ups and downs!

Travelling America has had its ups and downs.

Ups being;

·         with the O’Donnells - I don’t know how I would of survived without them,
·         the scenery,
·         eating out,
·         air conditioning,
·         shopping,
·         meeting new people with Kirstie O’Donnell,
·         finding out about my new baby cousin,
·         having two showers at the same time at Auntie Kilma’s house,
·         the weather.

Downs being;

·         the campervan - it’s the size of Auntie Kilma’s bathroom,
·         walking,
·         eating in,
·         hours of driving,
·         lack of sleep,
·         limited internet access,
·         the toilet,
·         mosquitoes,
·         being called  ‘Retard’,  ‘Idiot’, ‘Spaz’ and ‘Stupid Girl’ by Kiran,
·         getting into trouble for almost everything I do,
·         scummy RV parks.

We went to about half a dozen national parks.  The best national park for me was the Grand Canyon; it was gigantic and amazing to look at from all the different viewpoints we went to.  I didn’t particularly dislike any of them, but if I had to state the one I least enjoyed, it would be Zyon; it was too hot and there were far too many insects and lizards.

One of the highlights of this holiday was staying at Auntie Kilma’s house.  It was nice to sleep in an actual bed, wash in a proper bathroom – not like the 1-meter-squared bathroom in our camerpvan, eat proper food, watch television and access facebook.

A lowlight of America was the day the O’Donnells left us to go back to Las Vegas.  Our drive to Lake Tahoe was long and boring without them, and the campsite was hideous, with no hook-ups or public showers.

Overall, America has been great but I’m really looking forward to going to London and seeing the new baby, and then finally going home to my beloved friend Katie.

Kim

Nothingness

So far this holiday has been... great?

I enjoyed it mostly because of the O’Donnell’s company, without them it’s not so great, yes i have Kim, but, well...

The best part of this holiday so far was probably the white water rafting, i wasn’t happy doing it at first, but then when the waves got wild it was the best.

The worst part has to be leaving the O’Donnell’s, or the unbelievable long drives- nothing to do, or see, just rocks in the distance and dead fields of nothingness.

Seeing rocks all the time gets extremely boring. Rock after rock, hmmm that one is bigger than the last one, ooh this one it orange!!! Great huh? I guess the can be quite amazing though, but i think i would appreciate them more if i were older.

I sometimes wish I had more GB on my iPod, so I could buy a few movies for the drives. It gets boring, playing on my dsi for an hour then listening to some music while playing random games on my iPod for a while. Well, at least this time I get to write a blog thingy, YAY!

I can’t wait to get home, but i don’t want to go back to school.

My favourite place has got to be Las Vegas, but i can’t wait to go to San Francisco. The most interesting place was Navajo.

My favourite activity here: white water rafting, shopping (for me of course, although shopping for mum, dad and Kiran is fine), eating, and sleeping.

One thing i don’t understand is why they call it Yellowstone; the big rocks there are hardly yellow. If i could i would rename the Grand Canyon so it would be large rock. J

One thing for sure is that i am really excited to see my new baby cousin!!

We had Wendy’s the other day, it wasn’t as nice as i remember it was in New York, here it was DISGUSTING, except from the chips and coke. We also had pizza hut the other day aswell, it was sooooooo good!! The stuffed crusts were the best, and that stringy cheese inside and the pizza base was perfectly cooked, Kim and I ordered: a make your own pizza with chicken, pineapple, and diced tomatoes with stuffed crust, it was to die for!

Can’t wait for more shopping, eating, sleeping and stuff.

Carla.

Fat or Fit?

We have been doing a little too much of this

 and so last night after a couple of glasses of courage we booked this!

Was that such a good idea?!

we survived just!!

How are you today?

As a Brit I have spent my fair share of time slagging off the Americans and, as a nation, they do have some questions to answer but as individuals they are the nicest people. Welcoming, helpful, positive, and with a “can do” attitude which whether superficial and false or not and it appears genuine, it is incredibly refreshing! God (if there is one) bless America!

So I’m in a good mood today! Its 5.30 am I am sitting picnic table in the middle of a forest (ok a forest campsite!) 40 miles from the North rim of the Grand Canyon clear blue skies above the pines and the only company I have are some tiny chipmunks darting around, a skunk which fortunately is keeping its distance and some birdsong but the best thing is its cold and it’s been raining it’s great to put on a jumper because when its baking hot you just think it’s going to be like that for ever.

We left Bryce Canyon yesterday somewhere we were supposed to have been 20 years ago for which Tina has been nipping my ear and now it’s done. Remarkable place! Vast, though not on the scale of the Grand Canyon but so good after seeing it at Sunset we had to take another look in the morning.

O’Donnell (Angela) gem of the day on us all planning a trail walk “that’s great! Because it’s a circular walk if we get tired half way we can just walk back!”

So Many Questions!

So many questions .... so much to learn.

Q:  How did Zions landscape evolve?

A:  Through land pressures forming the Colorado Plateau and erosion by the Virgin River.

Q:  How did Bryce Canyon get to be soooo orange?

A: Seaway deposition of sediments 60 million years ago-millions of years later followed the deposition of iron rich, limey sediments from highland rivers and streams.

Q: Whats a Hoodoo?

A: A pillar of rock, usually of fantastic shape, left by erosion. From the West African word derivative hoodoo- to cast a spell. Thus at Bryce Canyon these fantastic array of rock formation were named Hoodoos.

Q: How big is the Grand Canyon?

A: 277 river miles long, upto 18 miles wide and a mile deep.

Q: How fast would your fall be from the highest point of the Grand Canyon at Point Imperial (at 8803ft)?

A: Approx  512 miles an hour as long as you don’t hit the sides! (Kiran worked this one out!)

Q: How do you empty the sluice from a motorhome?

A:Dont know/Dont care/Not my job!!!


Tina

"Please don't be having sex at the back of the van!"

Having collected our RV, Kim’s biggest concern that having watched the sex ed show on channel 4 and that “all parents have sex at least 3 times a week even really old ones!!” that there might be festival of fornication on our rubberised mattress in the confines of our very large tin box in 40⁰ heat. Having had some caravan experiences as a hormonally laden teenager (those stories still make me laugh!) I know the difficulties of such a situation and despite my reassurance that the American built suspension system would easily cope, unfortunately Tina reassured Kim that there would be “none of that kind of stuff going on” for the rest of the holiday!!  Oh well that’s that little detail sorted out then!!

Kim’s concern however pales in insignificance as the rest of us worry that despite almost and hour of induction on the O’Donnell RV wagon Angela and John are unable to switch the engine on!! OMG do we a new van, do we need a mechanic to replace the ignition no John “we just need to turn the key properly!” I am sure there will be other gems to follow from the very loveable O’Donnells.

So after a mega shop in a mega supermarket we head out into the desert. My god it’s HOT! With the AC full blast it’s still like a tandoor in here!!The landscape is impressive though, vast plains and craggy arid mountains for miles and miles. Eventually our friendly American sat-nav voice brings us to Zion. (that sounds a little religious!). Unfortunately is pitch black and for various reasons, which I am not going to admit, to we miss our camp spot but we do end up in a fantastically organised RV park. BBQ on at 10pm - dinner and bed.

GRB

The Eiffel Tower is outside my Window

 Feels like I’m on some mind altering drug!! The clock says 9pm my brain tells me 5am, its 41⁰C, this is the desert, I’m in a hotel room with a bathroom as big as a hotel room and a shower cubicle bigger  than most bathrooms and the Eiffel Tower is outside my window!!

Las Vegas is mad – it’s like some crazy American super concentrate of fakery but all done in a way that even if you don’t like it you can’t help but be impressed by it.

I am surrounded by a zillion lights, a million slot machines, mad buildings which when your inside, but for the iced-chilled air, you feel like you might be outside, and when you get outside, enveloped in hot sugary air, there are erupting volcanoes and 500 foot fountains, it’s like being part of some giant weird reality show.

The people are the best though,  it’s 6:30 in the morning and walking from the hotel shop with some new toothpaste I come across an octogenarian woman in the lift complete with designer jeans, sparkly baseball cap, two “f**k off” diamond, sapphire and ruby rings zimmering into the casino with her husband on electric wheels on tow, nocturnal crowds of whooping young guys rolling dice, hypnotised  slot machine addicts feeding their machines, all sustained with food and drink by over enhanced waitresses in various states of undress!! And then there’s me with two tubes of toothpaste and my new sandals worried that somehow just walking past, I will be sucked into a vortex of debauchery and sin!!  

No such luck!

GRB