The Grand Canyon, lost for words! 10th & 11th September 2008 Words cannot describe the majestic grandeur of the Grand Canyon. It is awe-inspiring. We got up early, checked out and left Williams at 9 a.m. to drive up through the Kaibab National Forest to the canyon. In our ignorance, we were unaware that the forest went right up to the south rim of the canyon. It was a beautiful drive. When we arrived, we parked in a car park and then deliberately walked away along the rim trail before stopping to look. We wanted to be away from everyone else and just soak up the view on our own. It wasn’t busy anyway; September is a good time to visit. Then we stopped, turned and looked; and we were speechless. It is so stunning. We ... read more

Here are a few photos of the rain in (Vegas) mentioned on the last blog on Monday 8th September... read more

From L.A. to Las Vegas 6th - 9th September 2008 Santa Monica early mornings are not so different to others in California except that there are more joggers, cyclists, Tai Chi enthusiasts and bag people on the promenade. All week I have been waking early due to the time difference (and I am an early-riser anyway) to creep outside, leaving John sleeping for Spain, the UK and the US (I envy him) to have a fag and watch the world go by. By 6.30 there are always dozens of people about doing their thing and strutting their stuff. I don’t envy them, however, because most of them eat far more burgers and fries than I do. I just enjoy watching them. It is a calm time of the day, mist rolling in from the ocean as ... read more

CITY OF ANGLES, Los Angeles CA 4th September 2008 “LA is a great big freeway” as the song goes. Indeed it is, however it is surprisingly easy to get around. We stayed in a motel at Carpenteria near Santa Barbara last night. Santa Barbara was a bit pricey so we went further along the beach to its less-glitzy neighbour. The motel was a bit down at heel but it was clean and very cheap so OK. This morning we left early and got to LA around 10 a.m. coming in to the city on Highway 101 from the west. As we got closer to Hollywood the traffic thickened up so we got off the freeway, stopped for coffee and drove over part of the Santa Monica mountain range, down Laurel Canyon and straight on to Hollywood ... read more

THE BIG SUR, MONTEREY COUNTY Sunday 31st August Today we drove down to Santa Cruz, had coffee at a little beach town called Capitola and then on to the Monterey Peninsula and Carmel. Capitola is real hometown America at its most charming. Tomorrow is Labour Day so lots of families were at the beach for the weekend. The old jetty was built in 1857 and like the town itself is unashamedly rustic, basic and simple. Along the riverside people were preparing floats of flowers for the celebrations the next day, whilst others played or watched a “horseshoe throwing” competition on the sand. Other families had made a golf course out of sand castles on the beach. Amazingly, this was all happening by 9 a.m. We had left Palo Alto really early at 7 a.m. because we ... read more