grand canyon, miami and orlando!

GRAND CANYON..words cannot describe how amazing it was to actually be there! It was huge and you felt soo tiny in comparison, wouldn't want to fall off the edge ( many people have actually died there- didnt stop people getting as close as they could though!) Could see for miles..rocks 1,000s yrs old and we caught glimpses of the phantom ranch and colorado river. it was a 10hr coach journey round trip, very long day with a stop at the hoover dam on the way, very impressive the way it was built in to the rock! On one side you were in nevada and the other side, arizona!
We expected cooler temperatures in miami..how wrong we were! It was hot like vegas but also very humid and sticky and the midges were at large! Hayley got bitten quite a few times! On our first day we chilled at South beach and swam in the sea in the lush warm water! Could have stayed there for hours! Left the beach at 8pm and went to make some pasta!! we've not had that in a while-too expensive!
On the second day we went to miami seaquarium, paid enough to play and swim with dolphins! Such an amazing experience, so worth while, priceless! After swimming we went to catch some sea animal shows, the sealions were great lots of fun to watch but the highlight of the day was watching lolita the giant killer whale do her stuff..jumping out of the water and splashing everyone in the audience!
We left miami expecting to arrive in orlando fairly early however we encountered 2 delays on the train, the second being a crash with a truck on the lines but nobody died.. and we got to our destination a few hours late..longest train journey to date.
In orlando we made a trip to the kennedy space center. It was rather exciting because we didnt realise our trip closely coincided with a space shuttle launch to the international space station. We saw the launch pad and shuttle fairly close up and we got to see how they prepared for the launch and we had a detailed look into the history and the future of space travel! Due to fully booked trains we spent another night here, yesterday we went into downtown orlando ( business district) and went to the cinema to see the hangover..hilarious from beginning to end! Even more funny because we'd already experienced Vegas!
Overnight train tonight to Raleigh where we will make a quick stop before heading to washington D.C.

VEGAS!

Booked a hotel for 3 nights OMG amazing..felt soo spoilt..huge kingsize bed..big enough for 3! plenty of room for 2! nice ensuite bathroom, really clean! Arrived tuesday night and went to explore straight away, soo many bright lights and cooler inside than out! Went shopping on wednesday and were given club VIP passes. Our hotel was right in the middle of the action next to New York-New York, Tropicana, MGM and Luxor. We went to club LA X in Luxor that night using our VIP entry ( very overated!!) Spent thursday relaxing in the spa at the hotel and by the pool, lovely lazy day which we needed, followed by lots of dancing and free drinks at Coyote Ugly and club ROK in New York-New York. Friday we moved to a hostel as weekend rates are very expensive here, not the nicest hostel weve stayed in but still on the strip and easy access to places by bus. We saw some spectacular circus acts, treasure island pirate show and the prettiest fountains at the bellagio hotel, graceful dancing water in time with music..was really magical and a great end to the day. Gambled on the penney slots..didnt spend much won some lost some. Going to the freemont experience today and off to see the grand canyon south rim tommorrow, that will be a long day. Flying to miami on tuesday. ttfn!xx

LA, San Diego and Vegas!

3 nights at surf city hostel on Hermosa Beach, LA gave us time to relax in the sun..literally spent 3 days chillin on the beach admiring the scenery, surf and hunky volleyball players! met lots of people, some by the beach, and we met some rich kids in a bar who were paying $300 for a table and bottle of vodka haha! $100 for a vodka bottle..free drinks for us, $700 bill for them!! we also got took out for an early breakfast at dennys 24/7! 3 nights in San Diego, first hostel was very quiet ( not that hayley noticed as she slept for 14hrs!) went to watch a baseball match, San Diego Padres vs New York Mets. Similiar game to rounders, Mets won, exciting towards the end but not much scoring happpening! Went to another beach,La Jolla, in the evening, very scenic and then we went out for food and drinks with some other people from the hostel. We were a random bunch, 2 english girls, 2 austrian girls, one swiss guy and one new yorker! The second hostel in San Diego was very lively partied with french candians from the hostel. We went to the zoo during the day..the polar bears were fantastic to watch, they clearly knew how to entertain the audience and loved the attention! Pandas and koalas were v cute and amazing to see and the meerkats also cute and lively! A long days travel from San Diego to Las Vegas. We were mesmerized by the bright lights and we had to go and explore on the first night. Hotel is in a great location on the strip..its like a huge castle :) opposite New York-New York with theme park ride outside! we still have lots to explore and 7 nights to do it in! off for some gambling lessons later!! love sarah and hayley xxx

los angeles

4 nights in holly wood:
1. arrived and went on a hollywood tour, saw beverly hills, famous houses, rodeo drive, hollywood sign, hollywood boulevard (main strip) and sunset boulevard (famous bars!) met some random guys from texas in a bar owned by aston kutcher!

2. went on bus to venice beach, hari krishna festival happening - FREE FOOD! (actually not tht great, but was free, so was good!)
got tickets to Americas got talent!

3. watched americas got talent, met and spoke to david hasslehoff! saw sharon osborne and piers morgan!
went to farmers market and that night went to the viper room, rock club, used to be owned by jonny depp!

4. went to universal studios! amazing! brlliant! etc etc!

xxxx