Our California Road Trip

April 21, 2019. After a good nights sleep (I think we'd have slept through anything by then), I went down to the reception area of the hotel, where they served a buffet style breakfast selection, of fruits, pastries, breads and bagels.  Grab an IKEA tray from the stack (hey - we have two of these at home!!), and stack it up with as much as you can eat, grab a couple of coffees (or tea, hot chocolate, fruit juice, etc...), then take it back to your room to consume in privacy and comfort. For our first day out in America, we drove back up CA-1 north, to a spot to the south west of the Golden Gate Bridge, called Lands End Lookout. We thought it was just a view point out across the Golden Gate, but found that it is also the start (or end - depending on your perspective) of a coastal walk that extends for a little over a mile eastwards towards the bridge, ending at a place called Eagle Point.  The end of the trail overlooks Baker Beach and Marshall's Beach, which lead your eye...

April 20, 2019. Leg 2 was on an Air New Zealand plane as hoped, and if we thought the Eva Air flight was good – this was another step up on that. Plenty of leg room (you actually had to lean forward slightly to be able to reach the controls on the screen), and our dedicated cabin staff were constantly prowling and plying us with drinks and snacks.  Tray tables are stored in the armrest, so there is no risk of you ending up with a lapful of coffee when the person in front suddenly lays their seat back as far as they possibly can during meal service! My only observation of premium economy seats is that as you cannot raise the armrest, you are confined width-ways when trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in (first world problems, eh?). Other than that – I can wholeheartedly say that premium economy was great - well worth the extra cost!  Unfortunately however, we had minor turbulence most of the way, which meant that we both just dozed at best, and didn’t really get...

April 20, 2019. Just landed in Auckland, for a brief stopover of a couple of hours. The first leg was on 'stand-in' airline Eva Air, due to unscheduled maintenance on the plane we were supposed to be in, but the next leg should be on an actual Air NZ plane (we think). We have had previous (economy) flights to Auckland shifted to Eva Air stand-ins, by Air New Zealand, and while not quite the real-deal, they've generally been quite adequate in the air. The main disadvantage is that they do not seem to support online check-in very well (e.g. not allowing seat selection), or the baggage drop self-service terminals (aaaah! so that's why we couldn't use the self-serve terminals at Sydney). Having said that, as our first experience of premium economy, I must admit that the standard of comfort, food, and service on the plane was very good. Worth every penny so far... Next stop - San Francisco! See you there...

April 20, 2019. The day has finally arrived, and we are off. Karen's brother gave us a lift to the airport (thanks Steve), where we prepared to face the usual battles of Sydney Airport. We had already checked in online, so only really needed to tag our luggage and drop it off. Unfortunately, the self-service bag drop terminals wouldn't work for us (we found out why a little later), but as we had booked premium economy tickets for the first time in our lives, we decided to take advantage of the little luxuries that afforded us in the airport (actually - the dedicated check-in line, and early boarding were the only luxuries for us in the airport terminal itself, but very welcome nonetheless). There was just 1 person in front of us at the premium economy check-in line, so I think it may even have been quicker than if we'd done the whole self-service thing anyway! Getting through security and passport control wasn't too bad (I do like the new electronic passport pro...

April 16, 2019. It is coming around quickly now, and we are beginning to realise how little time we've got left to get ourselves organised. Planning and packing for 35C in Vegas, goodness knows what in Death Valley, and potentially close to zero in Yosemite is proving a challenging prospect, especially as neither of us travel light anyway! Deciding which camera gear not to take is also a big wrench for me - I'd take the lot if I could carry it all, but I need to be ruthless, so camera, a couple of lenses (OK - three lenses), tripod and flash... Oh, I just know that at some point I'm going to say "if only I'd brought the..."

April 12, 2019. Thanks for joining me! To celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary year, my wife Karen and I (I’m Graham by the way) are embarking on a driving holiday, touring around the southern part of California, and taking in a little bit of Nevada (and also Arizona, as it turned out) too. The plan is to fly into, and spend a few days in San Francisco, before driving down the coast through the Big Sur towards Los Angeles.  Then we’ll head inland, crossing into Nevada to visit Vegas and the Grand Canyon.  Next we’ll be driving north again, through Death Valley, and on to our final destination Yosemite National Park, via Mammoth Lakes.  It will also be Karen's birthday while we are in Yosemite - somewhere she has long wanted to visit. Being a keen photographer, I am looking forward to all kinds of photo opportunities along the way, from the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, to the lights and glitz of Vegas, the ruggedness of the Grand Canyon and Death Valley, and ...