WayneVicki

Our last full day in New York means our last full day in America. To say we loved it would be a massive understatement. Everything has been how we had hoped and in many instances better. Today started off with us booking tickets to the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum complex. On board the former USS Intrepid, a former WW2 air craft carrier and now home to all sorts of interesting things. The main exhibits include a Concord and the Space Shuttle Enterprise. The space shuttle is an astro nerds dream come true. To know you are within a metre of a space craft that had actually completed many missions in to space was beyond amazing. From the Intrepid museum we headed off to Macy's for Vicki to have a look and get some last ... read more

Tonight we had dinner at an Irish Pub, O'Lunneys, on 45th Street just off Broadway in Times Square. The food was great and again we were treated to fantastic service form our Irish waitress. Following dinner we went and saw the musical Evita, starring Ricky Martin, at the Marquis Theatre part of the Marriott Hotel in Times Square. A very nice theatre but in all honesty the show was not my cup of tea, I could feel some nodding off going on particularly in the first half. Vicki certainly enjoyed the show so all was not lost. After the show we had a hot chocolate and then rode the subway home. Right throughout this part of our trip I have been mindful of our safety because of the sheer size of New York how do you ... read more

We arrived in New York around 6:45pm last night and got a cab from LaGuardia Airport to our brownstone on Lexington Avenue. The cabby was a really cool black guy complete with a leather flat cap and chomping on his tooth pick but he knew how to get around NYC. He was pretty smooth and the traffic was fairly heavy. We remain unimpressed with airport security but all other ground services at the airport are amazing. Our brownstone is pretty basic but it does have a small kitchenette, is clean and the bed comfortable. We slept pretty well last night and despite Lexington being one of the main thoroughfares from the Bronx to Downtown it is pretty quiet. You do hear the rumble of the subway but it is not too loud, similar to distant thunder. ... read more

Up at 5am this morning to depart San Francisco at 7:40am. You really do need to allow yourself plenty of time when checking in at US airports. The locals kind of shrug it off but all the Aussies we have met in our travels have all found it the most negative part of travelling here. I guess the consolation prize is that once you are through all the security you are travelling with a lot of peace of mind there will be no trouble enroute. The service from United was actually pretty good. We left right on time and flew in to Washington DC for a change to a smaller jet for the trip to Buffalo, NY. Both services were on time departing and arriving, the service on board was friendly enough. The negative was the ... read more

We have just arrived home at 10:30pm after an extended day of sightseeing in the San Francisco and Sausalito region. After breakfast at the guest house, and meeting our other residents Gordon and Claudia we caught the "munis" to Fishermans Wharf at San Francisco. After getting off at the wrong stop, about three stops early today as yesterday we were about three stops late, we ended up at Hyde Street Pier. Hyde Street Pier is still a working pier with a number of boat builders/repairers there as well as a number of older boats that are now tourist attractions. After a look around Hyde Street Pier we headed off to Sausalito by bay ferry. The ferry ride over was very comfortable and despite a history of sea sickness I felt fine. We enjoyed clam chowder for ... read more