San Francisco/Yosemite

Everyone I've spoken to says San Francisco fast becomes their favourite city and I can see why the Americans like it, it's very European! There are lots of steep hills to encounter when walking round the city though. I very nearly had a heart attack on a few of them!

We decided the best way to see the city was by renting bikes. Yes, me on a bike. I'm the girl that cycled full speed into a barrier in France and nearly beheaded myself, I cycled into a stationary car, numerous lamposts, I even nearly spilt my head open after just wobbling off my bike going round a corner. So cycling was a brave decision. Luckily I came away from it unscathed (apart from a very sore bum!).

We cycled along the main roads, then down to the Golden Gate park which was beautiful! We went right down to the beach and Seal Rock. Saw no seals but struggled with the vertical hill up to the bridge. Having to get off a bike and push is humilating at the best of times, it makes it worse when you get a golfer shouting "Aren't you supposed to cycle it?!" at me.. although he went beetroot when I then said "Aren't you supposed to get it in the hole?" His friends loved it!

When we finally reached the bridge, it was so foggy that you couldn't even see the bloody thing!! It lifted when we reached the other side and we managed to get a nice view of it. Coming down the other side to the ferry was thankfully mostly downhill. Seeing two guys on a tandem trying to get up the steep bit I was coming down was absolutely hilarious! Far too much effort involved! We made it to Sausalito, felt like we were cycling in Southern France, then caught the ferry back.

The sight of the vertical hill on the other side to get back to the bike rental made me almost cry. I could barely push the bike to the top! Definately on the verge of having a heart attack! It was awful! It was then made worse that the promising downhill was actually too steep to cycle down almost pushed me over the edge, literally!! We realised later we'd actually cycled 20miles which was an achievement and apart from my incredibly sore bum, I absolutely loved it!!

We also visit Alcatraz! (yes, let the criminal jokes begin..) It was good and interesting to see but the whole tour was so sugar coated that it was almost a holiday camp, even Al Capone was almost a stand up citizen! But contradictory facts aside, was amazing to see and walk round it!

From San Francisco, we headed to Yosemite, where we staying in the BUG hostel. It was practically a campsite, had a nice cafe and even had a Health Spa which turned out to be very cheap. Was nice to come back from a hard days walking in Yosemite to a hot bath, hot tub, Sauna and fancy showers! Yosemite itself was very surreal! El capitan was unbelievable and the waterfalls were insane!

Standing on the Valley floor in one if the meadows and looking at the surrounding scenery began to feel increasing like sonething from the Sound of Music. Really liked the park itself after not really knowing what to expect, it was just ruined slightly by all the people! I'd hate to see what it's like mid july!

Overall, San Francisco is expensive and very european and Yosemite is beautiful but far too overcrowded!

Coast Starlight!

On our return from Hawaii we had a rest day in Seattle, then we got the Famous Coast Starlight train down from Seattle to San Francisco.

When we got to the train station we seemed to attract attention because of our backpacks and the fact that we were the youngest there by a good few years. We got speaking to a couple who were interested in our trip and after hearing we were going to Emeryville the lady said she was sure that they had made a film called Emeryville Horror. She went on to say it was about the Emeryville whores.. Her husband patted her gently on the head, chuckled and actually said that she was thinking of something else but they might make one now we were going! So funny! I later saw them stumbling up the train, she had her fingers hooked into the back of his jeans shuffling behind him being towed along. Brilliant!

The train was amazing, we had a tiny cabin to ourselves with two fold out beds. We got given free champagne in our cabin on arrival as well as coffee and juice etc. The train had a Parlour Car for drinks, a dining car, an obervatory lounge, a cinema and even had a shower!! We spent the afternoon wine and cheese tasting then had a steak dinner which was pretty good.

We had someone to fold our beds down for us and it soon became apparent that this was the difficult bit! Once they were down, we had a foot of space in which to move. I was in the top bunk, which was VERY clostrophobic, I could touch the ceiling with my elbow and even then not fully stretched out. I even had to be strapped in with Cargo straps through the night incase I fell out, which would typically happen to me!!

We had a massive breakfast as well the next morning which set us up for our trek into San Francisco!

Casual trip to Hawaii..

After the homeleness of the Beagle, I was pretty sad to be back in a hostel in Seattle!

We stayed in the Green Tortoise which is across the street from Pike Place Market. The reviews make out this place to be amazing but I'd go with Average at best!

We went up the Space Needle, wandered round Pike Place Market, just managed to catch them throwing the fish which is definately a talent! We had a coffee in the first ever Starbucks and caught a ferry over to Bainbridge Island for the afternoon.
Predictably it rained.

We weren't too upset about the weather as our next stop was a cheeky trip to Hawaii, we had managed to get cheap flights out to Honolulu when we were in Nashville.

The flight was very budget, a six hour flight with no food, entertainment or leg room! The free mai tais sweetened the deal slightly!

We staying in Wakiki for the whole ten days we were there. Food and drinks were so expensive, the $8 loaf of bread was a breaking point for us, so we bought food in bulk for the week and cooked our own food! Accomodation left little to be desired as well, but Hawaii is Hawaii!

Spent all the time baking on the beach. It became a bit unbearable at 35°c everyday, all you could concentrate on was the sweat literally running off you which meant reading was impossible. Floating around in the sea soon sorted that problem! You weren't short of entertainment however, the beach was full of overenthusiastic Japs trying to impress their girlfriend by surfing which ultimately ended up by ending up face first in the shallow part of the water. I even witnessed a Small child running out of the water, planting its face in the sand, then running after the other kids in the water barely able to see through all the sand caked on its face! Comedy Gold.

We obviously found time to appreciate the odd Mai Tai (would be rude not too) and the live music! It wasn't quite the imagined white sand, deserted beaches, more tacky tourist central but it was so much fun!

Wasn't too sad to leave, my skin had started to blister in the heat and I'm looking forward to California which is fast approaching!!

The Beagle

This part of our trip definately deserves its own post on here.

We landed in Seattle to pick up another car, and drive almost straight out to Idaho. The drive was amazing. No snow!! The green fields and trees were a welcome sight. Felt like home.

When we reached Cottonwood, we were a bit early but what an amazing sight to turn the corner and be greeted by a giant beagle who was accompanied by two smaller ones. Very surreal.

Heading into the shop we had a warm welcome from Frances and Dennis and their dog, Sprockett. Immediately felt like home! They have another part of the business where they make wooden carvings of dogs using a chainsaw then handpainting them. They were absolutely amazing, struggled with the desire to empty my entire bag and just fill it with wooden dogs!

They gave us the key to the Beagle, recommended dinner places for us then left us to explore.

The outside might be amazing, but it doesnt even begin to do the inside justice. We discovered dog shaped biscuits, a full fridge, handmade granola, muffins, bread, the list goes on! The headboard of the bed had dogs carved into it. Then trouble started when we discovered the attic full of games and puzzles.

We spent a very enjoyable evening playing beagle-opoly and doing jigsaws. I slept in the attic which is designed for children, inside the nose was a shelf with cusions and fairy lights so I managed to squeeze myself in here, for maybe a not so peaceful nights sleep because I couldn't straighten my legs, but can you say you've slept in the nose of a Beagle? Well I can now!

The morning brought mixed emotions. From disbelief of being in a Beagle to being sad that we had to tear ourselves away from this magical place! Its funny that all the little homely touches, feeling so welcomed by Frances and Dennis and having Sprockett to bother, made me feel really homesick for home comforts and the dogs. Really didn't want to leave! Just shows how good it really is here.

Thanks to Dave Gorman for bringing us here, Frances and Dennis for having us and giving us probably one of the most unique memories we'll get from this whole trip.

Its an absolute Hidden Gem!! Anyone who considers coming to America, don't even think twice about heading to the Dog Bark Park. It was worth every second of the 13 hour round trip we made!

Not everyone can say they've been in a Beagle!!

Snow, Snow and more Snow.

The flight to Denver can only be described as an experience. When we got to the airport, a massive Blizzard started. We presumed the flight would be cancelled but oh no. We boarded then sat in a 2 hour queue of planes waiting to be de-iced, with the heating on in the cabin full blast! Sure enough, eventually de-iced it and we took off after a fleet of 20 snowploughs cleared the runway. This definately puts the Uk to shame, if so much as a snowflake falls, thats it, game over.

So we made it, picked up another hire car. This was also an experience. After being sat on a boiling plane for 5 hours with little movement, the guy in the rental place actually had the cheek to tell me I had to pay £145 extra because the car I rented wouldn't make it into the mountains. After I asked for the Manager, he actually had the cheek to change his tune to the actual reason which was, and I quote, "you will go 35mph up the mountain while other cars pass you". No sir, you have not seen how quick I can get a Skoda up Finghall Bank. Patronising B......Anyway to top it all off, we found gross contact lense solution in the pocket of the very dirty Dodge we got.

Nevertheless, we made it into the Rockies. Didn't anticipate the change of Altitude however, I suffered from Altitude sickness after heading up the top of a very big slope. I spent a good twenty minutes lying upside down on a frozen rock near the top of a mountain praying that I didn't look like a tasty bear snack and working out how I could fashion a sledge out my jacket to get down. Once I got over it, we had plenty fun playing in the deep snow at the top of the mountains. I managed to make a successful Snipe trap in which a Snipe ended up waist deep in a snow drift much to her surprise!

As much fun as the Snow was, waking up to 3ft of snow on the morning we were supposed to head to Yellowstone was not so fun. It soon became apparent that we weren't going anywhere. I can't really decribe the disappointment as Yellowstone was the main reason I wanted to come to America but as much as I'd like to, you can't control the weather. So we spent a painful 4 days trapped in Estes Park. I became so bored, I even applied for Jobs!! ha.

We managed to escape to Boulder for a couple of days, then got back on track up to Rapid City. I was so keen to get there, I missed a change in speed limit and spent an awkward 10 minutes in the car with a highway patrol officer.. He spent so long writing out his form I was convinced I was going to Jail but it turned out he was deciding whether the 'miss' on my driving license made me royalty or not. Sadly my appearance answered that question!

From Rapid city, we managed to get to Mount Rushmore which was very exciting and definately something to tick of the bucket list!! We headed back to Denver for a couple of days.

Next flight to Seattle means We've actually made it Coast to Coast!!

Due North

Next stop after returning the car to Atlanta, was a short flight to St Louis.

The accomodation turned out to be fairly expensive in St Louis with no Hostel so we ended up getting a cheap deal at the Ramada which we were not to upset about. However, after a couple of nights it turned into a bit of a disaster, the fridge turned into a freezer (it had no dial) and the families all night argument next door to us, as amusing as it was, began to wear us down after about 4 hours of constant screaming. So after a polite conversation with the front desk, we got one of the nights we were staying free, and free breakfast every morning.

I never thought I'd say this, but thank you screaming children.

We obviously couldn't go to St Louis without venturing up the Arch. When they ask you as you by the tickets if you have a problem with small places, they being generous. To get up the arch, you go in a Tram, and by tram I actually mean a tiny bubble, that they cram 5 people into. Your face is basically pressed against the persons in front of you and there is one tiny window. When you get to the top it doesn't get much better. The top has 4 small windows on each side and they don't control how many people go up. So we were in this tiny space, 630ft from the ground with about 60 people all squeezed in. Lets just say I was relieved to get my feet back on the ground.

In St Louis we got our first taste of Ice Hockey. The game started quite slowly, then all hell broke loose. Two player began fighting and the only way the refs could stop them was to push them to the ground and lie on top of them, all the time punches still being thrown and Bloody everywhere. Absolutely Brilliant. Definately my new favourite sport!

We then moved on to Chicago. This has definately by far been my favourite city. We spent an brilliant few days at the bean, on Navy pier, doing a walk of faith at the top of the highest tower in the western hemisphere, experiencing the cheesecake factory, taking an very cultural architecture tour of the city and appreciating the live music the city is famous for. Loved it. The only downside to Chicago was the hostel, but the less said about that the better!

We then headed up to Milwaukee. Here we had a very casual few days as there wasn't much to do in the city. We discovered £1.50 pint cocktails, went to a baseball game where we got upgraded to the diamond box and ate Frozen Custard (horrible as it sounds, it was surprisingly good!)

From there we ended up in Minneapolis where we spent a good few days in the Mall of America. I've never seen anything like it. There was a giant theme park in the centre and there was even a chapel! We did spend an afternoon in Minneapolis. It was eventful. In one of the shops we were casually looking round and came across an elderly lady, tongue out, hood up, stuffing bottles of perfume into her bag quite happily. She then just scuttled out the shop and noone did anything. VERY bizzare!

The last couple of days were spent anticipating the next flight to Denver and worrying about the weather!

Smoky Mountains

The last two entries were probably, to be frank, quite rubbish. I've been very tired and think my brain has sunk into an American Stupor. (I'm surprised it took this long for it to happen to be fair!)

ANYWAY.

So I left the last post at Chattanooga. From there we caught the megabus to Atlanta. Surprise Surprise, it had broken down and we spent a jolly afternoon stuck in a car park on the outskirts of Chattanooga. (Although to give them credit, we'd been given a part refund before the bus even arrived..) After picking up the car, free upgrade may I add, we headed to where we were staying on the Outskirts. We were only really in Atlanta for two days, one for Coca Cola World and the other for the Aquarium. Coca Cola world was fairly interesting, even if I was distracted by stalking to Coca Cola Polar bear and the other very scary 'mascot'. 64 samples of coca cola products and a free bottle of coke later, we were done.  

The aquarium was amazing. They even had penguins. I was so excited to see them I ended up headbutting the glass at the side of the tank and broke my sunglasses, it was tragic. They had everything you could imagine apart from Great Whites which I was very upset about. Although was promptly cheered up by the all singing, all dancing dolphins. 

Was mildly impressed by Atlanta, having gone with no expectations after the bad press it receives, it was actually quite pleasant. Even their over the top Paddy's day celebrations were good. I would never have thought to put luminous green dye into the fountains.... Only in America.

We then began our road trip to the Smokies. We had a brief stop in Lynchburgh to visit the Jack Daniels Distillery. Was an interesting tour and the free samples at the end were even more interesting! We had 3 free measures, one NO.7, one Gentleman Jack and one Single Barrel. Three guesses what my favourite was?!

So from there, we drove up via Alabama to Pigeon Forge, a strange 'Blackpool-esqe' gateway town to the Smokies. Here we celebrated Snipe's birthday, we spent a Gin fueled few hours Zip lining down the side of a mountain, which proved to be great entertainment. We had a leisurely walk up a mountain, which turned out not to be so leisurely. Especially when we turned a corner and where met with a noise that sounded like a bear, lots of branches snapping and rustling, after nearly having a heart attack we discovered that it was actually a squirrel..

We went to Dollywood for a day which was a random place, the only thing I can equate it to is Lightwater Valley, only with Dolly Parton. After sitting through what seemed like three hours of Bollywood dancing, Dolly herself popped onto the stage. It was very surreal, we met her again later in the parade through the park. Highlight of the week.

A very good Birthday present for Snipey.