31 March - Our next cruise and USA holiday

It's time to start packing again. We really enjoyed our cruise last year so we've booked again, and will be joined again by our friends John and Sandra. We fly out to the USA on 11 April, destination Orlando, Florida. We spend a few days here and we'll visit the Kennedy Space Center and Universal Studios. Then we drive to Miami and join the Norwegian Pearl on 17 April.

Our cruise will take us south through the Panama Canal and then on to Los Angeles two weeks later. We visit a number of ports in Central America and Mexico. Once we return to the USA we'll be driving to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon, and we'll spend a few days in San Francisco before flying back to Australia arriving home on 13 May.

17 May - Gettysburg Pennsylvania

Our last full day in the US and on our drive back from Washington we visited Gettysburg in Pennsylvania. This is the site of one of the most important battles of the Amerian Civil War. Battles took place on July 1, 2 and 3 of 1863 between the Confederate forces under the command of Robert E Lee, and the Union forces led by General Meade. In three days of fighting the total number of casualties was around 50,000 with some 8,000 fatalaties. The entire area around the township of Gettysburg has been preserved and many monuments have been erected to commemorate the events. On the outskirts of town we visited the famous Gettysburg Civil War cemetery which is the burial site of many of those killed. It is on the occasion of the establishment of the cemetery that President Abraham Licoln delivered his famous Gettysburg address, one of the most famous speeches ever recorded. (see the text here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gettysburg_address)

We only had two hours to visit this very moving site - it would take a week to do it justice. As our flight out of NY back to Australia departs tomorrow we needed to get within striking distance of JFK and so we drove to a little town called Lebanon NJ leaving us drive of around 80km tomorrow.

Getttysburg proved to be an interesting conclusion to a brief but wonderful visit to the US.

15 May 2010 - Washington - Day 3

Our last day in Washington DC. Started off with a visit to the White House. As we were walking towards it we were suddenly stopped by security guards. A few minutes later a motorcade with President Obama rolled past and we were allowed to go on our way.

Next we continued on to Georgetown which is an old historical village which dates back to colonial times. Some nice shops including a fantastic tobacconist with a huge range of handrolled cigars. Bought a couple to smoke on the banks of the Potomac River, just a short walk away. Due to the fine weather we've experienced the last couple of days the people of Washington were out in force enjoying the Potomac River and the many eateries and bars on the banks.

Tomorrow we head for Gettysburg and then back to NY in preparation for catching our long flight home.

14 May 2010 - Washington DC - Day 2

A very full day today. After breakfast at a little diner around the corner our first port of call was the Capitol, one of the most famous, and most significant buildings in America. It houses both the Senate and the House of representatives. At the moment Washington is overrun with schoolchildren and policemen from all over the country (30,000 all together - it's Police Week) we were fortunate enough to walk straight in to a guided tour which was absolutely terrific. The room directly below the dome is incredibly beautiful and features large statues and paintings which tells the history of the USA and the War of Independence.

Our next port of call was the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. This is full of the most incredible aviation treasures imaginable. From the Wright Brothers Flyer (the first heavier than air craft to make a manned flight) right through to the Apollo 11 Module which carried Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins to the moon, in every direction there is an aircraft straight out of history.

You would need two days to do this museum justice. We even got to touch a piece of genuine moon rock.

Finally, we walked all the way down the other end of the Washington Mall to see the Lincoln memorial. The long walk proved to be well worth while. This memorial which is much larger than I imagined it houses a magnificent statue of one of America's greatest presidents Abraham Lincoln. It is a very powerful piece of sculpture and at any one time there are thousands of visitors, mostly from the U.S. but also many from all over the world. While we were in this area we also dropped in on the Vietnam War Memorial Wall nearby which is also an incredibly solemn experience. Altogether a very full day and we were very happy to hail a taxi back to the hotel.

13 May 2010 - Washington DC

Spent last night at a Holiday Inn on the outskirts of Washington. Dinner at the Outback Steakhouse next door. Had fantastic hamburgers - the menu had lots of items which attempted to appear as Aussie fare like 'shrimps on the barbie'. Got a fairly early start this morning and headed straight to Arlinton National Cemetery. This is one of the most sacred sites in the USA. As well as 16,000 war dead from the American Civil War, soldiers from all the wars as well as Supreme Court judges are buried here. Of course the most famous graves are those of the Kennedy brothers. JF Kennedy and his wife Jackie are buried in a grave which has an eternal flame. Just a short distance away is brother Robert (assassinated in 1968) with just a simple wooden cross. A little further away again is brother Ted who died last year. The cemetery covers a huge area of green wooded lawns and has thousands and thousands of graves. On a hill overooking the cemetery is Arington House which once belonged to George Washington and prior to the Civil War belonged to Robert E Lee. It is currently being restored to its former glory.

In the evening we walked around the Capitol Building with is the US equivalent of our Parliament House. Althogether a very solemn but marvellous day. Tomorrow we head off to the Sminthsonian Museum of Space and Flight and whatever else we can fit in.

12 May 2010 - On the road

Yesterday morning John and I picked up our hire car and returned to the Holiday Inn to pick up the girls. Our target was Wanamassa NJ, which is where John and Sandra lived for 6 months while John worked nearby. After escaping the NY traffic we made good time and in no time we were standing in front of John and Sandra's old house. A few photos later we were on our way to the boardwalk in Asbury park. Spent the afternoon driving through the New Jersey countryside and eventually found a suitable motel with a fantastic diner next door. Mission accomplished.

Today we left fairly early en route to Philadelphia where we wanted to visit the place where the Declaration of Independence was written and signed and to have a look at the Liberty Bell. My eBay GPS unit handled all this without a problem and we had a great time visiting these famous places in Philadelphia. This afternoon we covered quite a few miles until it started to get dark and a bit rainy. We've just bedded down in a Holiday Inn on the outskirts of Washington.

10 May 2010 - New York

A big day today! We finally think we've worked out how the subway system works and this morning at 8am we caught a train to visit the Empire State Building. There aren't enough superlatives to adequately describe this experience. Apart from the sheer engineering facts about this building which was completed in 410 days in 1931, and the incredible view from the top, the beauty of the art deco finish inside the lobbies and the lift is overwhelming. It was a crisp, clear day and we had great views in all directions. Certainly one of the main highlights of the day. After a coffee in the Starbucks at ground level we caught the subway to Battery Park, right on the southern tip of Manhatten, where the ferries to the Statue of Liberty depart from. Things slowed down a bit at this stage as the queue for the ferries was about 1 hour long, but eventually, and after enjoying some of the buskers entertaining us as we waited we finally boarded the ferry. Approaching Liberty Island and then finally seeing the Statue close up was a very exciting experience. Unfortunately, since the 9/11 attacks access to the statue itself is limited and no tickets were available when we arrived. Despite this this visit was another highlight. From here we caught the next ferry to Ellis Island. Some 12 million immigrants were processed here up to about 1929. The installation has now been fully restored and is now an  immigration museum. We found this a very moving experience and once again a real highlight.

Tomorrow we pick up our hire car and drive to Wanamassa, NJ which is where John and Sandra lived for some time in 1983. From there we will continue on to Philadelphia.