Sue - rewind - back to Naples, Florida

The time has come for me to stop posting things on our travel blog! We have been home for almost 2 months, and I have gone from feeling that we had been away for years, to now wondering whether we imagined the whole trip! 

Writing on the blog at home has been a way of keeping our adventure alive.

As I close off the blog, I realise that I didn't write much about our time in Florida; our time with Paul and Sue plus our mini trips. So here it is......................

Flying in to Florida was incredible. We flew over the Mississippi Delta and over the very flat land that is Florida - the beach landscape dotted with high rise condos! I am incredibly excited, but a bit nervous too...thinking 'I hope that they are OK with having a family of 5 on and off for 3 weeks whilst they go about their busy day to day lives.' We are so looking forward to seeing them, but I hope we don't drive them mad! 

At the airport, I go to hop into Sue's car, thinking it's the passenger side, but of course it's the driver's side. Yes, I managed to do that a number of times during our holiday!

Paul and Sue, thank you so much for having us! We so loved spending time with you just hanging out and being part of your everyday activity. Not long enough though! Now that we are gone, I am sure that your house is much quieter and tidier and you have your laundry, kitchen and computer to yourself again! I have told Jim that he needs to get a job in Florida for a few years so that we can see each other more often! 

FLORIDA. I am amazed at how flat it is. Even though I was expecting it, it's a stark contrast to Queenstown. I can see why they don't suggest we come it summer, as it's certainly hot enough for us now and it's only spring. Some days when we are out and about, I find it almost unbearable; my summer clothes are not nearly summery enough for this climate. 

Naples is such a lovely city. It's a planned, spacious, manicured city that has a huge influx of population in winter, where lots of people come to play golf and relax in the warm Florida winter climate and to escape the harsh winters from elsewhere in America. Sue says Naples is not the 'real world' and I can relate to that in a way, because Queenstown is a bit like that too. 

Being a touristy place, it creates it's own different vibe. Naples though, seems to attract people with plenty of money who can afford to spend the winter months in a different location. Golfers and 'ladies who lunch', whereas Queenstown definitely attracts a wide variety of tourists. Sure, we get our fair share of wealthy tourists, but they are entwined with the backpacker market and everything in between. 

We hire a car and buy a GPS, which gives us plenty of flexibility, and saves any transport complications with there being a total of 9 of us. We settle into a routine of doing stuff during the day, whilst Paul and Sue are working and Grace and Brandon are at school.  Even though we had a few days in LA, I was surprisingly jet lagged, so it took a few days for the 'fog' to clear. Jim was OK. I was the 'foggy' one. Some days, our kids just wanted to swim in the pool, and we are not the speediest at getting moving in the mornings (well, we ARE on holiday) so the days went by pretty quickly. 

It does take a while for everything not to feel so 'foreign', therefore absolutely everything is an experience. Going to the supermarket is an experience all of it's own. The kids were fascinated by going to a pet shop, where you could buy a snake or a tarantula for your next pet! Everything was new and exciting - a world away from kiwi life. It gave me an insight to how Sue must have felt when her and Paul came to Auckland to live and how Paul must have felt when he first moved to America.

It took a while to start to feel even remotely familiar with American life, but now that I'm back home I really want to go back and experience it all over again.

• Naples Beach and Pier
• This was so much fun! There were loads of people on the pier catching all sorts of interesting fish, with turtles and dolphins in the water and Pelicans swooping for fish nearby
• Corkscrew Swamp
• We see all sorts of different wildlife, including snakes, racoons, alligators, tree frogs, lizards and lots of different bird species.
• A day to the outskirts of Fort Lauderdale to visit Jim's cousins son. Josh and Nikki take us to a Cuban Restaurant for lunch.
• Naples Zoo
• Matthew really wanted to go to the zoo. Living in Queenstown, it's not something he does often, so Naples Zoo was a day for him. It was so incredibly hot!
• A day at the outskirts of the Everglades, having an Airboat ride in search of Alligators Sadly didn't see too many but saw a few more on a walk that we did. Also had a chance to hold a baby Alligator!
  
• Went to Grace's track meet to watch her pole vault. 
• Went to 2 of Brandon's baseball games.
• During Easter, we had an early start and a BIG day Paul and Sue hired a pontoon and took us all out of the water for half a day.  We loved this day. We stopped at a picture perfect island with pristine white beaches and amazingly very few people. The shells we found on the beach were amazing! The day was topped off with lunch at Snooks on Marco Island, where we tried Alligator Nuggets and Conch (pronounced 'conk') Fritters. 
• Baseball
  Paul took us to a Baseball game which was fun. It wasn't major league, as their season hadn't started yet, but they were super skilled. Free 'dogs' for those who were brave enough to eat them!  Anna and Holly spent the whole time trying to teach Grace how to speak in a 'kiwi' accent!
• Met Chris, Grace's boyfriend
• Enjoyed Sue's divine prawn curry and other delicious dishes...thank you Sue for feeding us!
• Was treated to Paul's lamb lunch...yummm
• Met some of Paul and Sue's friends - Fred and Kate and their extended family, John and Merryn plus some others!
  
• Went to Moe's for dinner in Naples. This was early on in our holiday, where I was a bit overwhelmed with everything American. Took me a while to fathom the menu! 
• Had a girls mini shopping trip with Sue and Grace in Naples. South Beach will be on the agenda for next trip!
• Went to Sunday Easter service at their church.
• Easter.The yard was riddled with Easter eggs and the kids had fun collecting them all up. Sue had organised Easter baskets for the kids when they can downstairs in the morning and they were absolutely filled with goodies. Lucky children!
• Celebrated Matt's birthday with Paul, Sue, Grace and Brandon (the day before his actual birthday since we were heading to Orlando early on the 25th). Pressies and 'Cookies and Cream' ice cream cake!
• $5 instant take out pizza - handy when you need food in a hurry!
• ICE - CUSTARD - HAPPINESS. Rita's was sooooooo good!

We had a total of 22 nights in Florida and by the time we did our side trips to Orlando and The Keys, we had a 15 nights with Paul and Sue. It was, to say the least, extremely difficult to say goodbye......... 

Sue - goodbye America!

No traffic jams for us. We had a pretty straight run to LA on the freeway. 

Jim driving and me navigating, we decided to have a look around LA. We passed through lots of fancy houses in Beverly Hills and drove around and around in circles trying to find Rodeo Drive. We knew where it was (sort of) but frustratingly couldn't find it. Road works were confusing 'Doris' (our GPS) and so she kept sending us a way where the road was closed! How was she to know!

So we drove around lots of posh areas surrounding Rodeo Drive, but didn't manage Rodeo Drive itself! Was hoping that we may have spotted someone famous......

We still had time to fill so we headed to Santa Monica for a last bit of shopping...could have spent all day there (it's shopping paradise) but we only had a few hours to spare before we needed to drop off the rental car and head to the airport.  

GOODBYE AMERICA!

We have had such an amazing time! We loved our time with Paul, Sue, Grace and Brandon and could easily have spent a few more weeks there. Please can we go back soon?! We also loved our road trip in California - so many great memories.

ON arriving home, it was actually a bit weird seeing green paddocks next to the runway at Auckland Airport! The airport is soooo quiet! Arriving back in Queenstown, it felt like we had been away for years! 

I saw some people on the plane poring over their NZ guidebook. I watch them with interest, and wonder what excitement they are feeling as they are about to embark on their Kiwi adventure. I hope that they have an amazing holiday in our beautiful country and leave with as many good memories as we have of America.  

Matthew goofs around with our mascot 'Kissimmee Kiwi"

    

Sue - Palm Springs - a place of contrasts

Palm Springs - a fascinating place! Only a few hours (all freeway) from LA and quite clearly a popular getaway from the LA scene. A place with a Rat Pack history - when you are there you can really feel what those times were like. Interesting architecture.(Desert Modernism is the name - you can spot it as soon as you enter town) Palm Springs has something for everyone, an escape from day to day life and a recreational oasis: great hiking and outdoor activities, spa resorts, golf resorts, casinos, a conference escape, an obvious gay scene...it really has its own vibe, and walking down the main street at night, I got the feeling that Palm Springs had a seedy aside too. We didn't have any accommodation booked, but the first place we stopped at was good enough for us.....a 2 bedroom apartment style motel complex......a hint of desert modernism architecture, a pool outside our door and at a great price too. Unbelievably cheap, being their off season and mid week. I was a little wary though.....it didn't seem like a family style accommodation option, and with the 'anything goes' impression I have acquired of Palm Springs I was wondering if we were at an appropriate complex for children  - was half expecting a raucous adult pool party outside our door in the early hours of the morning! Perhaps I have been watching too many American movies...

Where we stayed in Palm Springs

Our day of exploration began with an offer of a 'Bloody Mary' at the breakfast cafe! Then we were off for an adventure on the Aerial Tramway, the largest rotating tramway in the world. It takes you from the desert valley floor (806 metres) to the San Jacinto Mountains, 2596 metres above sea level in about 10 minutes. This gondola (they call it a tramway - the difference being, these can take a whole stack of people and there are only 2 - one going up and one going down, compared to the gondolas we know where they are much smaller and there are loads of them)  takes you so high, it makes the Skyline Gondola in Queenstown look like a baby! The temperature change is huge - a warm climate on the desert floor and 6 degrees celsius at the top with the threat of a snow storm! They say it's like a climate change equivalent to the difference between Mexico and the Canadian Mountains. It was late spring (in winter, it's thick with snow at the top) and we knew it was going to be cold, so brought our jackets etc, but I forgot to bring long trousers, so has walking around in 6 degrees in shorts...eeeek...a little chilly!

It is beautiful up there and we did a short hike in the wilderness - not particularly well signposted though and Jim and I have a few 'which way?' discussions, being very aware that we had no cell phone coverage, no-one knew we were there and the weather was closing in...being lost in the 'wilderness' in shorts was not a desirable prospect! On a clear day, the view over the valley and desert is amazing apparently - we caught parts of it but the weather was not in our favour today. (the weather was clear at the top, but we couldn't see down into the valley - only an occasional glimpse when some of the cloud cleared)

From there we headed to the Indian Canyons, (such an amazing contrast compared to the San Jacinto Mountains) land belonging to the Agua Callente Cahuilla (kah-we-ah) Indians. The desert lands were their home and in 1876 the U.S Federal Government allocated 32,000 acres in trust to them, 6,700 acres of that land in the Palm Springs area. The canyons are an oasis in the desert, with streams, waterfalls and ancient palm groves.Check it out on http://indian-canyons.com It was really beautiful and peaceful - with limited time, (if you are there after 4pm, the gates are locked and you can't get your car out!) we only did a few of the walks. With more time, you could happily explore for days. Saw a snake slithering across the road in front of our car, and saw a very large lizard. (about 30cm plus long) Have read on websites that rattlesnakes are quite common in the canyons - would love to have seen one but wasn't keen on having a scary snake encounter!

A trip to the supermarket to stock up on Jelly Bellies to take home, and also get some Bagels for our breakfast, then we were off to dinner at Ruby's Diner. Had a great soft taco (one of many on our holiday.. they are very delicious) and some 'all american home made apple pie' which came with caramel sauce and ice cream. Now that was pretty damn good!

Ruby's Diner, Palm Springs

Next day, we said goodbye to Palm Springs, drove past the wind turbines (the biggest wind farm I have ever seen), a quick shopping stop at Premium Outlets (outlet shopping mall - they have them all over America) on the outskirts of town, then we hit the freeway for the drive back to LA. Apparently the freeway can get pretty clogged and you can get stuck in traffic for hours! Not wanting to miss our flight (with the unknowns of having to tackle the traffic in LA and find where we had to drop off our rental car etc) we left with plenty of time to spare. Joshua Tree Narional Park is only an hour away - somewhere I really wanted to go, but we need a few more days to be able to do that. We are soooooo not ready to go home - we have truly gotten into the 'road trip' mode!

Sue - Carlsbad, Legoland and the desert beyond

Matt has been desperate to go to Legoland, but all website information indicates that it's for younger kids, so Holly and Anna are not too keen. So Matt and Jim have a 'daddy date' and off they go. Matt has an awesome day! For the girls, "what is there actually to do in Carlsbad?" We discuss heading to San Diego for the day, but decided there isn't really enough time to do any of the main attractions and it's raining, so hanging at the beach isn't much of an option either. We decide to take it easy and explore the shops in Carlsbad - not too much to choose from, but manage to fill in our day happily at the Premium Outlets. Have a great dinner at BJ's, and experience their trademark dessert, Pizookies. (Soft cookie cooked in a small pizza pan, topped with ice cream)  Mmmmmmm delicious!
Next day, we head on our road trip inland towards the desert. We stop in a little town, where they say has heavy snowfalls in winter, then we wind down way to the desert floor. The cooler climate that is being experienced all over California has been felt here too, and in Anza Borrego Desert State Park (the largest state park in California. Named Anza, after a Spanish explorer and Borrego which is the Spanish name for the Big Horn Sheep that live in the desert) it is much cooler than normal. Not the desert temperatures that we expected, but pleasant summer heat. We go for a short desert exploration, and I see a 'red racer' snake just off the path. I was so excited - later I think that I should have been a little scared, but it happened so quickly and it was an exciting sight. It was moving VERY fast....but thankfully not into our path. This is a huge desert park, with 500 miles of desert road - you could spend alot of time exploring here - the few hours that we spent were fun, but we must hit the road. Have a reasonable drive ahead of us to reach Palm Springs - our last stop before our holiday comes to an end :-(

Ouch - a bit prickly! 

Sue - a day of cruising from north of LA to south of LA

Don't really have time to explore Ventura but it looks like a cute town...it doesn't look flashy or sleek, but the village looked worth a meander. Instead we head to the Ventura library, where we have free use of computer terminals. Handy when we want to update our blog plus book some accommodation in advance for our next destination. Our initial plans were to skirt around the outside of LA and then head inland to Palm Springs, but we have worked out that this route will put us in Carlsbad for Matthew's day trip to Legoland, on a day that Legoland happens to be closed! So we decide to head south, driving right through greater LA - Malibu, Santa Monica, Venice Beach, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach etc. After buying a few cheap second hand novels books at the library and a smoothie stop at 'Tom and Jerrys', we are on our way. Lots of swanky homes in Malibu, many behind big gates so we don't really get to see much. We stop for an explore and goof around at Huntington Beach -a bit hard to feel the whole SoCal surfie vibe when it's chilly spring but it seems like a pretty relaxed sort of place.

Dinner today is chicken, salad and rolls from the supermarket, eaten in the car! We arrive in Carlsbad in time for the kids to enjoy a swim in the hotel pool. Have been surprised how cold it has been in California so far - apparently usually much warmer this time of year.

Sue - a coastal cruise down Hwy1 plus an unexepected diversion!

They say that no trip to California is 'worth its salt' without a jaunt along the scenic central coast. Well it sure is beautiful in a very untouched raw way. It's a far cry from what I have seen of the Californian beaches 25 years ago - the commercial surfy beaches of SoCal (Southern California). As we drive along the high cliffs, we spot a few pods of dolphins along the coastline.

We were heading south but this photo is taken looking north 

We see some signs, that alert us to road closure - oh no - our scenic coastal drive is going to be cut in half by a non avoidable detour inland. This is a wild inland road, winding and winding and winding and more winding as we steeply climb inland - this is a huge detour and takes us to who knows where!!!! Again, it's surprising how the landscape changes so dramatically - once we are back inland and pass over the coastal mountains we are back in dry, hot climate. We are getting low on petrol, but civalisation is not particularly evident anywhere! YES, we see a small local store that sells gas....at HUGE prices. We aren't travelling with a physical road map and at times like this when we have no idea where we are going, relying on 'Doris' our GPS is a bit hair raising. I think that we should have just put more trust in her, because she was right most of the time! My recommendation for anyone doing a road trip though, is don't leave home without your GPS and your map! Eventually we link back to the highway and back on the road to Santa Barbara.
Due to our unexpected detour, we arrive later than expected  - early evening - it's Friday night and we cannot find accommodation anywhere that fits our budget. Later we read in the guide book, to be prepared for a price shock. Places are either too expensive or full. Oh dear! After no success, we head further south, try another town and then another - stop at Carls Jnr for an American fast food dinner experience (green burritos - uuuugh no!) and eventually find some accomodation (by this time it's well after 10pm) in Ventura. Yes, we are ready for sleep!

Sue - Monterey, it's all about the sea

The bay itself looks abundant with sea life, (it is apparently - Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary) the coastline is rugged and jagged and there's kelp and seaweed everywhere! Not so inviting for swimming (far too cold this time of year anyway) but would make a great kayaking adventure. We have one full day and some time the next morning to soak up as much as we can, but the kayaking will have to be on hold until another holiday! Our agenda for this trip is to visit the aquarium and possibly do a whale watching boat excursion.
Historically Monterey was well known for it's sardine canning industry, today it's well known worldwide for its Aquarium so we thought we had better check it out. A great educational experience for the kids. Lots of stuff happening there to increase enviromental awareness. Loved the sea horses!
The '17 Mile Coastal Drive' is well talked about as another must, so we head off on an afternoon jaunt.

Clambering over the rocks at Lover's Point in Monterey.  

Amazing coastline! The pay-to-view drive winds its way through flash golf courses, extremely expensive homes and most impressively, stunning, spectacular coastline. Cruised past Pebble Beach Golf Course, and saw a wild deer. It was just hanging out just near the side of the road near some people's homes. It looked so tame, I wondered if it was someones pet! They are such gentle, graceful looking creatures. Stopped off at Carmel by the Sea (Clint Eastwood was once Mayor here) which is a gorgeous little coastal town south of Monterey. It's like a manicured 'text book' town (the shops gave me the impression that the people were of a twinset and pearls type) ...the town is very cute though ...lots of 'gingerbread type' houses. I was so excited looking at them all, ("look at this one, look here, oh look over there, look, look, look!") that I didn't think to take any photos....
Day 2 in Monterey, the whale watching boat trip was fun.....but not so much fun for Holly. She managed to give the fish a change to their diet..mind you she wasn't the only person being sick over the side of the boat. The only one in our family though.The sea had big swells and because of this, it was difficult for the crew to spot the whales. We did see 2 Humpback though and we followed them for ages. It was exciting, and pretty impressive especially when their head came out of the water enough to see the texture of their skin.(Humpbacks have knobbly bits on their face) They flicked their tails at us, and even though they are known for breaching, they weren't interested in breaching today. Also saw quite a few dolphins plus stacks of sea lions resting close to shore. We buy some fresh hot smoked salmon and some sourdough bread from the fisherman's wharf, then it's time to hit the road south, an epic California drive ahead of us through Ben Sur and down the Coastal  Highway...........

Sue - goodbye Yosemite, hello Monterey

I loved Yosemite so much! The whole experience was magical. We had an amazing day hiking high in the wilderness (in NZ we would be in the 'bush' or 'mountains', here we are in the 'wilderness') It really does feel like bear country, and I really wished that we had seen one. Perhaps the sight of a bear is unlikely this time of year, so it now still sits on my 'to do' list in life!  We saw so many squirrels (Matt counted over 100 on our hike - a great way to keep him distracted from the steep track ahead of him!) and the kids loved them! Also Stellars Jay birds. We made a camp fire and had marshmallows. We hiked, we oggled at the amazing 'wilderness' and  we were only here for a few days, but we experienced the 'calling' of Yosemite.. please, can I come back!!! The park facilities were incredible - we loved our cabin experience, but there were loads of other options for people, from a hotel, to campgrounds. We brought lots of food for breakfast and lunches with us, but there were also lots of food options available as well. Pizza, Buffet, Mexican Cantina, Coffee shop etc. Showers we hot (hard to get out of them when the air outside is so cold) and great laundry facilities. Thank you Yosemite for the amazing experience!

Our campground at Yosemite

Mirror Lake, Yosemite

A long drive  back to the coast to Monterey - amazing that not long after leaving the Yosemite National Park we were in dry grasslands - the sudden change of terrain was unexpected. We travelled through the valley between the mountains and the sea, the area that has a fantastic climate for growing produce. "Hola"  - I purchased some cherries from a spanish speaking ("no no english")  man at a roadside stall...must have been his rejects because they weren't a match on Cromwell cherries. But have I mentioned Californian Strawberries? SUBLIME!
We arrive in Monterey - the first capital of Spanish and then Mexican California and the west coasts most historic city. It's much smaller than I expected...which is a good thing since we need to drive around and find somewhere to stay. Yes! We see an information centre open and get great help from them. We find a motel around the corner, not far from tomorrows planned trip to the Monterey Aquarium. Order pizza delivery, that is so slow: it would have been quicker to go out for dinner! We're all pretty tired, and I must say, it's nice not to go to bed with 8 layers of clothes on! (I am not kidding about the 8 layers. Perhaps that's being conservative! Yosemite was an amazing experience but not a warm experience!)

Sue - photos - the sun shines in Yosemite!

Overlooking Vernal Falls

Hiking up to Vernal Falls

Somewhere high up in the wilderness at Yosemite! The bears and mountain lions are nearby, but are hiding....perhaps it's for the best that they didn't come out to say hi!!!!

Anna- our last day at Yosemite

After waking up and packing up all our stuff, we left Housekeeping Camp. We did a few short walks- Mirror Lake and Lower Yosemite Falls, before leaving the wilderness and heading for Monterey. When we found a place to stay at in Monterey, we ordered Pizza hut, and watched american idol before heading off to bed. 

Sue - this is it! YOSEMITE!

Breakfast at our cabin

I wake up because my nose is about to drop off. It's just a little bit cold! I do recall getting up in the night, grovelling around desperately trying to find a few more layers to put on. Never mind, we are here! It was such a great feeling getting out of bed and seeing where we were..we are in the Yosemite valley by the Merced River, literally surrounded by these huge granite rock faces. A truly majestic sight! It's a little rainy, so we decide to explore the valley for the day, without venturing too high into the mountains. Since we are wearing every warm layer that we have with us, the thought of getting wet hiking isn't looked on too favourably by any of us! The rain is getting heavier, and by early

Jim in his sleeping attire!

afternoon the snow has started to fall! Being late spring, we always knew that we could encounter all sorts of weather, but the beauty of being here at this time of year, is the waterfalls are really spectacular, and the valley is thundering with the sound of the water. (in summer, Yosemite is a completely difference experience, with waterfalls just a trickle and some even completely dried up)  Loads to do and see on the valley floor....we check out the river and the squirrels, get drenched at Bridalveil falls, explore the information centres and the Indian Museum.

A bit wet from the rain and a LOT wet
from the spray of Bridalveil Falls

The Ahwahneechee lived in the Yosemite area for 4000 before explorers came through in 1833. The greed in the gold rush era has a lot to answer for, and during that time the Ahwahneechee were forced off the land that was their home. Today, we can thank Abraham Lincoln for signing the Yosemite grant in 1964 which eventually turned the Yosemite Valley into a National Park. We fill in the day easily and have had a great introduction to this amazing place.

Kids loved the squirrels! Weren't meant to feed them, but we assumed we weren't meant to feed them our ham sandwiches! Here the kids are feeding them berries.

Looking for squirrels by the Merced River, YOSEMITE

Dinner is at the main dining room where we have a fantastic family buffet for a very resonable price. Its 'thumbs up' from all the kids, so it's definitely a winner. We retreat to a warm lounge ( Matthew calls it "the warming place") to play cards for a bit before heading to our chilly cabin! (We have managed to hire some more blankets so hopefully will sleep a little better!) Tomorrow the sun is going to be shining!

Sue - Goodbye San Fran, hello bear country.

Didn't leave San Francisco until late in the afternoon (too many things to do and places to see) knowing that we had a big drive ahead of us. Hard to fit it all in! We still wanted to get a sneak look at the Redwoods and with Redwood country too far north for this trip, we decided to drive over the Golden Gate Bridge and head to Muir Woods. That's the amazing thing about San Francisco - just a short drive out of the city (12 miles) and you are in a different world - we even saw wild deer on the side of the road. Coastal Redwoods are Earth's tallest living things and exist only on the Californian coast. Muir Woods has it's fair share  - only had time for a short walk, some tree hugging and a few photos. The trees really are spectacular. Plenty of squirrels too - the kids love them!

Muir Woods

Muir Woods

It's a long drive to Yosemite and by the time we get even remotely near, it's already dark. We have already been lost a few times - we came across a sign that says the entry road into the park is closed due to snow, so we need to find another entry route - Doris (GPS) does not like this and keeps trying to take us the way we are not allowed to go!! We know that by the time we reach the national park it will be 10pm ish or even later at this rate and we don't really know what to expect. Will the gates to the National Park be open? Will there be someone at the campground at that time of night to check us in? With no mobile phone coverage and even 'Doris' losing sattelite coverage, we knew we really were in the wilderness. Not ideal to be arriving so late, but hey,
that 's all part of the adventure! I must say that I have a small fear that we would get a flat tyre and would need to unload a full boot in the dark whilst we were looking for the spare, all when bears were lurking nearby!!!!!!! (perhaps I have just been watching too many 'I shouldn't be alive' programmes on TV!) Anyway, we survived! Kids fell asleep, which was ideal so that Jim and I could concentrate on finding our way through these mountains to some form of civilisation! (in the form of a National Park Village) We passed some snow on the ground, some wild deer, but not bears! We made it - 11pm! It is wickedly cold!!!!! Our booked accommodation is a cabin/tent at a place called Housekeeping Camp...check it out, it's pretty cool! www.yosemitepark.com then click on accomodation and scroll down to housekeeping camp. We hired bed packs for us all and went about getting our cabin ready for what would undoubtably be a cold night! (Next time I will be taking a 'down' sleeping bag!) Jim and Holly are pretty happy that they bought ski jackets in San Francisco - they are about to sleep in them. Kids and I are happy that we packed thermal leggings - Jim doesn't have any and is wondering how that vital piece of packing advice got lost in translation!  I purchased a beanie in San Fran and can see that this may well be the best purchase I have ever made! To give you an idea, the cabins have 3 sides of concrete walls and then a roof like a marquee. The fourth side of the cabin is like a big curtain that you just pull over...a bit breezy....and am feeling a bit vulnerable to the possibility of wildlife coming and going while we sleep!

The park has very strick rules about how you store your food, so on arrival we had to sign a document promising that we would not leave any food, food wrappers or any rubbish, as well as toiletries, in our car or in our cabin. Each cabin has a big steel locker outside that can be bolted closed, where we had to store all of our stuff...imagine us...it's now 11.30pm, freezing, dark (thankfully we had a torch) and we are frantically trying to find every single lolly wrapper, food item, toiletry etc (which are spread far and wide throughout our bags and car!) and place it all in the locker...the bears are known for coming into the campground at night, so by this stage we are feeling a bit nervous! (but a little excited about the possible Bear encounter - preferably a distant one!) Beanie on, as well as quite a few layers of clothes, and we're well and truly ready for sleep. Since we arrived in the dark, we are looking forward seeing our surroundings tomorrow!

Jim - San Fran

After a sad farewell from Naples we drove ourselves to Fort Myers airport for our trip to California -  took the rental car back and settled ourselves into the airport. A bit lost trying to get petrol before going to the airport - bloody Doris!!

We finally find a service station and I am in there trying to make sure there is the right amount of money to fill the car with petrol - you pay first and fill later.  I am asking the girl behind the counter the way to the airport - she interrupts me and goes "oh my gawd!  You got one blue eye and one green eye!"  my response -  yes you are right - so I go out of the driveway right and then turn left?

Quick flight to Atlanta - Georgia -  apparently the worlds busiest airport these days! The screens have hundreds of flights!!!  We are in one of many terminals but thankfully do not need to go far for our departure gate -  we have a while to kill so get something to eat - Asian - and have a look around.

The flight through to San Fran is uneventful -  long enough but not too long. Views of mountains and canyons and farms makes it varied and interesting. First view of snow for a while!

We arrive San Fran airport and pick up the car - a white beast Cheverolette Malibu-  bit bigger than the nice Volvo  in Florida. We do not have too far to go but already I can feel the roads are a lot busier -  we are staying the first night at an airport Hotel (motel really) the Howard Johnsons - or HoJo as they are called.  It really is quite a run down old place but it is only one night -  have a beautiful view of the motorway. Breakfast in the morning we fill up on bagels and cereals - so all is not too bad.

It's off to experience San Fran -  just got to get out of the Hotel, across the busy road and get on the highway!

Travel Snippets

Snakes  in Florida? You bet! They may be in your garden and apparently there are approximately 3,000 recorded snake bites a year, but only 3 people die.

Being struck by lightning is a risk in Florida! Lightning kills more people than the Alligators do. Interesting, where Paul and Sue live (Naples), when the storm is coming and lightning is a risk, the city sirens are triggered, warning people to move to somewhere safe.

There are more than 1 million Alligators in Florida and in Naples (and possibly elsewhere?) there are people whose job is to search all the waterways in the city (there are plenty of them), find the the Alligators that are on the loose and transport them elsewhere. (I expect back to the wild, out of the city)

Alligators travel at a top speed of 18 kph. They rarely chase anything (but I wouldn't trust that theory!) and are more stalkers. (Mothers protecting their young though, can be quite aggressive) In saying that, a friend of my brothers was chased on the golf course by one...luckily that Alligator only had 3 legs!!!!!

Learning to drive on the right side of the road is one thing (however Jim had that pretty mastered) but learning a few of their minor road rules is another challenge! You can take a free turn right on a red light! (in NZ this rule would equate to being able to take a free turn left on a red light) That was the rule in Florida anyway and we never did discover whether that rule actually applied in California as well, but we did it anyway!!!! Another thing, is weirdly there is no give way rule at intersections where their are no lights. The rule is 'first there gets the right of way'. Well that did create some confusion for us Kiwis...too much if, but and maybe....and always thinking " who has the right of way" so there was much hovering at intersections!

People say that New Zealand has lots of weird words to pronounce and a whole slang language of our own...and we do! All countries do I am sure...and America has it's fair share...we were fascinated. How about  Whooperwill Lane, Sour Puckeroon Gummies  and Cotton Candy?!

Californian strawberries are the best! The best! THE BEST! I have never tasted strawberries this good! They are in a league all of their own!

But in saying that, the best and crunchiest apples I tasted were the ones in NZ before we left, and the ones in NZ on our return. Nothing on our travels came close.

Never really got used to the whole tipping thing. It was recommended that we tip 20%, but couldn't get used to having to tip when the service was only average. Isn't the whole idea to tip for good service? But we felt like we would be tight travellers if we didn't tip, so you feel kinda 'stuck between a rock and a hard place'!

1 cent coins! They should be banned! You just end up with so many of them! Everything you buy is 'plus tax' so your drink at the shop would be advertised as $3.00 plus tax. I think the NZ system is much better, with having the GST already added on and included in the retail price. Maybe it's just what you are used to......

Such silly things I remember - America has great natural almonds..they are so fresh. I am sure it has something to do with their superb packaging. They come in a container that is like a tin (with cardboard sides) rather than a plastic packet.

Starbucks - They are everywhere. Must say though, the iced 'coconut mocha frappuccino' was so damn good! And I don't normally even drink coffee. Granny, you would love it  - a variation of your iced coffee!

Carls Jnr wasn't so hot! Tried my first Carls Jnr Green Burrito... and it will definitely be my last!

'Say whaaaaaaaaaaat?'

They really do chew gum......

Blog followers, read this to piece together the route of our travel because the posts to date have not been in a logical order!

(This is Sue here!) We are now home (and have been for 2 weeks) but because we did not travel with any technology, we haven't been very regular with our blog posts. Because of this, so far our Blog reads that we went to LA, Florida, San Francisco, Yosemite, down to Legoland (by San Diego) and then back to Florida!!!

We had 3 weeks in Florida in total, alot of that time we were based with family in Naples, but also a 5 night stay in Orlando (visiting the theme parks plus a day at the Kennedy Space Centre on the Atlantic coast). Our trip to 'The Keys' was a 2 night trip in Florida, then we had one more night with Paul, Sue and family in Naples, before flying to San Francisco.

This is where we started our 14 day Californian trip. 3 nights in San Francisco, before heading inland to the Sierra Nevada mountain range and the AMAZING Yosemite National Park, where we stayed for 3 nights. Then headed back towards the coast, south of San Francisco to Monterey. From there we headed South, mainly following the coast, all the way through LA (drove through Malibu, Santa Monica, Newport Beach, Huntington Beach)  towards San Diego. Not enough time to visit San Diego, but Matthew had a big request to visit Legoland. (located just north of San Diego) From Legoland, we headed inland towards the desert - a fantastic stop at Anza Borrego Desert, before making our way to Palm Springs for a few nights. From there we headed back to LA where Jim tackled the freeways like a pro - a drive through Beverly Hills, a very quick few hours of shopping, plus our last dinner at the same place that we had our first - 'Chipotle' in Santa Monica, then it was all over!!!!! Returned the rental car, packed away our GPS lifeline, 'Doris' and then wait for our very late flight out of LA. Our bags are much fuller, our bank account much emptier, and our lives much richer - what an amazing time we have had! As we wait at the airport, we feel that we should actually be catching the next flight back to Florida! WE WISH! Life isn't too rough though....back to Queenstown and a winter of Skiing.......

Check out the individual blog posts still to come that will fill in the gaps about our Californian adventure.

Jim - Southern Most Tip of Continental USA

We get up and have a great breakfast and then its into the car -  off to Key West!  Only problem is I forgot my contact lens container and tried to use something else -against the advice given on all labels. I stick my lens in and get an immediate reaction - a burning sensation.  Have to take the lens out and flush my eye for a while which becomes VERY red - means I will be driving one eyed .

First stop Bahia Honda -  apparently one of the nicest state park beaches in the Keys -  today is not that good - it is windy and there is lots of weed and debris on the beach -  there is evidence of the railroad bridges that were built to join Key West with the mainland -  these worked for a while but over time with Hurricanes and storms and other transportation the rail died. Today there are 42 bridges for you to drive the Keys -  the longest is 7 miles long (over 11km) which makes quite a sight - bridges spanning from island to island for as far as you can see.

Matt and I enjoyed some time in the water but it is not that nice unfortunately.  The Keys despite my vision of long beautiful beaches seems to have issues with retaining sand -  the beaches are more about rock.

We arrive at Key West -  home and holiday hideaway for a number of famous people from the past including Zane Grey and Ernest Hemmingway - with many of the old buildings still existing where they wrote and lived in those times. We head to the supermarket to get some lunch and take it to the Southern Most point (we are 90 miles from Cuba)- get the obligatory photo and keep going.  We found another State Park (paid as usual) and spend some time under the pines to escape the heat and again some time in the murky and rocky waters of the Atlantic.

A quick explore around town before having dinner in what looks like a nice enough bar overlooking the street so that we can watch the world go by. - Dad gets a cocktail - a Mojita -  just not the same - everywhere in Florida we dine (granted not the flashest of restaurants) they serve drinks and meals on or in plastic.  Now a cocktail normally feels a bit more fancy when it is in glass and made properly.  Anyway a nice enough pizza - Anna is are starting to look like Pizza and Matt's case,  a chicken nugget.  The music is pumping - a bit loud for mum's liking and while some of the music she seems ok with she takes a dislike to some of the more techno beats!

Mallory square is where all the action happens next - a street market and buskers and food stalls - with everyone waiting for the sun to set.  It's fun and we've had another good day but it's time for Hagan Daas ice cream, find the car and drive back to Marathon.

Dorothy (GPS) decides she's had enough and gets us very lost getting out of the town at Key West so it takes a while -  the rest of the journey home is done with a quiet car and many of the inhabitants resting their eyes, apparently. My eye at the same time is burning and sore and I will be pleased to get back to the Holiday Inn and get to bed!

We do so only to find the walls of the hotel waifer thin and a snorer has checked in next door -  oh dear.

Jim - The Keys and Beyond

Blogs are now all over the place as we all just get around to updating this -  even after returning to NZ -  but is good to keep a record of all the fun times that we had together.

After a couple of days back with the Rokela's after our trip to Orlando, we headed towards the Keys - in good spirits and on another adventure but also slightly sad that we will only have one more night with them before we leave Florida. The other issue is we now realise that we just do not seem to have enough time to fully appreciate the area - further than we thought, therefore alot of driving time.(but the hotel is booked and paid for, so off we go!)

Drive down we head off the I75 and cut back through to 45 -  we are heading for the Anhinga Trail.  The area is, like all of Florida, very flat and with not a lot to see from the highway - the Anhinga Trail is an area just off the top of the Keys and another area to experience the wildlife of the Everglades. We walked the paths and saw quite a few alligators in the deeper area at the end of the path - Sue very excited to see one get out of the water and walk along the waterfront before getting back in. Also one old thing lying just off the path literally only a metre or 2 from us and with only a railing in between -  gee we have got brave since we arrived!! Also at Anhinga, there were a large group of vultures, as well as other nesting birds including Anhinga - like a Heron.

We drive onwards knowing that our destination of Marthon in the Keys is still a reasonable drive and not wanting to be too late. A quick stop at "Robert is Here" strange name for a fruit shop?? - where they specialise in boiled peanuts, fruit smoothies and all sorts of tropical fruits. Bought strawberries -  beautiful flavours and also fruit smoothies Papaya (not favoured by the kids) strawberries and Key Lime.

We head through Key Largo and I have Bertie Higgins lyrics in my head.(tried to explain this to Sue but she has no idea what I am talking about -  will have to google later on)  Key Largo does not live up to my expectation but due to time restrainants we do not go much off the main part of the island. Just passed through really.

Next stop, 'Robbies' at Islamorada -  where we are told you can see the Tarpon fish.  We stop and sure enough people are hand feeding these massive fish -  huge things that if you got too close would take off your hand as well I am sure -  check it out of the live webcam at robbies.com and click on 'tarpon feeding'. Decided to have dinner in the outside cafe/restaurant - probably not the best decision we made on our travels as it was average - it was also very windy (Sue's salad leaves kept blowing off her plate!) and a bit cold - must be ready for our hotel...all feeling a bit tired of the traveling. Loved the Tarpon feeding though.

Driving the Keys, we go over bridge after bridge - the amazing feat of construction that make the keys (islands) accessible -  not a huge amount to see and the weather is windy so didn't stop much either.

We now see Crocodile signs  and deer -  clearly this part of the country has an amazing range of wildlife. Lots of places to go snorkeling, diving and fishing, but we need more days than we have to do any of these.We also see nice residential areas to explore but when you go to get off the main road many are gated communities so no way of entering.

We arrive at the Holiday Inn -  pretty new -  nice pool for the kids. Relaxing night as we have another 50 miles down to Key West tomorrow and back here for the night. Great breakfast for all (included in the room rate, which was great) and we load up for the day and take off.

Anna- second day at Yosemite

On our second day we woke up to see a clear blue sky and absolutely amazing sights. We got ready for a long hike to Vernal Fall. All uphill but we got there eventually. We saw hundreds of squirrels, darting around all over the place. Near the end there was a steep climb up lots of stairs. We got really wet from all the spray from the waterfall. At the top we had our lunch and stood right at the start of the fall. There was obviously a barrier but if there wasn't you wouldn't be going anywhere near the edge! We then had to get all the way back down and decided to take a different path to avoid getting soaked all over again. It was a slightly longer route but it was a change of scenery. It was steep at the beginning but the started to flatten out before walking downhill. On the way down we were walking through snow drifts which was really cool. We had done enough walking for one day so we went straight to dinner. After dinner we went back to housekeeping camp, then went to the store to get firewood and marshmallows, chocolate, and biscuits for s'mores. It was a bit warmer for us for our last night. 

Photos - San Francisco

Riding the cable car in San Fran

Our awesome day cycling in San Fran. We cycled over the Golden Gate Bridge in gale force winds! 

Florida photos Alligators and Alligator food!

This one was just off the path, only about 2 metres from us - just a railing between us. he could easily have eaten me for his lunch!

They could easily eat us, yet some people eat them! Alligator is farmed and made into all sorts of products. We did try it in the form of 'nuggets'. Tastes a bit like chicken. Mmmmm, delicious! 

Matthew - Dad and I go to Legoland!

Yesterday I went to Legoland with Dad. In the morning it was raining and we got very wet but the weather cleared in the afternoon. There was a bright red 10 foot tall Lego dragon greeting us at the gate. It was very cool! We saw an elephant in the water spraying water out of it's trunk. In the miniland USA there were some small boats in the water and the 'Statue of Liberty' the size of me! 

You could pay $2 to drive one of the boats. I drove one of them into the port.
I saw two 4-D movies. The first one was called Klutch Powers Adventures and the second one was called Lego Racers. After that we went to Build and Test. This is where you make a car and test it. I raced my cars against other boys. I won lots of my races! We went on lots of rides and my favourite ride was the Dragon Roller-coaster. I bought some Lego and Dad bought me a mug. The mug has my name on it! I had a very fun day with Dad!!!! Check it all out on the website! http://california.legoland.com/explore/rides_and_attractions/

Sue - Goodbye Florida - Hello San Francisco

I was not a happy chappy! It was with incredible sadness that we said goodbye to Paul, Sue, Grace and Brandon in Florida. We had 3 wonderful weeks in Florida, but it wasn't enough! Lots of time in Naples, a few days in 'the keys' (which took us to the most Southern Point of the US) and 5 days in Orlando area going to Disney, Islands of Adventure (which included 'the wizarding world of Harry Potter'), Disney Water Park and the Kennedy Space Centre on the coast. Orlando theme parks were incredible and were 'must sees' but I still wanted more time to hang out with family. There were more things in Naples alone that I wanted to do...
Most of all it was great just to be around family, and as the plane left Florida soil, the unknown of when we will see them again brought much sadness. Thank you Paul, Sue, Grace and Brandon for having us to stay and welcoming us into your home. We love you all so much.
San Francisco here we come!!! We had a layover in Atlanta -the worlds busiest airport apparently- it certainly looked huge - and we never left the transit area! On arrival in San Fran, we sighted our first hills in 3 weeks. Florida is extremely flat and the only hill we experienced there was the slight elevation of a bridge! So, a huge change of scenery and a sharp jolt in temperature change. At last we have a need for all those clothes that we have carted around for the last 3 weeks! I will miss that warm weather - and I am sure I will miss it even more once we are back to Queenstown's winter! We had 2 hotels booked in San Fran , the first one close to the airport, so that we didn't need to drive far with 3 tired children on arrival. Glad we only had 1 night there as it was a bit shabby (and scabby!) but it suited our needs location wise. The next hotel was much nicer - Sheraton Four Points - had the most comfortable pillows I have experienced anywhere...ever!  I managed to pick up some bug and had a fever for a day, so was grateful for a little comfort. In saying that, I dosed myself up with flu medicine and we all headed out to bike over the Golden Gate Bridge. Now that was an amazing experience! Really windy on the bridge. Reeeeeeeeeeeally windy! San Fran certainly gave us a dose of reality weather wise - after 3 weeks in tropical Florida weather, we were now freezing! That wind really whips into the bay. Also went to Alcatraz, which was facinating. Drove down the world's most crooked street, rode the cable cars and went to Chinatown. Loved every minute of it. So much to do, and not enough days to do it. Would love to come back some day....a touristy city but there is something special about it. Last time I was in San Francisco was 25 years ago, so it brought back some fun memories for me.

Anna- our fist day at Yosemite.

When we arrived at Yosemite, it was midnight and we couldn't see the views. We found our 'room' and put on almost all our clothes on- it was freezing! In the morning it was raining, but it was amazing to see all the massive waterfalls around us. We walked to Bridalveil Fall and got soaked from all the spray. We then walked around camp because the rain stared getting heavier. While we were in the visitors center it started to snow which was so cool to see. We went to the musuem, the indian village, and we went on a few other small walks. We went to the restaurant for dinner, then went to some other warm room to play a few games before going back to housekeeping camp and jumping into bed for another very cold night.

Anna- off to San Francisco

The day to fly to California came too quickly- none of us wanted to leave! On the 5th of May we flew to San Francisco with a stop in Atlanta on the way. When we arrived in San Fran it was late and we were all very tired due to the time difference. We hired our rental car from the airport then found our hotel and went straight to bed. On the 6th, we moved into a different hotel. We caught the train into town. we had a booking for Alcatraz around lunchtime, so we walked down all the piers from pier 1 to pier 33. We took a boat out to Alcatraz. It's a prison on an island that was in use from 1934 to 1963. 'If you break the rules you go to prison. If you break the prison rules you go to Alcatraz.' No-one ever escaped because of the strong currents surrounding the water, and also because of the sharks. (Actually, some people did escape but were never found. Made it to safety or drowned? We will never know) We walked around the building, and went into some cells and other rooms like the library, the shower room and the dining room. After spending a few hours on the island, we caught the boat back. We continued walking along the piers, right to pier 39. We looked around at the shops, then walked further to the Fishermans Wharf. Thats where it happened. I left my mark in San Francisco- a green splat on the pavement! After that we found something to eat back at pier 39. Then we walked right back to pier 1 and then back to the train station. I didn't feel well again and on the train on the way back  I threw up again, and again- it wasn't a pretty sight! Then, Holly and Matt acted as if I was poisonous- they wouldn't go anywhere near me, they wouldn't talk to me and if they HAD to walk past me they would sprint. We had a big day and were glad to go to bed. On our second day in San Fran we drove into town, then hired bikes from Blazing Saddles. We rode in the strong, cold wind along the Golden Gate Bridge. The views were amazing. We rode right along to a town called Sausalito. We had lunch there and looked around a bit. We took the ferry back with our bikes. The next day we got a cable car pass and went on the cable cars. We took them right to Chinatown. We looked around Chinatown for a bit, got some fortune cookies, then took the cable car back to our car. We said goodbye to San Fransisco and started the long drive to Yosemite National Park. 

Hey, hey, hey its Holly!

I havn't written on the blog very much. I'm so sorry! We have just been so busy.
Just going to say a little bit about our time in Orlando. On our first day we went to Magic Kingdom. It was loads of fun- everything was soooo amazing! Our favourite ride was Splash Mountain. We got a little wet!

On our second day we went to a Disney Water Park- Blizzard Beach. There we went on the steepest water slide in the world! It was very cool.

On our third day we went to Kennedy Space Center. We ended up getting given free tickets from a lady, so that was a bonus!

We went to Islands of Adventure at Universal Studios on our fourth day. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter was the best!! It was so realistic!

On our last day we went to Epcot at Disney. Not so many rides but just as cool!!

Our week in Orlando was very very busy but we had so much fun!!!!!!

Matthew - Whale Watching in Monterey

Yesterday we went Whale watching in Monterey. We saw Sea Lions, Dolphins, Seals and Humpback Whales! The day before that we also saw Sea Otters and a Grey Whale. It was very rough on the boat and Holly got sea sick! It was very fun.

Jim. Last day at Disney

Jim
Well we are a long way behind in various posts.
Day after we went to Cape Kennedy we got up early again and went off to Epcot for a last day of Disney. Epcot is a bit different -  a bit of park rides etc but also a number of semi educational activities with around 14 different countries all having their own area - in these they have displays, food stalls, shops and in some cases rides -  nationalities included the UK, America, Mexico, France, Germany, Norway, Japan, China and others.

French pastries for lunch -  Mexican meal for dinner.

As happens every night with Disney, a massive fireworks display.  

Again queues for all sorts of things and once again a hot day. Tiring but a good way to end our week in Orlando - we had talked about not doing Epcot but I am glad we did in many ways.

Our last half day on Saturday was spent at the malls doing some shopping (much to Matt's disgust) He ended up breaking a jandal and having to walk around in bare feet so with the heat, the shopping, and no shoes, we were surprised that he held things together so well.

Back to Paul and Sue's -  reasonable drive but pleased to be heading home.  Paul went up to Orlando as his rugby team that he coaches was playing State champs -  they ended up winning and now go on to play another competition.  Sue, Grace and Brandon all played in a golf tournament and seem to have had a good day.

Florida photos



At Brandon's baseball

Airboat ride



Somewhere near Naples in Florida. Holly and Anna with cousin Grace




Our Raccoon friend



Amazing beach near Naples, Florida. We hired a Pontoon boat for the morning.

Easter Egg Hunt