meant to be the guest on the show which could be good!!

On Thursday we catch the flight home and we are looking forward to seeing all you guys again.

Thanks again for the comments and for your prayers while we have been away.  Please continue to pray for our last few nights, I have to share a bed with Stephen for them and he has elbowed me twice in the night during our time away (once in the nose and once in the chest) so protection is needed (although the other night I woke up to find Gary using my back as a pillow - I genuinely do not know what is worse)!

God bless all and .......  stay classy, apparently.

Vegas, baby!

Well there has been no updates for the past day or two for a couple of reasons - Vegas is a busy busy place with lots to do, and the internet is not free here. So we have had to pay for 24 hours. Los Angeles might be the same but we will have to see.

We went to the Grand Canyon again the next day and it was snowy and misty. It was a unique experience because really how many people have seen the Grand Canyon in snow!? After that we began our trip over to Las Vegas. We took a slightly longer route through an iconic stretch of route 66 called the "Oatman Highway" (see pictures) which was well worth it. It was narrow and Gary and Jonny were well aware that to the right of them there were sheer drops, but the scenery was unmatched!

We also took a detour to the Hoover Dam by night, and got to stop halfway on it, on the way back over it (i.e. we drove over it one way then drove back) where no one normally ever is allowed to stop. This was because the police stopped a car that had gone straight through the police check lines. There were at least 3-4 police cars and a sniffer dog too. That delayed us a while, but eventually we got into Vegas with its bright lights and a nice Turkey thanksgiving dinner buffet where we all ate a little too much!

We got up at 5.00am the next day for our scheduled helicopter ride to find out a few hours later that we couldn't go because the fog over the Grand Canyon had not cleared. So we put it back to Saturday afternoon (the best time to do it) and explored the hotel's indoor theme park for the afternoon. In the evening we went to see a show called the Rat Pack, and I'm sure the others will say more but it was outstanding.

The next day we had a lazy start and Gary and Jonny went to get the tickets for the next two nights shows - the Wayne Brady (from 'Who's line is it anyway?' and a Beatles impersonator act). Wayne Brady was split into two sections - Comedy improvisation and then a more musical half. Personally I enjoyed the first half more, but it was all good.

Tomorrow we plan to walk through a few of the more famous hotels (which are more like cities in themselves) and then onward to our last destination - Los Angeles.

That's all from me for now, see you in Los Angeles! Stay classy Las Vegas!

Hi as I write to you at the moment the other two are seeing how far they are able to stretch after the horse riding yesterday, i shall not divulge further what they are doing but it is funny to behold!!  The horse riding was great, I was riding a horse that was called "Tax".  thankfully he knew what he was doing and I was able just to grab on and let him do his stuff.  When we got back up the trail when it was dark and we as P.Jonny said 2 miles or so from the  Ranch, our horses really wanted to get back meaning that they set off at a gallop which was great, though we were inexperienced our horses decided that travelling at around 30mph in the dark was a good idea.  Through this i discovered a new definition for Trust.  Trust is like holding on to a saddle in the pitch black whilst the horse that the saddle is attached two gallops as fast as they can towards trees, and since you can not see anything you have to have trust that the horse knows what they are doing, and that they will not hit any trees, thankfully they did not.

Today i do feel the effects of it, but it is not too bad.  Later that day we saw the grand canyon of mist!!  Hopefully it will have cleared by tomorrow morning, and then on to Las Vegas, where there will be no more blogging till LA.  Remember what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!!

Sore.. still sore... ouch...

Well yesterday as you know we went horse riding for around 3 hours. At the time and afterwards I was under the impression that me and my horse, Pioux, had bonded and had an understanding and you know - got on well as we galloped over the fields in the pitch black of night. However, little did I know that this horse was just making me think that, while he secretly inflicted the most pain in the most parts of my body I have ever experienced all in one go. He was a crafty horse though - he made it happen the day after I rode him. To my body, I went riding through vertical canyons for little under 3 months, let alone 3 days.

Today we went back to the overpasses in the Canyon de Chelley, and saw the Spider Rock and the White House Formation (a house carved in the rock) and then we carried on to the Grand Canyon. Over 300 miles long and 15 miles wide at places. Even around a mile deep in one place. Unfortunately the weather wasn't on our side and the heaven's had opened well before we reached the canyon itself. By the time we got to the Canyon, we were facing mist so bad we couldn't see 100ft in front of us, let alone a mile deep.

We are planning to go back again tomorrow, and although there is snow forecast, we are hoping that we will see much grander views and be able to post more pictures up for you.

Wish us luck, and keep us in mind as we recover from our escapades with the horses.

Stay classy Grand Canyon!

Pain..... real pain...... 'shave you legs by rubbing' sort of pain.... but worth it!!

Today we travelled to Chinle, it was a spectacular drive through red and yellow rock formations, large open ranges and steep drops.  

We arrived at Chinle and after checking in, decided to travel the 'south rim' of the Canyon De Chelly (you are not actually allowed into the canyon without a ranger).  We saw a horse riding place and went to have a look.  We were only greeted by a dog and a man asleep in the distance!!  So we travelled on and found another.  This one was much more productive!

The ranch was ran by an Indian man who got us a horse each (mine was called 'Black Feet' and was the fastest out of all the horses and the 'stud' of the ranch - the indian guy was very perceptive giving him to me, obviously we matched each other perfectly)!

We each got on our 'Mustang' horses and off we set.  We were meant to only go to the rim and back, but we each took to riding pretty quick and were soon going from a walk, to a trot and then a cantor, which is fast by the way!

Because we did go faster it meant that we had the time to actually go down the 1000 feet of the canyon to the bottom!!  We travelled down the very steep 500 year old Indian trail, down the side of the canyon wall.  It was pretty scary with the fall to one side of you literally always within one yard.  It was good that the horses knew what they were doing, cause we just held on and let them walk down there.

After an hour and a half or so of 'riding' we were at the bottom and we rode through the canyon, past wild cows and horses (didn't see any of the native bears that also inhabit the canyon).  We reached 'Spider Rock' which I had been looking forward to seeing ever since I knew we were coming to the canyon it is in.

It was great and our Indian Guide (who's name was Cedric) told us all about his people's (Navajo Tribe) history in the canyon and his own families history as well.

After a brief stop we travelled back up the trail in the dimming light and by the time we reached the top again it was literally pitch black.  We still had approximately two miles to get back to the ranch.  However, we had lots of confidence now and we literally galloped most of the way back, through trees (all too often literally sometimes).

My horse had decided that he just wanted to get home and he really sped off, I almost fell off at one point, but managed to stay on and bring him to a halt!  Thankfully we made it back safely and our 3 hour ride was over.

We REALLY enjoyed it, and saw parts of the world that not many people have seen.  Also, to travel an old trail that native Indians have travelled for so long was inspiring to say the least.  It was truly magnificent to see that part of God's creation and take it in.  

However, we are all suffering.  Going back to the title of this blog - there are a few areas of my legs which used to have hair but now do not and have been replaced by very red sore areas!  Also, there are leg muscles I never knew existed which have started to announce their existence by SCREAMING IN PAIN!!!!  Also, I did have a nice large blister on my foot from all the walking in New York which had lately healed.  However, since the horse ride I have developed an even larger blister on my hand...

Anyway, it really doesn't matter cause to be honest the ride was more than worth it.  It is the highlight of the holiday so far and I am beginning to feel like a real Indian!!!

Tomorrow we are off to the Grand Canyon, which if it is 'grander' than this canyon we will be in for an amazing time.  

Thanks once again for all your comments and your prayers for our journey, thanks and in the words of my good friend Route66:

STAY CLASSY MUSTANG HORSES!!!!

Action packed Albuquerque!

Well today has been full of action - so much so that it deserves a blog post all to itself.

We arose and got out of the hotel by 10am and then went to Costco for a nice healthy and nutritious breakfast - kosher hotdogs (jonny had a polish hotdog) and we shared an 18 inch pizza which was devoured over the course of the day. Then we went to secure our College Basketball game tickets but we couldn't find the arena at first, so we asked a few students on the University campus and eventually made it there. We got the tickets and head out for the cinema.

We had looked on the map and the cinema's website said that it was straight forward to get to the venue, but after a good 20 minutes trying, we had to stop and ask for directions only to find out the cinema was over a mile away from where the website said it was! We were too late for the film we wanted to see at first, so we went to see a film called Soul Men, which had caught our eye when we were in New York. Suffice to say the plot it and of itself is interesting, but some of the scenes and most of the language were just there for the sake of it, and didn't really add to the film itself.

We quickly stopped off at the hotel again, and then went to a local Shooting Range. None of us had fired a gun before, and if I'm honest I was pretty apprehensive at first, especially with the sound that people were making firing off their own guns in the booth's around us. We hired out 2 guns - a Glock (9mm) and a Magnum Revolver (very loud). I started off on the 9mm and after figuring out how to actually load the magazine into the gun correctly (thanks Jonny!) I started to aim and figure out how to get reliable results. We each had 16 rounds on both guns, trying to hit accurately our targets at different distances - I even managed to get a bullseye too! Then I tried out the revolver, which was much larger and heavier than the Glock was. It was easier to load, but the amount of recoil (the kickback when you fire) wasn't something I was expecting. Also the explosion was much louder when you fired the bullet - so much so I could feel the heal on my face from it!

We video'd each other and had much fun, and then set out for the Basketball game. Parking wasn't as easy as we'd hoped but we managed it eventually, and got into supporting the Lobo's. After the game (which the Lobo's won against the Californian team, the Matadors) we stopped off at a Route 66 cafe for a drink and a light dessert before signing out for the day.

Albuquerque was fun and we managed to pack a lot into it!

Stay classy Albuquerque...

Hello Again!!

Hi to all, it has been a little while since I have contributed to the blog, and so here it is.  Most of what we have been doing has been described to already, but I shall attempt to fill in any gaps that I can think of.

One thing that we did on the way out of Tutencari (please excuse the spelling) was to go off roading, there was a large hill that had dirt paths that went up it and I thought that this would be a good thing to do, it gave our Jeep a chance to stretch its legs and see what it could do.  It dealt with the terrain very well, and I am pleased that we ended up choosing the Mid SUV because without it this would have been impossible.

I would also just like to reiterate P.Jonnys warning about Cheery Pepsi, it is indeed foul stuff, if you see it don't for even the briefest of moments consider that it could taste nice, it does NOT!!!  Avoid as you would the plague, or some other disease that you did not wish to catch.

At this moment in time I cannot think of anything else that I would like to add to the blog at this point, so bye for now!

Adobe and Albuquerque

Well I am back on the blog ready to give you an update. On friday we arrived at Santa Fe and on Saturday morning we said we would do our own thing and then do something together in the afternoon. Jonny and Gary stuck together, while I went on a walk searching for the Santa Fe city area, but instead I just ended up walking through the suburbs for 2/3 hours before going back to the hotel with a few postcards in hand. But at least I got a feel for what seems a quite laid back area although I wouldn't want to live there myself. When I got back to the hotel room I had another small nosebleed, which cleared itself up and then in the afternoon we went to the Downtown area I had originally searched for and toured the Palace of the Governors with a guide, which was very interesting.

We had food and ended up going back to the hotel room for a lazy night. Today we have had breakfast in McDonalds before going to Rodeo Drive Baptist Church, which was a very welcoming and blessed thanksgiving service, where the members of the congregation shared with everyone else what they were thankful for over the last year. Jonny even got up too!

After that we drove through the idyllic countryside to Albuquerque. We checked into the hotel and had a little drive around the town before going to O'Neil's pub, where we found traditional Irish/American live music entertainment which was brilliant and made for a great atmosphere.

Tomorrow we are going to a shooting range, and in the evening we will be going to see a College Basketball game in Albuquerque as long as we can get tickets.

Tuesday we will be driving to Chinle near the Grand Canyon too.

I'd better get some sleep in preparation for tomorrow. Stay classy Santa Fe!

Do you know the way to Santa Fe...

...yes, I know the song is actually San Jose, but it still works!!

Anyway, even if you don't its ok because we are here!!  We arrived yesterday and have had a good full day here before travelling on tomorrow to Alberquerque.  I got to watch Newcastle v Chelsea this morning, and then went and did a bit of shopping. This was followed by a trip to the museum for all of us (inside the Palace of Governors which has stood here since 1600's) it was very good.  Then we had an authentic Mexican meal (I had the most wonderful Fajitas) and have now come back to the hotel.... We have not decided what we are doing this evening, either going out to hear a band play or watching some boxing and a movie here, ah decisions, decisions...

There are 2 quick observations I wish to mention on this blog:

1)  Cherry Pepsi - DO NOT LET THIS FOUL STUFF INTO THE UK - I had a fair amount of this stuff with my KFC last night, and ended up lying in bed most of the evening and night feeling very unwell and with a painful stomach.  It was definitely the Cherry Pepsi that was the problem as we all had the chicken and no one else was unwell.  Also, to be honest it tasted pretty bad.

2) Restrooms - now these sound great, but are actually WC's, Toilets, Loos etc.  In general the cleanliness and facilities in general 'restrooms' are far superior to those in the UK.  There is never graffiti, all the 'places that you rest' (ahem),  are clean and they provide disposable seat covers, the soap dispensers all work as do all the hand drying methods provided.  However a few negatives are that the 'seats of rest' (ahem again) are a lot lower than I am used to and (here's the kicker), the Americans seem to like to be able to watch you....um.....resting (one final ahem here)!!!!  There are extraordinary large gaps at the base and top of 'resting' cubicles, as well as incredibly large gaps along the edge's of the doors into said cubicles.  This means that anyone standing outside can see quite comfortably inside and vice versa!!  So, pros and cons to USA 'Johns'.

Just a couple of observations.  Thanks for keeping track with our adventure, we are having a good time.  (and sorry Rachel if this is too long a blog for you - lol)!!!