San Francisco and our roadtrip down Highway 1.

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Hello everyone...

We've had a busy but very enjoyable time in California!! Sorry we havn't been in touch recently, lack of free internet access and poor phone reception!!

Whilst in San Francisco we stayed at the International Hostel, the first room they gave us though stank of urine but Simon (the hero) managed to get our rooms changed and the one we ended up in was much better although we both would not stay in that hostel again!! It was in a great location though to rest our heads after a couple of busy sightseeing days!
We went to Fisherman's Wharf and saw the famous sea lions on pier 39, took a visit to Alcatraz which was kind of creepy but really interesting, saw Lombard street the most crooked street in the world! Went up Coit tower to get a great view over the city, walked on Golden gate bridge (where Simon's fear of heights set in!!) and went to the pizza place Jake and Rose suggested after their visit, GREAT PIZZA!! (Thanks for the tip guys). It was a packed couple of days but we both enjoyed San Francisco!
We then left to start our journey down the coastal highway 1.
First stop was Monterey, a small quaint seaside town, we then carried on down through Big Sur (a national park) where we went to the annual jade festival (basically a hippy festival!!)
Next we stopped in San Simeon where we saw elephant seals on the beach before continuing to San Luis Obispo where we stayed in our best hostel yet, it was very homely and they provided mixture for us to cook american pancakes for breakfast each morning (Simon was definitely better at cooking them!!) Whilst we were here we also managed to get a free wine tasting voucher which provided us with a fun afternoon tasting some very nice wine and trying to pretend we actually knew what we were talking about!!
From here we stayed in Santa Barbara a much bigger town on the seafront. We stayed in a 12 bed dorm and Abi was the only girl in there (smelly boys!) The town farmers market was on when we were there and made us feel right at home!! But being the tight budget travellers we are, we just went round getting as many free tasters as we could!!
Then we continued on to LA where we went to Malibu and Venice (muscle) beach before arriving at Bob and Barbara Coleberds' house earlier this evening! They kindly invited us to stay with them during our last few days here in LA. They have a lovely house on the outskirts of LA with a swimming pool and very friendly dog, Carly. They have provided us with a lovely meal this evening and they are helping us find our way around LA. Before we fly to the Cook Islands on Sunday night.
One thing we can't quite believe is how big Halloween is here, there are fields of pumpkins everywhere, loads of decorated houses, Pumpkin festivals and even dedicated Halloween shops, it's almost as big as our Christmas here!!

Hope everyone is well in the UK and it's not getting too cold!!

Lots of love to you all, miss you,

Abi and Simon x x x x x x

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Comments

[Rose]

Amazing!
Guys, sounds awesome, and unbelievable that you went to the same pizza place, now you know what we mean! best pizza ever! stay safe, Love Rose and Jake

[rob mintern]

oi oi
great to hear what your doing guys, wish i was doing it all. Soundslike your making the most of it :) enjoy. xxxx yes we are all missing you both.

[Mani]

5 x 16 GB SD card for the camera I hope
I enjoy what I am reading, sounds like you guys are ticking all the boxes on the west coast. San Simeon, brilliant. I am sure Simon is clicking away with his SLR camera, I would love to see the pictures once you have returned. Enjoy your time in the US and make sure to occupy the first class again on your next flight. All the best! Mani