neilandjoyce

21 September Spent the morning at Waldorf-Astoria for a coffee and tea. Difficult to get in as Pres Obama is staying there and heaps of security personnel around. Had to go through airpoty style security to get in. Walked up to Central Park and strolled along 57th Avenue. Had lunch at a little deli. Back to the hotel for a rest, and dinner on the cheap. Went out to a bar on 9th Avenue and chatted to some locals during happy hour. $3- bottles of beer, pretty good. 22 September Last day in the big apple. Went to Times Square and had lunch at the Red Lobster. I had a lobster tail, scallops, and prawns. Just had soup in a sourdough bowl followed by prawns. Delicious. Schuttle to the airpoty about 3 for 6.30pm flight with ... read more

Raining this morning, so a damp start to the day. Breakfast at Subway, and on to the Uptown Loop bus, and free rain ponchos. Got off at the Dakota Building and took some photos. Walked across the road to Central Park and took photos of the Imagine sign in the pavement, and photos of Strawberry Fields. Walked across the park and took photos of the lake, Naumberg bandshell, Bethesda Fountain terrace area, Alice in Wonderland statue, and the Lake Boathouse. The boathouse was closed due to an industrial protest. They were quite vocal about it, too. We had a cuppa at a little place on the pond, and had a chat to some english people there. Ended up back on the bus and got off at Times Square again. Went to a few stores to look ... read more

Went on the all loops bus this morning to Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Airport type security for the boat trip. Beautiful weather again today, Discovered when we got to the Statue that you must pre book visits to go UP the statue before arrival, at least a week ahead. Walked around and took lots of photos, then got back on the boat to go to Ellis Island. They certainly processed a lot of immigrants through there. Back on land, we got on the Downtown Loop bus and went to the Rockefeller Centre, very impressive with shopping Plazas underneath over several floors. Had lunch at Subway here. Walked to Empire State Building and went up with our pre paid tickets to the 86th floor. Fantastic views over all of Manhattan and New Jersey. The building ... read more

We are in the Big Apple. Went on a Circle Line Cruise today, 3 hrs around Manhattan. Wonderful sights, although the northern end was a bit boring. Hopefully, took some great shots of Ellis Islland and Statue of Liberty, and all the major buildings along the way. Walked down to Grand Central station and the Chrysler building this afternoon. The blocks between the avenues which run north and south are huge, and are short between the streets which run east west. On the way back we went to Times Square and took a photo of us on the big screen. Hope it worked OK. We then went to Bubba GumpShrimp in Times Square for dinner. Very nice. I now know how Forrest Gump made most of his money. Tomorrow we are going to organise the all ... read more

Went down to the beach club last night before dinner. Only just made it 30 mins before closing time. Quite relaxing watching the waves roll in, and the cruise ships departing Miami. Up in the morning for the shuttle transfer to the airport. Flight on time, and went well. 3.30 pm. Arrived at La Guardia after flying in over Manhattan. Spectacular sight. Took 2 hours to get out of the airport and to our hotel. The traffic is crazy here. Distrikt Hotel is well located, although our room is on the 2nd floor and has no view. Went for a stroll to see what the local area has in the way of eateries. Found a nice Thai place for dinner at a very reasonable $30 for both of us including tip. We are looking forward to ... read more

We went on the Everglades Airboat tour today, While waiting for our tour bus, a police vehicle went past with flashing lights, followed by a movie crew filming a girl riding a motorcycle, sort of. The bike was attached to the film vehicle by a tow bar. On arrival at the Everglades we boarded an airboat, and were issued with earplugs. They are bloody noisy things. We saw some alligators in the wild, and took plenty of photos. Back at the dock we were given a show with one of the rangers hand feeding some rather large alligators, and explaining a few facts about them. They are protected, after almost being completely wiped out. There are now about 1.5 million 'gators in Florida. One of the big problems here is exotic wildlife being released into Greater ... read more

Managed to get through and went on HoHo bus this morning around South Beach Art Deco area, and then to Bayside. Some really beautiful buildings in South Beach. Took lots of photos.Took the City Tour afterwards, which went through Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, Little Havana and downtown Miami. Went past the Bayfront Sonesta in Coconut Grove where we stayed the last time we were here. Coral Gables is a very expensive and exclusive. Houses must only be painted certain colours, nothing garish. For Sale signs cannot be larger than 6" x 8", which makes it difficult to spot them. Went to Bayfront for lunch, and I had a water massage as my legs were aching a bit. Very relaxing. Went back to our hotel and had aswim and spa. The weather is in the 90s and ... read more

Back on the bus and heading for Miami. First stop, Kennedy Space Centre. Absolutely amazing to see how they got men to the moon. Spent four hours there, but could have used more. Traffic in Miami was chaotic, with diversions caused by a police incident with about a dozen police cars involved. Don't know the cause, but it was an experience. Dropped at our hotel about 7 pm. What a lovely surprise, upgraded to a beachview suite on the 3rd floor. Many thanks, Leanne. We had dinner at the restaurant downstairs, very nice, but pricier than we expected. We may have trouble with excursions as we have forgotten to confirm, and no response via telephone at this hour. Will try first thing in the morning. went for a walk along the sidewalk. Interesting being accosted by ... read more

Went to the Premium Outlet mall today and wandered around. Bought new thongs as my old ones broke yesterday. Joyce lost her sunnies so we bought her a pair of Dockers. Had lunch at the mall and back to the hotel. Took a larger group of 15 to Amici restaurant tonight. Everyone enjoyed their meal, and were happy with our recommendation. We went to Downtown Disney after dinner and wandered around for a while. Very commercial area.... read more

September 8 Went out to dinner with a group in Beale Street, after a trolley ride from the hotel. Good band playing at the cafe. Wewnt for a stroll down Beale Street and listened to the music at a few places. Kick ass beers 32oz for $3 or $4. Cheap way to get full. September 9 Back on the bus and head for New Orleans. Stopped at a Walmart for breakfast and Joyce bought some jeans, pair of shorts and trackie pants for $21 in total. Stopped in Jackson Mississippi for lunch. I bought a couple of shirts at JC Penney. Drove over a 40 miles long bridge over Lake Pontachain to get here. Lovely hotel not far from Bourbon Street. Dinner and cruise on board steam boat 'Natchez' and then we all went for a ... read more