Go West! Day 20 USS Midway & Ocean Beach

[CrispyA]

Not a good night's sleep for me - too hot, even with the aircon and I was restless. Managed to finally fall into a deep sleep just before everyone else woke up!

After the misery of yesterday's Taco Bell experience, we decided to go back to McDonald's for breakfast, which was much better and great value.

The plan for today was to visit the USS Midway, so we headed for the seafront. We balked a little at the $10 dollar parking fee but realised that finding somewhere cheaper would be a complete pain, so paid it and muttered about it as we drove in!

I had heard really good things about the USS Midway and it turned out that everyone was right - it was a really good museum. As we got inside and sorted out our audio tour, one of the veteran volunteers approached and asked if the kids fancied becoming Junior Pilots. Hannah wasn't too sure - at 14 she felt a bit too old for a kids activity, but Evan was up for it - and so was I! We took the quiz along with us and set off on our audio tour.

The Midway is fascinating - we were all quite taken aback with how cramped the bunks were for the lowest ranked crew. As with Alcatraz, the audio tour features the voices of those who have lived there, and the stories really added to the experience. The smell of bacon in the Mess Hall was pretty impressive too!

Evan learned some knots as part of the junior programme, and the rest of us had a try as well.



Then we went into the Brig and had our pictures taken behind bars - something we never managed to do in Alcatraz!



I found the helicopter rescue exhibit quite moving and the whole experience was well worth the entrance fee. It's very well done and you get a real sense of what it must be like to spend so much time at sea in a confined space.

In contrast, the flight deck felt huge!



And of course we had to see the Top Gun plane!





Once we were done, we took the quiz back and the kids got presented with their Junior Pilot Wings in a very cute ceremony.



Then we had a quick trip to the gift shop to pick up a hat for my sister and a toy plane for Evan before heading off.



We did plan to go a barbecue place for lunch but couldn't find it and anyway, it was too hot, so we walked to Seaforth and had fish tacos instead.

Later on we went to Ocean Beach which was really busy but good fun. We got there mid-afternoon, so had to park quite far away and walk but we had fun in the waves and at least they weren't quite as violent as they had been the day before.

Back at the hotel we called at the pool for a swim. Unfortunately there was a pool party on that afternoon, complete with very jobsworth security guard who wouldn't let Evan swim unless I was next to the pool. He obviously didn't realise how old Hannah was and didn't ask! We weren't allowed to sit on the terrace beside the pool, where we had sat every day we had been there, and to make matters worse, there was a sound system blasting out Eminem, complete with F-words. It wasn't suitable for families and it was a relief when one of the bar staff turned the music off.

I think it was a guy on a power trip, as when we checked on the pool rules with the desk, they said there was no policy on kids being in the pool without parents - they were our responsibility which was fair enough. Anyway, we didn't let it spoil our day but it was annoying for a little while.

In the evening we ate a place called Lil B's, just up the road from the hotel, which was just fabulous. Really good food, great portions and a good price. We all shared one dessert and even then it was almost too much for four people! We watched a man at another table barely make a dent in his dessert, which was actually too big to fit in the takeaway container! Go hungry if you go to Lil B's!

We finished our night watching the baseball highlights in bed and feeling sad that it was our last day the next day.

Highs: USS Midway, beach time, lovely food.

Lows: Officious security guard

[florida addict]

would love a west coast trip, thanks for this sorry about that security guard on a power trip though

[katiebaz]

Thanks for my hat - it's awesome!