I'm On the train .........

11am
Just leaving Washington en route NY
ON ACELA express....cool

NEW YORK ..HERE WE COME

30.05.2014

Last night in Washington and the rain stopped so we walked (very walkable town if you go in the right direction) to Chinatown which although having an impressive archway ( largest single span arch in the world) could not find an impressive looking restaurant so retraced our steps to previous nights location ( we ate at Jaleo)  we discovered the District Chophouse & Brewery where we had an excellent dinner......although lunch and dinner today cost over £100, with only 3 glasses of beer and glasses of wine. Beer is excellent, never knew they brewed so many varieties, esp. wheat beers comme Belgium. Anyway excellent dinner in atmospheric microbrewery ex first national bank building.
Probably the best 2 meals of the trip today.
Note ....our best travelling wheeze was bringing the travel kettle, our own teabags ( esp the  GF who is on decaf tea) and a bag of 100 milkstix. The Americans have tea but can't make it and don't understand milk, just like the rest of Europe. However we have tea every morning OK.
So just waiting for the GF to finish her packing before we get a cab to the station for the 11am express to NY (2 3/4 hrs)

WASHINGTON...I CANNOT TELL A LIE

29.05.2014

So after a hectic and rewarding 3 days in Chicago we left at 18.40 on the Capitol Express. Sleepers get to use the Amtrak lounge with complimentary snacks and drinks, help with baggage ( we checked the 2 large cases, only needing overnight stuff) and priority boarding. We didn't have a full bedroom on this leg, just the roomette which has 2 chairs that convert to 2 single bunks, no toilet but fine for one overnight journey. Have I mentioned that restaurant car seating is community seating so that we share a table with different people every meal ? So we had 9 meals and so 18 different dining companions. Great conversations about health care (everybody we met is for it despite the TV ads), gun laws( everybody for complete control but nobody thinks it'll happen), stop going to war across the world, etc etc.
Anyway for dinner we had Barbera  a cartoonist on the New Yorker and her daughter Lee who is a fellow at a university in NY teaching art. Barbers was a lovely lady and very funny so we had a great time.
Train passed through Toledo, Pittsburgh, Cumberland ( saw the Gap) and Harper's Ferry before arriving Washington at 13.30, Union Station which is yet another stunning building.
$10 cab ride to Holiday Inn, stones throw from Capital if you walk in the right direction.
Checked in,stowed the bags, weather horrendously humid and hot,sticky and unpleasant. Hotel top notch and tv even bigger. On advice from a nice lady we took the metro, about 100 yds away if you walk in the right direction and take the right entrance, to a place called Metro Centre, about 4 stops away where we could purchase a Senior MetroCard for $2 each which then gave 1/2 price fares....this was very useful as fares are by distance traveled and time of day.....peak rush hour starts at 3pm to 7pm and until 9.30 in the morning.
Checked out the BigBus co.  for the hoponhopoff and decided on a 48 hour ticket next morning which I could buy in the hotel and there is a stop about 200 yds away.
So looking at the map we decided to go to the library of congress for culture and it wasn't too far. Caught the metro, which is very user friendly, and walked up to the library which closed at 4pm as do all government offices so waste of time there in the heat. However, close to the Capitol, so walked over there, for photos. No congressmen or senators about so decided that since the hotel was a stone's throw away we would walk back, down Independence Ave and hang a left onto Maryland and the bob's your uncle. Stopped for a coffee as it was steaming. After at least half an hour of walking, through very leafy( but humidly hot) suburbs and just as I was thinking we might be wrong, (as we should be amongst big buildings) a very nice man  hopped off his bike to ask if we were lost which it turned out we were, having been walking in the exact opposite direction somehow. So he directed us to the nearest metro, still a good walk away, but at least we found it.......it was now 6pm and panic was setting in as Happy Hour  at hotel bar finished at 7. Got back to our stop, the aptly named L'Enfant Plaza, and immediately exited from a totally different entrance to the one by which we entered.....just as the predicted thunderstorms broke. Waited till it stopped then set off in completely wrong direction and had to retrace our steps only to find 2 women having exactly the same ' mare. Eventually got back to the hotel bar with 4 mins to go so ordered 2 beers to the amusement of the bartender..... however it paid dividends because the next night when I got in at 6pm, despite being packed, when I slid onto a stool a beer appeared in front of me like magic . .I felt  like Norm in Cheers and had to have more than several to get over the shock.
So Tues evening was a disaster, and as it rained we ate at the hotel which was OK but nothing special.
Wed morning bought tickets for the Bigbus and did Lincoln, Jefferson and Washington memorials, walked to FDR &  Martin Luther  King memorials, then Vietnam Wall, all inspiring and just as big and awesome as I expected. In the afternoon we did Arlington Cemetery, JFK grave and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at which were  lucky to see the changing of the guard which was very American and very polished. The heat was getting unbearable and Arlington is a big place with hills so very hard work. Back via the Pentagon and the White House, didn't call in, and probably other places I've forgotten.
Found a Spanish tapas bar for dinner using the TripAdvisor app that had good reviews and was only 17 mins walk away so rang up and booked for 8pm which was lucky as when we got there it was heaving with a queue and we got straight in but table not ready so drink at bar until they sent a text to say it was ready....cool ! And a great meal with lots of excellent dishes and a relief from the grills/fries/salads of late.
On  Thurs the temp dropped and rain forecast all day  but didn't start till afternoon though. Rode around and hopped off at Georgetown, explored v.nice waterfront and excellent lunch at J.Paul's pub which may have been the tastiest and best meal we have had. Rain started so spent the afternoon at the Smithsonian museum of American history, which may be one of the best produced museums we've ever seen.....except we are in the traditional period of field trips for American schools so everywhere is full of noisy crowds of teenagers of which we were not the only ones complaining.

CHICAGO. MY HOME TOWN......

26.05.2014

Up late after Saturday night and brunch at Navy Pier listening to Jazz. More hop on hop off until we were both falling asleep.....weather v.hot and Chicago crowded for holiday weekend. Had to return to base at 3pm for zzzzzzz and then out for dinner. Suddenly realised that we hadn't ridden the El so we bought 2 tickets and did the Loop  followed by Chicago by night tour until 10pm and a long walk home through the park still thronged.
Monday morning checked out but left bags at hotel and took the hotel shuttle to the planetarium where we saw 2 excellent shows and great exhibtions. Caught bus uptown to lunch at Giradanos the original and best pizza house which did not disappoint with the no.1 classic stuffed pizza....all others will be judged by this now. Back to hotel to pick up bags and taxi to Union Station. Am now esconced in the metropolitan lounge waiting for the call having checked bags and booked 8pm dinner slot...could get used to travelling like this.
Goodbye Chicago,  top town even if I do keep singing that bloody sinatra song, and may well return someday.

On the road for 30 days

Repacking for the train.

Surrealist bedroom, Chicago

I'm YOUR HOOCHIE COOCHIE MAN

25.05.2014

Walked over to Buddy Guys at 7.30 to find it busy and tables hard to find. However, entry is free up to 8.30 when there is a $20 cover charge so it starts to thin out and staff usher us to a table with a lone man on it who puts up with us for 3 minutes before moving off. We watch the free acoustic set with Jimmy Johnson until 8.30 when the first of the big names, the Luke Pyetal Band comes on. Superb sound with a great alto sax, Ronnie G , and keyboard player, Brian James. Luke plays guitar effortlessly like Eric Clapton and even the GF is rocking. The place is packed and we order from the Cajun menu....Louisiana Blue Crab cakes which we share and then I bottle out of the jumbo Gumbo and the Jambalaya and settle for the Baby Back Ribs and BBQ Chicken Combo, the GF has Beef Tacos, all good. After a non stop 2hr set, there is a quick change and the main event is the great Eddie Shaw, 77 years old and 20 years as tenor sax player with Muddy Waters and another 20 with Howling Wolf....even has credits on the Howling Wolf London Sessions, great milestone for people like Clapton and the Stones....before forming his own band and recording in his own name. Absolute brilliant 2 hours non stop rocking blues, best version of little red rooster I've ever heard, likewise Hoochie Coochie Man. Lineup includes his son Vaan Shaw who plays a 3neck electric guitar that sounds sublime. We leave at 12.30, even the GF enjoys it despite us both being deaf. Absolute magical night that I've always wanted to do.

CHICAGO,CHICAGO THAT WONDERFUL TOWN (Sinatra,f)

24.5.2014
Never, in a million years did I ever think I would say this....I have fallen in love with not only a city, but an American city.
Wow. Sounds of jaws dropping and humble pie being eaten bit I love Chicago.
To recap, finally got in at 20.45, and easy enough to reclaim bags like an airport .......we were lucky, all the people who had missed connections  through being 51/2 hrs late were in dire straits and a team from PR had obviously been pulled in late on the Friday night of a holiday weekend (Memorial Day, Mon) to pacify, placate and reschedule unhappy bunnies. There may have been a question of compensation but we decided Amtrak had seen us alright so we headed to the taxi rank. Joyfully, our hotel, the Chicago Essex was a mere $10 ride away so we had checked in by 21.30 and they had a brasserie where we had a very pleasant meal. City looked good, weather mild so on finding that Buddy Guy's Legends club was a mere 2 blocks away we trotted off. We decided not linger but just went in to sort something out for Saturday night and were hit by the most glorious wall of blues that made your head hurt....can't book for sat, just first come first served so will take our chance but I don't think the GF is going to enjoy it as much as I will.
So, another excellent hotel, well above our usual pay grade and as ever, very helpful staff.
With the holiday weekend, Chicago is en fete and the hop on hop off was excellent but grid locked as streets were closed due to the huge Memorial Day parade which we watched in various places., but the city is terrific. The skyline is superb, the views along the shores of lake Michigan are stunning, everywhere is so clean and smart and from what we saw today we both agrees that we would have given up LA for another 3 days here as we will never get round to all the places we want to go back to tomorrow.. Top spot, even if I do find myself having to agree with Sinatra.

AMTRAK COMES UP TRUMPS

Loop22.05.2014

We checked out of the hotel at 10 am and took the shuttle to the metro which was very user friendly with lifts and caught the train to Union Station, about 25 mins (fares are $1.50 a journey). The grand plan was to find the left luggage office and leave the cases there for the day whilst we explored until the train left at 18.15.
Of course nothing is simple and the left luggage office turned out to be a baggage claim office for incoming trains. However as we turned away, the girl called us back and asked where we were going. On hearing that we had a sleeper booked on the Southwest Chief, she tutted and said we wanted the Amtrak lounge on the next floor and gave directions, which had we not had them we would never have found the unsignposted lounge. This turned out to be a hospitality suite for sleeper car passengers with unlimited free coffee, snacks,drinks,WiFi,TV,magazines etc. and where a) we checked in and b) checked our luggage. 2 big cases to be checked for the train and 2 carry on with stuff for 3 days/2 nights  which we could check in there and pick up before boarding.. Now, our slight concern was that when we booked all this we thought we had a sleeper with toilet and wash facilities, but it turned out that we just had  a room with chairs that converted to 2 single bunks. I had rung Amtrak to try and upgrade yesterday only to be told that we had been given a v.good  deal in December at $336  and a bedroom with facilities would sell today at $1359 so the upgrade would be over a $1000. They suggested we wait until we got on the train and then did a cash deal with the sleeping car conductor ..nudge nudge wink wink. So as the very nice Jennifer Adams checked our bags , I thought I'd ask if she could do anything. At first she came up with the same figures and same suggestion but then said what a silly price it was, she could do better and would we be able to afford $200/300 ? The GF leapt in with how  nice it would be to have our own bathroom and that's what we had been expecting,sob,sob and yes we'll pay anything reasonable. So Ms Adams got on the phone to PR where she used to work, called a friend, whispered endearments about lovely people from the UK going all the way to New York, and got us the bedroom . Free.  All we had to do was go to the ticket desk and exchange the old tickets for new ones. Result.
So with a hop skip and a jump we shot through the station ( which was the last built of the Grand Union stations and is magnificent... deep leather arm chairs, tiled floor polished like a mirror, beautiful wooden ceiling, ....) and had a glorious day sightseeing..... first the pueblo area where the first 22 Mexican families settled(22men,22women & 22 children) by order if king carloslll of Spain to provide for his soldiers; then to China Town, mooch round the fascinating markets, lunch excellent at Plum Tree , then walked to the cathedral, magnificent, modern and rehearsals for local schools graduation later this week, with choirs so nice local touch Then the state courthouse, civic centre, LA mall and finally
LAPD headquarters where I bottled out of going in and asking for Harry Bosch, but a passing fireman offered to take our photo under the sign with some bewilderment BA's not many people do that. Very nice day's sightseeing.
Back to the Amtrak lounge where things got better. At 17.30 a bunch of people burst in, grabbed our carry on bags and
took us out to golf carts which carried us over to the platform where our train which had been released from the freightyard after inspection and servicing would be arriving in 7 mins. Being sleeper clients we got priority. We were dropped at points corresponding to our ticket numbers and when the train duly arrived our bags were taken to our rooms which are v.pleasant. Big picture window with a seat on one side,fold down table in the middle and a bench seat that folds out to a double bed with another single bunk that folds down if wanted. Toilet & shower, wash basin, towels, bottled water, cups ,tissues, soap. Lots of lights and mains sockets and air con. Complimentary coffee, water and juice all the time plus breakfast lunch and dinner included and last night I had a steak which was as good as I've ever had, cooked to order...GF had the roast chicken, enormous portion.
I did however think that drinks were included and ordered a half bt white for and a half bt red for me and was somewhat shocked to get a demand for $32 afterwards...but what the hell, this is really exciting and sooooo cool. After dinner we repaired to the observation car, brilliant, to watch the sunset whilst our man Richard arranged the beds and turned us down. Glen in the bar is a  font of knowledge and has lots of cold beer and the hoi-poloi try to sleep in coach class. Ooooo!
Had to get up in the night to watch the sky! Never seen so many stars, felt you could reach up and grab a handful, and a half moon that was deep orange. Watched an amazing sunrise coming up to Flagstaff that seemed to stretch for hundreds of miles across the desert .Then Gallup and Albuquerque where we stopped to refuel and wee stretched our legs through the throng of vendors who thought we might buy something. Nice lunch.......there is  a policy of community seating which means 'tables seat 4, so you will share'. There are about 4/5 sittings for lunch and dinner which you pre book  each day and so you get to sit with different people each meal which has been really great as we have met so many people and they all think we are marvellous and wish they could do the same trip but they have all been interesting as well ..,esp the nutter from Brooklyn with his 1000 model trains in a one bed apartment who worked on the NY subway for 30 years but he was funny like new Yorkers are in films.
We have a lovely waitress called Dayzi who looks after us  as I keep stuffing $ in her hand.,.... In America I seem to do nothing but stuff tips in hands and everywhere you go there are signs saying that gratuities will be appreciated.
At Albuquerque we added 3 private, renovated Pullman coaches to be delivered to Chicago, which were so heavy they slowed us down and we lost 2 hours by next morning. We have gone through 3 time zones and adjusting clocks forward plays havoc with breakfast times. We then ran into a track problem at Cameron Junction and lost another hour whilst a points switch was repaired and another hour whilst the 100+ freight train ( I thought they were all 22 coaches long?) Crept through ahead of us.......100 coaches x 15 yds = 1500 yds plus 3 engines pulling and 2 pushing = best part of a mile !
So we are approaching  Chicago. It is 20.05 and we should have been here at 15.15. We still have 45 mins to go, find our luggage, find our hotel and I had booked us into Buddy Guys House of Blues for dinner. So that'll be buggered then, let's hope I can get in on Saturday night otherwise I shall be a very unhappy bunny as that was going to be my high spot of Chicago.

L.A. CONFIDENTIAL

20.5.2014

Arrived LA about 1pm and taking the bus drivers advice did not get off at Union station ( which the tickets stated) but stayed on to the Greyhound terminal, where no helpful info was forthcoming to the query as to how to get to north Hollywood..... like they'd never heard of it. So mooching round the back I found the most decrepit taxi rank I've ever seen manned by evil looking Latinos licking their lips as I approached. At least they knew where north Hollywood was and the hotel. When I asked how much the big fat one said $45 or maybe 35 as I looked horrified, depends on traffic. So we hauled the bags round and he watched as I put them in the boot. Traffic was horrible then eased and he drove like a madman and the clock read $39 when we got to the Beverley Garland, across the other side of town and by what seemed a straight route so no complaints except a) we went back passed Union station and b) there is a direct metro line from the station to Universal City which is a 15min walk or $10 taxi ride from the hotel..... but we weren't to know that.
Anyway, hotel is top notch, very swanky and well above our usual level.....never had so many thick bath towels. Beautiful gardens with lovely lights at night, heated swimming pool, excellent restaurant, shuttle every hour back to the metro and Universal studios, WiFi in the room and an enormous TV.
So checked in and then took the shuttle (an old converted wooden tram) to Universal studios where there is a city walk around the studio complex and is full of shops, restaurants, and the sort of things I loathe. Had dinner in a German micro brewery....don't even ask.
Monday, up at the crack of dawn, 9am shuttle to metro, figured out the system, bought & loaded 2 oyster type cards called TAP cards. Down to Hollywood & Vine where the Hop on hop off bus co. HQ  is and bought 2x48 hour tickets for
$118. There are 4 different routes designated by colour and over the 2 days we travelled the length and breadth of LA.
All the way down to Santa Monica and walked the length of Venice Beach boardwalk, walked on the beach and paddled in the Pacific in preparation of truly going coast to coast. Bought slices of pizza and sandwiches at a stall and ate them watching people playing basketball on one of the many courts. This was going to be the GF's highlight but the place is very odd and not at all smart,chic or trendy. Absolutely packed, and the boardwalk ( not a wooden walkway but concrete) is full of hippie street vendors out of the 60's selling crap, worse than Morocco or Turkey, except that they were mostly out of their heads and couldn't bother anyone. The grass was covered in bodies in sleeping bags or bin liners and little groups of down and outs looking dirty, unkempt and stoned. The GF was very disappointed, but the beach is fabulous. Excellent sightseeing bus with great commentary pointing out who lived where,was discovered, worked as waiter,was killed,born,married, arrested etc etc.
the Farmers market was great fun and we ate pastrami and corned beef sandwiches on rye with mustard, easy on the Mayo,  from one of the many stalls which are legendary. La Break tar pits were worth the hop off and a brief look at the museum of modern art (Van Gogh to Kandinsky).
Being Mr Nice Guy, we hopped off and walked Rodeo Drive which was worth it from my point of view as a  Bugatti Veyron drove up and parked in front of me as an extremely leggy lady in extraordinary heels and tight short dress came out of Bijam ( which I am told is the most expensive shop in the world) to put money in the parking meter for the driver. I have photographs of both.
We have dined in the hotel restaurant, strangely called Warren's Blackboard  food and drink workshop, which was very good and have found a great supermarket for buying breakfast items near the metro as we walk back to the hotel as it only takes 15 mins.
More unknown charges appeared on our bank statement..2x£49.99.. but on phoning it seems they were made before the card was cancelled on the 14th and have been refunded now. I still can't get over the fact that cards are swiped without requiring a pin , so open to abuse.
Anyway LA has a lot of history, bits are terrific, bits are shit and there is a lot of conspicuous wealth here and we come across film crews everywhere. I hadn't realised so many scenes really are shot on location here and it was fun having hotels,bars,restaurants pointed out where iconic scenes were filmed for real . Didn't get to drive up Mulholland Ave or park up above the Hollywood sign as I wanted to relive Harry Bosch books but at least I've seen the rest and know where he's coming from.

GREYHOUND TO LA

Hey! How cool is this......writing  & posting my blog on a Greyhound bus to los Angeles !!!!!
So after months of concern, god knows what in phone calls and a fax to the hotel from Amtrak, we finally.....after some resistance....got on the rescheduled Greyhound with tickets for a later bus that didn't now go where we wanted to be. Our tickets were printed in Dec. and there wasn't time to have new one's sent when the schedule changed in march . what we were sent was an Amtrak voucher that had to be scanned in an Amtrak machine, of which there are non in Vegas and were now routed onto an Greyhound bus. When I showed the tickets to the Greyhound staff at the bus station 2 weeks ago they said that they weren't valid for any of their services, thus initiating endless calls to Amtrak and the american booking agents with everybody saying that there was an agreement in place for Greyhound to honour Amtrak tickets....only  nobody was telling the guys who let you on the buses on the ground. Eventually, Amtrak sent an email to the agents telling Greyhound personnel to honour the bookings which I had faxed to the Stratosphere as a hard copy.... and retrieving that was a challenge....so we turned up at 07.30 at terminal this morning which resembled a refugee camp.  My first plan had been to sit tight and then blag our way on when the bus arrived, but when I had to queue up at the ticket desk to get sandwiches I decided to open the batting straight away. Surprisingly, whilst they wanted to check us on the later bus which still runs somewhere, the fax proved invaluable and it was a stroke of luck that I had decided to queue at the desk as all stowed luggage had to be checked and tagged otherwise it couldn't go.........unlike National Express who just chuck everything in the locker willy nilly.
So we had 3 luggage tags for the 08,00 to LA ( despite our revised fax showing it as the 07.50 to LA)
the bus arrived at 07.45 at gate 5, and we were told to take all tagged luggage to gate 4, which we did, then disabled, children & seniors were allowed to board. At the desk we caused mass consternation from the ticket inspectors and lots of shouting around until someone yelled Amtrak tickets were good to go but take whole ticket and stub so with much relief  we saw our cases being loaded and we left at 8.15.
And the bus has WiFi and as the desert is endless and flat I'd thought I'd while away some time writing this. We waved to  D&M as we passed the Monte Carlo and sent them a text to say we were on the bus,; the air con was cranked up at 9am after complaints and the GF is now shivering in her fleece and stamping her feet to keep warm....... with the sun beating in through the window as it will hit 100 again today, I think its just pleasant. Due in LA at 13.25 ( v.comfy bus)  and then taxi to the Beverly Garland for 3 nights until we get the train to Chicago.

AWFULLY BIG ADVENTURE........

From Beaver to Vegas, part boring part very dramatic ...... unfortunately the dramatic bit coincided with 15 miles of roadworks which were very narrow single lane and required maximum concentration. Arrived LV  at 3 pm, refueled vans ready for return and booked into Sam's RV Park, hotel and casino where we started from 2 weeks ago......still only $20 a night and the best value. Went to the hotel for end of tour dinner at Billy Bobs steakhouse which was remarkably good, esp the Fess Parker Californian red (15%) at a mere $25 (and a cdr in all but name). It was so good we ordered a second bottle but they had run out so following Oz Clark we went for a red zinfandel which they  obligingly let us have at the same price . Watched a stunning laser/water/music display in the central courtyard which was mind blowingly good. Weather over 100° so cleaning and packing was a chore.
Returned vans sat. morning without problem and happily without forfeiting any of the $1000 deposits...in fact M managed to wangle $150 payment for inconvenience of having no hot water for first 4/5 days
Back to hotel and then went downtown to Fremont centre for mooching and lunch at Golden Nugget.  Big display of vintage classics lining the street of corvettes, mustangs, deloreans,  and film cars from Batman, Knight Rider etc and the rebuilt Porsche that James dean owned and died in.
When we got into hotel room and checked with bank, discovered another 2× 49.99  charges not recognised. Rang to report and they are part of the same scam that caused the blocking as it takes some days  for all items to clear for some reason, but they will be refunded. The problem is that they take cards away and just swipe them, never having to enter a pin number so god knows who is doing what with them. However , Nationwide seem on the ball and situation appears in hand. Shudder to think what would have happened if I didn't check online regularly.
The plan had been to have a farewell meal in the revolving restaurant atop the tower but booking was either 5.30 or 9.45
so we settled for drinks in the tower cocktail lounge followed by dinner in the Italian restaurant ( a litre of house red @$20'was very acceptable)
Sadly we part company as tomorrow (we hope) we shall catch the greyhound to LA at 7.50 am and begin our second ABA ( awfully big adventure)  coast to coast. Been a cracking good 2 weeks with D&M, with lots of fun and a truly memorable journey. Shall miss them both very much .
But another challenge lies ahead.....watch this space

BEAVER......DAM FINE PLACE

We are heading home (?) to Vegas. Cracking drive from Moab through the Badlands where Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch hid out and when you look down into the canyons it all makes sense. Weather is terrific, arrived Beaver  3.30, (Butch Cassidy born here) .......refueled at Richfield but debit card wouldn't work so used credit card....I won't bother to describe the tribulations of the debit card but it has always worked eventually. Got to campsite, paid with debit card..refused so used credit card. Rang Nationwide using Skype , card was blocked......it has been cloned and they monitored 3 transactions in a computer software store called Blizzard yesterday which they thought suspicious and when I tried to put $ 116   for fuel in a Chevron station they shut it down. This is our joint card and mine is now dead and we/are assured that the GFs card is still active and if its not we might be in trouble.....only joking as we have backups for this eventuality. We ar e still in Utah where buying alcohol is quite difficult, like Morocco and anything over 3.2% can only be bought in a State liquor store which are very difficult to find as they look like abandoned shops , with no advertising or signs .Happily D&M tracked it down in Beaver and I have a 2 ltr  Concho y Toro merlot at $ 9.99 which is sublimely drinkable so goodnight......,.

MOAB.......SOUNDS BIBLICAL

The drive to Monticello was undulating and dead straight and boring, despite the herd of buffalo (they were too), the llamas and the alpacas. But then we turned west to Moab  which was much more interesting, into canyon territory.
Nice campsite 4 miles south of town with great views. Sun shining but freezing overnight and v.helpful  staff who planned a great itinerary for us. Moab, which sounds as though it was the 3rd begotten son of Lot, is at the centre of 3 National parks all of which we could visit in the vans and also has a least one microbrewery with some great beer.
The town is probably the nicest we have passed through and is the hub of off-road activity, somewhat resembling a stage of the Paris-Dakar rally, with dune buggies everywhere. We discover that there is a 4 day ATV rally taking place and the campsites are overflowing with  RVs towing trail bikes, quad bikes and serious buggies.
We then have 2 superb days: first day to Dead Horse Point park and then Canyonlands ( which is Not a Disney theme park based on the Grand Canyon) and both stunning. Mini version of the GC, at the confluence of the Colorado/Green rivers with amazing views and rock formations. We drive over a 100 miles stopping frequently and love every moment.
Next day we do the Arches National Park which is even more amazing. Take a million photos of......arches......never seen anything like it so wait till  I put pics on flicker or look it up on Google.
This is nearly it. We have to be back in Vegas on Friday, about 450 miles. One stop at Beaver .
Weather has got much warmer again especially at night.
Its been a terrific trip, met so many people,esp. the good ol  boys on trail bikes I had a beer with tonight (in a caravan bigger than our house and having a boys away trip to look at the flowers.........I think this was the bteam equivalent of parking the cars). The weather has been interesting, we only had rain once overnight and drove through a shower but it started at 102°, fell to -4° overnight, snowed just up the road, blew an almighty gale and then got lovely again.
I don't think for one moment that we have even started to scratch the surface but it has been an eye opener. Lot of poverty, lot of ramshackle, broken down towns with shut down shops and businesses and rotting property. RVs everywhere, every other house has one parked outside. Seen some fantastic scenery and love how the National Parks are run, but the roads between places are SO boring. Campsites have great facilities but are pricier than Europe at this time of year, fuel is much cheaper but the motorhomes are built like breeze blocks and only do 10 miles to the gallon, so fuel at a 1/3 price but mpg  1/3 of ours equals the same overall cost which is disappointing. We like the van, very spacious being wider, love the waste systems and all the electrics which are catered for by all sites having 30/50 amp hookups...unlike uk at 16 amp and Europe where 10 is good and 3 or 6 is not uncommon. This means we can run all the systems knowing we will not be blowing a trip switch which is luxury

CORTEZ & THE MESA VERDE

From the campsite to the visitor centre, discovered we could drive into the national park, set off and paid the entry fee $10 only to be told that to see anything interesting would require a guided tour, the tickets for which were only on sale back at the visitor centre. So drove back to the visitor centre to find that the earliest tour we could join would be at 1pm. This being too late we were then told that we didn't need to join a tour as we could do a self guided tour and they showed us where to go , where to park, where to walk so off we went again, up a mountain. Fairly hairy, needed concentration, about 18 miles and it had snowed last night. But the roads were dry and the snow on the trees made it very pretty....a god day viewing the ancient cliff dwellings in the canyons, and what we missed out on the guided tour we probably picked up in the museums.
Left the mesa a bout 2.30 and headed north toward MOAB,
which may tiurn out to be the centre of the universe.

FOUR CORNERS AND CORTEZ

Before leaving the valley we drove into the visitor centre as our tickets from the tour were valid thus saving $20 a   vehicle. The views are stunning and if I go on a bit its because I found it such an amazing place.
Headed north to Mesa Verde, stopping at 4 corners for lunch, having paid $10 to park......seemed a good idea before we knew about the $10...so called because 4 states meet here..... Utah,Colorado, Arizona & New Mexico and they have put a plaque on the ground so you can stand in all 4 states at once blah blah....anyway it was very windy, and bad weather is sweeping in, including snow. For the last week we haven't dropped below 6000 ft and the next few days are predicted as a severe winter storm ( in may????) so we have had some cold nights.
Arrived Cortez,  weather  v.cold and snow showers forecast......bloody hell it was 102° last week.
Drive was another long boring day and I can understand the necessity for the rumble strips on the shoulder and down the middle. We play country & western on the radio but stations fade out just as they get interesting.
We are out in the back of beyond and towns look impoverished, closed up, falling down and more ramshackle than Spain. Certainly doesn't look like the land of plenty so far.
More to follow.

MONUMENTAL cont

Saturday was one of the best days of my life.
The other 3 took the shuttle bus down to trading post for retail therapy and I hiked up the trail into the canyons behind the campsite. What looks like a solid wall unfolds into a wonderland.  Very hard to describe but magical almost mystical , total silence , huge rock faces carved over billions of years that you can almost feel...spent 2 hours  just sitting on a rock taking photos as the sun and clouds changed the landscape  every few minutes.
At 1pm we reconvened for a tour  into the actual valley which was led by a Linda who usually drives the school bus. She was born in the valley 1961, mother still lives in  a traditional hogan . The tours are in big Jeeps, the road is non existent and has to be the best thing I've ever done. Amazing place, maybe better than the Grand Canyon IMHO.
We rounded the day off by going back to the theatre for a showing of Stagecoach when everybody kept picking out the scenery they had visited in the afternoon. Hasn't changed ( much) in 75 years. Fascinating museum of the cinema history of the valley, the Navajo Code Talkers who developed an unbreakable code using their native language during WW2, and the culture and history of the Navajo people who as we all know , were shat upon from a  great height  and still struggling for equality. Words fail me. And if Emilio ever reads this, thanks again .

A MONUMENTAL VISIT........

10.05.14
Left Flagstaff 9am, snowcapped mountains but pleasantly warm, D&M   now smelling much nicer as they can shower in the van with hot water.
Long uninteresting roads across flat plains with only herds of buffalo to watch as you head towards the mountains 100 miles away. Occasional Indian raiding parties gallop pass but after I greet them with my now standard phrase ' How ....I bring  greetings from big queen across the water ' they gallop off to raid some poor homestead as and leave us to continue.
After Camerons Trading Post, (no relative I hope) we turn right to Tuba City where we stop for coffee in a diner and have a plate of puppies. Not my idea and I'm not going there so go look it up somewhere, and restock at a Bashas supermarket...... no alcohol available as we are now in the Nations and alcohol is banned. Bloody shades of Morocco but at least we are well  stocked.
Suddenly scenery gets interesting as we head for Kayenta ;
red mesas, massive rock formations, and the promise of things to come. As we approach our destination of Gouldings Trading Post, we cross into Utah ( clocks go forward 1 hour)  and we enter the Navajo reservation that is Monument Valley.  Gouldings is historic, go look it up on Wikipedia, and a cracking campsite in Red Box Canyon with stunning views out to the valley.  We have a jolly evening , first   having  been taken on the shuttle bus to the cinema to watch films on the history and culture. This place is John Wayne country, Stagecoach having been filmed right here after the Gouldings collared John Ford and showed him pics of the area, followed by She Wore A Yellow Ribbon.. They show JW movies every night in their cinema and have a museum.......tbc

SOUTH TO SEDONA

08.05.14

The GF recovered after a day of rest, no food and children's rehydrating fluid which I located in the Seligman  general store, there being no pharmacy or indeed a horse but lots of route 66 memorabilia gift shops after I walked the mile to town from the campsite in the teeth of a ferocious wind as a cold front moved in........the temp dropped overnight to 32 from 102 two days before and is apparently quite normal but not at this time of year.
Anyway all was well on Wednesday morning so after exploring the delights of emptying the waste tanks which in fact is an easy operation and better than the European version and I refilled the LPG tank which will be reimbursed.
Cloudy day but very scenic drive to Sedona, Arizona which surprisingly involved a very unexpected 25 mile mountainous section which was more than a little hairy around the old mining town of Jerome.
Sedona is fantastic and was the setting for over 60 westerns from the 1920s to 1970 and every cowboy you can mention filmed here. In fact, it had the only film production unit permanently built outside Hollywood.  The town is surrounded by huge red bluffs, worn into fantastic towers and as soon as you see the view you think westerns. It also houses a church, the chapel of the holy cross which rises between two red cliffs, originally designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in the 1930s but not completed until 1957.
So we stopped at the nearest camp site in town at a massive $50 a night....it is so expensive here but sites are nearly all full, spent the next day driving around the views before heading to Flagstaff in the afternoon.
The TomTom that I hired for a huge amount of money is proving invaluable as it is preloaded with thousands of campsites , rated by stars and giving last year's prices, but wanted to take us to Flagstaff on a 64 mile route whilst the signpost said 27. If you come here in an RV, trust me, take the 64 miles........the 89a through Oak Creek is not for the faint of heart, especially when 5  miles is under repair and single file.
We only made a short distance as D&M had to call in at an RV repair shop to have their water heating system overhauled as they could only get lukewarm water.. ... it was a 5 min job  as the winterising override switch had not been reset which is another stupid oversight by El Monte who are being let down by stupid oversights. ..... we have 2 sets of crockery.... one plastic,one china; we have no dishcloths or cleaning materials and when we buy them, most of it will be thrown away unused. If we leave the unused items in the van they won't be passed on so what happens to them ?
Anyway, KOA campsite at Flagstaff, $44  even after the 10% discount we get but at least the 5 litre wine box of Californian Burgundy from Walmart at $13.99  is proving more than drinkable and I'll need another one soon.
And Americans are So nice. At the checkout in Safeway's, when the bill came to $ 80, the cashier asked if I had a loyalty card, which of course I hadn't. At which, the lady behind us said please use mine, I just luv your accent, my names Amy  and I have a friend who lives in Suffolk, England ( like,wow, small world), and the cashier swipes her card and knocks $8 off our bill !!!!!!!
And in the car park at the holy chapel a guy walked back and moved his car so that I could park without having to perform contortions. I really do like them, everyone has been polite, helpful, funny and wanting to talk to us.

ON THE ROAD JACK.....

The vans are robust, functional, wide, 25' long and poorly equipped despite paying for vehicle kits and personal kits. They could have included dish cloths and more than one toilet roll. The basic operation is OK and the pitches all have hookup to 30amp electric, fresh mains  water and usually direct waste drainage and most are drive thru so no manoeuvring.
The wing mirrors stick out a long way and give poor rear vision for reversing which is why they have drive thrus.
Handling is optional, especially in wind which we had for a couple of days and I tend to drift into the curb, but we are learning. They have full air con which is why we need 30amps and the fridges are large.
So Sunday morning we set off and went back to the Walmart for dish cloths etc and in view of the cost of phone calls I bought a cheap phone and 1000 mins for £30 which has already saved us money.
First stop at a very pretty little site at Needles on the Colorado river ....$36  a night (£22)......
Unfortunately the drive was marred by extremely hot air being pumped into the drivers foot well and I could only drive by using cruise control. When we stopped I rang the mobile assistance  and they diagnosed the problem , indicating 2 clips on the panelling that were incorrectly fastened allowing hot air from the outside ( temp over 100°) and the engine to be rammed into the footwell. Sorted and a  cold beer or two went down.
Monday 5.5.14
Getting used to driving the van and hot air problem cured.
Drove to Kingman where we refuelled.......14 gals didn't refill the tank ($50) and for only 200 miles or so we are getting less than 14mpg and petrol is about $3.50 per us gallon (or about £2.54 uk gallon). These vans are heavy,automatic and thirsty and fuel prices have risen recently and is keeping a lot of the big RVs off the road apparently although every second vehicle is an rv. From Kingman we turned onto the historic route 66 loop for 50 odd miles to Seligman a real one horse town and a campsite next to the freight rail line which ran all night with huge long trains.
We stopped at Hackberry and viewed the 1950's road house preserved as it was left when the freeway made the road obsolete complete with '57 red corvette and I'll try and post a picture and then the Grand Canyon Caverns. Massive dry caves 230' underground, complete with survival kits delivered in 1962 during the Cuban missile crisis for 2000 people for two weeks. Iodine tablets were sent in 2012 to treat the drums of drinking water.
Despite being told that the 66 loop was  a 'pretty little road' I found 50 miles of dead straight road across the desert to be anything but pretty..
Unfotunatly the GF is now feeling the effects of too much excitement, too much sun, too much travelling and too much change of diet and so we shall not move today whilst we hope she recovers.

Continued 2

So Saturday was pick up RV day. We had called before to confirm everything and had said that we expected to be processed together as we were a party and that was fine. Some doubt about shuttle pick up availability but when I rang at 9am. was immediately told that we would be picked up at 12.30......I won't go in to the conversation regarding the 6 possible entrances and the fact that we only connected on the 3rd call when we both narrowed the choice to 2 and managed to get that wrong. D/m rang at the same time to be told that no shuttle pickup was available and that they should get a cab which would be reimbursed. So they got a cab and arrived at 12.30. We got picked up at 1.30, and then had to wait whilst the shuttle picked up 3 more couples, involving driving down and up the strip at midday on a Saturday, eventually getting to the Rv base at 2.30, 2 hours behind D/m. As we were first on the bus, we were last off (everybody has loads of luggage) and thus last to sign in. We were last to be processed and finally completed handover at 5pm. so a day lost.
Not happy but a few freebies thrown in. By 3.30 we all decided to get d/m off  to find a campsite and book us both in for the night which they did....at Sam's. When we got there they had gone to the Walmart across the road but unreachable by foot so when they returned we went there to stock up with food and liquor. Its good to have a travelling companion as we could laugh about it over beers and wine because  on our own we would not have  been happy. A whole day hanging around and then the handover of an rv. We are lucky as we know basics but an awful lot is different from European motorhomes,some good some bad, and the vans are automatic which I haven't driven for 20 years, lh drive and very wide and the las Vegas freeway at 6pm on a Saturday is not the ideal familiarisation ground. Hey, that was fun, and it gets better.

Continued.......

Flew back to Vegas and returned to hotel for wash and brush up before heading back down the Strip ( see how I pick up the lingo) to meet D&M for dinner. Sat outside the Venetian, on a mock canal with gondolas punting around and opposite the Mirage where a volcano erupted every half hour with a spectacular fiery spectacle...but not as good as the dancing fountains outside the Bellagio. Its hard to keep a grip on reality but I thought that the thousands of gamblers losing money whilst listening to opera in the Palazzo was the height of pretentiousness. The architecture and design is awesome until you step through the archways and gardens and waterfalls to the vast array of slot machines, craps,poker etc which is what it is really all about. Parting you from your money in the best possible taste with famous chefs, top performers and mind blowing effects all paid for by people losing. Had the best burger I've ever eaten though at Bellagio.
The GF is very taken with the place but even she doubts she would be likely to return.... Once is enough. It is so busy, noisy, frantic and that's before you start counting the cost.

3 DAYS IN VEGAS.......are you crazy ?

5.5.2014
Its hard to know where to begin. I'm sitting in a campsite next to Route 66, the temperature yesterday climbed above 100 and I'm watching a stream of bikers go past.......but I'm getting ahead of myself

30/4. Caught the Heathrow express from Ipswich at 10am, terminal 5 by 1.30pm no hassle and a fairly decent meal to while away the time. Our BA flight left from the last and furthest gate available and including the shuttle took 20 mins to reach only to discover that boarding was delayed and the 16.50 flight didn't start loading until 17.20 and didn't get off the ground until 17.45. Plane was full and the journey was enhanced by the antics of a party heading to Vegas for a wedding who stood up drinking for most of the 101/2 hrs.
I'm small and leg room was tight and the rubbish ear phones rendered the excellent choice of films unwatchable. Managed to sleep a few hours and landed on time thankfully at 19.25 feeling very weary as body clock is saying 3am.
Takes 2 hrs to unload, get through immigration, customs, walk miles and queue for a cab which charged 28$ to go a long way round to our hotel which you can see from the airport...it being the Stratosphere and the tallest....queue to check in and finally get to our room. Not luxurious but big and serviceable. First impressions are that we've landed in a theme park. Ring D&M to meet for a drink but they have crashed out having arrived at 13.30. We settle for a wander round the hotel checking out restaurants ,buffets,bars and slot machines etc and eventually (queue) to take the lift to the 108th floor after being searched. Stunning panoramic view round the tower with everything laid out below so had an expensive small can of beer and a juice and wound down.
The strip is as bright as you can imagine. However body clocks dictated that we retire early to recuperate.
Wide awake by 7 and out by 8 to walk up to the Greyhound terminal to sort tickets out for the first leg of the Amtrak journey in 2 weeks time. Good job we did as it was a complete cock up as I had suspected and a good thing we hadn't left it until we returned to Vegas . I'm not going to detail the problem as there will be a stiff letter of complaint which will be more than the usual 3 pages but we wasted many hours over the next 3 days and many £ s on phone calls at first. Fortunately the room had free WiFi so I managed to use Skype in the end at 0.014 p a minute as opposed to £1.39 on my vodaphone or 0.89 on the gf's Tesco phone......which ran out of credit and refused to load any more and said our cards were blocked which meant phoning Nationwide to check they were not and Tesco eventually to discover that their systems were down and would not accept top ups over £20  and as we  had tried unsuccessfully about 10 times to load £30  we were now blocked and finally I got through to guy called Neal who sorted it and gave us £10 credit for the hassle and I was losing the will to live and still talking to Mark Travel on one phone and Amtrak on another trying to sort the stupid mess out. So my view of Vegas was jaundiced from the start.
We met D&M for lunch and drinks at the Bellagio Thurs lunchtime at last and had a very jolly time as they showed us around. They were  still feeling a bit grim so we amused ourselves in the evening on the Strip watching the sites and had dinner at the Strat .
On Friday we had our trip to the grand canyon which was superb. Picked up at 10.30, shuttle to a small airfield and flown out to airfield in the GC National Park where we joined a coach to drive us to various locations on the south rim for the next 4 hours. Very hot weather and better than we ever expected. A breathtaking sight.