The Pitts

MarNic

The Pitts

Initially we were mncepitt now we are back as MarNic...

Time has passed, the children are grown and it's back to just the two of us, travelling the world one step at a time. Please join us on our escapades (preferably without any more little hiccups!)

If you want to follow the girls, simply click onto their blog at CharBeth



North America » United States » California » Los Angeles March 13th 2015

For those wondering why the posts stop in early December it is fair to say that we had a bit of mishap on the trip. Sadly Mark was struck by a vehicle in Los Angeles and was rushed to hospital on what would have been 5 December in Australia – on the evening of 4 December local date. The rest of the trip had to be cancelled and a medical evacuation was necessary 2 weeks after the accident. Thankfully he is now recovering from some fairly serious injuries back home in Australia. A big shout out to the Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles (http://cedars-sinai.edu)– their care and assistance was greatly appreciated. We received tremendous assistance from our dear friends Ken and Debbie and help from complete strangers – for that we are truly thankful. We ... read more

North America » United States » California » Los Angeles » LAX December 4th 2014

I'll make the entry brief as there really wasn't a lot to mention. We were up at 6am and out the door by 7. We'd had a lovely restful night's sleep and it was about a ten minute walk to the Amtrak station. Checking in again was simple. We did need our tickets and identification then handed over our bags. The heaviest was about 47 pounds (not sure of the conversion to kg) and the lightest was just over 44... We grabbed a station coffee (don't do it! Really... Don't do it!!) then boarded the train. The trip was relatively uneventful except for the couple having a melt-down/breakup behind us. Dinner and a Show!!! We did notice a lot of homeless encampments along the way, and I have a couple of pics - it is really ... read more

North America » United States » California » Oakland December 3rd 2014

Our last full day in San Francisco and with the wet weather (continuing) and traffic, we decided to relocate tonight to make it easy to get to the train station on time... So we booked into the Inn @ Jack London Square. Let me tell you, it's a lovely location. Nice room, well appointed and comfortable. But let me begin the day again. So with all the best of intentions, we woke at 6am, then rolled back over and snoozed, before we finally got up and about at 9am... Of course with teenaged daughters it took a while, but we got to breakfast before it was done :) Then we headed back into San Francisco's city centre. Of course it's stills raining (I think that's just our luck in SF!) So we hurried around and found ... read more

North America » United States » California » San Francisco » Alcatraz December 2nd 2014

hello world... As you can see we got to Alcatraz today. Hubs and I have never been there and neither have our daughters, so the aim was to be out early today. e were up at 6am and grabbed a quick breakfast (amid a small amount of drama...) then we headed out early. Catching the "F" line all the way to Fisherman's Market, we took the ride right through to the end and ended up just outside the wharf we needed for our Alcatraz tour. We were there about 8.30am and grabbed coffee at the cafe there and took a quick look at the miniature buildings and were ready to line up at 9.30am - you definitely need to be there about half an hour beforehand so you can collect your tickets. The initial lineup is ... read more
Colt Tower
Waiting for the boat to approach the wharf so we can board
Nicola and Charlotte


Well, we passed our first full day in San Francisco - so many stories and so much to write!!! We passed an indifferent nights in our hotel - it was late when we got in and there was a lot of movement and noise. We were later getting up, it was after nine when we got moving. Breakfast was interesting... I'm thinking tomorrow we'll give the orange juice a miss and go straight to the waffles and coffee... no jam just butter. :) Then we got ourselves back to the room, collected purses and backpacks and went for the first walk (we've already done a bit of that this holiday) and found a Walgreens (pharmacy) and collected our clipper cards (they allow us to use the public transport for 3 days and cost $US26 including the ... read more
The view from Macy's
Clock on Market Street

North America » United States November 30th 2014

So... We've arrived in San Francisco. We had a great trip on the Coastal Starlight from Van Nuys to Jack London Station at Oakland. Then we caught the bus to the Hyatt Regency and finally a taxi to our hotel. Will update that more down the track. It's late - 11pm but we've settled into the room and the girls have already crawled into bed. We're only going to do a cursory update tonight then a proper one tomorrow after we've slept. Needless to say I was a little teary leaving our friends... I already miss them! The train trip was pretty good, the only drawback was the two young guys in the seats in front of us. They were a little special. Quite obnoxious - but given they're the only ones like that who we've ... read more

North America » United States » California » Santa Clarita November 27th 2014

Hello world, we're back after another full day of activities. This morning we headed to Rancho Deluxe in Santa Clarita - the site of many movies and television shows, including Bones, Wipeout, CSI and even Utopia. We got a personalised tour by the owner, who toured us around and showed us a range of sites that he'd built. It was a truly amazing experience. We saw the site where Abraham Lincoln was "born" in a recent movie and even the location where Cameron Diaz and Gerard Butler have filmed. Does that give us any movie cachet?? We did our first mail home of the trip too... Caution advised here. If you use a mailing/packing company, check the price first. This hurt. A lot. Next we visited the local Rotary Club and handed over a copy of ... read more
IMG_5901
IMG_5860
IMG_5861

North America » United States » California » Santa Clarita November 26th 2014

Hello world! We've arrived in California and are happily settled in Santa Clarita with our lovely friends. The flight was wonderful, except for the lady in 62F who decided to recline until breakfast at 4.00am. Bah Humbug! Good thing Charlotte didn't need to go to the toilet a lot. Then when our friend Ken picked us up and took us our for breakfast in a diner. Yes, they do complimentary refills. :D The girls had pancakes with cream and strawberries and they were huge! I'm not sure of the name of the diner though... But if I find out, I'll mention it in another blog. After that, we headed to their place and dropped our bags off then went to Walmart. We had the best server - Marina(??) She set up our phones for us - ... read more
DSCI0033
IMG_5764
IMG_5765

Oceania » Australia » Queensland » Gayndah November 20th 2014

So... Nearly ready. Beth has one full day of school and Charlotte one full day of work. Mark is now on leave. Suitcases are packed, electronics charged up (except those needed for formal) and we're ready. The news for California is saying clear skies... Remember to subscribe now, so you'll see our updates! "MarNic"... read more

Oceania » Australia » New South Wales » Sydney » Olympic Park August 12th 2014

Travelling to Sydney for a conference has bought us to the Novatel Sydney Olympic Park a 4 ½ star hotel in the heart of the Sydney Olympic Park. After the first night we can easily say that it is a comfortable hotel with friendly staff and a good venue for a conference. The venue is out of town someway and has a number of restaurants and eateries in its immediate vicinity. Our room along with a number on our floor has the most amazing curtains that would be at home in an episode of “Dexter”. A lovely evening was had with friends on our first night but we have discovered that the drinks are priced in the upper end of the market and the evening meal in the restaurant was lovely though again not very price ... read more
The "Dexter" curtains
ANZ Stadium
Cathy Freeman Park




Tot: 0.184s; Tpl: 0.006s; cc: 15; qc: 92; dbt: 0.0681s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.2mb