Travel Blog 6 - Heading home - The Adventure is not over yet.

BLOODY BLOODY Greyhound:

I got to the Santa Rosa terminal. (I later discovered that the Discovery Pass is a "walk on pass" and as such you are the last to get on, and the seats are limited) I had to get on this bus to get back to LA in time to catch my plane back home to Brisbane.

Well guess what.. the seats ran out before I had a chance to get on the bus. Now I start to worry again. Went back to where I was staying with Megan, got on the laptop and looked at options. San Francisco - Greyhound had plenty of options heading to LA so I just had to get to SF.

Well guess back to "Golden Gate Transit" the bus that wouldn't let me take luggage on it. So I packed everything I could into my back pack. And headed for the bus made it with time to spare. Met a guy at the bus stop that asked if I was cold.. and then he noted my accent. And we got to talking. Here is this US guy that knows about australia. And further more he knew where nimbin was and was talking about doing a tour around australia. He reminded me of a friend back home in his appearance and just the conversation with him.. He also suggested things I could do in LA while waiting for the plane. although mind you I was down to my last $20US or so. While I didn't tell him that.. It wasn't an option.

But it was amazing to know what he knew about my country and we just randomly met while waiting for the same bus we were taking San Fran direction.

(yeah folks NIMBIN is internationally known)

Interestingly enough he didn't know about Byron Bay... go figure.

Well that for the most part was the worst part about getting home.. much lighter without the luggage (which I left with my now ex(cause I was coming back anyway so no big deal))

I did have this woman that sat behind me that seemed to spontaniously burst out into laughter.. which was interesting.. that soon grew old cause I got into the city and finally on the bus headed back to LA.. and well she was on the same bus to LA and this time I think she was about 2 seats a head of me.. Now its a 7 hour bus trip to LA at night and well it grew old pretty quick... Although I'm sure it wasn't something she could control and I don't judge her for it, but it did make the trip all the more challanging..

Got back to the LA greyhound terminal at about 5:40 in the morning and waited around till about 7-ish for the shuttle to the LAX airport i had pre arranged and got to the airport at about 7am.

To my disappointment the AirNZ terminal(with whom I was flying didn't open till 1pm local time) and lets just put it this way.. there isn't much to do at the airport besides waiting in the arrival section which doesn't have much in the way of entertaingment or food or anything infact.

So it was a 4-5 hour wait for the terminal to open.. then my flight left at 9:30pm.. so yeah it was about an 8 hour wait for the flight once I had go through security and all the other stuff.

From then on I was on my way home. Another transit in NZ and then back on Familar ground.

I tell you it was a challenge at times.. But I still love the whole experience because of it.

Stay Tuned in the future for my Second trip to the US.

Travel Blog 5 - Santa Rosa - I have arrived

Well this part of the blog is going to be short, because of a few reasons. Gonna keep it simple.

Met up with Megan and do all thoses thing you do when you are in love or at least think you are.

Checked out the shopping facilities.. ate out a lot..

A bit at sbarros had this peperioni roll with cheese and it was baked inside the roll had oil pouring out the bottom or it... It must have been so bad for me but I still loved it. Also got my first taste of dominos pizza.. which is not the same as dominos in australia.. and the reheat properties of american pizza is significalty better than that of the Australian counterpart.. but I could really get addicted to this, I also got my first taste of root beer which I have still got a taste for ever since and occasionaly get it ordered in, in australia since we don't usually have root beer of any description on the shelf, we have sarsparilla but its so not the same.. sarparilla has a very harsh after taste which i don't like in fact the inital taste is not that similar to root beer anyway. I do like it though.

Went to applebees. taco bell. Got my hair cut.. Went up to healdsburg a couple of times.

It was an intersting time. of that I remember and still cherish.

Travel Blog 4 - Lost in a big city you don’t know - when cost is no longer an issue

Well San Francisco here I am.

Now the problem is getting from San Fran to Santa Rosa about an hours drive north of San Francisco.

Here started a number of blunders. I got conned and for a while there I got stuck.

It started, Meg told me a bus that would get me up to Santa Rosa.. I waited for the bus and it did come. However when it got time to get on the bus the guy would not allow me to take luggage on the bus.. unfortunatley as I was to find out later I managed to pick the one guy that was very strick in this matter.

So the bus was out of the question. I went back to Greyhound to see what my options where. I could leave the luggage at greyhound(not something i was keen on doing) then take the bus, take a cab(very costly) or see what other options there were. Well I didn't leave my luggage at the greyhound.. I did head out of the transbay terminal(where the greyhound located) and of course there was your usual pan handlers. One of them said they could help me out. He took me down a few streets round a corner or two to the "bart" (bay area rail transit) system well after I gave him a few dollars for his trouble..actually $20 he queried me for another $20 and since I felt he had got me out of a real spot of bother I obliged. Turns out bart doesn't go to santa rosa... a lot of help he was and I was down $40 us for my trouble.

So here I was on the streets of san fran with luggage in hand, and had gone round and down so many streets now I didn't have a clue where I was..

I was walking around a bit in a bit of a daze thinking.. "WHAT THE HELL AM I GOING TO DO" I have a hotel booked in santa rosa.. I had a woman waiting and I'm stuck here with no idea what to do... and it wasn't long after that I saw a cab go by..I took down the number gave them a call and queried the cost.. hmm $196 US they estimated to Santa Rosa... Reluctantly I thought its costly but damn this is going to put my mind at rest.

The drivers accent sounded like he was from Jamaica or Bahamas.

Well I told him for starters I wanted to go to South Santa Rosa - Well I got remember that in the US they do have street names that start with.. south.. north.. east etc, because (and as I later found out, and $20 later, the guy took me to Santa Rosa Avenue in San Francisco) And I was like no I wanted to go to Santa Rosa the city. Mean while he was on the phone getting directions.

Finally got going the right direction and saw the golden gate with my eyes for the first time, at night.. orange lights lighting it up, reflecting off the water it was still an interesting site.. but I had to much stuff on my mind. Part of it was the ever increasing figure on the dash about how much this trip is going to cost me.. part of it was Megan at the other end.

Although I must say meeting her for the first time I was a whole lot LESS nervous than the rest of the time in US, in fact it was probably a comfort that I was meeting someone that I knew that could provide me some support since here I was finding my way in a country I didn't know.

Well at least now I'm where I need to be....

The Battle is over..

FOR NOW!!!

Travel Blog 3 - If you’re going to San Fran-cisco

Well on the way to it anyway...

I don't remember part of the way cause I fell asleep for an hour I think (jet lag still kicking in)

At least I saw the good bits getting out of LA and on the open road I think we pretty much took Interstate 5 most of the way.

I took the back right hand seat on the bus so I could take pictures and not disturb anyone (cause thats just the sorta person I am) but disappointed cause the window I was at seemed to be leaking cold air which made the trip unpleasent and yeah I could have changed seats(and I think I did go one forward but was still cold)

Stopped for a while for lunch just near Fresno(I think the name of the town is similar to a breed of cow and that connection will be drawn very shortly)

Ended up getting out at some stop near a Burger king... not the healthiest of lunches but I was getting very hungry at this point and was glad to have a bite to eat so... Burger King it was. Although outside the place was a not so pleasant oder. Not long up the road did I see one of the largest farms I have ever seen with so many more cows than I had ever seen in one place.

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=36.305831,-120.274442&spn=0.002909,0.005021&t=k&z=18&om=1

Theres a link to a sat eye view of it... omg the smell is not something I will soon forget.

It is very dry at the moment

Partway along the way we go past a car that has crashed.. caught alight and fire crews putting out the resulting fire.. looks like the fire has got underway away very very quickly..

Another highlight of the trip and a better oderous bombardment of the sences was Gilroy. Famous for everything garlic... and even before you get in town the smell of garlic is evident. Very interesting place none the less.. better than that HUGE.... F@KING HUGE cow farm or ranch as I think the Americans generally like to call it.

So we stop to drop passengers off in San Jose (me being a computer geek could get used to this city) :)

Then its offwards and onwards to San Francisco.. Past the San francisco airport and into the city its getting dark and my nerves a kicking up a notch.

Now I'm in San Fran...
How do I get to Santa Rosa (about an hours drive north.)...

Travel Blog 2 - LA

Well the night is behind us, and I see sun light coming in through the cabin windows... the northern hemisphere sun (I didn't have a window seat... I mean whats the point on such a long flight)

Planes is lined up to land and is decending.. I can see out the right hand window LA. And I don't believe i'm actually looking at the US my first glance of the US with my own eyes.. and there fair enough are cars driving on the opposite side of the road on the freeways.. I don't believe it, this is the US, its now upon me.. the time has arrived. The taxiing to the gate seems to take forever.. it probably does.. This is LAX after all. get off the plane. I put my foot on the jet way bridge and its all on. Up the ramp and into the immigration area.. I see the big "United states" Sign on the wall and the imigration officials.. and I forgot to fill in some of my documentation the back.. damn gotta fill it in then go back to the end of the line.. yay this adds more nervousness and delay.. but finally get through.. I noticed there were a few hispanic looking people there and I find through the course of my journey that in this part of the US there is a large hispanic component(something I wasn't really expecting) well time to pick up my luggage which I see circulating and head through customs.. which is easy enough.. just hand them the card and through a door way then bam you are right and the arrivals gate at LAX, I thought LAX being as big as its made it out be you'd have trouble finding your way around but to be right at the arrivals gate.. then directly outside was the transport made it really really easy.

Prior to this(in australia) I did two things.. I made a booking with one of the shuttle companies.. and got a discovery pass with grey hound.. so I got onboard the shuttle and worked out my paperwork with greyhound before going off to the hotel for the night.

I must say the 7th street greyhound terminal is LA is very suprising.. you'd think in a city as large as LA and a well known company such as greyhound is that it would be a bit more better set up.. but its pretty much unpainted cement floors.. metal railing leading up to the counters.. on entry to the terminal there are plenty of pan handlers.. which on the way out(I know I probably shouldn't have) I did take advantage of one of them... so its off to the hotel for the night. Up in chinatown at a place called the "Royal Pagoda" nice spot. Although it really is china town.. Almost everyone I saw going down the streets looked chineese and even the guy at the reception of the hotel had average english skills. Oh well all sorted.. I have my key and into the hotel( it was cheap $30 for the night I thnk) so whos complaining. They said they had 24 hour check out.. well hmm I'm not so sure.

I had to leave early in the morning.. I was up and away at 4am on The streets of LA in china town calling a cab.. I shouldn't have done it from my mobile(cell) phone cause the first person I called took so long (cost roaming fees) and wouldn't accept the fact that I was calling from an international number.. called another company and they came about 10 minutes later.. that whole process plus the fact that I had woken up late-ish, ment by the time I got to the greyhound terminal I was too late for the "Santa Rosa" Bus (which was where I was going to see my now ex Meg)

So I went for the next nearest city.. I knew San Francisco was near by so got a ticket there.

Now I was waiting at the correct gate at the right time, and I never heard the bus called nor the door to my gate opened (frustratingly) so I queried the desk cause I had waited well past the departure time and was told that it had left (wtf). Good thing with a discovery pass is you can take as many trips as you want it doesn't cost you any more so another ticket was no big deal for me.. just the waiting till 9am for the next one to leave was. (although it was said to arrive earlier than the earlier bus).

Strange thing was I hadn't had anything to eat since getting of the plane.. but there I was in the terminal and there was a food shop near but my nervousness was still upon me... I couldn't bring myself to get up go to the shop and get something to eat.. so there I was hungry.. sitting in the LA greyhound terminal waiting for the bus.

--- Less that 24 hours in another country and I wasn't doing too well ---

Well finally got on the bus and on the move, bound for San Francisco

Travel Blog 1

Its wierd I know but this is probably almost a year over due.. and I don't know If I'm gonna remember everything as clearly as i'd like.

Well its late October 2006 i'm packing my suitcase getting ready for my first trip overseas (right now i'm getting so very nervous)

See I've never been overseas before and here I am dropping myself in the deep end not going to a nearby country like New Zealand, i'm going several thousand miles to the United States. Post Sept 11 one would think this would be a very drawn out.. very high security process. But under the circumstances it was pretty good.

Got to New Zeland in 3 hours after leaving brisbane. So I can kinda say i've been to New Zealand.. at least put my feet on solid ground in NZ. Which was a fairly big step before hitting the us.. layover of a few hours in the terminal.

Well there I am waiting at the Terminal for the flight that says its off to Los Angeles and I still can't believe I'm doing this.. I booked the flight months ago.. I have us currency in my pocket.. passport in hand and I still can't believe that 1. this plane is going to LA but that I'm about to step foot on it.

Its starting to get dark outside the auckland terminal. I have people from a basket ball team heading off the US sitting on seats next to me and on the floor infront of me.. Accents sounds like they are from my fellow country but the leader of the group looks and sounds like he is African American. Suspect they are flying over to compete with thier us counterparts.

Its time to board now.. they board in 3 groups i'm on of the last to get on which draws it out a bit... I'm nervous but I know I have a 13 hour flight ahead of me and I relax a little...

Onwards TO LA

Travel Blog 2 - coming soon.