Just back ( kind of ) . Highs and lows
 

Ok. So we got back on Saturday from our 19 day sojourn to california and surrounds. But here goes

Highs

Grand Canyon - pretty dam amazing for a big hole

Palm Springs aerial tramway - fab ride up and great views and walks at the top

Route 66 - ok, so we didn't do that much of it , and bits were pretty dull, but some stops made you think what it really used to be like

Disney cali adventures - enjoyed this more than the main park - great feel about the place . Got on the RSR 4 times on the trot single rider with virtually no wait one day

Universal Hollywood - great rides , small wait times ,

" collecting" car state plates. - the kids in particular had great fun taking photos of each different state they came across. Think they managed to spot all bar about half a dozen

All the hotels - we spent an average of about £50 per night - I think some on here pay far too much for a room to sleep in, and pretty much all were at least as good as hoped for

Whale watching - only saw one whale but hundreds of dolphins right by the boat

Getting a free extra Disney day after getting stuck on IASW

Loads of other highlights but can't give everything away here


Not so highs

Getting a parking ticket by the Hollywood sign for parking facing the wrong way

General driving on the motorways . Nowhere near as pleasurable as driving over here. Never felt I had confidence in what other drivers were going to do

My body still not telling me to go to sleep at night

Overall a fab trip with some great memories made

Sounds amazing. Im loving all the West Coast reviews atm.

I hope we get on RSR 4 times :)

What's rsr ?

Glad you had a fine time overall.

Just to pick up on one point...the driving... I'm sure you're primarily referring to LA when you say you never felt confident in other drivers...I largely concur with that. As I have said previously, there is simply no lane discipline in LA - you will be under and over taken...and most often as not by drivers who will not use their indicators. All I can say is - you have to stay focused and look, left, right and left and right again before indicating and manouevering. They may not do things properly but you absolutely should. It lowers the risks hugely for you and that's really all you can do.

Radiator Springs Racers - a newish ride at Disney California Adventures

yeah, that just about sums it up.
I found myself driving a bit slower than I would have ideally liked to , because it was safer sticking to the more inside lanes , just because maniacs did what they felt like.
Undertaking seemed just as common as overtaking , which is really un-nerving.
I was the only one that ever used indicators , and very rare did I get any acknowledgement that the move I wanted to make was OK.
I witnessed one bump on the motorway , and it was amazing just what % of cars have dents and scrapes on them. It seems they just accept it as part of living in LA , and presumably wait until they have a "proper" crash before getting the damage mended

I found that when i indicated to change lanes, it made no impact at all- no one seems to give way or let you in, you just have to move!

Also, the amount of times i turned left and forgot to cross right over the road scared the kids !

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