flashman181

Long before we travelled to the Land of the Free we had 2 overseas trips to the UK thinking we would feel more at home there – which we didnt but that is not the point of this. On the first trip we travelled to James Herriott territory( a story for another day) and on second trip in 2009 travelled to Doc Martin territory. When you travel to USA you are drawn to the iconic structures that feature in the shows/movies – for England , at least , it is more a case of immersing yourself in the countryside and life at least for me. Doc Martin is set in the idyllic little seaside village of Port Isaac and so we headed off one fine morning and as we passed through Wiltshire to get to the Cornwall Coast we stopped at Stonehenge for the obligatory photo op. One thing you find in England is you pay to park and you pay to visit all of these historic sites (cf USA) and so we stopped across the road – after all if I need to get up and close with some useless stones cobbled together I need only slip my hand in my jocks!

You know you are approaching Port Isaac when the roads start to narrow worryingly. You know you have reached Port Isaac when you are in the middle of the road and can’t open your car door! Don’t get me wrong it is a lovely little village to walk around but next time we will be dropped in by helicopter. How they film a TV show here is beyond me. We had chosen the lovely Hathaway House which overlooked the inlet and was appropriately close to Fern Cottage – the good doctor’s surgery. People who have watched the show would recall the narrow road outside said surgery. As Hathaway House is located at the end of this road on the hill it was time to close your eyes, hang on, flatten the accelerator while strategically having one hand hovering over the horn

It is a superb location to look back over the bay and the town. B&B is the way to go in England and we had already had some wonderful experiences with the very hospitable hosts up to now. Our hostess here while very helpful most of the time gave us the distinct impression we were putting her out somewhat with our requirement for a slightly earlier breakfast next day as CLP (who was not the driver) had planned some excursions in the area! The lady of the house was very changeable though because next time you met her she could not have been nicer. The other aspect of these B&Bs is that to get the great views you often have to carry rather heavy suitcases up some narrow and winding staircases and we often wondered if the last set of stairs led to Ruprecht’s room! It was a glorious day so it was time to climb to the top of the hill and look back down on the beautiful vista. Then on to the good Doctor’s surgery and see if we could pick out a few other recognisable spots. The “Surgery” was under repair so had to settle for sitting on the doorstep and waiting for the chavs to walk past – damn they must have been actors!

It was such a beautiful day we (ie non driver CLP) decided to travel the relatively short distance to Tintigel Castle, a medieval “fortification” on the peninsula of Tintagel Island. It is certainly stunning rugged coastline and as with many areas around here had associations with Arthurian times. The sun was setting as we made our way around the rocky landscape which took a little longer than planned as we headed in the wrong direction to begin with! There was not much “fortification” to see as was common with most of these historic sites but still it was a very pleasant walk with the beautiful backdrop of the ocean in the background.

We then decided to drop by the fishing port of Padstow on our way home for some fish and chips at Rick Steins. It was still daylight on our trip there and it was certainly a beautiful setting to chow down on some over-priced fish and chips. So it had been a full first day and all we had to do now was find our way back to Port Isaac in the dark. Never fear we had our reliable Tom Tom GPS system. Lesson number 1 for driving around rural England – the shortest route is never the best route especially when a friggin tractor is coming the other way on a road barely wide enough for our car. A road map is a better option than a GPS at least in rural England. Thank me there only hedges at the side of the road and not stone walls!

Next morning it was up bright and early to head off on our day trip on a rather overcast and dreay day – nice and early meant less cars and more importantly less pedestrians to avoid on our way through the maze cleverly disguised as a series of connected “roads” giving the word its most liberable interpretation. First off it was down to the Lost Gardens of Heligan. Not sure why anybody bothered finding them in the first place but it was a pleasant enough wander around for an hour in plenty of green stuff but for 50 quid it was nothing special. Next stop was the Eden Project which was suitably impressive and would be a great place for the family with inquisitive young children. I know all I want to know about everything so while it is certainly an admirable project and charity it didn’t hold a lot of attention for me.

Time for some more Arthurian legend stuff on the way home. First stop was Dozemary Pool – the site of “the lady of the lake” legend where Sir Bedevere apparently threw in Excalibur.
I suggested to CLP if she dove in she could get lucky and wrap her hands around a cold hard shaft for the second time in one day. Showing amazing strength for one so slight she hoisted me aloft to re enact the “tossing of the tosser” as she playfully referred to it but luckily I slipped away at the last minute.
Next stop was the site of some famous battlefield and also the site of King Arthurs Stone. Luckily there was abridge near by for the re enactment of the Black Knight scene

Back home we had a very passable pub meal – The Large restaurant as depicted in the show is not a working restuarant – and then had a leisurely stroll around the town. The view from HH both late at night and early morning was magical. The next day was spent relaxing around time – at last! – and then a very pleasant meal at The School House which is actually an upmarket restaurant. So all in all Port Isaac was exactly as advertised and Hathaway House was a great place to take it all in. Not sure why Doc Martin is such a grumpy prick really

Our flight did not leave until early evening so thought we would spend our last morning in downtown LA (on a Saturday) as we had already experienced the Hollywood side of town. It was amazingly deadsville. However there certainly were some highlights to see and none more spectacular than the Disney Concert Hall. There were also the well known spots like Dorothy Chandler Pavillion and the LA Times building. We then ventured further in some direction and came across the Grammy Museum but it was amazing to be in such a populated town walking around on virtually deserted streets. We decided to pay one more visit to Hollywood Boulevarde before heading back to Hilton and checking out. We were then able to spend the afternoon relaxing around the pool or resting in our own private cabana – alas no Cabana Boy was provided for CLP. It was a suitable contrasting few hours to the previous whirlwind 48 hours and a time to recharge the batteries before the long flight home.

Our trip to USA had been a once in a lifetime experience that we couldnt wait to repeat! The bank manager and I are currently in disagreement over the likelihood of this but a man can dream can’t he?

Another glorious day dawned as we traversed the short distance from Universan Hilton to Universal Studios – who would have thought they would be so close! We had purchased “front of the line” tickets – highly recommended so after a short line up quickly found our way to the booth to redeem these. Rushing to get there before the great unwashed we almost missed a very clever little “statue” scene which you could have easily dismissed as well a statue I guess:) It was in fact actors of course spray tanned to within an inch of their lives but suitably realistic. First stop was the studio tour – at the front of the bus natch. This took us through the backlots which included basic setups but also classic ones like Amity Island(Jaws) , The Bates Hoetel and surprisingly the complete Wisteria Lane from Desperate Housewives. There were sound stages set up for earthquakes and ouside cantinas set up for floods. Also passed through the King Kong “ship approaching Skull Island” set up along with the massive backstage lagoon used for Pirates of Carribean, watched the Fast and Furious explosive car display and passed by the plane crash set from War of the Worlds. As part of the studio tour we also did the King Kong 360 degree 3-D EXTRAVAGANZA! Good fun and a great insight for movie buffs. In fact the studio tour was so good we did it again in the afternoon rather than go on “rides”. There is plenty to see and do at Universal Studios but you can spend all day on a continuous loop of the Studio Tour and still get your money’s worth

After this it was time for the first show of the day which was the Terminator one. Well staged inside a theatre with plenty of bangs and flashes. Best part though was sitting on the bike afterwards. Next stop was the Sound Effects demo and once again being in front row was lucky enough to take part and look a fool. Normally I prefer just to look a fool at home not in front of a crowd but they were yanks so shouldnt be a problem:) Not a big one for rides per se but squeezed in the Jurassic Park one before lining up for the Blues Brothers show at lunch time. Familiar songs performed very well rounded out the morning well. Next EXTRAVAGANZA was the Water World show. Didn’t have to line up for long again but a bit too smart to sit in the front rows this time around – just ask the people walking around the rest of the day in wet clothes! There were great stunts and hammy acting so really did seem real. The beautiful day certainly provided a great backdrop to all of the action.

So we had ticked off the main attractions rather easily and still fitted in House of Horrors ( they approached CLP to stay on and join the cast but she respectfully declined), NBC Universal experience and about 5 rides up and down the massive escalators. One of the joys of walking around these parks of course are the characters that constantly mingle with the crowds. So all in all it was a great day, good value for money and highly recommended. Much like being pleasantly surprised by the friendliness of Americans it was also obvious they know how to put a theme park together without making it a shallow costly experience.

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Looking for a slight culture change from Boston and what better place than LA. Qantas flies in and out of there naturally and this time we thought we should squeeze in a couple of days in LA before heading home. It was jam packed couple of days and we probably only saw one side of this town but it was great – in fact so many great times and photos from Universal Studios will leave that one day to a separate post.

Flew in late one night from NYC and we were staying at Hilton Universal City so had investigated shuttle buses and their appeared to be some suitable alternatives. However methinks there may be some money changing hands as it was very difficult to line up the shuttle we wanted with the supposed “hired help” Due to time of night we took the sensible though expensive option of a taxi. It was a nice drive through LA at nightime but when the head hit the pillow it was time for rest. We woke up next day to a bright sunny day and time to check out some glitz and glamour. Off to Hollywood Boulevard and check out some famous footprints and equally famous breasts.

Its a great walk up and down looking at the stars and we were lucky as got there early and not too crowded. Checked out Kodak theatre and had a dim sim at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre and then we went looking for that distant far off HOLLYWOOD sign. But first we had to deal with the infamous casting couch! As usual CLP simply sat there doing nothing!

We had a segway tour booked for later in the day around Beverly Hills. These Segways are pretty easy to move around on once you get the hang of them but the tirck is to speed up you have to lean forward; to slow down you lean back. Simple Pimple really – but we went along a lot of sidewalks and crossed streets and back up the sloped culvets onto the sidewalk. I found it very difficult to lean forward while going uphill so nearly fell off a few times trying to travel 0.3 m up a 10 degree incline. Not pretty. What was pretty though was zooming along quiet back streets of LA checking out some famous houses- none more famous than the one shared by MM and the Yankee Clipper – and then onto Rodeo Drive. Once again glorious weather.

There was still a lot of daylight left on this glorious day so thought lets head down to Venice Beach. Unlike the subway system in NYC and Washington the public transport here was a lot more difficult to line up so after a couple of buses and some walking we went for the taxi option once more. We had seen Coney Island somewaht deserted on a glorious day but there were plenty of people around the boardwalks here and doubt many of them paid taxes. The medicinal weed doctor seeemd especially popular and of course what is Venice Beach without the outdoor gym.

Then we had the problem of getting back to the Hilton Universal as the sun was setting. Another taxi through some peak hour traffic got us back just in time as the sun was setting and we had a quick stroll through Universal City walk barely taking time to reflect on how much we had done and seen in our first day – LA is that sorta town I guess. There was not time to hang around though even if pictures may suggest otherwise. It was a glorious night and was hard to walk away but we knew we would be back tomorrow. USA, the land of contrast, had thrown up another.

Walking from our Washington digs to the station we walked through some markets dragging our luggage behind us. One of the stall ladies called out “Have a great trip folks” .Never seen her before but rather indicative of the general friendliness of the Americans we dealt with. First experience with USA internal flights – unfortunately the night before had read in the local paper a review of all of the Flight companies (by customers) and ours came last in all categories – Delta! The check in was fine apart from a minor security check – memo to visitors USE THE TSA APPROVED LOCKS – and the flight was fine if a little cramped. We had been spoilt by Qantas Clubs up til now so at end of day the product reflected the price. Got a private car to The Copley Inn which was fine if a little creaky. Did not know much about Boston to be honest except maybe Cheers TV show and Red Sox Baseball. If pressed I would have stated that generally I assumed it was bit upper class so was surprised when we bumped into the mayor on our walk through the gardens – friendly guy though

Beautiful gardens with plenty of water around supporting a plethora of paddlers but the ducks don’t eat much. Then again they don’t chase you either. Good location for a picnic or even a Tea Party?

After wandering through the gardens it was time to check out this famous Freedom Trail. Luckily it was free of people. Luckily there was a big red line to follow. We followed this trail over hill and dale past some significant sites until we came to the revered grave site of Paul. What is this American fascination with The Beatles!

Next stop was some more Paul Revere memorabilia. There was a statue of him on horse. The old saying “one if by land two if by sea” completely confused me as we had come by air! We crossed over more sea than land so compromised. Then we travelled on to his house which suddenly made The Copley Inn look spacious. Think I might go for long rides at night too.

There were some men dressed in soldier outfits prancing around for some reason but there out of the corner of my eye I glimpsed the Holy Grail! The Cheers Pub at last. Or was it. It was certainly called Cheers but it appears that the “real pub” is downstairs in a more exclusive area of town. I needed a drink and the people hanging around here seemed like my kinda people. CLP of course had one too many as usual. Can’t take her anywhere without her eventually finding her way home!

It had been a full day so was time to head back to Copley Inn and what better way than a Hansom cab ride. We had travelled around Central Park NYC as dusk set in and was tres romantic. Apparently they don’t have horses in Boston but there are plenty of impoverished students who will pull you along on a bicycle. The CLP thougt the view was better than a horse’s rear end and hard to argue there – being a devout heterosexual though I was more pleased in the significant price drop!

Next day dawned cloudy and overcast but time was short so it was off on the hop on hop off city bus.First stop was Fenway Park. We had seen Yankee Stadium but only from the outside. Now it was time to mingle with the great unwashed … and it was great. Plenty of history here and the volunteer tour guide who was 100 if he was a day was very knowledgeable. Sadly the fifteenth set of stairs was too much for him – let’s just say the pitcher’s mound had some extra padding from that day forward.

Then it was back on the bus and head downtown fore lunch. Apparently Boston has a famous oyster house where JFK use to regularly attend. Went around the block 3 times looking for the tell tale sign of Marilyn with her legs in the air but it alludes me to this day. So we settled on Ye Olde Oyster House as who can resist ye olde anglais.Lo and behold there was a JFK booth but you had to give over your first born to sit at that table. Memo to self – take boy child one on next trip. So it then transpired that I put the second worst tasting fleshy mess in my mouth ever!

As it was still a gloomy day even misty one could say time to check out Mystic River territory. This involved a fair walk past some historical sites like Bunker Hill amongst the very classic Bostonian neighbourhood with the window flower planter boxes. Then we came across what one could only call the poorer part of town. It was a leisurely walk down and a quick walk back – think I saw Omar walking the streets wondering to myself why he had left Baltimore but deciding it wasn’t worth finding out.

Time to check out this place called Harvard. Easy subway to the centre of knowledge which reminded me of chewing gum stuck in your hair. Never quite worked out where the University started and ended. Still time for some fun and it was an easy walk around the place even if I didnt really know when I was on University grounds.

Last full day dawned bright and sunny which was ideal as this was the day we were going to cruise around the harbour. But first we had to listen to the Sate of Origin rugby league match on the radio via the iPad – Rusty Crowe had organised for Fox Sports to show it in USA but Copley Inn was too tight for cable channels! Stll Qld won so all was good with the world. Off to the water. Great views back to the city and across the bay to the bridge. Very pleasant way to fill in the morning.

So we had a great few days in Boston and saw a lot more than could relate in this short blog. We had seen NYC and Washington – the big guns – and even a few hours in Philly. Our last few days would be spent somewhere a little different which should round out a varied exploration of the good old USA and some of its big cities. Next stop – Gooday LA! Think I better have a drink first