To Los Angeles

The flight to Los Angeles was about half an hour late leaving Heathrow, but once we got underway it was pretty smooth going. Cloudy across all of the UK but not at all bumpy.

We flew up over Iceland and Greenland then down across Canada and the USA. it was good to look out the window and see some scenery as we went. Ice flows in the sea then snow and ice on the northernmost parts of Canada.




As we moved south, the snow disappeared to be replaced by barren land and mountains. We came across Wyoming and Utah then down to California. When we were coming into LA we could see that there was a layer of fog over the airport which was reasonably thick. We landed safely and disembarked after sitting on the tarmac for about 20 minutes waiting to be towed in to the gate.

It took quite a while to get through Immigration, but finally were able to claim our baggage and find the shuttle to the hotel.

We arrived at the hotel about 8.30 pm and checked in. The room was on the second to top floor (14) and had a great view - over the parking lot for the airport! (or one of them anyway!) Apparently,LA Airport is about the third busiest in the world and has 11 runways, 9 of which are used regularly every day and all day.

After a brief unpack, we fell into bed as it had been a very long day with little sleep on the flight.


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Leaving London

Well, all packed up and waiting for Suzanne to find places for all the shoes she has bought and then we will hit the road to Heathrow!

It is a lovely sunny day today with just a little breeze - one of the nicest days since we have been here - have we heard this before?

It is a bit sad really as this is the last farewell to The Vicarage which has been like a home away from home whenever we have visited the UK since 1989. But good too as David and Carol will soon be making a new home in Birchington, Kent.

Later:
Arrived at Heathrow about 12.15 pm and David and carol dropped us off at the entrance to Terminal One. It was sad to say goodbye to them but it is only 9 months till they come to NZ for an extended holiday, so it will not be topo long before we see them again.

Have now passed through security at the airport. Just had a bite to eat in the lounge and settling in for a long wait till we board the plane.

It rained just as we were arriving at Heathrow but just as quickly it went off again - four seasons in one day again!!

England and Scotland have been great. We have had a good time here and have seen lots of people. There are some places I would like to go back to again - Lancaster for one. It is an historic town and it would be good to spend a bit more time there and have a good look around.

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Leaving Scotland

Well, here we are at Edinburgh Airport waiting for the flight to Gatwick this afternoon. We had to have the car back at the Hertz rental place by 11.00 am so we were there in plenty of time. Filled the car with diesel just before we got to the airport - it has cost us about 100 pounds in total for the fuel and about 600 miles.

The trip from Stirling only took about 45 minutes and there was not a lot of traffic to hold us up.

We checked in the bags and they came to just under 23 kgs each, so there is not really much room for anything else! Security held onto Suzanne's hand luggage and went through it to find the bottle of HP sauce that she bought yesterday to take home. Needless to say, she has lost it now because it was more than 100mls.

Suzanne has found a pair of sunglasses to buy ready for LA which is forecast to be in the mid-20s for the weekend.

Only one more night and we will be starting on the journey home. The time has passed well - not too quickly, and we feel like it has been a good trip. Having the car was great as it allowed us to do what we wanted and to get around more easily. It was a great car too - plenty of room and very comfortable to ride in.


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Stirling

We left Carlisle about 10 am on Tuesday and crossed the border at Gretna, stopping at the outlet village at Gretna for a bit of retail therapy.

Onward to Ochiltree about 12, continuing up the M6 (or the continuation of the M6) to Douglas then turned off towards Ayr. The road was a bit windy, but we eventually reached Cumnock and a few miles further on, Ochiltree.



Lucy and Donald welcomed us very warmly, along with Star! We had a nice lunch and a chat with them and saw one of the proposed plans for the house renovations. Although, as Lucy said, each time someone sees the plans, they have suggestions for what they should do with the house, so I think there are still some decisions to be made before things are finalised.

We set off again about 3 pm and managed to get through Glasgow with no problems and continued on to Stirling. We arrived at the hotel in Stirling, which was near the motorway, about 4.30pm. We found, on checking in, that breakfast was included in the cost, so that was a bonus, although the cost was more than the previous places we stayed at.

We found our way to Vicki and Ali's house about 5 and enjoyed catching up with the news, seeing Lukas and having a lovely meal before heading back to the hotel about 10.30pm.
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Shopping again!

Today, Wednesday, we went into town in Stirling and spent a couple of hours in the Thistles Mall and walking around the city.



The shops are all similar to other shopping centres so you see mostly the same stuff in all of the shops you go into. Did manage to part with a bit of money (again), but not too much. Just hope things fit into the suitcase tomorrow!

Went back to the hotel for a rest before heading back to see Vicki and Ali for dinner again. Lukas managed a photo session before going to bed.


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Carlisle

We left Lancaster about 10am and took the M6 to the Lakes District. The first stop was Kendal. We found a park near the main street and sat in a park to have our coffee before going up to walk down the main street.

Getting out of Kendal was quite easy - just followed the road north - however, when we got to the roundabout to turn toward Windermere, we had to take a diversion that took us back to where we had turned off to get to Kendal!!! Eventually we got back to the roundabout to get onto the road we needed to get to Windermere.

At Windermere, we went to Lakeland to have a look at the wonderful array of kitchen and cooking stuff. Bought a couple of things then went for a drive around the town. Lots of people visiting and walking by the lake and through the streets.



Went on to Ambleside and stopped at a garden centre for some lunch. Had a ginormous baked potato for lunch then had a look at the garden centre. Bought an azalea for Vicki and Ali then back into the car to go to Keswick. By this time it was getting cooler so did not stop at Keswick.

We arrived at Carlisle about 2.30 pm and again, the hotel was right near the motorway so was easy to find. We asked about getting into the city and also about a laundromat. The very nice man at reception said that he could put our washing through in the laundry for us. He also gave us very good directions for getting into The Lanes shopping centre.

We spent a couple of hours looking around the shopping centre and some shops in the town. Shops closed at 5.30 so we went back to the hotel and had a drink, then had dinner at the bar.

Another Poirot tonight so settled in for a quiet night of TV and a book!!


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Manchester - been and gone!

Friday 13th April - Shopping in Manchester
Suzanne went off to her conference this morning and I decided to wander off to the shops. Found a coffee shop that had free wifi and spent some time doing emails. Roger saw I was on-line so he skyped me and we spent about 30 minutes on the skype.

I went on to the Arndale Centre and spent much of the day wandering around looking at shops there and other shops in the central area of the city.

Went back to the hotel about 3.30pm for a rest.

Suzanne and I decided to go to a greek restaurant that I found on Princess St. It was very nice. we hopped on a free bus that took us to the Piccadilly Railway station then we walked back to the hotel.

Saturday 14th April

Suzanne went to the conference about 9 and I was picked up by Graeme, Hilda's son and he took me to Hilda's place in Oldham to spend the afternoon crafting. Hilda and George were really welcoming. Hilda and I went out to her little craft room - which was so well organised! - and spent a few hours making tags a la Tim Holtz and Hels Sheriden.

Graeme took me back to the hotel then Suzanne and I walked into town again to have another look in Debenhams and M&S. Found a nice little Italian restaurant and had a meal there.

Sunday 15th April
We left the hotel after having a good breakfast. The car had been parked in the parking building over the road and only cost 22 pounds for the three days. We headed off in the wrong direction but eventually worked that out - did a U turn - and found our way to the north of the city and to the M6.

We were heading to Lancaster which is only an hour or so away from Manchester. We had arranged to visit Beth and Alec at Freckleton and had directions to get there. We had to go through Preston and eventually found the road to Freckleton. Unfortunately, the directions we had printed off were not accurate and I had to ring Beth to find out where we needed to go. She sent Alec out to find us and he guided us to their house.

It was lovely to see Beth and Alec again. We had a cup of tea and a chat and examined Beth's lovely kitchen. Suzanne got some ideas for her new kitchen. Alec took us back to the M6 where we headed back towards Lancaster.

We were staying at the Holiday Inn at Lancaster which was just off the motorway - the easiest one to find so far. We got there about 2.30 pm and checked in. Had a cup of tea then decided to go into Lancaster. We also tried to find a laundromat and were not very successful! Still, we found a park and went for a wander around the central part of the city. Shops closed at 4 on Sunday so we walked around towards the castle and took a few pictures, then back to the car and to the hotel.

We had tea at the hotel then watched a Poirot murder on TV.

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