Week 12: New York, New York!

So I'm finally getting around to writing this post. Sorry it's taken so long, I've been so busy getting back into real life and returning to normality that I have to admit the blog took a bit of a backburner whilst I reunited with everyone!

I know I left the last post leaving San Francisco to meet my mum at JFK in New York. After landing and collecting my bag I walked round to mums terminal to meet her. After almost 3 months of not seeing her it was a pretty emotional reuinion but it was so lovely to see each other. It was pretty late by this time so once we got to the hotel we both just crashed out in the mahoosive queen sized bed!

The next day we went and collected our New York passes which allowed us to visit loads of different attractions. We started the day visiting Grand Central Station which is pretty spectacular! Our hotel was on Herald Square so we were withing walking distance to everything in Central New York which was amazing but we walked so much I thought my feet were going to fall off!

Grand Central

Once we'd seen Grand Central we headed over to Times Square and I had my first experience of how busy it is there. I love the atmosphere and the hustle and bustle of New York and Times Square is amazing. We headed over to the Rockefellar centre and booked a tour and viewing for the next day and from there we proceeded to Madame Tussaud's and had a look around there.

Times Square

Madame Tussaud's - with the Spice Girls 

On the open top bus with mum!

After that we did a bus tour around NYC and saw all of the main attractions which was cool. In the evening we went for dinner finally at Bubba Gump Shrimp which definitely lived up to the hype and we then went on a guided evening bus tour called The Ride. This was a 75 minute tour around the central area of NYC on a bus with a massive open window where you sit side on. As you go around there are actors everywhere that sing and dance as you drive past and it was a really fun experience.

Times Square from The Ride!

By this point it was about 11pm but we decided to head up the Empire State Building as it was only 2 blocks from our hotel. We did the the Skyride Simulator and then headed up to the 87th floor. The view was amazing and it was really cool to see New York at night and look down at all the lights!

Empire State Building

One World Trade Centre

The view at night.

We were both exhausted by the time we got back to the hotel so just crashed out.

The next day we did our tour around Rockefellar centre which was really interesting. We saw the plaza, the studios where The Late Show and Saturday Night Live are filmed and also saw some amazing art work! Once the tour was over we headed up to the viewing platform and it was a really beautiful day so we got an amazing view of the whole of New York. I preferred the view from here as you can see Central Park and the Empire State Building.

Rockefella Centre

Empire State Building

Central Park

After this we did the downtown bus tour of New York and went for dinner at a really nice pizzeria before rushing off to get ready for the theatre. For mums 50th her 3 best friends bought us tickets to see the Jersey Boys which was really lovely of them. The show was amazing and we both really enjoyed ourselves so thank you to Helen, Marion and Pauline!

On the Thursday we were heading over to Liberty Island and Ellis Island to see the Statue of Liberty. It was quite an early start but it meant we didn't have to queue and actually we ended up spending the whole day there. Once we arrived on Liberty Island we did the statue first. We had bought tickets to climb up to the crown and boy was it a climb! Some 600 steps later we reached the top and it was pretty amazing seeing everything from the crown. We could see the torch and the plaque either side and it looked straight out over Manhattan! After we had looked around the island we headed over to Ellis Island to he immigration museum which was really interesting! We arrived back about 4 and chilled or before going to for dinner at a really nice Mexican restaurant that had been recommended. Amazing Margaritas!! We finished the night at a wine and chocolate bar right next to our hotel which was fab - it's like they knew we were coming!

The first viewing platform 

View from the crown of the Statue of Liberty 

Prosecco and chocolate covered strawbs!

On Friday we decided to go and see the 9/11 Memorial and Museum and attempted to meet up with our American relatives which ended up being a lot harder than we thought! The memorial is amazing and is so beautifully done it was very moving seeing all the names on the fountains. The museum is also very well done and we spent ages looking around. Again it was very emotional and definitely brought up a lot of feelings just seeing the massive impact this event had on the country and the whole world.

The memorial 

With Debbie and Billy

We went for dinner and had a wander around the harbour before heading back.

The next day was mine and my brothers birthday present to my mum - a riverboat lunch cruise with an all inclusive bar around Manhattan. This was probably my favourite part of New York. The atmosphere was amazing, the food was amazing, we worked our way through the cocktail menu and had a dance all whilst taking in the sights around the river. After both consuming probably a bit too much alcohol we decided to walk along the highline to get some air. The highline is an old railway that runs a mile above Manhattan that you can walk along. It had been done up really nicely with lots of plants and viewing platforms and it definitely helped work off the cocktails!

On the riverboat 

Enough cocktails?

Brooklyn Bridge

Mum in front of the boat!

On the highline

We went back to the hotel for a nap before heading out that evening for a wander around Times Square where I finally got my Sephora fix, we were still so full from lunch neither of us wanted dinner!

On Sunday we decided to spend the day in Central Park. It was a really lovely day for weather so couldn't have picked it better. We started off at Ellen's Stardust Diner on Broadway for brunch which was also recommended. We loved it here, the waiters sing and wait at the same time it was like something out of glee, we were constantly signing along or dancing!

Ellen's Stardust Diner

We then headed over to Central Park and did a 20 minute horse and carriage ride around the park before wandering further in and sitting by a lake taking in the views. On the way back we went to Central Park Zoo, saw the Ice Age 4D film and saw the limited animals in the zoo. There were bears, snow leopards, monkeys and a couple of other things. Not too much but it was nice to have a look around. We headed back after this and that night went for a buffet dinner before ending up on a rooftop bar behind our hotel that looked straight up at the Empire State Building - a lovely way to end our last night!

With our horse Josephine!

Central Park

On the rooftop bar!

On the Monday we decided to have a shopping day as our flight wasn't until 10pm. We went to Macy's and mooches around there for ages before going to a bargainous shoe shop where we both got some shoes. We then finished with a Pinkberry frozen yoghurt and a couple more drinks on the rooftop bar. I somehow managed to squeeze everything into my backpack which by this point was a bit worse for wear and 5kg heavier than when I left!

In front of Macy's

I arrived home on Tuesday 23rd June at 11am to my dad and cousin picking us up from the airport. 

My travel blog has now come to an end after 3 months travelling the world, seeing some amazing things and meeting some amazing people who I know will be friends for life. I've had ups and downs, mainly ups and many memories which will last forever. I could not have asked for a better experience and want to thank everyone I met along the way especially Pippa, Chels, Bash, Louisa and Kate who made my Australia experience absolutely amazing! 

I'd like to try and keep the blog going with various posts whether they be travel or lifestyle related but for now I will say goodbye from my 3 month journey!

With love, Lauren x

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Week 11: From LA to San Fran!

I can't believe how close I am to finishing my trip now. 3 months has gone by in the blink of an eye and I've had one of the best experiences I'll ever have, I've loved every minute of it!

My California trip starts in LA, after a trip to the doctors I got some medicine and was well on my way to getting better. On the Saturday night I went to my meeting hotel by the airport which was gorgeous and met the group who I'd be spending the next week with. Luckily everyone was really nice and we headed over to Santa Monica pier that evening for some dinner which was great as it meant I finally got to see Santa Monica!

We didn't stay out that night as I wanted to enjoy the luxury hotel before camping for the next 4 nights! 8am Sunday morning we headed off to our first destination. One thing I knew about this trip was it involved a lot of driving - introducing Gabby! We had a really nice bus taking us to all our stops with wifi and air conditioning and massive windows so we could see all the scenery. We probably spent most of our time on this bus most days travelling between 5-9 hours!

Gabby the bus

On the way we stopped at Joshua Tree National Park and did a little hike around. A lot of the parks in North America are all desert so are super hot, super dry and have lots of rocks around.

A Joshua tree

After that we headed to Lake Havasu where we were spending our first night. After setting up the tent with some difficulty we had our dinner and then sat around having drinks and getting to know each other for the rest of the evening. At about 11pm we decided to go into the lake which was actually really nice and refreshing as it was so hot there and it was cool that we were able to just go in when we wanted!

Lake Havasu

The next day we set off for stop 2 wich was the Grand Canyon. We were all pretty excited about this and when we arrived our guides Buck and Allie made us put brown bags over our heads and they then proceeded to guide us to Moran Point for our first view of the canyon. It's so spectacular I have never seen anything like it. Myself and another girl decided to rent bikes and we rode along the south rim of the canyon for about 6 miles taking in all the sights before heading off to Yanakai Point to watch the sunset which again was beautiful. After arriving back at camp we had dinner and then had an earlier night seeing as stop 3 was Vegas and we all wanted to be on form!

The gorgeous sunset over the Grand Canyon

The next morning those who had paid for it had the helicopter ride. It was incredible seeing it from that perspective and pretty cool just to go in the helicopter. The best part was transition from 300ft above the trees to over a mile of the canyon as it just appears out of nowhere. We went all the way up to the north rim and saw where we were the day before 18 miles away! It was one of the best things I've done this whole trip!

The rim of the Canyon

A view shots of the Colorado river - it goes from blue to brown due to the rain loosening sand and soil

After that we travelled to the famous Route 66 and stopped in a small town for some lunch and some photos. 

Route 66

Once we arrived in Vegas from the get go me and my roommate started getting ready and made the most of the shower and nice hotel room! We went and got pizza at the hotels casino which is where I had my first gambling experienced on the slot machines and won 10 cence woo!

By 7:30 we were ready for our party bus, which ended up being an hour and a half late, which led to us drinking in our hotel rooms until it came. The party bus was really fun however it was a bit of a let down as they tried to squeeze too many people into the first one so we had to get out and wait for about 35 minutes for the next one and then only got an hours full driving time and only made one stop at the Vegas sign - not what I paid $40 for but the time spent on it was fun!

Me and my roommate

In front of the Vegas sign

The Eiffel Tower and the Hollywood hotel

After the party bus a group of us went to the nightclub Omnia in Caesars Palace to watch the dj Nervo play. It was honestly one of the best nights I've had and I danced non stop for about 2 hours before we decided to leave and crash into bed at 4am!

The Bellagio and Caesars Palace

Selfie in front of the Bellagio

The next day we didn't have to meet till 9 which was nice as everyone felt a little bit worse for wear! We made our way over to Bishop and stopped at Death Valley along the way which was so so so hot and actually has the hottest recorded temperature of 58 degrees so we were definitely feeling it. We stopped at a couple of stops for some pictures and had lunch in the visitor centre before setting off on the second leg. We arrived at Bishop in the rain which called for a very miserable Lauren having to set up a tent (Chloe, Anna, Martha and co will know exactly what I am referring to!) However it did stop raining and that night we went to the hot springs which were really lovely, it was like sitting in a natural bathn we stayed there until about 10pm then headed back.

Death Valley

The next day we travelled to Yosemite. We did a hike down to see the Sequoia Trees which was a mile hike down and a mile hike back uphill (phew!) but it was nice to see all the scenery. We then made stops at a couple of other popular spots before finishing at Yosemite Lodge where we hiked to see the beautiful Yosemite falls. From there we split up and a group of us just walked through the park and took in the scenery before heading back to the bus to go to camp. 

Tunnel View at Yosemite

Yosemite Falls

Once we arrived at camp (just about due to a lost person resulting in us nearly having to call the park ranger - good one Suzuki ;) we set everything up and had dinner and then went to the pool and hot tub in the hotel next door which was lovely!

On the Friday we set off for our final destination San Francisco! As we came into the city we stopped at Treasure Island for lunch and to take some photos and we then continued on to our hotel in the city centre. One thing about San Francisco is the weather is a lot colder! It stays the same all year round so they don't have seasons therefore it's a very different temperature to the rest of North America.

San Francisco skyline from Treasure Island

That night we got the cable car to Pier 39 and Fishermans Wharf for dinner before setting off on a sunset cruise. We sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge and all around Alcatraz before heading back. There's a fog that is quite common around San Francisco that comes off of the sea, it's so strange to look at and sailing through it I didn't realise where we were half the time as I couldn't see any land just sea and fog - pretty spooky.

In the cable car

Alcatraz Island

The bridge in the fog

The next day we all said our goodbyes and myself and a few other people checked into our hostel. In the afternoon we had a look around the Westfield shopping centre in Union Square before going to see Jurassic Word that evening which I loved - not so sure the boys enjoyed it but I definitely did!

On my last day which was the Sunday we went over to the Golden Gate Bridge and went to a viewpoint which was an amazing view - we then walked back over it and headed back over to Pier 39 before I set off for Alcatraz. We had a wander around and looked in some of the shops an then at 5:30pm I went to Pier 33 to board my boat to the island.

The Golden Gate Bridge

Alcatraz was really cool. I love history so found it fascinating learning about the cells, the inmates, the planned, attempted and failed escapes and just generally the history of the prison. It was sooo cold on that island though so was pretty grateful when I was back at the hostel. That evening we went to a diner for dinner and then spent the evening playing drinking games downstairs in the common room.

The cells in Alcatraz

How a typical cell would look

The view from the prison - some of the prisoners tried to swim over to San Francisco but the water was so cold and the tide was so strong that only one known prisoner survived it - he was found hypothermic under the Golden Gate Bridge and brought back to Alcatraz

My Cellfie! ;)

The lighthouse on the island

A cell from the outside in the confined section

Come Monday I was flying to New York to be reunited with mum after my 3 months of travelling. The next post I wrote I'll be back home which is such a crazy thought. I'm super excited for New York and though my money has run out the memories are worth it.

With love,

Lauren x

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