Friday, June 6, 2008
Monday, June 2, 2008
New York City, take two ...
The hotel rates were down, it was the weekend after Memorial Day long weekend, the car was serviced, the schools were advised. So we left home around 7.20am on Friday 30 May 2008 for the drive up to New York City. We originally had train tickets booked but the cost of fuel and valet parking was less than half the $450 that Amtrak wanted for return tickets for the four of us. We did forget to figure in road tolls. We hit five on the way up for a total of $24.85 and three of these again on the way back for another $11.85. The drive wasn't too bad, only slow part was the Lincoln Tunnel into NYC but even then we managed to keep moving.
We had a morning tea stop but we still checked into the Park Central on 7th Avenue around 11am. Of course our room wasn't ready so we dumped our bags and headed downtown. We ended up having lunch at Applebees and then checking out the shops around Times Square: Toys'R'Us, Hard Rock Cafe; Virgin, NY Yankees, etc. After a long afternoon of shopping, a coffee at our old favourite, Fluffy's Cafe, across from the hotel went down very well.
After getting our room, we caught the subway up the west side of Central Park and walked through the Park to the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum. The attraction was that the building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Plus entry was by donation on Friday nights! Unfortunately the exterior of the building is under scaffolding as it has been since 2006 to repair the cracks in the external concrete. Of course it would be a FLW building if it didn't constantly need repairs. We seem to bypass the charging area and caught the lift up to the fourth level, the highest we were allowed to go as the top two levels were closed for some unclear reason. None of the permanent exhibition seemed to be available for viewing, which is interesting given the history of the building v the art work in terms of what visitors go to the Guggenheim to see.
Instead it was a range of installations by Cai Guo-Qiang who "is internationally acclaimed as an artist whose creative transgressions and cultural provocations have literally exploded the accepted parameters of art making in our time. This is especially true of Inopportune: Stage One, Cai’s largest installation to date, which presents nine real cars in a cinematic progression that simulates a car bombing, occupying the central atrium of the Frank Lloyd Wright rotunda." His other wonders included 99 wolves running into a glass wall; a series of tigers full of arrows; a suspended wrecked Chinese boats full of arrows; and a series of life sized figures decomposing in cracked clay, just the wooden frame, etc. Very different. The kids weren't overly happy about the shot tigers but took me back to examine them and once they were certain that they weren't real tigers, it became ok.
Of course the exhibits were set up to be viewed by walking up the ramps, contrary to FLW's design. Between not seeing the outside of the building, not being able to go to the top inside, not being able to see the design of the top of the building as it was dark, didn't get a real sense of it being a FLW design. Despite having read a reasonable amount about the building before our visit, think it was one were a tour would have helped get a better sense of the building. Settled for a book instead. Olivia also bought a set of nueve blocks:
We then walked down to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met) where our concierge had told us that Friday night was also free. Turns out it was by donation so we just paid one entry rather than two. Had a quick look at some of the armory exhibition on our way to the Super Heroes special exhibition. Yes, Kieren was in his element ...
We caught a bus back down towards our hotel and a late dinner at Lindy's, just down 7th Avenue a bit from the hotel. Nice meal, great waiter, fantastic NY cheesecake, bit overpriced - as normal in NYC.
Saturday morning 31 May 2008 it was back on the subway and down to the World Trade Center site. Last time we got to the Tribute WTC Visitor Center after it had closed so it was on our list to visit this time. We didn't do their tour of the site, figuring the kids were a bit young, but just went through the five galleries. It was a tough experience as you would expect. But with a lot of positive messages from those involved and impacted by both WTC bombings. This culminates in the final 'voices of promise' gallery, where the kids left positive drawings and notes of what they had taken in.
Leaving, we caught the subway back up to 42nd St and rushed over to Pier 83 to catch Circle Line's Full Island Cruise around Manhattan Island:
It was then time to head up 5th Avenue to the kids' stores. So it was into the new NYC Disney shop and then up to FAO Schwarz. In Disney, the kids met Alice and the Mad Hatter. We then hang around for Olivia to meet Jasmine - it was apparently too girly for Kieren!
We had told the kids that they had $50 to spend in NYC. This was the best move we made as they didn't hassle us to buy something in every shop we went into. The dynamic changed to us asking if that was how they wanted to spend their money. Kieren in particular was very thoughtful and reluctant to spend his money until he had seen all his options around NYC. He agonised for ages over a Superman book in the Met before deciding that he didn't really want it.
Saturday finished with dinner at the Playwright's Tavern where we had dinner on our last night in NYC last trip.
We were up early on Sunday 1 June 2008 with breakfast at Fluffy's before catching the subway up to Harlem to the 9am service at Abyssinian Baptist Church. Despite having much more luck with the subway on this trip, we got caught out by waiting 30 minutes for the train north. Even then the line we intended catching turned out being only a weekday service. (Why don't they ever have any printed copies of their subway maps available??!!) Luckily a lady helped us out, making us get on the train that pulled in and suggesting where to change trains to get to the station closest to the church. However all this meant that we didn't get to the church until about 9am. They run a tourist line and were letting in those in the first part of the line just as we arrived. We had to walk around the next corner of the block to join the end of the line. We waited for a while before working out that we had missed joining the 9am service and were also too far back to make the 11am service, even if we wanted to wait 2 hours on a hot humid morning. So a couple of photos later, we headed back to the subway and to the hotel to change into something more comfortable ...
We grabbed some lunch 'to go' at Fluffy's and walked up to Central Park so the kids could play on the playground, including running up and down all the large rock formations there. It was nice to get out of the hussle and noise of the city for a while, though it was still not like being on your own, albeit with the compensation of people watching ...
After dropping some gear back at our room, we headed back downtown to do the shopping thing at Macys. It was then back into kid shopping mode. Kieren desperately needed to get back to ToysRUs to buy a Ben 10 toy, finishing his spending for the trip. The kids enjoyed running into The Naked Cowboy on the way up to ToysRUs! Then up to BuildaBear Workshop, American Girl and Disney for character photos with Meeko and Pocahontas, a survival coffee at Starbucks in Trump Tower, then back for Olivia to meet Cinderella.
Dinner at Applebees, with an off wine that they wouldn't change nearly rounded off the evening. Just a quick visit to M&M's World on the way back to our room finished the day.
The usual breakfast at Fluffy's started the day on Monday 2 June 2008. Our map had an arrow pointing to Lexington Ave between 51st and 52nd Streets labeled 'Marilyn Monroe's Subway Grating'. So we caught the subway over to Lexington Ave, walked up to the site, started looking, kept looking, walked around a bit, wandered up into buildings, looked at the map again, swore a bit, took a photo of Olivia standing on the subway grating, admired the building over the road, took some photos of the church next door (St Bartholomew's) and looked at the map some more to work out how we would spend the rest of the morning. Looking on the Internet later, I'm not sure that the map isn't marked a block higher than where the scene was shot. The scene shows them coming out of a cinema and walking up to where Marilyn enjoys the breeze 'coming up from the passing subway trains' (actually a 'giant blower' under the grating). Anyway, Olivia was excited about the bit of breeze coming out of the grate which moved her dress a bit. She hadn't see the scene at that stage so wasn't disappointed ...
After that excitement, we walked down to the Chrysler Building. We had always noticed the skyscraper, reputedly the most beautiful in NYC, but never been down to the building. Up close we saw the detail of the ornaments on the building which are pretty spectacular. We also went into the foyer where there is also a lot of detail, including the wooden detail on the elevator doors. Thanks to Olivia 'needing to go' we also saw inside the restrooms on the next level down thanks to some friendly security guards. The restrooms were more tired than the entry foyer!
That wrapped up our time and visit. Just a subway trip back to the hotel, final packing, check out, get the car out of valet parking and on the road for the drive home. Fortunately this was fairly uneventful, at least once the GPS finally started working amongst the NYC skyscrapers!
Malcolm
We had a morning tea stop but we still checked into the Park Central on 7th Avenue around 11am. Of course our room wasn't ready so we dumped our bags and headed downtown. We ended up having lunch at Applebees and then checking out the shops around Times Square: Toys'R'Us, Hard Rock Cafe; Virgin, NY Yankees, etc. After a long afternoon of shopping, a coffee at our old favourite, Fluffy's Cafe, across from the hotel went down very well.
After getting our room, we caught the subway up the west side of Central Park and walked through the Park to the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum. The attraction was that the building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Plus entry was by donation on Friday nights! Unfortunately the exterior of the building is under scaffolding as it has been since 2006 to repair the cracks in the external concrete. Of course it would be a FLW building if it didn't constantly need repairs. We seem to bypass the charging area and caught the lift up to the fourth level, the highest we were allowed to go as the top two levels were closed for some unclear reason. None of the permanent exhibition seemed to be available for viewing, which is interesting given the history of the building v the art work in terms of what visitors go to the Guggenheim to see.
Instead it was a range of installations by Cai Guo-Qiang who "is internationally acclaimed as an artist whose creative transgressions and cultural provocations have literally exploded the accepted parameters of art making in our time. This is especially true of Inopportune: Stage One, Cai’s largest installation to date, which presents nine real cars in a cinematic progression that simulates a car bombing, occupying the central atrium of the Frank Lloyd Wright rotunda." His other wonders included 99 wolves running into a glass wall; a series of tigers full of arrows; a suspended wrecked Chinese boats full of arrows; and a series of life sized figures decomposing in cracked clay, just the wooden frame, etc. Very different. The kids weren't overly happy about the shot tigers but took me back to examine them and once they were certain that they weren't real tigers, it became ok.
Of course the exhibits were set up to be viewed by walking up the ramps, contrary to FLW's design. Between not seeing the outside of the building, not being able to go to the top inside, not being able to see the design of the top of the building as it was dark, didn't get a real sense of it being a FLW design. Despite having read a reasonable amount about the building before our visit, think it was one were a tour would have helped get a better sense of the building. Settled for a book instead. Olivia also bought a set of nueve blocks:
Nueve’s set of handcrafted wooden blocks can be assembled in any combination toWhile we thought they were overpriced, they have both had so much fun playing with them we were obviously wrong ...
create billions of different patterns (68,719,476,736 possible combinations).
There is no right answer or winning move. Nueve is designed solely to liberate
your perception, challenge your creativity and delight your soul.Made of
hardwood and silk-screened in red, the nine cubes are held in a black MDF tray.
Each cube is 1 3/8” SQ, comfortable for both kids and adults. Handsomely
presented in a gift box (6” SQ), Nueve will be appreciated by the curious and
creatively spirited. Designed by newartifacts, a group of artists, designers and
entrepreneurs from Uruguay, South America. Newartifacts envisions integrating
art into daily life and transforming life into art.
We then walked down to the Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met) where our concierge had told us that Friday night was also free. Turns out it was by donation so we just paid one entry rather than two. Had a quick look at some of the armory exhibition on our way to the Super Heroes special exhibition. Yes, Kieren was in his element ...
We caught a bus back down towards our hotel and a late dinner at Lindy's, just down 7th Avenue a bit from the hotel. Nice meal, great waiter, fantastic NY cheesecake, bit overpriced - as normal in NYC.
Saturday morning 31 May 2008 it was back on the subway and down to the World Trade Center site. Last time we got to the Tribute WTC Visitor Center after it had closed so it was on our list to visit this time. We didn't do their tour of the site, figuring the kids were a bit young, but just went through the five galleries. It was a tough experience as you would expect. But with a lot of positive messages from those involved and impacted by both WTC bombings. This culminates in the final 'voices of promise' gallery, where the kids left positive drawings and notes of what they had taken in.
Leaving, we caught the subway back up to 42nd St and rushed over to Pier 83 to catch Circle Line's Full Island Cruise around Manhattan Island:
Enjoy a relaxed and refreshing 3-hour cruise as you discover the secrets of theWe managed to catch the 12pm cruise, getting on board just before the forecast rain hit. This limited the view in the first part of the cruise, which included the harbour and around the Statue of Liberty. Luckily we have a few hundred photos of the Statue from the last trip. Was a very interesting trip, mostly, seeing parts of the city that we hadn't been anywhere near before. Figured it was the closest I was going to get to Yankee Stadium as well!
city. You'll circumnavigate Manhattan Island and see it all - 3 rivers, 7 major
bridges, 5 boroughs, over 25 world renowned landmarks and, of course, a
magnificent close-up of the Statue of Liberty.
It was then time to head up 5th Avenue to the kids' stores. So it was into the new NYC Disney shop and then up to FAO Schwarz. In Disney, the kids met Alice and the Mad Hatter. We then hang around for Olivia to meet Jasmine - it was apparently too girly for Kieren!
We had told the kids that they had $50 to spend in NYC. This was the best move we made as they didn't hassle us to buy something in every shop we went into. The dynamic changed to us asking if that was how they wanted to spend their money. Kieren in particular was very thoughtful and reluctant to spend his money until he had seen all his options around NYC. He agonised for ages over a Superman book in the Met before deciding that he didn't really want it.
Saturday finished with dinner at the Playwright's Tavern where we had dinner on our last night in NYC last trip.
We were up early on Sunday 1 June 2008 with breakfast at Fluffy's before catching the subway up to Harlem to the 9am service at Abyssinian Baptist Church. Despite having much more luck with the subway on this trip, we got caught out by waiting 30 minutes for the train north. Even then the line we intended catching turned out being only a weekday service. (Why don't they ever have any printed copies of their subway maps available??!!) Luckily a lady helped us out, making us get on the train that pulled in and suggesting where to change trains to get to the station closest to the church. However all this meant that we didn't get to the church until about 9am. They run a tourist line and were letting in those in the first part of the line just as we arrived. We had to walk around the next corner of the block to join the end of the line. We waited for a while before working out that we had missed joining the 9am service and were also too far back to make the 11am service, even if we wanted to wait 2 hours on a hot humid morning. So a couple of photos later, we headed back to the subway and to the hotel to change into something more comfortable ...
We grabbed some lunch 'to go' at Fluffy's and walked up to Central Park so the kids could play on the playground, including running up and down all the large rock formations there. It was nice to get out of the hussle and noise of the city for a while, though it was still not like being on your own, albeit with the compensation of people watching ...
After dropping some gear back at our room, we headed back downtown to do the shopping thing at Macys. It was then back into kid shopping mode. Kieren desperately needed to get back to ToysRUs to buy a Ben 10 toy, finishing his spending for the trip. The kids enjoyed running into The Naked Cowboy on the way up to ToysRUs! Then up to BuildaBear Workshop, American Girl and Disney for character photos with Meeko and Pocahontas, a survival coffee at Starbucks in Trump Tower, then back for Olivia to meet Cinderella.
Dinner at Applebees, with an off wine that they wouldn't change nearly rounded off the evening. Just a quick visit to M&M's World on the way back to our room finished the day.
The usual breakfast at Fluffy's started the day on Monday 2 June 2008. Our map had an arrow pointing to Lexington Ave between 51st and 52nd Streets labeled 'Marilyn Monroe's Subway Grating'. So we caught the subway over to Lexington Ave, walked up to the site, started looking, kept looking, walked around a bit, wandered up into buildings, looked at the map again, swore a bit, took a photo of Olivia standing on the subway grating, admired the building over the road, took some photos of the church next door (St Bartholomew's) and looked at the map some more to work out how we would spend the rest of the morning. Looking on the Internet later, I'm not sure that the map isn't marked a block higher than where the scene was shot. The scene shows them coming out of a cinema and walking up to where Marilyn enjoys the breeze 'coming up from the passing subway trains' (actually a 'giant blower' under the grating). Anyway, Olivia was excited about the bit of breeze coming out of the grate which moved her dress a bit. She hadn't see the scene at that stage so wasn't disappointed ...
After that excitement, we walked down to the Chrysler Building. We had always noticed the skyscraper, reputedly the most beautiful in NYC, but never been down to the building. Up close we saw the detail of the ornaments on the building which are pretty spectacular. We also went into the foyer where there is also a lot of detail, including the wooden detail on the elevator doors. Thanks to Olivia 'needing to go' we also saw inside the restrooms on the next level down thanks to some friendly security guards. The restrooms were more tired than the entry foyer!
That wrapped up our time and visit. Just a subway trip back to the hotel, final packing, check out, get the car out of valet parking and on the road for the drive home. Fortunately this was fairly uneventful, at least once the GPS finally started working amongst the NYC skyscrapers!
Malcolm
Take me out to the ball game ...
Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowds;
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don't care if I never get back.
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win, it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game.
Content to come ...
Monday, March 31, 2008
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 8: Summary
This was another one of our full on over packed trips where we try to see as much as possible in the short time available to us and end up spending more than we had planned!
Our trip plan drew on the week long US Parks Grand Tour suggestions, but even more on this 2007 Grand Tour which is a modified version of that US Parks Tour. Our main alterations were to avoid Hoover Dam (I've done the hydro school expedition every year growing up); to drive in the opposite direction; to stay at Tusayen near the south entrance of the Grand Canyon (which was more central and avoided backtracking); and to finish in Phoenix rather than doing a circuit from Vegas. The latter cost us a $133 one way car rental fee - thanks for nothing Thrifty!
The kids and Donna loved Vegas while I had had enough after a day and a half! The Utah parks were amazing. While we enjoyed all three, the quieter / less visited the park was the more we enjoyed it. This also resulted in the Grand Canyon being lower on our list than the other parks we visited. However this may be different if we had managed to get down in the Canyon to get a greater sense of its expansiveness.
If we had more time I don't think we would have visited any other parks in the areas we travelled through. Rather we would have spent more time where we've been. Zion's Kolob Canyons would have been an addition. Sedona may also have been worth staying in and doing some walking or riding. There were quite a few more Frank Lloyd Wright buildings in Phoenix that I would have liked to have seen. I've mentioned the Boneyard in Tucson as well. We also didn't have much in the way of relax time, reflected in why I'm writing this a week after getting back! Being able to stop and enjoy some of the vistas, and walk a bit further on some of the tracks would also have added to the trip.
But given the time we had available, I think Donna's planning was pretty spot on in using the time we had to see what we did.
I've been keen to get to Moab in Utah to do some mountain biking while we are here. Arches and Canyonland National Parks are in that area too. Given what we saw in Utah has left me even keener to get up to Moab!
I've just added links to all the individual posts for this trip to photos. Each of the individual albums are available on Picasa from here.
Malcolm
Our trip plan drew on the week long US Parks Grand Tour suggestions, but even more on this 2007 Grand Tour which is a modified version of that US Parks Tour. Our main alterations were to avoid Hoover Dam (I've done the hydro school expedition every year growing up); to drive in the opposite direction; to stay at Tusayen near the south entrance of the Grand Canyon (which was more central and avoided backtracking); and to finish in Phoenix rather than doing a circuit from Vegas. The latter cost us a $133 one way car rental fee - thanks for nothing Thrifty!
The kids and Donna loved Vegas while I had had enough after a day and a half! The Utah parks were amazing. While we enjoyed all three, the quieter / less visited the park was the more we enjoyed it. This also resulted in the Grand Canyon being lower on our list than the other parks we visited. However this may be different if we had managed to get down in the Canyon to get a greater sense of its expansiveness.
If we had more time I don't think we would have visited any other parks in the areas we travelled through. Rather we would have spent more time where we've been. Zion's Kolob Canyons would have been an addition. Sedona may also have been worth staying in and doing some walking or riding. There were quite a few more Frank Lloyd Wright buildings in Phoenix that I would have liked to have seen. I've mentioned the Boneyard in Tucson as well. We also didn't have much in the way of relax time, reflected in why I'm writing this a week after getting back! Being able to stop and enjoy some of the vistas, and walk a bit further on some of the tracks would also have added to the trip.
But given the time we had available, I think Donna's planning was pretty spot on in using the time we had to see what we did.
I've been keen to get to Moab in Utah to do some mountain biking while we are here. Arches and Canyonland National Parks are in that area too. Given what we saw in Utah has left me even keener to get up to Moab!
I've just added links to all the individual posts for this trip to photos. Each of the individual albums are available on Picasa from here.
Malcolm
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 7: Phoenix and Tombstone
On Saturday 29 March 2008, we left Tusayan to drive to Phoenix. We had a couple of stops along the way to enjoy the scenery, including at Oak Creek Canyon just south of Flagstaff. We drove through Flagstaff where I was later told some of our Olympians are based for 5 weeks of high altitude training. Lunch was in Sedona which looked like a great town for hiking, biking, climbing, etc but again time meant we just quickly passed through. I did get a t shirt which was 'dyed with dirt' so it was the deep orange (ochre?) colour of the local rock ...
Our aim today was to get to Phoenix early enough that we could catch the last tour at Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West at 4pm. We were on target, if cutting it fine, until we got to roadways on Highway 101 which had closed the southbound lanes for the weekend. Slow detours through suburbia resulted in us walking into Taliesin West at 4.15pm. The people there were great in getting onto the tour of which we only missed a bit of the opening talk in the first room.
Taliesin West was built as FLW's winter home and architectural school from 1937 until his death in 1959. It continues as the home of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation which continues to cycle between wintering here and summers at Taliesin in Wisconsin.
We did the 90 minute Insights Tour which is the most popular tour. The tour commentary was centered a lot around FLW's history rather than the buildings. I left feeling that I wanted to know more about the buildings there and the behind the scenes parts that we didn't get to see. Although being the last tour of the day, there was a relaxed element around the timing of the tour which was very enjoyable. There is a 3 hour behind the scenes tour which would have been good to do if we were there on the right days, pre-booked, without the kids, etc. Maybe next time!
The tour went through FLW's office, the living room (called the 'Garden Room' by FLW), the bedroom wing, the Music Pavilion and the Cabaret Theater. The kids were employed in the Music Pavilion to demonstrate by jumping how the standard floor was solid why the area under the stage was hollow. Suffice to say that they were very good jumpers! It was interesting to see how the buildings were sited below the brow of the hill (as per his theories and the Welsh meaning of Taliesin) and how it was situated in the midst of cactus etc filled desert. There were also ample signs of the water leaks etc which I associate with FLW's designs which were many years in advance of silicones and other materials which would have allowed his designs to better keep the elements out.
It was also apparent how Phoenix was coming closer to the property although they still seem to own most if not all of the 600 acres FLW owned around the buildings. Would also be interesting to see around the areas where the students build their accommodation buildings for the duration of their stay there - part of the second year of their studies.
There's a good summary of the Key Architectural Elements and Taliesin West History on the Foundation's website which are worth a read.
We headed straight off to the Hyatt Summerfield Suites where we had a suite booked after the tour. We should have gone to the Promenade Mall to see the FLW Spire but didn't realise that it was so close to Taliesin West and so far from our hotel, even though both are in Scottsdale. The Spire was designed in 1957 as part of a Capitol building in Phoenix which was never built, the Spire plans being extracted in 2004 as the highlight of the Mall. Maybe next time!
We had dinner at the Outback Steakhouse. This is an Aussie themed restaurant chain which we have avoided so far because of the fake Australian accents on their tv ads and the reputation of the food just being the standard American fare. Food was ok (if my steak ended up well done at one end and blue at the other to meet my medium - rare order). Lots of Australian memorabilia around the walls (eg a print of one of Nolan's Ned Kellys) which brought home how much the kids had forgotten about Australia over the past year of becoming American!
The reason for rushing to do the Taliesin West tour on Saturday was to leave Sunday 30 March 2008 free to drive the 3 hours south to Tombstone. It actually took longer as Highway 10 southbound was also closed in part over the weekend so we had a similar detour through suburbia as we had yesterday. It took us 45 mins from the hotel to get out of the city and moving on the freeway!
Tombstone is an original 'wild west' town with the motto of 'the town too tough to die' and famous as the setting for the 'gunfight at the OK Corral' and the Boot Hill cemetery. So while as we expected it wasn't really worth the 6 hours in the car for the 3 hours we ended up spending there, how could we bypass the opportunity to visit??!!
We parked opposite the OK Corral and walked around the back to the booking office building. It was quite good value at $7.50 each to see a half hour multimedia show, tour the OK Corral grounds / buildings, a copy of the Tombstone Epitaph newspaper covering the gunfight and (the highlight) a reenactment of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Virgil and Morgan Earp fighting the McLaurys and Clantons. There were other gunfights and reenactments along the streets as well as the usual tourist orientated shops with an appropriately western theme. Couldn't help coming away with a black Stetson as a souvenir of the trip! I also seem to have promised Kieren that he could have a cap gun if he was good during the day. He was extremely good, checking from time to time to remind me. However Mum effectively vetoed the purchase, leaving me to explain why I was wrong agreeing that he could have a gun. Don't think I was successful in explaining to him or Olivia why they couldn't have a gun ...
We stopped at Boot Hill cemetery as we left Tombstone. This was a five minute experience, albeit also the burial site of Bill Clanton, Frank McLaury and Tom McLaury; the three men killed during the Gunfight at the OK Corral.
We also passed through Tucson driving to / from Tombstone. At the time we didn't realise that it was also the site of the Boneyard. Maybe next time!
We had intended seeing some more FLW designed buildings when we got back to Phoenix. However time beat us, it was close to sunset when we got back and the vast size of Phoenix didn't help. Maybe next time! We did however manage to get to Gammage Auditorium at Arizona State University, which is considered to be FLW's last public commission, and at least have a look around the outside of the building.
Our holiday concluded on Monday 31 March 2008 with taking our SUV back to Thrifty and catching our US Airways flight back to BWI airport in Baltimore. US Airways managed to redefine cattle class for us. Despite having made online seat allocations when booking, they had taken these away from us and the seating was oversold. It was then a process of slowly getting seats on the plane as volunteers presumably took some kind of incentive not to catch that flight. We got on the plane with four seats all apart from each other and stood up the back while the hosties managed to get people to move until we had two sets of two seats together.
We got back to rain in Maryland and were very glad when our Tarago taxi pulled into our driveway at the end of a very full on holiday!
Photos here.
Malcolm
Our aim today was to get to Phoenix early enough that we could catch the last tour at Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West at 4pm. We were on target, if cutting it fine, until we got to roadways on Highway 101 which had closed the southbound lanes for the weekend. Slow detours through suburbia resulted in us walking into Taliesin West at 4.15pm. The people there were great in getting onto the tour of which we only missed a bit of the opening talk in the first room.
Taliesin West was built as FLW's winter home and architectural school from 1937 until his death in 1959. It continues as the home of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation which continues to cycle between wintering here and summers at Taliesin in Wisconsin.
We did the 90 minute Insights Tour which is the most popular tour. The tour commentary was centered a lot around FLW's history rather than the buildings. I left feeling that I wanted to know more about the buildings there and the behind the scenes parts that we didn't get to see. Although being the last tour of the day, there was a relaxed element around the timing of the tour which was very enjoyable. There is a 3 hour behind the scenes tour which would have been good to do if we were there on the right days, pre-booked, without the kids, etc. Maybe next time!
The tour went through FLW's office, the living room (called the 'Garden Room' by FLW), the bedroom wing, the Music Pavilion and the Cabaret Theater. The kids were employed in the Music Pavilion to demonstrate by jumping how the standard floor was solid why the area under the stage was hollow. Suffice to say that they were very good jumpers! It was interesting to see how the buildings were sited below the brow of the hill (as per his theories and the Welsh meaning of Taliesin) and how it was situated in the midst of cactus etc filled desert. There were also ample signs of the water leaks etc which I associate with FLW's designs which were many years in advance of silicones and other materials which would have allowed his designs to better keep the elements out.
It was also apparent how Phoenix was coming closer to the property although they still seem to own most if not all of the 600 acres FLW owned around the buildings. Would also be interesting to see around the areas where the students build their accommodation buildings for the duration of their stay there - part of the second year of their studies.
There's a good summary of the Key Architectural Elements and Taliesin West History on the Foundation's website which are worth a read.
We headed straight off to the Hyatt Summerfield Suites where we had a suite booked after the tour. We should have gone to the Promenade Mall to see the FLW Spire but didn't realise that it was so close to Taliesin West and so far from our hotel, even though both are in Scottsdale. The Spire was designed in 1957 as part of a Capitol building in Phoenix which was never built, the Spire plans being extracted in 2004 as the highlight of the Mall. Maybe next time!
We had dinner at the Outback Steakhouse. This is an Aussie themed restaurant chain which we have avoided so far because of the fake Australian accents on their tv ads and the reputation of the food just being the standard American fare. Food was ok (if my steak ended up well done at one end and blue at the other to meet my medium - rare order). Lots of Australian memorabilia around the walls (eg a print of one of Nolan's Ned Kellys) which brought home how much the kids had forgotten about Australia over the past year of becoming American!
The reason for rushing to do the Taliesin West tour on Saturday was to leave Sunday 30 March 2008 free to drive the 3 hours south to Tombstone. It actually took longer as Highway 10 southbound was also closed in part over the weekend so we had a similar detour through suburbia as we had yesterday. It took us 45 mins from the hotel to get out of the city and moving on the freeway!
Tombstone is an original 'wild west' town with the motto of 'the town too tough to die' and famous as the setting for the 'gunfight at the OK Corral' and the Boot Hill cemetery. So while as we expected it wasn't really worth the 6 hours in the car for the 3 hours we ended up spending there, how could we bypass the opportunity to visit??!!
We parked opposite the OK Corral and walked around the back to the booking office building. It was quite good value at $7.50 each to see a half hour multimedia show, tour the OK Corral grounds / buildings, a copy of the Tombstone Epitaph newspaper covering the gunfight and (the highlight) a reenactment of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Virgil and Morgan Earp fighting the McLaurys and Clantons. There were other gunfights and reenactments along the streets as well as the usual tourist orientated shops with an appropriately western theme. Couldn't help coming away with a black Stetson as a souvenir of the trip! I also seem to have promised Kieren that he could have a cap gun if he was good during the day. He was extremely good, checking from time to time to remind me. However Mum effectively vetoed the purchase, leaving me to explain why I was wrong agreeing that he could have a gun. Don't think I was successful in explaining to him or Olivia why they couldn't have a gun ...
We stopped at Boot Hill cemetery as we left Tombstone. This was a five minute experience, albeit also the burial site of Bill Clanton, Frank McLaury and Tom McLaury; the three men killed during the Gunfight at the OK Corral.
We also passed through Tucson driving to / from Tombstone. At the time we didn't realise that it was also the site of the Boneyard. Maybe next time!
We had intended seeing some more FLW designed buildings when we got back to Phoenix. However time beat us, it was close to sunset when we got back and the vast size of Phoenix didn't help. Maybe next time! We did however manage to get to Gammage Auditorium at Arizona State University, which is considered to be FLW's last public commission, and at least have a look around the outside of the building.
Our holiday concluded on Monday 31 March 2008 with taking our SUV back to Thrifty and catching our US Airways flight back to BWI airport in Baltimore. US Airways managed to redefine cattle class for us. Despite having made online seat allocations when booking, they had taken these away from us and the seating was oversold. It was then a process of slowly getting seats on the plane as volunteers presumably took some kind of incentive not to catch that flight. We got on the plane with four seats all apart from each other and stood up the back while the hosties managed to get people to move until we had two sets of two seats together.
We got back to rain in Maryland and were very glad when our Tarago taxi pulled into our driveway at the end of a very full on holiday!
Photos here.
Malcolm
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 6: Grand Canyon National Park
We left Kayenta on the morning of Thursday 27 March 2008, heading towards the Grand Canyon. One of the guides we were using said not to miss the 'dinosaur tracks that can be seen just a few miles west of Tuba City'. We wasted some time driving around Tuba City in what the SUV's compass said was a westerly direction before giving up in disappointment at the lack of signage. and heading back to the highway. Did allow us to see around the town, which while apparently 'somewhat less impoverished than other Navajo towns' was obviously not that affluent an area. Reading the comments now, the bit Donna didn't read was that the dinosaur tracks were on Route 160 ie the highway which was where we found them! (Had to note this so I'm not the only one who didn't read all the directions!)
The Navajos were at our door as we stopped just west of Tuba City along Route 160 offering to guide us around the dinosaur tracks. When the youngish girl left without us, a conversation ensued with her father of which I overheard 'but they said they didn't want a guide'. He came over and gently pointed out the lack of interpretation etc in the area and that they only asked a tip as a gesture of appreciation for their guide services. So off we went to follow him!
He was right. There's no way we would have found the tracks let alone understand what we were looking at without his guidance. I'm assuming here that what he told us was correct but he seemed very knowledgeable and had good answers to all our questions, if he was rather keen to get us around as quickly as possible so he could get back to his jewellery stand (where we once again acquired more than our share of pieces!) He showed us tracks which he said were from allosaurus, pterodactyl, triceratops, raptor and diplodocus. There were heaps of tracks all over the sandstone and it was pretty interesting. We also saw a small human footprint which may have been a child's but he claimed that the original Indian inhabitants of the area where only about three foot tall. He also showed us what looked like ovoid rocks which he claimed was dinosaur poop.Who knows!
We tipped him $10 which was probably excessive given he was obviously keen to get us around as quickly as possible and back to his jewellery stand. But looking at the relative difference in our income levels, felt better being charitable. The kids talked to one of the little girls who was playing with a naked Bratz doll with no feet. They thought it funny that she would value the doll until we explained later it was probably her only doll. Contrast that with the ridiculous numbers of fluffy toys that our kids have ...
We kept driving and were soon at the east rim of the Grand Canyon. Everyone on the planet must know of the Grand Canyon, so here's just the basic background: 'The canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long, ranges in width from 4 to 18 miles (6.4 to 29 km) and attains a depth of more than a mile (1.6 km). Nearly two billion years of the Earth's history have been exposed as the Colorado River and its tributaries cut their channels through layer after layer of rock while the Colorado Plateau was uplifted.' We picked up a copy of the NPS's newspaper 'The Guide' on the way into the Park which became our constant companion in exploring over the next couple of days.
We basically spent the afternoon driving along Desert View Drive, stopping at the major scenic overlooks along the way. Fortunately we were early enough in the season that we could drive the full length and not have to rely on the park shuttle bus for parts of the trip. Our first stop was at Desert View where we climbed to the top of the 70 foot Watchtower. This has a number of levels, each painted with murals depicting Hopi legends. Enjoyed getting a bit more of a cultural insight after the geological focus of the past few days.
After enjoying the Canyon views around this area, we had lunch. Kieren dropped a cracker which a raven soon salvaged. We totally failed to get the message across about why you shouldn't feed the animals. Fortunately they heard a ranger giving a talk about this and the problems of squirrels attacking people for food later in the day and both became contrite. We also had Kieren on the lookout for his raven coming back for more food from him for the rest of our trip through the Grand Canyon!
Other stops on the way east were Navajo Point, Lipan Point (reputedly the finest view of the eastern canyon), Tusayan Ruin and Museum (very informative re the Indian cultures and the excavated ancestral Peubloan village from AD1185), Moran Point (view of the Colorado River down in the depths of the Canyon, Grandview Point (one of the finest vistas on the South Rim) and Yaki Point.
Kol had warned us that you need to get down into the Canyon a bit to be able to appreciate / get a sense of the immensity of it. This wasn't possible with the kids and may explain we didn't find it as interesting as what we had just travelled through in Utah. Even though it was early in the tourist season, the crowds were also starting to form so we had trouble getting a car park at most scenic sites and often had to wait for others to move to get up to the viewing areas. Not my idea of a nature experience!
By this stage we were keen to get to the Quality inn in Tusayan which is a small town just south of the Park's south entrance. While we didn't spend much time in the room, it was nice to have a suite with some extra room, even if the cleanliness of the room left a bit to be desired.
We decided to not race out to see the sunrise on Friday 28 March 2008, instead having a more leisurely start to the day before we headed back into the Grand Canyon. Today we started at teh Canyon View Information Plaza at Mather Point with its classic panoramic view into the heart of the Canyon. From here you can see Phantom Ranch in a small area of greenery at the bottom of the Canyon. This is the lodge / campground where hikers and mule trips spend the evening on the two day trips down into the Canyon. Maybe next time! The kids picked up an activity booklet here which they had to complete to become a junior ranger. This proved an excellent resource to keep them actively involved in the day's activities.
Yavapai Point was our last stop before we left the SUV and hopped on the shuttle bus along to Hermits Rest. This 7 mile narrow road seemed way too close to the edge of the Canyon and made me nervous in parts. We hopped off at Powell Point and walked the 0.3 miles to Hopi Point. Hopping back on the next shuttle, we continued through to Hermits Rest at the end of the 7 mile road. This was a good place to stop for a coffee and enjoy the view before doing the return trip.
We had to hurry back to Yavapai for the 2.30 ranger talk on the Colorado River which also covered the geological history of the Canyon. This was the last 'tick' the kids needed on their booklets so from there it was back into the Information Plaza at Mather Point as Olivia was set on the ranger who gave them the booklet also completed the junior ranger process for them. This involved him checking their booklets, stamping them, making them take the junior ranger pledge to protect parks, animals, educate others, etc and then presenting them with their junior ranger badges and certificates. We then had to head over to the bookshop where they were entitled to buy the Raven junior ranger cloth badge! They were quite proud of their badges for the rest of the trip.
Our plans for a cheap takeaway meal that evening in our hotel room were destroyed by the prices charged by the local McDonalds. Claiming transport costs that no one else in the area used to inflate their prices, it seemed more like they didn't offer the $1 menu deals other McDonalds offered and had other prices pushed up. At least our local pizza was good value and tasted good.
Photos here.
Malcolm
The Navajos were at our door as we stopped just west of Tuba City along Route 160 offering to guide us around the dinosaur tracks. When the youngish girl left without us, a conversation ensued with her father of which I overheard 'but they said they didn't want a guide'. He came over and gently pointed out the lack of interpretation etc in the area and that they only asked a tip as a gesture of appreciation for their guide services. So off we went to follow him!
He was right. There's no way we would have found the tracks let alone understand what we were looking at without his guidance. I'm assuming here that what he told us was correct but he seemed very knowledgeable and had good answers to all our questions, if he was rather keen to get us around as quickly as possible so he could get back to his jewellery stand (where we once again acquired more than our share of pieces!) He showed us tracks which he said were from allosaurus, pterodactyl, triceratops, raptor and diplodocus. There were heaps of tracks all over the sandstone and it was pretty interesting. We also saw a small human footprint which may have been a child's but he claimed that the original Indian inhabitants of the area where only about three foot tall. He also showed us what looked like ovoid rocks which he claimed was dinosaur poop.Who knows!
We tipped him $10 which was probably excessive given he was obviously keen to get us around as quickly as possible and back to his jewellery stand. But looking at the relative difference in our income levels, felt better being charitable. The kids talked to one of the little girls who was playing with a naked Bratz doll with no feet. They thought it funny that she would value the doll until we explained later it was probably her only doll. Contrast that with the ridiculous numbers of fluffy toys that our kids have ...
We kept driving and were soon at the east rim of the Grand Canyon. Everyone on the planet must know of the Grand Canyon, so here's just the basic background: 'The canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long, ranges in width from 4 to 18 miles (6.4 to 29 km) and attains a depth of more than a mile (1.6 km). Nearly two billion years of the Earth's history have been exposed as the Colorado River and its tributaries cut their channels through layer after layer of rock while the Colorado Plateau was uplifted.' We picked up a copy of the NPS's newspaper 'The Guide' on the way into the Park which became our constant companion in exploring over the next couple of days.
We basically spent the afternoon driving along Desert View Drive, stopping at the major scenic overlooks along the way. Fortunately we were early enough in the season that we could drive the full length and not have to rely on the park shuttle bus for parts of the trip. Our first stop was at Desert View where we climbed to the top of the 70 foot Watchtower. This has a number of levels, each painted with murals depicting Hopi legends. Enjoyed getting a bit more of a cultural insight after the geological focus of the past few days.
After enjoying the Canyon views around this area, we had lunch. Kieren dropped a cracker which a raven soon salvaged. We totally failed to get the message across about why you shouldn't feed the animals. Fortunately they heard a ranger giving a talk about this and the problems of squirrels attacking people for food later in the day and both became contrite. We also had Kieren on the lookout for his raven coming back for more food from him for the rest of our trip through the Grand Canyon!
Other stops on the way east were Navajo Point, Lipan Point (reputedly the finest view of the eastern canyon), Tusayan Ruin and Museum (very informative re the Indian cultures and the excavated ancestral Peubloan village from AD1185), Moran Point (view of the Colorado River down in the depths of the Canyon, Grandview Point (one of the finest vistas on the South Rim) and Yaki Point.
Kol had warned us that you need to get down into the Canyon a bit to be able to appreciate / get a sense of the immensity of it. This wasn't possible with the kids and may explain we didn't find it as interesting as what we had just travelled through in Utah. Even though it was early in the tourist season, the crowds were also starting to form so we had trouble getting a car park at most scenic sites and often had to wait for others to move to get up to the viewing areas. Not my idea of a nature experience!
By this stage we were keen to get to the Quality inn in Tusayan which is a small town just south of the Park's south entrance. While we didn't spend much time in the room, it was nice to have a suite with some extra room, even if the cleanliness of the room left a bit to be desired.
We decided to not race out to see the sunrise on Friday 28 March 2008, instead having a more leisurely start to the day before we headed back into the Grand Canyon. Today we started at teh Canyon View Information Plaza at Mather Point with its classic panoramic view into the heart of the Canyon. From here you can see Phantom Ranch in a small area of greenery at the bottom of the Canyon. This is the lodge / campground where hikers and mule trips spend the evening on the two day trips down into the Canyon. Maybe next time! The kids picked up an activity booklet here which they had to complete to become a junior ranger. This proved an excellent resource to keep them actively involved in the day's activities.
Yavapai Point was our last stop before we left the SUV and hopped on the shuttle bus along to Hermits Rest. This 7 mile narrow road seemed way too close to the edge of the Canyon and made me nervous in parts. We hopped off at Powell Point and walked the 0.3 miles to Hopi Point. Hopping back on the next shuttle, we continued through to Hermits Rest at the end of the 7 mile road. This was a good place to stop for a coffee and enjoy the view before doing the return trip.
We had to hurry back to Yavapai for the 2.30 ranger talk on the Colorado River which also covered the geological history of the Canyon. This was the last 'tick' the kids needed on their booklets so from there it was back into the Information Plaza at Mather Point as Olivia was set on the ranger who gave them the booklet also completed the junior ranger process for them. This involved him checking their booklets, stamping them, making them take the junior ranger pledge to protect parks, animals, educate others, etc and then presenting them with their junior ranger badges and certificates. We then had to head over to the bookshop where they were entitled to buy the Raven junior ranger cloth badge! They were quite proud of their badges for the rest of the trip.
Our plans for a cheap takeaway meal that evening in our hotel room were destroyed by the prices charged by the local McDonalds. Claiming transport costs that no one else in the area used to inflate their prices, it seemed more like they didn't offer the $1 menu deals other McDonalds offered and had other prices pushed up. At least our local pizza was good value and tasted good.
Photos here.
Malcolm
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 5: Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park
Leaving Capitol Reef National Park, our road trip continued on Wednesday 26 March 2008 down Utah 24 towards Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park.
Most of the trip there was fairly uneventful with scenery that we had by this stage become accustomed to. However then we came to a section of road along Utah SR-261 with lots of warning signs about the upcoming dirt section. This was the Moki Dugway where in three miles you drop 1100 feet from an elevation of 6425 feet along a dirt road with no guardrails and tight switchbacks. Going down got your full attention! Even more impressive was the views from the top over the plateau below which had rock formations similar to those in Monument Valley. The change in scenery and terrain was incredible.
Past Mexican Hat, we headed to the border with Arizona. We missed the turn off to Monument Valley (it was poorly marked and confusing!) and had to turn back about 10 miles into Arizona to find the turn off just on the Utah side of the border.
The visitor centre was closed as they were building the The View Hotel & Spa inside Monument Valley. Once finished, the views will be spectacular from the hotel when it opens in September 2008, no doubt accompanied by prices to match. :-) This didn't stop us starting our visit to the Valley with a shopping experience. I started chatting to David Bowyer, a Yorkshire born film producer / director who moved to the Colorado Plateau after coming for a visit in 1977 and never going back! He has produced a range of DVDs of the geography and history of various parks etc in the area of which I ended up buying two which he kindly autographed for me. He was there as part of filming a doco on the construction of The View Hotel.
We then set off on the 17 mile dirt road loop around Monument Valley. The road was in exactly the right condition to ensure you kept your speed down but ok for any vehicle to drive over it ok. There are 11 numbered stops along the loop: The Mittens and Merrick Butte; Elephant Butte; Three Sisters; John Ford's Point; Camel Butte; The Hub; Totem Pole and Yei Bi Chei; Sand Springs; Artist's Point; North Window; and The Thumb. Many of the views / monuments had an air of familiarity given their use on many tv shows, commercials and movies. We were late enough in the day that the sun was highlighting the brilliant reddish colour in many of the buttes, mesas, canyons and free standing rock formations. We also had the pleasure of meeting Ron Atine at the Totem Pole lookout. Ron and his wife were selling a range of Navajo jewellery which we helped him lower his stock of! The kids also bought a postcard of Ron in his full Native American traditional dress which he autographed for them. He has also been around much of the world with his dancing and offers tours around the Navajo lands.
Leaving Monument Valley late in the evening, we headed down to Kayenta where we stayed at the Holiday Inn. Our 'suite' was a bit ordinary but ok. Their restaurant was very popular and we had to wait half an hour for a table. Not quite sure why as there was a whole area roped off and not being used. At least they didn't finish at the posted time of 9pm but were happy to keep serving until everyone was fed.
As Kayenta is within the Navajo Nation, it was a dry or no alcohol area. So we decided to try the Fre alcohol free wine. The label indicated that it was 28% grape juice which explained why the wine flavours were totally overpowered. It does raise the question of why the winery had been so careful in removing the alcohol as the residual elements of the wine were no longer evident! Looking at some of the online reviews, I have to question whether all their wine tastes the same or if some of the reviewers are unable to tell the difference between wine and grape juice ....
Photos here.
Malcolm
Most of the trip there was fairly uneventful with scenery that we had by this stage become accustomed to. However then we came to a section of road along Utah SR-261 with lots of warning signs about the upcoming dirt section. This was the Moki Dugway where in three miles you drop 1100 feet from an elevation of 6425 feet along a dirt road with no guardrails and tight switchbacks. Going down got your full attention! Even more impressive was the views from the top over the plateau below which had rock formations similar to those in Monument Valley. The change in scenery and terrain was incredible.
Past Mexican Hat, we headed to the border with Arizona. We missed the turn off to Monument Valley (it was poorly marked and confusing!) and had to turn back about 10 miles into Arizona to find the turn off just on the Utah side of the border.
The visitor centre was closed as they were building the The View Hotel & Spa inside Monument Valley. Once finished, the views will be spectacular from the hotel when it opens in September 2008, no doubt accompanied by prices to match. :-) This didn't stop us starting our visit to the Valley with a shopping experience. I started chatting to David Bowyer, a Yorkshire born film producer / director who moved to the Colorado Plateau after coming for a visit in 1977 and never going back! He has produced a range of DVDs of the geography and history of various parks etc in the area of which I ended up buying two which he kindly autographed for me. He was there as part of filming a doco on the construction of The View Hotel.
We then set off on the 17 mile dirt road loop around Monument Valley. The road was in exactly the right condition to ensure you kept your speed down but ok for any vehicle to drive over it ok. There are 11 numbered stops along the loop: The Mittens and Merrick Butte; Elephant Butte; Three Sisters; John Ford's Point; Camel Butte; The Hub; Totem Pole and Yei Bi Chei; Sand Springs; Artist's Point; North Window; and The Thumb. Many of the views / monuments had an air of familiarity given their use on many tv shows, commercials and movies. We were late enough in the day that the sun was highlighting the brilliant reddish colour in many of the buttes, mesas, canyons and free standing rock formations. We also had the pleasure of meeting Ron Atine at the Totem Pole lookout. Ron and his wife were selling a range of Navajo jewellery which we helped him lower his stock of! The kids also bought a postcard of Ron in his full Native American traditional dress which he autographed for them. He has also been around much of the world with his dancing and offers tours around the Navajo lands.
Leaving Monument Valley late in the evening, we headed down to Kayenta where we stayed at the Holiday Inn. Our 'suite' was a bit ordinary but ok. Their restaurant was very popular and we had to wait half an hour for a table. Not quite sure why as there was a whole area roped off and not being used. At least they didn't finish at the posted time of 9pm but were happy to keep serving until everyone was fed.
As Kayenta is within the Navajo Nation, it was a dry or no alcohol area. So we decided to try the Fre alcohol free wine. The label indicated that it was 28% grape juice which explained why the wine flavours were totally overpowered. It does raise the question of why the winery had been so careful in removing the alcohol as the residual elements of the wine were no longer evident! Looking at some of the online reviews, I have to question whether all their wine tastes the same or if some of the reviewers are unable to tell the difference between wine and grape juice ....
Photos here.
Malcolm
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 4: Capitol Reef National Park
Leaving Bryce Canyon on Tuesday 25 March 2008, we headed towards Capitol Reef National Park. There were a few National Monuments / state parks we tentatively had on the 'may visit' list along the way. But in the end we by passed them for reasons including a lack of enthusiasm of staff in the visitor centres along the way. This was mostly because what was worth seeing involved walks a bit beyond the capability of the kids. However we still saw some impressive snow capped mountains, rock formations and colours along the way to our 3pm arrival at Capitol Reef. We also had the pleasure of a good espresso coffee at a cafe in Torrey where there was also some great photography for sale from one of the Backpacker magazine photographers (whose name I forget!)
Making the most of the day, we continued along Utah 24 and down the Scenic Drive, albeit after the obligatory stop and shop at the Park's visitors centre. Capitol Reef is less visited again and doesn't have the reputation of Zion and Bryce. However we really enjoyed our time there and were impressed with the range, diversity and intensity of the colours. The variety of rock formations and colours continued to amaze us throughout the Park.
Along with many photo stops along Scenic Drive, we also did short walks at Capitol Gorge and at Grand Wash. In addition to the rock formations, we also saw our first petroglyphs and pioneer markings (ie old 'I woz ere' scratchings in the rock as compared to the graffiti classification of contemporary equivalents). Knowing Butch Cassidy used to hole out in the area also added to the history. Both stops involved a couple of dirt tracks so we could pretend that having a 4x4 was warranted, despite the evidence of all the other cars there! It did result in the Durango getting mud splattered so it now looks the part ...
We finished Tuesday with the drive / walk into Sunset Point around 6.30 pm. Despite this being close to an hour before sunset, the light and colours were fantastic. Our room at the back of Best Western Capitol Reef even looked out over a red rock reef.
Wednesday 26 March 2008 concluded our sightseeing at Capitol Reef with the sights along Highway 24. First though we went back along Scenic Drive to Fruita where Donna checked out some quilting at Gifford Homestead and we saw a possum / racoon like animal we still haven't been able to identify on the roof of the old blacksmithing building. (Even the ranger at Grand Canyon couldn't identify it from our photo.)
First stop was at the Petroglyphs (ie carvings into the rock), rock art done by the Fremont Indians around 600 AD. Then down to Hickman Bridge where we walked most of the way up the mile long track to the natural bridge, amongst Kieren's grumbling about how hot and how long it was. Hence why we only walked far enough to see the arch rather than going right up to it! Last stop was at Behunin Cabin, a one room stone cabin on the side of the road which was originally home to a family of 10. although the girls slept outside in a wagon box and the boys in a rock alcove just near the cabin!
Photos here.
Malcolm
Making the most of the day, we continued along Utah 24 and down the Scenic Drive, albeit after the obligatory stop and shop at the Park's visitors centre. Capitol Reef is less visited again and doesn't have the reputation of Zion and Bryce. However we really enjoyed our time there and were impressed with the range, diversity and intensity of the colours. The variety of rock formations and colours continued to amaze us throughout the Park.
Along with many photo stops along Scenic Drive, we also did short walks at Capitol Gorge and at Grand Wash. In addition to the rock formations, we also saw our first petroglyphs and pioneer markings (ie old 'I woz ere' scratchings in the rock as compared to the graffiti classification of contemporary equivalents). Knowing Butch Cassidy used to hole out in the area also added to the history. Both stops involved a couple of dirt tracks so we could pretend that having a 4x4 was warranted, despite the evidence of all the other cars there! It did result in the Durango getting mud splattered so it now looks the part ...
We finished Tuesday with the drive / walk into Sunset Point around 6.30 pm. Despite this being close to an hour before sunset, the light and colours were fantastic. Our room at the back of Best Western Capitol Reef even looked out over a red rock reef.
Wednesday 26 March 2008 concluded our sightseeing at Capitol Reef with the sights along Highway 24. First though we went back along Scenic Drive to Fruita where Donna checked out some quilting at Gifford Homestead and we saw a possum / racoon like animal we still haven't been able to identify on the roof of the old blacksmithing building. (Even the ranger at Grand Canyon couldn't identify it from our photo.)
First stop was at the Petroglyphs (ie carvings into the rock), rock art done by the Fremont Indians around 600 AD. Then down to Hickman Bridge where we walked most of the way up the mile long track to the natural bridge, amongst Kieren's grumbling about how hot and how long it was. Hence why we only walked far enough to see the arch rather than going right up to it! Last stop was at Behunin Cabin, a one room stone cabin on the side of the road which was originally home to a family of 10. although the girls slept outside in a wagon box and the boys in a rock alcove just near the cabin!
Photos here.
Malcolm
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 3: Bryce Canyon National Park
Leaving Zion late (I got confused with the changing time zones) on Monday 24 March 2008, we were aiming to get to Bryce Canyon National Park before sunset to catch the late evening light. Bryce offers a very different perspective to Zion, looking down onto the hoodoos in the Bryce Amphitheatre. Not sure why but Bryce only seems to get a million visitors a year and the shuttle service wasn't up and running yet so at least we got to drive around ourselves.
We drove into the park and found Sunset Point but with only the last rays of the setting sun lighting the tops of the hoodoos. Managed some photos but really too late so we headed back out of the park to our hotel for the evening.
Up early on Tuesday 25 March 2008, we headed back into the Park before breakfast to catch the sunrise from Sunrise Point. We were probably a bit too early, especially as it was a very cold morning! We then kept driving around the Bryce Amphitheatre to Bryce Point and Inspiration Point. As well as the various 'lookovers' at each Point, we walked down into the Amphitheatre a bit at Inspiration Point which provided a good alternative perspective on the hoodoos. A visit to the visitors' centre completed our flying tour of Bryce Canyon.
Back to our hotel, breakfast and we were off to Capitol Reef National Park ...
Photos here.
Malcolm
We drove into the park and found Sunset Point but with only the last rays of the setting sun lighting the tops of the hoodoos. Managed some photos but really too late so we headed back out of the park to our hotel for the evening.
Up early on Tuesday 25 March 2008, we headed back into the Park before breakfast to catch the sunrise from Sunrise Point. We were probably a bit too early, especially as it was a very cold morning! We then kept driving around the Bryce Amphitheatre to Bryce Point and Inspiration Point. As well as the various 'lookovers' at each Point, we walked down into the Amphitheatre a bit at Inspiration Point which provided a good alternative perspective on the hoodoos. A visit to the visitors' centre completed our flying tour of Bryce Canyon.
Back to our hotel, breakfast and we were off to Capitol Reef National Park ...
Photos here.
Malcolm
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 2: Zion National Park
We left Vegas on Monday 24 March 2008 to drive to Zion National Park. We started the tradition of photos out of the SUV, initially while moving but graduating to pulling off the side of the road and using the fast electric windows, the sunroof and the ground clearance to improve the quality of our photos!
Zion is characterically seen from the bottom looking up at the cream and red rock features. It is also Utah's most visited park so we left the SUV at the visitor centre and took the NPS shuttle bus up the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive. The bus has nine stops up the canyon. We got off and had a wander around the Temple of Sinawava and then walked up the Court of the Patriarchs. Photos from these two stops were supplemented with others out of the bus, continuing our bad photography practices created from the time we're taking to do this trip. These photos included a few groups of rockclimbers, including one guy who was awaiting rescue after breaking his hip halfway up one of the cliffs.
While we were impressed with the views up the Scenic Drive, Highway 9 out of Zion was the most impressive road we drove (and probably the most scenic / impressive road I've ever driven, passing my previous favourite south of Kaikoura!) In addition to the rock formations, the road also passed through two tunnels through the canyon wall, the longest of which is 1.1 miles long.
We had booked accommodation outside Bryce Canyon that night so we had to keep moving. This meant we didn't get to see Kolob Canyons which came highly recommended and our national parks book describes as 'one of the most spectacular' regions of the Park. One for next time!
Photos here.
Malcolm
Zion is characterically seen from the bottom looking up at the cream and red rock features. It is also Utah's most visited park so we left the SUV at the visitor centre and took the NPS shuttle bus up the Zion Canyon Scenic Drive. The bus has nine stops up the canyon. We got off and had a wander around the Temple of Sinawava and then walked up the Court of the Patriarchs. Photos from these two stops were supplemented with others out of the bus, continuing our bad photography practices created from the time we're taking to do this trip. These photos included a few groups of rockclimbers, including one guy who was awaiting rescue after breaking his hip halfway up one of the cliffs.
While we were impressed with the views up the Scenic Drive, Highway 9 out of Zion was the most impressive road we drove (and probably the most scenic / impressive road I've ever driven, passing my previous favourite south of Kaikoura!) In addition to the rock formations, the road also passed through two tunnels through the canyon wall, the longest of which is 1.1 miles long.
We had booked accommodation outside Bryce Canyon that night so we had to keep moving. This meant we didn't get to see Kolob Canyons which came highly recommended and our national parks book describes as 'one of the most spectacular' regions of the Park. One for next time!
Photos here.
Malcolm
Vegas to Phoenix Road Trip 1: Las Vegas
An early start on Saturday 22 March 2008 led to 5.5 hours up the back of a United Airbus from Dulles to Las Vegas. It was then an hour from touchdown to the terminal, to get our luggage and then get a bus over to the car rental building. Then another hour waiting in line at Thrifty and then waiting for them to bring a SUV down from the upper level of the garage. Having been hit for double what the basic car rental quote was for, at least we got an upgrade to a Dodge Durango 4x4 4.7 litre V8 SUV. Was a bigger vehicle than we wanted and had ordered but came to enjoy the larger size later in the trip, if not the 14 litres / 100km fuel economy.
Got a bit lost trying to find a car park at the Excalibur but eventually managed to get there and get checked in. Lunch at the Luxor and a nice bottle of pinot grigio was welcomed after the hassles getting there today. Quite happy with our choice of Excalibur as a place to stay. Though the theme probably didn't carry through the insides as much as with most of the casinos.
After some wandering around Luxor and Excalibur and a sleep, we headed out for our 6pm show at Tournament of Kings. This was a (pretty ordinary) dinner with entertainment based around knights, jousting, etc. Show was very good and we all enjoyed it. Although sitting in the Dragon section, we probably didn't have as much opportunity to cheer our knight as those seated in the 'country' sections. Kieren was scared through the parts when the Dragon King was throwing flames and there were explosions etc but has recreated the experience since to recall how much he loved the show. The mind of a five year old!
Explored New York New York and some of the other close by casinos after the show.
Sunday 23 March 2008 started with breakfast at the Rainforest Cafe in MGM. Great food and the kids loved the setting and watching the animals every time they moved. This was on the way up to Treasure Island (via the monorail) to pick up our tickets for a show that evening. We explored around a number of the casinos. Circus Circus was tired and we were glad to get out of there. Treasure Island seemed ok but there were massive queues for everything from check in to cafes to getting show tickets which made us glad not to be staying there. Paris was one of our favourites, very much like walking through a Parisian street, complete with sky and breezes. We also caught the Viva Las Vegas performance of the Bellagio water fountains as well which was amazing.
This also gets to the main problem we had with Vegas - getting around. We missed an earlier fountain show as we couldn't get across the street. The whole Strip is just 10 lanes of automobiles, the sidewalk is narrow, there are limited crossing opportunities, pedestrians on the Strip are escalated up into overhead walkways to cross streets, while the monorail goes way out the back of the Strip. This meant that it took us 45 minutes each way to Treasure Island from Excalibur using the monorail to and from our show that evening. Much of this time is spent walking through the slot machine / gambling areas of various casinos to get to / from the monorail terminals and avoiding the Strip and other streets. Often we found ourselves a bit lost inside the casinos trying to navigate around. No doubt this is what is intended. The idea of course is to stay at the gambling points within your casino and not explore what else is on offer.
Our other main complaint was being continually asked in various ways if we wanted tickets for a show as we walked around, especially on the edges of the casino areas. Wanted a t-shirt printed with 'No!! I don't want any #$%$^# show tickets!' The sleazy side of Vegas was also pretty evident in some of the pitches we overheard ("Are you married? Is your wife in town?") and the cards etc being handed out in the street. While we weren't approached, it wasn't a great environment to have the kids in. But I guess we knew / expected that in going to Vegas and it was more a matter of hiding parts from their notice and explaining other parts in positive ways they could understand.
Our show that evening was Cirque de Soleil's Mystere. It was worth the effort of getting there and we all enjoyed it. Brian le Petit's antics in the audience before the show with mimicking patrons, throwing popcorn around and on people, and leading people astray in getting to their seats (including up onto the stage) was very funny and a highlight of the show for me. There's a loose story underlying the show but we all missed most of it. It was more a series of loosely related acts of the very high quality expected of Cirque de Soleil.
Photos here.
Malcolm
Got a bit lost trying to find a car park at the Excalibur but eventually managed to get there and get checked in. Lunch at the Luxor and a nice bottle of pinot grigio was welcomed after the hassles getting there today. Quite happy with our choice of Excalibur as a place to stay. Though the theme probably didn't carry through the insides as much as with most of the casinos.
After some wandering around Luxor and Excalibur and a sleep, we headed out for our 6pm show at Tournament of Kings. This was a (pretty ordinary) dinner with entertainment based around knights, jousting, etc. Show was very good and we all enjoyed it. Although sitting in the Dragon section, we probably didn't have as much opportunity to cheer our knight as those seated in the 'country' sections. Kieren was scared through the parts when the Dragon King was throwing flames and there were explosions etc but has recreated the experience since to recall how much he loved the show. The mind of a five year old!
Explored New York New York and some of the other close by casinos after the show.
Sunday 23 March 2008 started with breakfast at the Rainforest Cafe in MGM. Great food and the kids loved the setting and watching the animals every time they moved. This was on the way up to Treasure Island (via the monorail) to pick up our tickets for a show that evening. We explored around a number of the casinos. Circus Circus was tired and we were glad to get out of there. Treasure Island seemed ok but there were massive queues for everything from check in to cafes to getting show tickets which made us glad not to be staying there. Paris was one of our favourites, very much like walking through a Parisian street, complete with sky and breezes. We also caught the Viva Las Vegas performance of the Bellagio water fountains as well which was amazing.
This also gets to the main problem we had with Vegas - getting around. We missed an earlier fountain show as we couldn't get across the street. The whole Strip is just 10 lanes of automobiles, the sidewalk is narrow, there are limited crossing opportunities, pedestrians on the Strip are escalated up into overhead walkways to cross streets, while the monorail goes way out the back of the Strip. This meant that it took us 45 minutes each way to Treasure Island from Excalibur using the monorail to and from our show that evening. Much of this time is spent walking through the slot machine / gambling areas of various casinos to get to / from the monorail terminals and avoiding the Strip and other streets. Often we found ourselves a bit lost inside the casinos trying to navigate around. No doubt this is what is intended. The idea of course is to stay at the gambling points within your casino and not explore what else is on offer.
Our other main complaint was being continually asked in various ways if we wanted tickets for a show as we walked around, especially on the edges of the casino areas. Wanted a t-shirt printed with 'No!! I don't want any #$%$^# show tickets!' The sleazy side of Vegas was also pretty evident in some of the pitches we overheard ("Are you married? Is your wife in town?") and the cards etc being handed out in the street. While we weren't approached, it wasn't a great environment to have the kids in. But I guess we knew / expected that in going to Vegas and it was more a matter of hiding parts from their notice and explaining other parts in positive ways they could understand.
Our show that evening was Cirque de Soleil's Mystere. It was worth the effort of getting there and we all enjoyed it. Brian le Petit's antics in the audience before the show with mimicking patrons, throwing popcorn around and on people, and leading people astray in getting to their seats (including up onto the stage) was very funny and a highlight of the show for me. There's a loose story underlying the show but we all missed most of it. It was more a series of loosely related acts of the very high quality expected of Cirque de Soleil.
Photos here.
Malcolm
Monday, March 17, 2008
Olivia's Seventh Birthday
Olivia turned 7 on Saturday 15 March 2008, continuing the crazy run of birthdays, parties and play dates that we seem to be in at the moment!
Her day commenced with present opening. We then headed down to the National Zoo where Kieren was invited to Gavin's 5th birthday party. We wandered around the zoo and Olivia bought herself a panda in a Chinese fabric carry bag with some of the money she was given in the morning. Kieren was invited to a play date with Caleb so we were down to just one kid for the afternoon.
After lunch we took Olivia out to the Chillum Splash Pool for Emma V's 7th birthday party. So we had the unusual occurrence of being kid free, if only for a few hours. It was a beautiful sunny day so we had the luxury of a coffee outside a Starbucks in peace.
Soon it was back into taxi mode, picking up Olivia and Kieren and then buying the MacDonald's dinner that Olivia wanted. The balance of the presents were opened after dinner as we prepared for Sunday's party.
Olivia wanted to have her party at Build-A-Bear Workshop. The closest store couldn't do our dates so we ended up at the Tyson's Corner store in Virginia. This was fine except for an accident on the Beltway which caused some a problem in getting out there.
The party went fine with each kid choosing and building and dressing their bear. One of the highlights was each kid putting their thoughts etc into a heart which was then put into Olivia's bear. Think it ended up with about 9 hearts so it should be very healthy!
While the party wound to an end, I picked up some helium balloons we had ordered earlier and put together a table in the food court so we could have the ice cream birthday cake that Donna had ordered. After a week when the preparations and problems kept mounting, the day went off fine and everyone (that managed to get there) had a great time.
We realised at the last moment that Build-A-Bear hadn't given us Olivia's presents so picked these up; realised as we drove away that Build-A-Bear hadn't given the kids their party bags but decided it was too late to correct that; and finished the day with a final round of present opening at home. A kid's version of Mastermind was the favourite present of the evening and Olivia proved her logic skills in beating me!
Photos of the two days are here: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/OliviaSSeventhBirthday
Malcolm
Her day commenced with present opening. We then headed down to the National Zoo where Kieren was invited to Gavin's 5th birthday party. We wandered around the zoo and Olivia bought herself a panda in a Chinese fabric carry bag with some of the money she was given in the morning. Kieren was invited to a play date with Caleb so we were down to just one kid for the afternoon.
After lunch we took Olivia out to the Chillum Splash Pool for Emma V's 7th birthday party. So we had the unusual occurrence of being kid free, if only for a few hours. It was a beautiful sunny day so we had the luxury of a coffee outside a Starbucks in peace.
Soon it was back into taxi mode, picking up Olivia and Kieren and then buying the MacDonald's dinner that Olivia wanted. The balance of the presents were opened after dinner as we prepared for Sunday's party.
Olivia wanted to have her party at Build-A-Bear Workshop. The closest store couldn't do our dates so we ended up at the Tyson's Corner store in Virginia. This was fine except for an accident on the Beltway which caused some a problem in getting out there.
The party went fine with each kid choosing and building and dressing their bear. One of the highlights was each kid putting their thoughts etc into a heart which was then put into Olivia's bear. Think it ended up with about 9 hearts so it should be very healthy!
While the party wound to an end, I picked up some helium balloons we had ordered earlier and put together a table in the food court so we could have the ice cream birthday cake that Donna had ordered. After a week when the preparations and problems kept mounting, the day went off fine and everyone (that managed to get there) had a great time.
We realised at the last moment that Build-A-Bear hadn't given us Olivia's presents so picked these up; realised as we drove away that Build-A-Bear hadn't given the kids their party bags but decided it was too late to correct that; and finished the day with a final round of present opening at home. A kid's version of Mastermind was the favourite present of the evening and Olivia proved her logic skills in beating me!
Photos of the two days are here: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/OliviaSSeventhBirthday
Malcolm
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Kieren's Fifth Birthday
Kieren turned 5 on Tuesday 4 March 2008. It was a birthday that he had been looking forward to for a long time and he made the most of celebrating it!
They celebrated his birthday at school that morning. The children had been put into classes by birth order so Kieren ended up being the first in his class to have a birthday. (It will be birthday city between now and the end of the school year in his class!) Mrs Delgado had a birthday hat for him which he wore all day; they sang Happy Birthday to him in singing; Donna was there as the class parent; and birthday cup cakes (half iced in his favourite colour - green) were shared by all.
After swimming that evening, he chose his favourite takeaway for dinner, sadly McDonalds, but keeps him happy. Lots of presents were opened that day as well, including many which had origins from our Florida trip.
Then on Saturday 8 March, he had a birthday party with all his mates out at Chuck E Cheese's in Rockville. Between playing on the play equipment; pizza and soda; birthday cake; meeting Chuck E Cheese; playing on the video and other slot games with their cups of tokens and selecting a prize when cashing in the resultant tickets, it was a great party.
Kieren then went to Caleb's for a play date while we took Olivia straight to Greta's party. After his play date, more present opening from those he received at the party. We had rocket balloons flying around the house for the rest of the evening!
Photos of the various events and presents are here: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/KierenSFifthBirthday.
Malcolm
They celebrated his birthday at school that morning. The children had been put into classes by birth order so Kieren ended up being the first in his class to have a birthday. (It will be birthday city between now and the end of the school year in his class!) Mrs Delgado had a birthday hat for him which he wore all day; they sang Happy Birthday to him in singing; Donna was there as the class parent; and birthday cup cakes (half iced in his favourite colour - green) were shared by all.
After swimming that evening, he chose his favourite takeaway for dinner, sadly McDonalds, but keeps him happy. Lots of presents were opened that day as well, including many which had origins from our Florida trip.
Then on Saturday 8 March, he had a birthday party with all his mates out at Chuck E Cheese's in Rockville. Between playing on the play equipment; pizza and soda; birthday cake; meeting Chuck E Cheese; playing on the video and other slot games with their cups of tokens and selecting a prize when cashing in the resultant tickets, it was a great party.
Kieren then went to Caleb's for a play date while we took Olivia straight to Greta's party. After his play date, more present opening from those he received at the party. We had rocket balloons flying around the house for the rest of the evening!
Photos of the various events and presents are here: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/KierenSFifthBirthday.
Malcolm
Friday, February 29, 2008
Florida Road Trip 9: Hilton Head Island
We left South Beach early on Thursday 28 February 2008 to start the long haul home. We had been looking at various islands off the South Carolina coast as a point to stop for a few nights around the halfway point. We ended up in a two bedroom villa at the Marriott Barony Beach Club on Hilton Head Island. While temperatures here were down to around 20 deg C, it was warm enough to convince us to add a third night to our stay. It was also enjoyable to be in a larger place with a full kitchen, spa baths etc after all those nights in hotel rooms, many without even a refrigerator.
We didn't do a lot here although we haven't been relaxing as much as we planned. Main activities have been visiting the beach, swimming in the indoor pool, eating, drinking, etc. We have also had a couple of trips up to the outlet shops, as if the poor old Subaru wasn't already too full!
We leave here early on Sunday 2 March for what should be around 9 hours of driving to get us back to 'Dori's house' as Kieren calls it. He is keen to get back home and to see his mates at school. The rest of us would be quite happy to head back to Key West to just hang out for a few more weeks. Although Donna has already planned birthday parties for both kids and is working on a Las Vegas / Grand Canyon week in the near future!
Malcolm
We didn't do a lot here although we haven't been relaxing as much as we planned. Main activities have been visiting the beach, swimming in the indoor pool, eating, drinking, etc. We have also had a couple of trips up to the outlet shops, as if the poor old Subaru wasn't already too full!
We leave here early on Sunday 2 March for what should be around 9 hours of driving to get us back to 'Dori's house' as Kieren calls it. He is keen to get back home and to see his mates at school. The rest of us would be quite happy to head back to Key West to just hang out for a few more weeks. Although Donna has already planned birthday parties for both kids and is working on a Las Vegas / Grand Canyon week in the near future!
Malcolm
Florida Road Trip 8: Miami and South Beach
We kept driving on Tuesday 26 February 2008 from the Dolphin Research Center through Miami to South Beach where we were booked at the Royal Palm. On the way through Miami, the radio was full of comments about major power station shutdowns, leaving half of Florida without power and many schools in lock down mode as they didn't want parents driving through streets without traffic lights to pick up their children. There was also a tornado warning which was a bit concerning given the big storm we could see as we drove past the airport!
However all came to nothing with South Beach having power and missing all storms on the way through. We arrived late in the afternoon so after checking in we wandered up to Lincoln Mall to have an early dinner. We had an enjoyable Italian dinner sitting outside in the Mall, watching the passing parade enjoying the warm weather. The South Beach population either is some of the best looking and over proportioned people in the States or cosmetic surgeons are doing quite well here. The feeling wasn't as laid back as Key West and a bit more artificial, making us wish we had planned at least an extra night in Key West.
Kieren also put on a bit of a performance for us after dinner, running through his repertoire: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/TheManyFacesOfKieren.
The main reason for choosing to stop in South Beach was the art deco and related architecture. So on Wednesday 27 February 2008 we rugged up (comparatively to the rest of the trip) and headed out. We started with breakfast at Jerry's Famous Deli (although we didn't realise it was a 2002 import to South Beach, previously being Hoffman's Cafeteria). This is housed in a Henry Hohauser masterpiece from 1940 which has been described as being 'reminiscent of the bow of a tugboat cutting through the waves. The nautical imagery continues with a central smokestack, flagpoles and terrific cutout portholes on the parapet. The wide, curving canopy at the entry smoothly rounds the corner. On the sides, long eyebrows and incised speed bands pick up the motion, stretching the wings out in either direction.'
We then walked down to the Art Deco Welcome Center to hire their iPod self guided audio tour. This took us around the architectural highlights of the Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue area in a bit over an hour. We pushed it a bit as keeping the kids onside was a tough side job. We tried to add a couple of stops at a playground but a crazy occupying a park bench next to the equipment was doing a good job of scaring everyone away. Really enjoyed the tour and learned a lot about art deco.
We visited the beach and pool later in the afternoon and had a dip in the pool despite it being fairly cool. Ended the day with a similar wander up Lincoln Mall, dinner at another Italian restaurant and the regulatory souvenir shopping.
Malcolm
However all came to nothing with South Beach having power and missing all storms on the way through. We arrived late in the afternoon so after checking in we wandered up to Lincoln Mall to have an early dinner. We had an enjoyable Italian dinner sitting outside in the Mall, watching the passing parade enjoying the warm weather. The South Beach population either is some of the best looking and over proportioned people in the States or cosmetic surgeons are doing quite well here. The feeling wasn't as laid back as Key West and a bit more artificial, making us wish we had planned at least an extra night in Key West.
Kieren also put on a bit of a performance for us after dinner, running through his repertoire: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/TheManyFacesOfKieren.
The main reason for choosing to stop in South Beach was the art deco and related architecture. So on Wednesday 27 February 2008 we rugged up (comparatively to the rest of the trip) and headed out. We started with breakfast at Jerry's Famous Deli (although we didn't realise it was a 2002 import to South Beach, previously being Hoffman's Cafeteria). This is housed in a Henry Hohauser masterpiece from 1940 which has been described as being 'reminiscent of the bow of a tugboat cutting through the waves. The nautical imagery continues with a central smokestack, flagpoles and terrific cutout portholes on the parapet. The wide, curving canopy at the entry smoothly rounds the corner. On the sides, long eyebrows and incised speed bands pick up the motion, stretching the wings out in either direction.'
We then walked down to the Art Deco Welcome Center to hire their iPod self guided audio tour. This took us around the architectural highlights of the Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue area in a bit over an hour. We pushed it a bit as keeping the kids onside was a tough side job. We tried to add a couple of stops at a playground but a crazy occupying a park bench next to the equipment was doing a good job of scaring everyone away. Really enjoyed the tour and learned a lot about art deco.
We visited the beach and pool later in the afternoon and had a dip in the pool despite it being fairly cool. Ended the day with a similar wander up Lincoln Mall, dinner at another Italian restaurant and the regulatory souvenir shopping.
Malcolm
Florida Road Trip 7: Dolphin Research Center
On Tuesday 26 February 2006, we left Key West early to meet our appointment for a Dolphin Dip at the Dolphin Research Center on Grassy Key. This was where the dolphins used for Flipper came from, with some of their descendants still at the Center.
Olivia was particularly taken with Molly and Carlusa, her smile threatening to never leave her face. Kieren quickly overcame his initial reluctance to have a great time as well.
Pictures online at: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/DolphinResearchCenter.
Malcolm
Olivia was particularly taken with Molly and Carlusa, her smile threatening to never leave her face. Kieren quickly overcame his initial reluctance to have a great time as well.
Pictures online at: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/DolphinResearchCenter.
Malcolm
Florida Road Trip 6: Florida Keys to Key West
We left Florida City on Sunday 24 February for the drive down the Florida Keys via the 127 miles of the Overseas Highway to Key West. Had a few stops on the way down, including Sunday Brunch at the Key Colony Inn which was a great buffet setup, including omelettes made to order. The drive down the keys wasn't as spectacular as I had expected, the road went through more built up areas and other places where you don't get to appreciate the beauty of the place. It probably deserves more time to explore the areas on the way through than what we had available to us. The turquoise waters were a great sight to let you know that you were in the tropics. Seven Mile Bridge was also interesting.
We had booked into the Best Western Hibiscus which turned out to be much nicer than the online photos indicated. A very tropical resort with the cleanest pool we encountered in all our US travels. Added to the tropical 30+ Celsius weather, Key West quickly became our favourite place on our Florida Road Trip. We were pretty much at the southern end of the Key so that evening we wandered up Duval Street that evening, checking out the shops etc down to Mallory Square to watch the sunset.
On Monday 25 February, we started by walking down to Ernest Hemingway's Key West House at 907 Whitehead Street. Hemingway lived and worked here from 1931 to 1939. Was very interesting to see. The house was very open with lots of windows to allow the breeze through, although these days air conditioning would make it more livable! There are also lots of cats around the house / museum which the kids got to pat and feed during our tour. Hemingway was known for his love of polydactyl cats, although there's some debate as to whether he actually had cats on Key West or just on Cuba. The shop there also benefited from our visit!
We then wandered down to the marker marking the 'southernmost point in the continental United States accessible by civilians', dipped our feet in the Gulf of Mexico and found a cafe to have a coffee overlooking the beach. The rest of the day was spent relaxing around the pool, something we haven't found much time to stop and do during this road trip!
We again spent the evening wandering up Duval Street and the shops before watching the sunset again. After watching the sunset, we wandered the markets along Mallory Square. Olivia and Kieren were keen to watch one of the street performers. They settled on watching two jugglers. Of course they had to be right up the front which in turn led to the performers choosing Olivia to join them. She had a great time, the performers questioned Donna's parenting skills in allowing her to go up there, esp when Olivia handed them a large knife blade first! Olivia also walked away with $6 for her efforts, plus congratulations from several crowd members after the show and as we walked up Duval Street later. This included a balloon hat from one lady! Photos online at: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/OliviaSStreetPerformanceDebut.
Malcolm
We had booked into the Best Western Hibiscus which turned out to be much nicer than the online photos indicated. A very tropical resort with the cleanest pool we encountered in all our US travels. Added to the tropical 30+ Celsius weather, Key West quickly became our favourite place on our Florida Road Trip. We were pretty much at the southern end of the Key so that evening we wandered up Duval Street that evening, checking out the shops etc down to Mallory Square to watch the sunset.
On Monday 25 February, we started by walking down to Ernest Hemingway's Key West House at 907 Whitehead Street. Hemingway lived and worked here from 1931 to 1939. Was very interesting to see. The house was very open with lots of windows to allow the breeze through, although these days air conditioning would make it more livable! There are also lots of cats around the house / museum which the kids got to pat and feed during our tour. Hemingway was known for his love of polydactyl cats, although there's some debate as to whether he actually had cats on Key West or just on Cuba. The shop there also benefited from our visit!
We then wandered down to the marker marking the 'southernmost point in the continental United States accessible by civilians', dipped our feet in the Gulf of Mexico and found a cafe to have a coffee overlooking the beach. The rest of the day was spent relaxing around the pool, something we haven't found much time to stop and do during this road trip!
We again spent the evening wandering up Duval Street and the shops before watching the sunset again. After watching the sunset, we wandered the markets along Mallory Square. Olivia and Kieren were keen to watch one of the street performers. They settled on watching two jugglers. Of course they had to be right up the front which in turn led to the performers choosing Olivia to join them. She had a great time, the performers questioned Donna's parenting skills in allowing her to go up there, esp when Olivia handed them a large knife blade first! Olivia also walked away with $6 for her efforts, plus congratulations from several crowd members after the show and as we walked up Duval Street later. This included a balloon hat from one lady! Photos online at: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/OliviaSStreetPerformanceDebut.
Malcolm
Florida Road Trip 5: Everglades National Park
Friday 22 February 2008 started with a final swim in the pool at the Wilderness Lodge and some more Disney shopping before checking out. It was then a blast down the road to Florida City, one of the main gateways to the Everglades National Park. A swim and a spa was enjoyed after the drive and before dinner.
Saturday 23 February was into the Everglades National Park. After a stop at the Ernest F Coe Visitor Centre where we booked a 1pm boat ride, we started the drive through the Park. There are quite a few stops and walks etc on the drive down to Flamingo but we were spoilt by the very first stop at Royal Palm where we walked the Anhinga Trail. It was very hot and humid, which left Kieren very unhappy and keen to just get back to the car. However the range of wildlife we saw up close was amazing. This included crocodiles, turtles, fish and a range of bird life including anhingas.
After lunch at Flamingo, we did our two hour boat ride. We didn't see much wildlife, mainly crocodiles, alligators and bird life. We were on the lookout for snakes and manatees but whether because it was the middle of the day or some other reason, we didn't see much. If we had known this, our time could have been better spent at some of the stops along the roadside. We were probably also spoilt by having seen so much back on the Anhinga Trail. Highlight of the boat trip was Olivia recognising the captain (Bob) from our 1000 Islands boat trip back in August! He splits his time between the two areas, following the seasons.
We stopped at a crocodile farm on the way back as being the only nearby place offering airboat rides, airboats being banned from the National Park due to the damage they do. However the farm didn't appeal to us and as it turned out, my desire to do an air boat ride (stemming from watching Gentle Ben as a kid!) was one of the main things we missed out on doing from our original plans for this road trip.
Malcolm
Saturday 23 February was into the Everglades National Park. After a stop at the Ernest F Coe Visitor Centre where we booked a 1pm boat ride, we started the drive through the Park. There are quite a few stops and walks etc on the drive down to Flamingo but we were spoilt by the very first stop at Royal Palm where we walked the Anhinga Trail. It was very hot and humid, which left Kieren very unhappy and keen to just get back to the car. However the range of wildlife we saw up close was amazing. This included crocodiles, turtles, fish and a range of bird life including anhingas.
After lunch at Flamingo, we did our two hour boat ride. We didn't see much wildlife, mainly crocodiles, alligators and bird life. We were on the lookout for snakes and manatees but whether because it was the middle of the day or some other reason, we didn't see much. If we had known this, our time could have been better spent at some of the stops along the roadside. We were probably also spoilt by having seen so much back on the Anhinga Trail. Highlight of the boat trip was Olivia recognising the captain (Bob) from our 1000 Islands boat trip back in August! He splits his time between the two areas, following the seasons.
We stopped at a crocodile farm on the way back as being the only nearby place offering airboat rides, airboats being banned from the National Park due to the damage they do. However the farm didn't appeal to us and as it turned out, my desire to do an air boat ride (stemming from watching Gentle Ben as a kid!) was one of the main things we missed out on doing from our original plans for this road trip.
Malcolm
Monday, February 25, 2008
Florida Road Trip 4: WDW Day 3 The Magic Kingdom
Our last full day at WDW on Thursday 21 February 2008 started with the boat ride over to the Magic Kingdom from the Wilderness Lodge. WDW opened an hour earlier today so we modified the touring plan of day 2 of the Unofficial Guide's touring plan. This was partly because not all the rides opened early, something we didn't find out until we arrived and which caused us some quick replanning. So the first part of the day went like this:
- Watched Monsters Inc Comedy Club (which was very funny and interactive with audience members; we also missed a rain shower while in this show)
- Watched Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress (which shows 'progress' in decade intervals, albeit with a big jump at the end to 'tomorrow')
- Rode Splash Mountain (Kieren and I were in the back seats and he couldn't see where we were going when we went over the big fall which scared him a bit)
- Rode the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (which both kids loved)
- Rode Pirates of the Caribbean
- Took the Jungle Cruise
- The kids had photos / autographs with Captain Hook and Mr Smee
- Lunch at Tony's Town Square Restaurant (which had shots from Lady and the Tramp around the walls, including Tony's Restaurant where the dogs had dinner in the movie)
- Kids had photos / autographs with Jiminy Cricket who was outside the restaurant
We then boated back to the Wilderness Lodge for an afternoon sleep. This coincided with a heavy rain storm, continuing our run of good weather on this trip. After this well needed break, we boated back over to the Magic Kingdom where the fun continued until late into the night:
- Took the train around the outside of WDW to Mickey's Toontown Fair
- Lined up for Olivia to have photos / autographs with Ariel (we lined up before lunch but ran out of time)
- Had dinner
- Watched the evening parade (which was a fantastic light show)
- Went over to Tomorrowland so Kieren could buy a Stitch (which he later left in his bed in our Florida City hotel and which had to be posted back to him!)
- Watched the evening fireworks (which were done in the best Disney traditions, very well integrated with the soundtrack / music and a highlight of Tinkerbell flying over the park)
- Did some retail therapy to get some more souvenirs / reminders of our wonderful time at Disney.
It was very late and we were very tired by the time we caught the boat back to the Wilderness Lodge. In some ways WDW reminded me of The Truman Show, or maybe it was the other way around. There's a lot of 50s and 60s nostalgia and reminders of the good old American days. However the gloss and attention to detail of Disney pulls it off. The parks were always spotless. It must be one of the few places in the western world where staff haven't been cut in search of profit margin gains. In addition to the cleaning / rubbish picking up staff around the parks, we noticed the other staff would quickly pick up any litter etc. A high proportion of the staff were also in what would be their 'retirement years' elsewhere. They all seemed to be there because they enjoyed their jobs, which may relate back to Disney's selection processes aimed at ensuring their employees embody the Disney philosophies. It seems to be working!
There's a quick selection of photos from our Disney adventures (sans captions at this stage) online here: http://picasaweb.google.com/malcolmdonna/WaltDisneyWorld.
Malcolm
Florida Road Trip 3: WDW Day 2 Animal Kingdom
Up even earlier today for the bus over to the Animal Kingdom which was opening an hour earlier at 8am. We were booked in for a character breakfast at 8am at Tusker House Restaurant. Excellent choices of quality food in a range of market stalls (buffet style) and highlighted by visits from Mickey, Donald, Daisy and Goofy. Each character visited each table to sign autographs (our kids were with the autograph program by now!) and have the obligatory photos taken. The kids loved it and this breakfast was also one of the highlights of our Disney experience.
Today was intended as a bit easier day, breaking the two days in the Magic Kingdom, so we didn't totally follow the guidebook's plan today:
Today was intended as a bit easier day, breaking the two days in the Magic Kingdom, so we didn't totally follow the guidebook's plan today:
- Rode Kilimanjaro Safaris (vehicle safari around African animals)
- Walked Pangani Forest Exploration Trail (where Olivia learned all about naked mole-rats and was given a certification for her scientific interest)
- Watched Flights of Wonder bird show
- Rode TriceraTop Spin
- Watched Festival of the Lion King (a big stage production)
- Watched Pocahontas and her Forest Friends (a smaller stage production but with real animals coming on and off the stage as part of the show)
- Watched It's Tough to Be a Bug! (where Kieren again decided we couldn't see that show again as it was too scary, especially when the bugs came out in the 3D / 4D parts of the show including when the humans were sprayed with insect spray in the dark!)
- The kids had a play in The Boneyard, including digging out a woolly mammoth skeleton.
We had a late dinner at the Roaring Fork restaurant back at the Wilderness Lodge after the kids had a swim in the pool. Food was very disappointed, quantity substituting for quality and a fairly limited choice. Kids got a kick when every kid in the place brought crayons over to them when Olivia asked the waitress for some more colours!
Malcolm
Florida Road Trip 2: WDW Day 1 The Magic Kingdom
Up early to catch the boat over to The Magic Kingdom to be there by opening time at 9am. The boat access was one of the reasons why we chose to stay at The Wilderness Lodge. It was only around 10 minutes down the Lake, with boats going every 20 minutes or so.
Disney does the 'experience' better than anyone. We were impressed with the opening of the Kingdom. A whole show with the Disney characters took place on the railway station above where we were waiting as part of building the excitement and anticipation of opening the gates.
Having decided that the authors of the Unofficial Guide to WDW knew better than us how to maximise the use of our time, we followed their touring plans for the three days of our entry into the parks. So following Day One of the Magic Kingdom Two-day Touring Plan, adjusted for the fact that Kieren didn't make the 44 inch height limit for some rides, we were on our way:
Disney does the 'experience' better than anyone. We were impressed with the opening of the Kingdom. A whole show with the Disney characters took place on the railway station above where we were waiting as part of building the excitement and anticipation of opening the gates.
Having decided that the authors of the Unofficial Guide to WDW knew better than us how to maximise the use of our time, we followed their touring plans for the three days of our entry into the parks. So following Day One of the Magic Kingdom Two-day Touring Plan, adjusted for the fact that Kieren didn't make the 44 inch height limit for some rides, we were on our way:
- Rode Buzz Lightyear (which ended up being Kieren's favourite ride, shooting targets from our vehicle)
- Rode Winnie the Pooh
- Rode Peter Pan's Flight
- Watched Mickey's PhilharMagic
- Rode It's a Small World (where the Australian Aboriginal depiction left a bit to be desired)
- Went through The Haunted Mansion (where Kieren was scared by the ghosts, not being able to tell what was real and what was Disney)
- Rode the Liberty Belle riverboat (haven't we been here before in Dreamworld??!!)
- Watched The Hall of Presidents (boring but the kids confused as to how dead presidents were moving and talking to them. George Bush was also confusing to them but they probably aren't alone there.)
- Watched the Country Bear Jamboree
- Explored Tom Sawyer Island (including a number of tunnel type caves)
- Watched Stitch's Great Escape (where Kieren was very scared, declared we weren't allowed to do that ride again and subsequently decided there was a 'good Stitch' and a 'bad Stitch)
- Rode the Tomorrowland Transit Authority
During the day, Olivia also met Snow White's Fairy Godmother and Kieren met Buzz Lightyear. Somewhere in there we also watched the afternoon Disney Dreams Come True Parade, which was one of the highlights of the day. Olivia and I also rode Space Mountain, a good roller coaster ride limited only by the 55 minute queue for the 5 minute ride. (But also backing up the guidebook's advice of when and how to maximise time usage in the parks.) We also went back to ride Buzz Lightyear again before leaving The Magic Kingdom for the day.
Malcolm
Florida Road Trip 1: Down to Walt Disney World
The trip didn't start until 10.30am on Sunday 17 February 2008 thanks mainly to Donna being hit with a gastro virus, something that was to slow both of us down throughout the Disney part of our trip.
The drive down ended up being split into approximately 800 km on Sunday before I tired of driving and we stopped for the night in a Best Western in Walterboro, South Carolina. Monday saw us complete the last 600 km into Walt Disney World (WDW).
Our Disney experience started with our accommodation at The Wilderness Lodge. In the second tier of Disney's resorts, the massive 4 storey entry foyer includes multi-storey totem poles and everything else that makes it special in the Disney way.
Our room 6031 overlooked the pool and had a good view of Lake Buena Vista and the nighttime water light show. We used the Unofficial Guide to WDW guide book to plan our whole Disney trip. Still not sure what to make of the fact that it is as big a book as the Lonely Planet Guide to USA! Idea was to have a room on the sixth floor looking the other way up to The Magic Kingdom where we could see the nightly fireworks show. However I didn't read the earlier sentence which was that we needed an even numbered room! Was ok but a bit of a bummer.
After carting everything up to our room, we drove over to Downtown Disney for the evening. Had dinner at Planet Hollywood and wandered the shops.
Malcolm
The drive down ended up being split into approximately 800 km on Sunday before I tired of driving and we stopped for the night in a Best Western in Walterboro, South Carolina. Monday saw us complete the last 600 km into Walt Disney World (WDW).
Our Disney experience started with our accommodation at The Wilderness Lodge. In the second tier of Disney's resorts, the massive 4 storey entry foyer includes multi-storey totem poles and everything else that makes it special in the Disney way.
Our room 6031 overlooked the pool and had a good view of Lake Buena Vista and the nighttime water light show. We used the Unofficial Guide to WDW guide book to plan our whole Disney trip. Still not sure what to make of the fact that it is as big a book as the Lonely Planet Guide to USA! Idea was to have a room on the sixth floor looking the other way up to The Magic Kingdom where we could see the nightly fireworks show. However I didn't read the earlier sentence which was that we needed an even numbered room! Was ok but a bit of a bummer.
After carting everything up to our room, we drove over to Downtown Disney for the evening. Had dinner at Planet Hollywood and wandered the shops.
Malcolm
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Freezing Rain
We had our first experience of freezing rain on the afternoon of Tuesday 12 February 2008. Basically it starts as snow up high, melts completely as it goes through a layer of warmer air on its way down, then hits a layer a air below freezing which supercools it. This water then freezes on whatever it lands on.
The freezing rain started mid afternoon. It wasn’t too bad early in Maryland. Seemed to hit the Virginia roads worse. One of the guys I work with left work at 3.30pm and got home at 7pm. Roads were just so slow.
I left work early to get home by 5pm to catch the PM's apology live. Connecticut Avenue virtually stopped moving so I got off my bus 3 or 4 stops early and slid down the sidewalks, with the bus back out of sight when I reached my street! Most of the ice settled after I got home. We already had ice on our deck, 3 – 4 inch icicles on the car and off the trees, deck railings etc. Donna was out with the kids at swimming but got home ok.
Looked fantastic on Wednesday morning with the sun coming through the icicle filled trees. Big storms overnight which were a bit warmer and just normal rain so the roads and sidewalks weren’t too bad. Did slide and fall down some outside steps at home where black ice was hiding. Schools and govt were on a 2 hour late start. I had to take the Subaru over to Rockville for a service which was a drive I could have done without. The ice had taken out the traffic lights through much of this area but didn't seem to be much ice on the road so traffic was moving ok. Much easier to hop on the bus to get to the station. Then one of the news crews filmed me trying to walk up the sidewalk to the station which I wasn’t real impressed with …
Donna took some photos on Wednesday morning which are here.
Malcolm
The freezing rain started mid afternoon. It wasn’t too bad early in Maryland. Seemed to hit the Virginia roads worse. One of the guys I work with left work at 3.30pm and got home at 7pm. Roads were just so slow.
I left work early to get home by 5pm to catch the PM's apology live. Connecticut Avenue virtually stopped moving so I got off my bus 3 or 4 stops early and slid down the sidewalks, with the bus back out of sight when I reached my street! Most of the ice settled after I got home. We already had ice on our deck, 3 – 4 inch icicles on the car and off the trees, deck railings etc. Donna was out with the kids at swimming but got home ok.
Looked fantastic on Wednesday morning with the sun coming through the icicle filled trees. Big storms overnight which were a bit warmer and just normal rain so the roads and sidewalks weren’t too bad. Did slide and fall down some outside steps at home where black ice was hiding. Schools and govt were on a 2 hour late start. I had to take the Subaru over to Rockville for a service which was a drive I could have done without. The ice had taken out the traffic lights through much of this area but didn't seem to be much ice on the road so traffic was moving ok. Much easier to hop on the bus to get to the station. Then one of the news crews filmed me trying to walk up the sidewalk to the station which I wasn’t real impressed with …
Donna took some photos on Wednesday morning which are here.
Malcolm
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Philadelphia & Lancaster County
With the Martin Luther King Jr holiday giving us a long weekend, we set off on the roughly 2.5 hour drive to Philadelphia on Saturday 19 January 2008.
After $22 in tolls (welcome to America!), we arrived around lunchtime so we went straight to the Reading Terminal Markets. Despite Donna's research describing these as food and craft markets, there was little more than food on offer. (I have just pointed out that a check of the merchants on their website would have indicated this but apparently it isn't as obvious as I make it out to be ...) So after a good souvlaki, we had a quick visit to the visitors centre before checking in at our hotel. The reviews on the Comfort Inn Historic Quarter were a bit mixed but generally positive so we went for it due to the central location and the cheap rate. It was sandwiched in under the Benjamin Franklin Bridge and a multi level freeway but was pretty ok. The road and train noise was drowned out by the noisy air conditioning so wasn't much different noise wise to trying to sleep on a train. The included breakfast each morning was very good with lots to choose from, including my US favourite of the cook it yourself waffles (2 minutes from batter to yum!)
We braved the cold to walk back into the city past Penn's Landing. Finding ourselves walking past Christ Church, we headed in for a look just in time to catch a tour that was starting. While the nearly 300 year old church (312 years of a church on the site) was full of scaffolding inside (the early days of a 27 year restoration) the guide was full of history about the building, the church and its history. Like the fact the church has clear glass panes with the idea of not separating what happens inside and outside the building rather than the more traditional stained glass. Was a good starting point to learning about the area.
We headed off to The Liberty Bell Centre to see the famous bell. Was already aware that the bell was cracked and that I couldn't ring it so I wasn't too disappointed. :-) Was getting late so we had a bit of a wander around a couple of touristy stores on the way to seeing Benjamin Franklin's gravesite. The cemetery was closed over winter so had to settle for looking through the fence, luckily they planned ahead for tourists with Mr and Mrs Franklin buried right on the corner of the cemetery. The kids had to put a penny on the grave, we didn't understand why the pennies were being placed on the grave and from this site, it seems that others don't either. Finished our wandering around at the National Constitution Centre. However decided the value wasn't there for the $40 it was going to cost to go inside so we didn't get past the gift store. After a quick dinner we were glad to get back to the hotel and out of the cold.
We woke on Sunday morning to a sunny morning with temperatures again around -8 but down to -18 with wind chill factored in. Needless to say we didn't rush out. After our leisurely breakfast, we hitched a ride with the hotel's courtesy bus to Independence Hall. It was here that the Declaration of Independence was adopted and the Constitution of the United States was debated, drafted and signed. Due to the cold, we weren't made to wait outside for a tour but were allowed to wander through, with the National Park rangers in each room talking about features of the room and what happened there. The Greek revival style building next door was originally the Customs House, then home to the Second Bank of the United States but now houses the "People of Independence" exhibit. This includes 185 paintings of Colonial and Federal leaders, military officers, explorers and scientists, including many by Charles Willson Peale. The National Liberty Museum was intended as the highlight of the day for the kids. One of the attractions for us was the Dale Chihuly glassworks. (He did some glass installations at Floriade in 1999.) The museum 'was created to celebrate our nation's heritage of freedom and the wonderful diverse society it has produced'.
After lunch, we visited the Betsy Ross House. Betsy Ross is famous for claims that she sewed the first United States flag. Whether the story is true or not, today the story gets the tourists through a house that she may or may not have lived in! Our last visit for the day was to the Rodin Museum which houses the largest collection of his works outside Paris. While warm inside, it was so bitterly cold outside that we were again glad to get back to the hotel. Although our GPS let us down and steered me over the Benjamin Franklin Bridge overlooking our hotel, costing us about 20 minutes longer to get home and the ignominy of having to pay a $3 toll to get back over the river! Dinner at Dave & Busters just up the road from our hotel, although still used the courtesy bus to get there to avoid the cold.
Not quite as cold on Monday morning (it is all relative!) when we checked out of our hotel and drove to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. I ensured that the kids were up on their history before we went there with YouTube obliging with a training montage of Rocky finishing with his famous run up the Museum's steps. Obligatory photos with the Rocky statue and the run up the steps followed! Some of the exhibitions we were interested in at the Museum were in another annexe and we didn't have time to do it justice. Ensured that Kieren saw their Arms and Armor collection which he went around with a big smile on his face and just kept saying 'awesome'! Some of the exhibits were even in the same colours as some of his knights and he was particularly impressed with some boy armour. They also did some drawings for the museum as part of their Martin Luther King Jr activities.
Drove to Intercourse in Lancaster County on Monday afternoon where we stayed at the Best Western and had very good and very cheap meals for both dinner and breakfast the next morning. With the season and cold, some of the shops we wanted to visit were closed but Donna did all the quilting related shops that afternoon.
On Tuesday morning we did similar shop visiting in Bird in Hand on the way to Lancaster. Last time we were up here the Lancaster Quilt and Textile Museum was being renovated so we stopped off to look at their range of Amish quilts and a current rug exhibition, while the kids played in the building's original bank safe. Were tempted to lock them in there but thought better of it ...
Forecast was for snow settling and ice storms so we were a bit apprehensive when light hail started falling and settling while we were in the Museum. However this melted by the time we left. The drive home was uneventful with just a few drops of rain. The forecast proved once again to be overly pessimistic, something that's becoming a bit of a common feature of the storm warnings here.
Malcolm
After $22 in tolls (welcome to America!), we arrived around lunchtime so we went straight to the Reading Terminal Markets. Despite Donna's research describing these as food and craft markets, there was little more than food on offer. (I have just pointed out that a check of the merchants on their website would have indicated this but apparently it isn't as obvious as I make it out to be ...) So after a good souvlaki, we had a quick visit to the visitors centre before checking in at our hotel. The reviews on the Comfort Inn Historic Quarter were a bit mixed but generally positive so we went for it due to the central location and the cheap rate. It was sandwiched in under the Benjamin Franklin Bridge and a multi level freeway but was pretty ok. The road and train noise was drowned out by the noisy air conditioning so wasn't much different noise wise to trying to sleep on a train. The included breakfast each morning was very good with lots to choose from, including my US favourite of the cook it yourself waffles (2 minutes from batter to yum!)
We braved the cold to walk back into the city past Penn's Landing. Finding ourselves walking past Christ Church, we headed in for a look just in time to catch a tour that was starting. While the nearly 300 year old church (312 years of a church on the site) was full of scaffolding inside (the early days of a 27 year restoration) the guide was full of history about the building, the church and its history. Like the fact the church has clear glass panes with the idea of not separating what happens inside and outside the building rather than the more traditional stained glass. Was a good starting point to learning about the area.
We headed off to The Liberty Bell Centre to see the famous bell. Was already aware that the bell was cracked and that I couldn't ring it so I wasn't too disappointed. :-) Was getting late so we had a bit of a wander around a couple of touristy stores on the way to seeing Benjamin Franklin's gravesite. The cemetery was closed over winter so had to settle for looking through the fence, luckily they planned ahead for tourists with Mr and Mrs Franklin buried right on the corner of the cemetery. The kids had to put a penny on the grave, we didn't understand why the pennies were being placed on the grave and from this site, it seems that others don't either. Finished our wandering around at the National Constitution Centre. However decided the value wasn't there for the $40 it was going to cost to go inside so we didn't get past the gift store. After a quick dinner we were glad to get back to the hotel and out of the cold.
We woke on Sunday morning to a sunny morning with temperatures again around -8 but down to -18 with wind chill factored in. Needless to say we didn't rush out. After our leisurely breakfast, we hitched a ride with the hotel's courtesy bus to Independence Hall. It was here that the Declaration of Independence was adopted and the Constitution of the United States was debated, drafted and signed. Due to the cold, we weren't made to wait outside for a tour but were allowed to wander through, with the National Park rangers in each room talking about features of the room and what happened there. The Greek revival style building next door was originally the Customs House, then home to the Second Bank of the United States but now houses the "People of Independence" exhibit. This includes 185 paintings of Colonial and Federal leaders, military officers, explorers and scientists, including many by Charles Willson Peale. The National Liberty Museum was intended as the highlight of the day for the kids. One of the attractions for us was the Dale Chihuly glassworks. (He did some glass installations at Floriade in 1999.) The museum 'was created to celebrate our nation's heritage of freedom and the wonderful diverse society it has produced'.
After lunch, we visited the Betsy Ross House. Betsy Ross is famous for claims that she sewed the first United States flag. Whether the story is true or not, today the story gets the tourists through a house that she may or may not have lived in! Our last visit for the day was to the Rodin Museum which houses the largest collection of his works outside Paris. While warm inside, it was so bitterly cold outside that we were again glad to get back to the hotel. Although our GPS let us down and steered me over the Benjamin Franklin Bridge overlooking our hotel, costing us about 20 minutes longer to get home and the ignominy of having to pay a $3 toll to get back over the river! Dinner at Dave & Busters just up the road from our hotel, although still used the courtesy bus to get there to avoid the cold.
Not quite as cold on Monday morning (it is all relative!) when we checked out of our hotel and drove to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. I ensured that the kids were up on their history before we went there with YouTube obliging with a training montage of Rocky finishing with his famous run up the Museum's steps. Obligatory photos with the Rocky statue and the run up the steps followed! Some of the exhibitions we were interested in at the Museum were in another annexe and we didn't have time to do it justice. Ensured that Kieren saw their Arms and Armor collection which he went around with a big smile on his face and just kept saying 'awesome'! Some of the exhibits were even in the same colours as some of his knights and he was particularly impressed with some boy armour. They also did some drawings for the museum as part of their Martin Luther King Jr activities.
Drove to Intercourse in Lancaster County on Monday afternoon where we stayed at the Best Western and had very good and very cheap meals for both dinner and breakfast the next morning. With the season and cold, some of the shops we wanted to visit were closed but Donna did all the quilting related shops that afternoon.
On Tuesday morning we did similar shop visiting in Bird in Hand on the way to Lancaster. Last time we were up here the Lancaster Quilt and Textile Museum was being renovated so we stopped off to look at their range of Amish quilts and a current rug exhibition, while the kids played in the building's original bank safe. Were tempted to lock them in there but thought better of it ...
Forecast was for snow settling and ice storms so we were a bit apprehensive when light hail started falling and settling while we were in the Museum. However this melted by the time we left. The drive home was uneventful with just a few drops of rain. The forecast proved once again to be overly pessimistic, something that's becoming a bit of a common feature of the storm warnings here.
Malcolm
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