Las Vegas

Saturday - Day 15

We were really excited about heading off to Hoover Dam today, which is only a short drive from Las Vegas. The trip in through Boulder City is really scenic, overlooking Lake Mead. We arrived at the dam just before 12noon, but had to wait until 1.30pm for the tour, so we had some time to look around at the visitor centre. The tour took us inside the dam wall and we were able to look out some of the vents. The girls were able to stand on the boarder between Nevada and Arizona.

Late in the afternoon we headed back to the stip for a buffet dinner at the Stratosphere and we also visited the Lion enclosure at the MGM Grand

Overnight: Annette's Las Vegas

Sunday - Day 16

This morning we went for breakfast at Linda and John's house, where they made us sensational breakfast burritos. Afterwards we went to Red Rock. As Annette said - Ayers Rock wouldn't look out of place here. Amazing scenery and there are so many walks, trails and rock climbing opportunities. We did a short walk before returning to a local casino where Shane and the kids went and saw National Treasure Book of Secrets and I went shopping at a local outdoor mall.

Overnight: Annette's Las Vegas

Monday - Day 17

Today started with shopping for the girls and Shane went to the gym for 3 hrs. In the afternoon we went to a Christmas open house at Holly's and met her family and friends. Including her really cute grand daughter Addison.

Afterwards we came home and logged into msn with Annette's camera and talked to the family back home. It was hard to hear everything that was going on as there was lots of noise but it was great to see everyone having a great time on Christmas Day.

Annette, Linda, John and Skyler came over for dinner. Linda made really nice lemon drop martini's, so watch out for those when we get home.

Overnight: Annette's Las Vegas

Tuesday - Day 18 (Christmas Day)

Santa came this morning for the girls. After we opened presents, Shane and Ali went for a hike up the mountain near Annette's house. We had a huge Christmas lunch at the fire station - fried turkey, prime rib, yams, stuffed potatoes and heaps of sweets. I think that we probably rolled out of the fire station and headed home. No dinner was needed after such a great lunch.

Las Vegas

Thursday - Day 13
It was time for a bit of R&R, so it was a quiet morning at Annette's house and then we headed in to the strip. We went and had a look at the Luxor and visted the King Tut Museum and went on a ride. After that we met Holly and Flynn at Planet Hollywood where we had dinner and saw the show Stomp Out Loud. This was probably the most amazing show that I have ever seen. Kind of a tap dogs with music made from a variety of household items such as brooms, garbage bins, newspaper. It was entertaining but also funny. Here is a link to the website where they have a really short video on the home page - http://www.stompoutloudvegas.com/home.html

Overnight: Annette's Las Vegas

Friday - Day 14
Again it was another quiet morning. I had breakfast with Holly, Annette and Linda and in the afternoon Shane went to the gym with Holly while the kids and I went shopping. In the afternoon Holly picked up the kids for a sleepover and she organised tickets to Phantom of the Opera for Shane and I. I have never seen this show before even though it played in Melbourne for a long time. The show was amazing and the scenery completely over the top in Las Vegas style. The show was on at the Venetian so we go to have a bit of a wander around.

Overnight: Annette's (and Holly's) Las Vegas

Las Vegas

Wednesday - Day 12
This morning we packed up all our gear that we had left at Katherine's and headed off to Las Vegas. The drive was really beautiful and we managed a couple of stops at factory outlets along the way. We arrived at Annette's place at around 6.30pm and went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. We had a great night with lots of laughs. Annette is very generously letting us stay in her beautiful house while we are in Las Vegas.

Overnight: Annette's Las Vegas

Back in Mexico City

Sunday - Day 9
Unfortunately it was time to leave Taxco. We packed up from Hotel Melendez and headed back in the bus, arriving back at the bus station around 3pm. An hour at the internet cafe and then back on the subway to Mexico City. It dont think that I will complain again about the crowding on Melbourne public transport. These trains run every few minutes and we got on at the first stop and still didnt get a seat. As the train got more crowded they just pushed harder to get in the doors. We settled back into the same room at Hotel Catedral and headed off to the ballet - well I am not sure that I would call it ballet - it was mostly tap and I didnt see a pair of ballet shoes for the entire night.
Overnight: Hotel Catedral

Monday - Day 10

The kids were feeling a bit off colour this morning so we decided that a quiet morning at the hotel was needed. We have been going at a fast pace since arriving in Mexico City. There is so much to see and do in just 8 days. We will definitely need to come back for another visit. After luch we headed to the Mercardo De Artesanias De La Cuidadela (art & craft market) on the Subway. We have finally mastered travelling around on the train system - for 20 cents you can get anywhere in the city and they even have some carriages set asside for women and children. The market was fantastics with plenty of silver, Mexican glass, pottery, beading and mexican style clothing. On the way back we visted the ice skating rink that has been set up in the Zocolo. You cab ice skate for free if you are prepared to queue for about 3 hrs.

Overnight: Hotel Catedral Mexico City

Tuesday - Day 11

Today was our last day in Mexico and we had to check out of the hotel by 2pm. Not wanting to waste any time as there was still so much to do, we headed on the subway to the anthropology museum. The museum was great and as we were leaving we noticed the voladores in the park out the front, so with limited time we decided to watch and then head back to the hotel. It became a bit of a rush but we finally made it with a few minutes to spare. We caught a taxi to the airport for our flight to Los Angeles. After arriving we were transferred on a bus to collect our luggage and clear customs. We then picked up the hire car and headed back to Katherine's for the night.

Overnight: Katherine's Redondo Beach

Taxco

Friday - Day 7
This morning we packed up from Hotel Catedral for our trip to Taxco. We ventured for the first time on the subway and headed towards the bus station. The trip to Taxco (on a luxury coach)was very scenic and much greener than we expected. Taxco is built on the side of a mountain with very steep streets. There are two main modes of transport around town - VW beetles and combies. The beetles have no front passenger seat or seat belts and combies have no side door to the back. We jumped into two beetles with our luggage and headed to Hotel Melendez. The hotel was very basic but the view from our balcony was amazing. We had a quick look around the shops before they started to close (nearly every shop in Taxco sells silver) and we spotted an Italian pizza restaurant. After eating Mexican for breakfast, lunch and dinner since we arrived, pizza was a welcome sight. I am not sure if it was the fact that we hadnt had pizza for so long but this was a really great pizza. Taxco is a really lively and vibrant town and that didnt stop at night with many bands, discos and pubs. Sleeping was not easy but that is why they made ear plugs
Overnight: Hotel Melendez Taxco

Saturday - Day 8
Saturday is silver market day in Taxco, so where else would you find a family with 3 girls. We spent most of the day (and most of our money) at the market. There were hundreds of tiny stands selling a variety of silver products. Ali found a fascination for silver rings and poor Shane suffered through stall after stall after stall. Late in the afternoon we decided to visit the religous monument at the top of the mountain, so we all jumped in the back of beetle and headed off for the ride of our lives. The cobblestone roads are very narrow and steep. We all had our hearts in our mouths when we reached the top, but it was well worth it for the stunning views. Next was a chairlift ride to the Monte Taxco Hotel so that we could have a swim in the pool and then dinner at the same Italian restaurant for more pizza.
Overnight: Hotel Melendez Taxco

Mexico City

Monday - Day 3
We had a sleep in this morning before leaving for Mexico City at 1pm, arriving at 6.30pm (local time). The cab ride from the airport to the hotel was experience and we all wondered what we had got ourselves in for. We had dinner and the hotel, which was our first experience of trying to order in spanish with a waiter that didnt speak english. Overall we think that we got what we ordered and everyone enjoyed it. The room was comfortable but unfortunately over looked a construction site so we didnt get much sleep.
Overnight: Hotel Catedral Mexico City

Tuesday - Day 4
With daylight we were keen to explore the city. Our first stop was Temple de Mayor (pyramid ruins and museum) located just off the Zocolo (City Square). This was really interesting but very hard to get a true understanding of the history as everything was in Spanish. Next stop was the National Palace which is home of the Diego Rivera murals. We also visited the Cathedral and Zocolo. Dinner was at the hotel Restaurant again tonight as we were all (well mainly me)worried about getting sick.
Overnight: Hotel Catedral Mexico City

Wednesday - Day 5
December 12 is Guadalupe Day in Mexico where the Catholics celebrate the Virgin Mary of Guadalupe. Approx 8 million Mexicans make the pilgrimagen to the Guadalupe shrine, some riding bikes for hundreds of miles. This is a great time of celebration in Mexico and there are many parties and people on the streets.

Today we headed off on a tour to Teotihaucan with our guide Monica. We visited some more ruins but this time we had the history to go with it. Monica is very passionate about the Mexican history and we received very colourful stories of the ancient time. Next to the ruins was the public square where the 1968 student protests took place. Many thousands of people were killed at the protests which were held just before the Olympic Games. Monicas mother was a doctor at the hospital at the time, so she told of some of the horrible stories. Next stop was a workshop where we were shown the many things that can be made from cactus and natural materials. Of course there was an opportunity to buy their wares . The kids bought a few trinkets and napkins made from Cactus. Our final stop of the day was Teotihaucan -the Sun and Moon pyramid. This is an enourmous site (over 20 square kilometres) and full with many pyramids. We climed to the top fo the Sun pyramid and as far as we could go on the moon pyramid. The weather here is pretty warm (around 25 - 27c every day) so we were really hot after our climbs. The steps are high and at altidute it was harder than it looked. Lunch was held at a local rest - not quite sure of everything that we ate, but there was cactus salad and lots of beans. The food was fantastic. That night we ventured out for dinner with Louise who we met on the trip..and we found a Starbucks.
Overnight: Hotel Catedral

Thursday - Day 6
Today was set up to be a big day - a tour during the day to Xocimilco and a night tour to the wresting. The day started a bit late as the tour driver was stuck in traffic (I will never complain about traffic again in Melbourne..this city is out of control on the roads). We visited the museum of Frida Kahlo and the colonial town of Coyoacan. Next it was on to the canals of Xocimilco which is a place that needs to be seen. There are hundreds of boats that can be hired for cruising on the canals with vendors pulling up to sell their wares, mariachi bands playing traditional mexican music. Everywhere you look there is someone trying to sell you something. Ali ate brains and stomach for lunch. Following Xocimilco we went to the National University to see the Diego Rivera murals and the library building that is completely covered in mosaic (around 6 stories). The trip back was a nightmare and meant that we went straight to the night tour. No time for dinner we met up with our wrestling guide (who is a wrestler himself). This tour was absolutely fantastic. We laughed and cheered the wrestlers. It is very theatrical and the wrestlers all wear masks and costumes. The arena was the same arena that Nacho Libre was filmed at (so we cant wait to get home and hire the movie). The noise was crazy and this was the highlight for Georgie. She said that it was better than going to the footy to watch Melbourne.
Overnight: Hotel Catedral

Los Angeles

Saturday - Day 1 (and what a long day that was)
Saturday seemed to take for ever. After 15hrs we arrived at LAX (9.30am local time) and checked in to the hotel. We managed to catch a few hours sleep as we didnt get much on the plane due to a child that screamed most of the way from Sydney. After our snooze we were ready to start our holiday. Shane went to pick up the car and managed to drive on the wrong side of the road before he got out of the first street. He managed to abuse the other driver and flash his lights thinking that they were on the wrong side of the road. We put it down to lack of sleep. The first activity was dinner with Katherine and her boyfriend Corben at a Japanese Rest. It was great to see Katherine again after 3 years. We couldnt get to sleep that night so went to explore a supermarket.
Overnight: Marriott LA Airport

Sunday - Day 2
An early start and off to Knotts Berry Farm with David and his daughter Demi for the day. Another visit to the wrong side of the road on the way, but things were getting better. There were lots of great rides - Shane bravely went on Xcelerator. See pic below

We couldnt get Georgie off the Silver Bullet (which is a much bigger version of Lethal Weapon on the Gold Coast) and Alis favourite was the Sierra Sidewinder. We stayed at the park from opening until closing so were all very tired.

Overnight: Marriott LA Airport