I have no photos from today, I’m sorry.

Today we woke up at 4.30am (which is 9.30am in England) to drive down to the airport for six and then fly at eight. For breakfast I had “Hot cakes” and syrup and butter from McDonalds, mm-MMM they were good. And then of course Tom copied me and had the same. The flight wasn’t as good as the last one. It was an older plane and in order to watch a film you had to wait for the longest film to finish before they started playing them all again, and you couldn’t pause it and it was rubbish. It felt far more cramped, too. And the food was worse. But hey, it doesn’t matter. I still had fun. For 7 hours -.-. I watched Kick-Ass, Hot Tub Time Machine and the first 40 minutes of Cemetry Junction :).

Tom fell asleep on me, so I think he has jet-lag now as it’s 12:28 the next day and he isn’t up yet… I’m gonna miss America, but it feels strangely nice to be cold again.

Alice x

11th August

Today we went back to the first beach we went to when we got here. It’s right next to Playland (where BIG was filmed). It was far more relaxing than the first time we went aha. I swam in the sea (I don’t like the sea too much) and read The Picture of Dorian Gray while sunbathing. I helped Tom’s little sister build a sand-mound thing… (Wow) it was pretty rubbish it was like a mound of sand. Then she covered it in water and made it collapse. Cool.

When we were in the sea it was cold, but we realised that if you swam behind someone else who was swimming they warmed the water up. Well, I realised it, ;).

It is our last day in America before we go home tomorrow. We went to an awesome restaurant called Hibachi where they cook your stirfry on this big cooker thing in the middle of your table - so so so so so epic. And the cook was a legend (I wanted to take him home).

Alice x

10th August

Today we went to Mountain Creek. During the summer it is a waterpark and is a place for mountain bikers but during the winter it’s a ski resort. It was a great waterpark, but the rides are all so far away from each other! They’re hilly, long walks and you mainly walk around barefoot. We got there just as it’d opened and managed to get on one ride twice (no queues ;)) and another ride really quickly. But as other people came to the park the queues started to get longer and the heat felt hotter and you dried far more quickly, and got all warm and then it was your turn to get cold and wet again! :( boo. Anyway, it was a good day all in all and I’d go again if I lived up the road usually.

Alice x

9th August

Today we went to Gedney Park to go fishing. Louise (Tom’s 10 year old sister) nearly caught a fish and then caught a catfish. Pete (Tom’s 15 year old brother) caught a pretty fish and Adam (our hosts 12 Year old son) caught a catfish too. Tom caught nothing. I didn’t even fish. But Tom did. He’s 16. He can’t cast very far either. I had some hilarious videos but I can’t find them on the laptop so that makes me sad.

Then we went home, played Rockband, had lulz and then went swimming :).

Alice x

8th August

(this is so so so late, I’m sorry).

Today, we went for a walk round this lake. It was in Tea-Town, but it was pretty :). Tom & Pete tried catching some fish using a twig and bits of Jelly Belly (it didn’t work, surprisingly -.-) and we saw one frog, but heard billions. It was a nice walk and there were lots of interesting bridges to cross. Some floated across the water, so of course we had to rock them to see how far we could get it to capsizing ;).

It was a pretty lazy day if I’m honest. We played Rockband in the morning and Rockband in the evening. But it was a nice day all the same. And I think we went swimming that evening too…

Alice x

7th August

Today we took our final trip (of this holiday ;)) into New York City. First off, after we’d got off the train, we walked to Bryant Park, which is right near Grand Central, and had lunch. We then walked to the Rockefeller Center, and, after the tour and watching some “informative” videos, we got the lift, which was crazy fast, up to the top. The view from the top was amazing, you could see 360 degrees all around New York, especially the Empire State Building, which was just across from us. You could see all over Central Park too, it looked so tiny, but we know from walking across it it isn’t at all. We spent about 45 minutes at the top, but it got really hot, so we went back down again. Inside the center we went to a Ben and Jerry’s shop, where we both ate enough ice cream to feel ill, and bought bracelets. After that, we walked to the base of the Empire State building, then walked down to the Flat-Iron, which is a really tall, thin building, that looks as if it is about to fall over. We were all feeling pretty hungry by then, so we had a meal at a little Italian restaurant. After that, we caught the subway to Times Square, then walked to Grand Central for the train home.

Tom x

6th August

Today we went to Bear Mountain. But we missed the bears because we were looking at the reptile enclosure and in that time they went to bed. Oh well.

Anyway, it was picturesque and there was a nice lake. Tom, Louise and I went on a pedalow which was hard work considering the wind was against us and the pedals were rubbish. It was a nice relaxing day anyway, and the “zoo” was nice and shaded and cool. We stopped off at this viewpoint and the bridge looked amazing. It was such a pretty view over a huge bed of water. We got herded out of the park by people on golf carts -.- because it was closing time at 4.30pm :| I mean, seriously?

We went to the pool later for a nice relaxing-ish swim. It was a lovely day and the weather wasn’t too humid, but humid enough to make you feel hot and heavy.

Alice x

5th August

Today, we went shopping and Tom bought two new t-shirts and a pair of DC Hi-Tops. I bought one Metal Mulisha tee, which I love :D. 

We went to the cinema later on and we watched Salt (it’s not released in England until 20th August ;)) and it was really really good, and only slightly confusing. I think there’s gonna be a Salt 2 as we still don’t know who Salt really is! :(

Alice x

4th August Part II (Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge)

After the ferry we walked to Brooklyn Bridge. It was such a hot day (but not as hot as today) so we were all tired and hot and irritable. But when you felt a breeze, it was okay, and when you were in the shade, it was also okay. The day was mostly clouded over so it was hard to see into the distance, but it was worth it. I walked with Tom’s family (without Tom) to the first part of the bridge, so I walked like the first third of the bridge. It was a great view, and on the way up we saw the Empire State Building, and standing on that little widened “perch” you could see the Chrysler Building.

It was such a hot day, but today there was a weather warning, so I guess I can’t moan about yesterday’s heat! 

Alice x

4th August Part I (Ferry to the Statue of Liberty)

To start the day off we caught a free ferry to Staten Island which is just off of New York. It took us past the Statue of Liberty and we saw it twice - there and back - and it was quite overwhelming. It looked small, but when you saw the size of the people you realised how big it actually was. It’s a shame we didn’t get off the ferry and see the actual island, but beggars can’t be choosers, eh? 

Alice x