yyouthiswastedontheyoungg asked: Not to rush you or anything just a friendly reminder that I'm waiting for your next post :)

writer’s block.

• Changed the theme, still tweaking it though. My original notes ran out part way through the 25th so be prepared for a dramatic drop in quantity/quality of writing; lucky I set the bar low in terms of quality to begin with ;-). A lot of pictures in this entry, some of which are actually Michelle’s.

25 January 2011

We had set the alarm quite early but we snoozed for quite awhile and then took ages showering and getting ready so our early start didn’t turn out to be very early at all. Laura had itchy legs which made us even more worried about bedbugs (apparently it’s quite a big problem in America).

Our first stop was McDonalds for breakfast, where we all had McGriddles. A new experience for the other team members. Do you notice how AJ never seems to have caught on, unlike OJ? Feel free to use it; a gift to my fans.

• Michelle’s McGriddle, hashbrown and OJ.

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• Renamed the original posts. Also the email subscription option on the left hand side is now working.

24 January 2011

On the move again.

After one hours sleep I was still knackered. I had to pack quickly and head to the lobby where the shuttle was waiting for me. The driver was really obese. I had used the same shuttle company as before as they had given me a business card. Even though it was the middle of the night it took awhile cause we had to go around and pick up three other people (one of which he struggled to find the address for). I had a brief chat with the girl he picked up second - she lived in LA and was going to Columbus, Ohio for a business trip.

Security was a lot lesser cause it was a domestic flight but it was still really secure compared to domestic flights back home. You have to take off bulky sweatshirts/jackets and your shoes. This was pretty easy as I was wearing jandals! Most of the waiting passengers seemed to be business travellers and most things appeared to be targeted towards business/frequent travellers - eg the luggage allowances…on most US Airlines you’re allowed to carry on a laptop (or handbag) as well as your carry on bag. It was a medium sized plane…although this turned out to be the standard size plane for domestic flights.

I couldn’t sleep again even though I was tired which was frustrating.

At Washington (Dulles - which is quite far away from Downtown DC, the Airport close to the city is the Ronald Reagan Airport; which is the airport Michelle and Laura arrived at) after we got off the plane we had to get on to this bus-type thing which shuttled us to the main terminal area because the terminal we landed at wasn’t connected. It was kinda like a small room on wheels. It didn’t really seem like a good long term solution to me, especially for such a busy airport. Other than that the airport was nicer than LAX but still pretty dated looking.

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• Click “Read More” at the bottom of each post to see the full post, enjoy :-)

23 January 2011

I had a really good night’s sleep but was still tired cause it was early and I hadn’t really slept the previous two nights. I ended up getting up too late for the bus tour I had planned on going on so instead was just going to grab some of the complimentary breakfast! When I got to the lobby though there was a man picking up people for a different tour bus company so I hopped on there instead. Very convenient…but would’ve been even more convenient if it had of been after I had had breakfast instead of before.

Up the front of the bus there was a sign saying that a 30% tip for the driver was “customary”; wasn’t too happy about this as you can imagine. This is a good illustration of what I hate about the “tipping” system in America, if you’re socially obligated to tip regardless of the actual service level then it’s self-defeating?

Anyway, back in the bus…I was having trouble taking pictures from the bus due to my camera not being that flash hot, the reflection from the glass and the bus moving too much (annoying I know). The weather was amazing though.

• Heading downtown.

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22 January 2011 (still - cause I’m going backwards across the international timeline)

In the air to Los Angeles.

I ate the exact same meal again, but didn’t drink as much as I had two people sitting beside me this time so didn’t want to have to go to the toilet too often (it’s always a massive inconvenience squeezing past).

Tried to sleep for ages but can never get into a comfortable enough position to sleep on a plane…managed to sleep for maybe one hour or so.

Over the voice over they told us that because it was a US bound flight US Federal Law applies and that congregations of 3 or more ppl on the plane were illegal. So later when I got up to go to the toilet and saw 2 people already standing in line I made a joke that it “looked like an illegal congregation”; didn’t get a single response…tough crowd.

Most of the passengers were either American or Canadian which was quite a stark contrast to the first flight.

I had a good view coming into LA - I was able to see Catalina Island, Long Beach and the port.  Our plane had to do a massive loop around the city before landing so I also was able to see a lot of the city. From the air it becomes apparent how ridiculously large and sprawled out this city is. The tall buildings in downtown LA can be seen from ages away because they’re the only tall buildings in the region. The suburbs seem to go on forever - the freeway system seemed equally extensive and endless, interconnecting the entire city in a grid that resembled the standard roads in other cities. The city seemed perfectly flat (sortof like Christchurch…and as opposed to Auckland) and most of the roads appeared to be perfectly straight and perpendicular to each other. The American usage of the word “block” seemed to make a lot of sense in this context. The general look and feel of the city was well captured by GTA: San Andreas…heaps of palm trees all over the place, alleyways connecting the streets behind houses, big billboards on massive poles, chain fences etc.

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22 Janurary 2011

This is when it all began - flying from Auckland to Los Angeles via Fiji.

Talked to a guy in the boarding queue, when he heard I was going to LA he asked me if I had been on holiday in New Zealand (awkward) because he thought I sounded American. He was Fijian, I was impressed by his English though as I assumed it wasn’t the main language in Fiji.

The plane ride was mainly uneventful although there was A LOT of turbulence. The plane looked very old both inside and out; the entertainment system wasn’t really usable due to the flickering etc and looking out the window it looked like part of the wings near the engines had been burnt?! (always a good sign) I regretted not flying with a better airline (I flew with Air Pacific as they were the only airline that did a good one way price to LA at the time). The guy in front of me had his seat leaned back too far the entire time which was annoying. I did feel a bit sad when I realised I wouldn’t be seeing my family for a very long time, briefly anyway.

I was the only one sitting by myself which I thought was odd considering the plane was nearly full (747), perhaps I was the only one flying by myself. The majority of the passengers were Indian (presumably Fijian Indian). The cabin crew were friendly living up to the company’s motto about the airline being the friendliest.

I had the chicken meal with coke and tea; the alternative was corn beef, I wondered how popular the corn beef would be on this flight considering the majority of the passengers were Indian and if the airline takes that into account.

I switched seats to the empty window seat to get a better view during landing.

Flying over the island, I was surprised at how green it was. Lush green grass and trees. Heaps of farms…although I couldn’t see any livestock at all which was weird and also very different to NZ. The roads all looked unsealed, I guess there isn’t much vehicular traffic. And there were heaps of palm trees everywhere.

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