Conclusion - Things we learned

We learned (or re-learned) lots of things on our trip. For example:

My experience getting lost in Washington reminded me that you need to take a card showing the exact address of your hotel before venturing out.

There are an amazing number of Starbucks coffee shops in the US. There is often one within a hotel complex. Chances are you will find an outlet in every second or third block in the city.

The standard rate for tipping is between 15% and 20%. If you dining in a large group (8 or more), they often automatically add an 18% tip to the bill.

You need to tip almost everyone - including the people who take your coat for you at a bar or restaurant. Therefore, make sure that you've got plenty of $1 and $5 notes.

Americans (and Canadians) put a lot of effort into Christmas decorations. This makes the hotels, restaurants, bars, buildings, streets and parks very pretty - especially at night.

If you lose your credit card, ask the bank to put a temporary hold on the card rather than cancelling it. In this way, if you find the card again, you can ask the bank to reactivate the card. Also, ask the bank for details of recent transactions before they cancel the card. This lets you know whether the card has been used fraudulently. Once they cancel the card, they cannot check recent transactions.

Make sure that you have plenty of reading material. You will need to fill in time waiting for planes, trains and buses. Even, when you get on the plane, you might wait on the tarmac for ages. In this case, there is nothing to do. You cannot get out of your seat, the in-flight entertainment has not started and there is no food or beverage service.

Conclusion - Surprises on our trip

We learnt a few surprising things about Americans on our trip.

Firstly, we had heard that people in NY are rude. However, throughout our trip, we have found the Americans to be polite, courteous and friendly.

Second, we had heard that NY is an unsafe city. Although I felt nervous a few times on the subway, NY seemed to be as safe as most cities.

Third, Americans have a reputation of being ignorant of Australia. We didn't find this at all. The people we spoke to seemed to have a reasonable knowledge of Australia. Many knew our prime minister's name.

Fourth, they think we have big problems in Australia with spiders and sharks. Several people said they would not come to Australia because of the spiders.

New York to Sydney

Wednesday 27th to Friday 29th December.

We caught a taxi at about 2:40pm from the hotel to go to JFK airport for the flight home. We had been told to allow an hour for the taxi trip, partly because of traffic, and this advice was spot on.

When we checked in at the Qantas counter, we were surprised when the lady behind the counter put Business Class labels on our checked baggage but we didn't say anything. Then, when we got our boarding passes, they were for seats 23A and 23B in Business Class. We couldn't believe it. We had been upgraded to Business Class free of charge and we hadn't even asked to be upgraded.

We waited in the Qantas lounge (run by British Airways) for our flight. The flight was due to leave at 6:40pm and we boarded on time. However, the plane then sat on the tarmac at the departure gate for about an hour waiting for paperwork to arrive from Hong Kong! When the mysterious paperwork arrived, we waited another 30 minutes in a queue of planes waiting for take-off.

I'd forgotten how big a difference there is between economy and business class. The service is great, the food is much better, you get more choice of food and alcohol, you have plenty of leg room, wider seats, more comfortable seats, etc. It was luxury. The trip was much more pleasant than being in economy class.

The flight to LA took about 5 hours. After we landed, we went to the Qantas lounge (run by American Airlines). The flight departure was delayed by another 45 minutes. The flight from LA to Sydney took over 14 hours.

As usual, Suzy had no trouble sleeping on the flight. I normally cannot get a decent sleep in economy class but I got more than 8 hours sleep on this business class flight (although I stirred several times and went back to sleep). I didn't even bother taking a sleeping tablet. The seats lie down almost flat and there is plenty of width to curl up.

We landed in Sydney at about 10am on Friday morning. Customs and quarantine were quick (in contrast to our experience in LA on the trip to the US). We caught a taxi and were home by 11:30am.

New York - Day 7

Wednesday 27th December.

The others were all catching early flights and so we set the alarm for 4:30am. We said goodbye to Nicky, John, Steph and David at about 5:10am. Graham and Joan were due to leave about 20 minutes later. Suzy and I then went back to bed.

Breakfast on level 3 was as busy as ever but we did notice that they had opened up the boardroom and people were sitting at it to eat their breakfast. Perhaps they had taken up one of Suzy's suggestions.

After breakfast, we went down to reception to query the bill they had slipped under our door overnight. Instead of the reduced accommodation rate that Suzy talked them into yesterday, they had charged us the full rate. It turned out that the night auditor had reversed the change on our room and on Nicky & John's room. David's rate was still OK. They corrected the rate for us again.

We also asked for a late checkout but they said they couldn't do so because the hotel was fully booked. So we went upstairs to pack. We had to be out by 11am but we were out by about 10am. We left the bags with the hotel staff in a locked room.

Originally we had planned to do the Circle ferry tour in order to see the Statue of Liberty. We caught a taxi to the mid-town ferry wharf only to find that the next tour was at 4pm. This was no good to us because we had to be at the airport by that time to catch our flight back to Sydney.

So we caught a taxi to the Staten Island ferry terminal which is at the southern end of the island. This ferry is free and takes you right past the Statue of Liberty on its way to Staten Island. You also get great views of Manhattan, Ellis Island (where the immigrants landed after WWII) and various bridges.

The ferry terminal was very crowded and so we were worried that we wouldn't get onto the ferry when it arrived. We need not have worried because the ferry is so big that it easily accommodated the waiting throng. The trip took about half an hour. We got off at the other end and caught the next ferry back to Manhattan.

Suzy decided that she wanted to go to a famous delicatessen called Zabars which is in the Upper Westside area a few blocks west of Central Park. She hadn't travelled on the subway yet and so we caught the 1-line train that starts from the South Ferry station and runs along the west side of the island.

The trip took about 20 or 30 minutes. The station was only half a block away from the deli. As usual, the subway fare was only $2 and it was probably quicker than getting a taxi. So it was the ideal way to get there.

Zabars consists of a very small shop on the street corner and a large supermarket next door. The deli has a counter along one wall, a long bench with stools in the middle and another bench with stools along the window. When we went in, every seat was taken and so the first plan was to buy the food and then walk a few blocks to Central Park to eat it.

However, some people left at the right time and so we ate our lunch in the deli - much warmer than sitting anywhere outside.

We chatted to other people sitting at the bench. There was a New Zealander sitting next to us who now lives in NY. The others were Americans. One of the Americans was very talkative and seemed to know a lot about Australia and New Zealand.

We finished lunch at about 2pm and caught a taxi back to our hotel to pick up our bags.

New York - Day 6 - PM

Tuesday 26th December.

David had booked a restaurant for dinner for him, Graham, Joan and John to have dinner as a family. The assumption was that Suzy, Steph, Nicky and I would go out as a family too - despite the fact that Nicky now belongs to both families.

At 5:45pm, we caught a taxi to the restaurant - Otto's restaurant at 1 Fifth Avenue - near Washington Square. The restaurant was recommended to us and we could see when we walked in that it was popular because it was very crowded.

We had yet another great meal. It was our last dinner of our holiday. It's going to be hard coming back to earth.

It was raining a little when we left the restaurant. We caught a taxi back to our hotel and we were back by about 8:15pm so that Steph and Nicky could start packing for their early departure tomorrow morning.

After both families had returned from dinner, we went down to the hotel bar for one final drink together.

New York - Day 6 - AM

Tuesday 26th December.

Suzy decided we should talk to the hotel manager about the problems yersterday (Christmas Day) with breakfast and so went down to the lobby at 8:15am. Coincidentally the manager had been in the lift with us as we went down but we hadn't realised who he was.

Suzy suggested to him that they make changes to the breakfast arrangements for next Christmas to make it work more successfully. He pointed out that they were very busy because the hotel was full. When we commented on the delays with the lifts, he claimed that four lifts are normally adequate for this hotel. He told us the hotel is new.

Suzy also pointed out that we are paying much more for our rooms tonight than they are currently advertising on the internet and so he reduced the price of the rooms to the current advertised price.

After breakfast, Suzy went shopping to a nearby department store. I went to check out some computer stores.

At 11am Suzy, Steph and Nicky went shopping at Soho. John and I caught a taxi to the Museuem of Modern Art (MoMA). The museum was closer than we expected - it's in 53rd Street.

Outside the museum, there was a long queue waiting to get in. John had Citypass tickets which meant we didn't need to queue and so we could walk straight in and go to the members admission counter.

When I looked at the pass, it said they are normally closed on Tuesdays but they definitely weren't closed today - there were people everywhere. We went to the top floor and worked our way down floor by floor.

John is more interested in modern art than I am. I went along just so I could say that I'd been there but I found it quite interesting. They had a variety of exhibits including paintings, scuptures and others that defy classification. Some exhibits included current-day items I hadn't expected to find in a museum including household appliances and computer items.

We had a nice lunch at the MoMA cafe and then had a brief look at the design shops across the road.

Joan went back to the hotel and I walked to the Museum of Natural History. Once again there were huge crowds at this museum, In fact, they were sold out for all the shows that I wanted to see and so I booked for the 3:30pm Imax show.

When I found the Imax theatre, the queue went around the corner and then around the next corner and the corner after that (and maybe another one). The show was about the rover robots that NASA sent to Mars a couple of years ago. I hadn't planned to see it originally but I was glad I had seen it.

I got an SMS message from Nicky that they had booked an early dinner tonight at 6pm and so I left the museum soon after. I caught the subway back to the hotel. It was a quick trip and I was back at the hotel by about 5:15pm.

The girls were already back from their shopping expedition but they hadn't bought much.

New York - Day 5 - PM

Monday 25th December.

We had booked for the eight of us to have Christmas dinner at 7:30pm at the Boathouse Restaurant in Central Park. We caught two taxis from the hotel at about 7:15pm.

It was raining steadily. Luckily most of us had umbrellas because the road into Central Park was closed and the taxi driver had to drop us at the perimeter of the park. We walked the remaining 300m to the restauant.

The restaurant was nicely lit up with Christmas decorations. They had a fixed-price three-course menu for Christmas day with a delicious set of choices for each course. We lived it up with excellent food, attentive service, lots of wine, great atmosphere and good company.

When were leaving, it was still raining but there was a small shuttle bus from the restaurant to 79th Street outside the park. From there we caught taxis back to the hotel.

New York - Day 5 - AM

Monday 25th December.

We had decided to sleep in (because it was Christmas Day) and meet for breafast in the hotel dining room at 9:30am. This might not have been such a great idea, because it was even busier than usual. In fact, it was bedlam.

There were people everywhere. Joan had got down there 5 or 10 minutes before the rest of us and had managed to pull together two tables with eight seats and was guarding it all with her life.

A staff member had cordonned off the food area. I'm not sure if this was a crowd control measure or if they had closed the food area. Half the food dispensers were empty, there were no plates or cutlery, the soft drink machine was serving hot water without any flavouring and they had turned off some of the lights. At least the coffee machines were still working.

Joan had managed to find some plastic plates. Graham and John were inside piling up food on plates and passing them back to me and Joan to take back to the table - a big plate of scrambled eggs, a big plates of fruit, a big pile of French toast, etc.

We managed to grab enough food before they closed off the area altogether. Back at our table we divided it all up between us and ended up having more than enough to eat.

After breakfast, both families went to David's room to exchange Christmas presents. We relaxed with morning tea - Suzy made coffee and Joan had brought a Christmas cake with her on her flight to New York.

At about 12:15pm, we set off to walk to the Empire State Building - about six blocks away. When we got there, the queue outside the entrance was about 150m long and went around the corner and down the block.

One of the organisers was selling VIP tickets (for a higher fee) that got you straight into the building and provided extra attractions. So we decided to go with him.

There were lots of queues within the building including at a security check. The woman at the ticket office got confused and ended up charging Graham for 10 tickets instead of 8. This took a few minutes to sort out but he did get our money back for the extra two.

After the security and ticket office, we went on the Skyride in which we sat in a special auditorium with a large screen. It was like a fairground ride. The platform on which we were sitting tilted, swayed and vibrated as the screen took us for a aerial ride through the New York skies and streets. It was good fun.

The lift took us to the 80th floor and a queue for photographers. Then another elevator ride to the 86th floor which contains the observation deck. The views made it all worthwhile. Although it was cloudy, visibility was good. We stayed out on the deck for 20 minutes taking in the view and taking plenty of photos.

There is another observation deck on the 102nd floor but we didn't go there. We took the stairs back to the 80th level to save time and then the quick elevator ride back to ground level at about 3pm.

Originally, some of us had planned to go to the Staten Island ferry to see the Statue of Liberty but we came to the conclusion that we might not get there before it started raining and so we headed back to the hotel.

On the way, we looked for somewhere to have a light lunch. Some outlets were closed and others looked suspect but we eventually found a cafe that was clean and had the type of food we wanted.

Graham, Joan, Suzy and I walked back to the hotel whereas the younger four went for a taxi ride to the Upper Eastside near Central Park to check out the trendy residential areas.

New York - Day 4 - PM

Sunday 24th December.

We met the others downstairs in the hotel foyer at about 2:30pm and caught two taxis (4 people per cab) to the theatre. We got there in plenty of time for the 3pm start.

The show was at the Gershwin Theatre (yes, it's spelt Theatre not Theater at this theatre) which is on 51 Street between 8th Avenue and Broadway. Our seats were in a great position: in the centre of the theatre left-to-right and front-to-back on the lower level (the orchestra level). There were several levels of balconies above us.

The show was a new musical called Wicked. It is about a witch, a wizard, a dumb blond, a handsome soldier and the land of Oz. I didn't recognise any of the performers (not that I'm an expert on such things). The main actors were both female - the dumb blonde and the witch.

It was a great show. The dumb blonde (Kate Reinders) put in an excellent performance but the witch (Ana Gasteyer) was even better. She had a very strong voice and a commanding presence. She must have been well known to the local audience because when she first appeared on the stage, she received loud applause.

We thought the interval was too short. They announced that the second half was about to end just as we had finished buying drinks at the bar. There was still a long queue of women waiting outside the ladies toilet.

Joan had only one sip of her champagne before throwing it away. On the other hand, I managed to gulp down both my wine and Suzy's as they made the final announcement for the start of the second half.

Suzy gave up waiting in the queue and joined me as we rushed into the theatre. Nicky and Steph had been further ahead of her in the line and got back to the theatre a few minutes after the play had started again.

It seemed strange that they would rush their customers in this way. Either they should make the intermission longer or provide more loos for the girls. They were quite happy to sell you a drink but did not give you enough time to drink it.

The show finished by 6pm and we decided to find a bar to have a drink. Graham suggested that we go to the bar at the London Hotel a few blocks away. He and Joan often used to stay there when they had come to New York although it had since been refurbished. It is a classy, upmarket hotel and a very nice bar.

After our drink, Joan suggested that we should go to an Italian restaurant called Giamboni's that they had often gone to when they were in New York. Another high-class establishment with great atmosphere, great food, great service - with a huge selection of dishes and wine. Another very memorable evening - even for those of us for whom this was their first visit.

Joan chatted to the lady who owned the restaurant. She and her husband had been running the restaurant for decades but unfortunately the husband had died a couple of months ago.

About half our group caught a taxi back to the hotel while the remainder of us walked. When I got back to our room, Suzy and Steph were busy wrapping Christmas presents ready for tomorrow morning.

New York - Day 4 - AM

Sunday 24th December.

We went down to the hotel breakfast at 9am. The lifts weren't as bad as on other days but it was very hard to find somewhere to sit in the dining area. We should have gone down about half an hour earlier. By the time we wanted to leave, there was a long queue for the lift.

Suzy and Steph were going shopping again. Steph was anxious to get back to a shop she'd been to a couple of days ago to buy a coat she had liked. She was worried it might have been sold. I found out later that it was still there and so she was very happy and relieved to still be able to buy it.

I decided to go back to the Museum of Natural History (on the west side of Central Park) and I decided to take the subway again.

When I got to the subway platform, I couldn't see any other people. All I saw was what seemed to be a blanket and a pile of rags on a nearby bench. When I looked more closely, I noticed toes at the end of the blanket and I realised there must have been a homeless person under the blanket. He was completely covered with the blanket - I don't know how he was breathing.

You cannot lie down on the benches because they put vertical dividers between each seating position. So there is only enough room for each person to sit upright. I assume that this is to prevent homeless people from curling up on the benches.

So I decided to move further along the platform. I found a couple more homeless men before I found half a dozen people waiting for a train some distance further along. I think they were probably all tourists like me.

I was starting to wonder if it had been a good idea to catch the subway. Being a Sunday, there weren't many trains either. I felt better when I got on the train because there were more people around and I felt even better when I left the subway at the museum (at about 10:45am).

At the museum, I working my way from one exhibit to another at a fairly leisurely pace. It's a very big museum (but not as big as the Met) and there's a lot to take in. By the time I had to leave at 1pm, I'd managed to walk through more than half the museum.

One of the features of the museums, restaurants and bars in the US is that you can leave your coats at the coat room. You don't need a coat while you are inside - in fact, you would end up getting very hot if you wore them while inside because everything is heated. The downside is that you have to line up to leave your coat and then line up again to pick it up.

Although I had to be back at the hotel by 2pm, I decided to catch the subway again rather than get a taxi back to the hotel - partly because the train is cheaper (only $2 each way) but more importantly because I was determined to master the subway system.

When I got off the first train at the 59th Street station to change to the other line, the platform was quite crowded and I heard loud music. At first I thought it was a busker but then I realised it was an old black man nearby who had a stereo and speakers. He was sitting on a stool singing along to the music he was broadcasting to all and sundry. At times, he would get up and start dancing. Other people on the platform would join in the singing and dancing.

I got back to the hotel just before 2pm - about two minutes before the girls got back from their shopping expedition. We got changed and made ourselves beautiful so we were ready to go to the Broadway theatre show that David had arranged.

New York - Day 3

Saturday 23rd December.

Steph and I went down for the hotel breakfast at 8am. It was very easy to find a seat probably because we were a little earlier today.

Suzy, Steph, Nicky and Joan had planned to go shopping all day at Woodbury Common in New Jersey. John and David were going to join them for the first part of their expedition. Graham and I had no plans to go shopping. The shoppers headed off at about 8:30am.

I left at about 9:15am but it took quite a while to get an elevator because the elevators were very busy - especially with people going to breakfast on level 3.

This morning was overcast with light showers from time to time. I walked along 42nd Street to Madison Avenue (4th Ave) to Park Avenue, 5th Avenue and eventually to the northern end of Central Park. By the time I got there (about 4pm), my pedometer told me that I'd taken more than 25000 paces.

On my trek, I visited various places including Grand Central Station, the Waldoff-Astoria Hotel, the Rockefeller Center, the Apple Shop, the Trump Tower, Tiffany's (all they had was jewelry and no breakfast), Saks Fifth Avenue,the Metropolitan Museum and the Guggenheim Museum.

The Met Museum is huge. I spent about three hours there walking briskly through one exhibit and hall after another. Just when I thought I must be getting towards the end, I found another area and another exhibit. It was full of paintings, statues, artifacts, furniture, costumes, European art, Egyptian art, South-East Asian art, etc.

They had several special exhibits including Cezanne to Picasso, Americans in Paris and Papuan art.

There were plenty of works from famous artists including Rodin, van Gogh, Cezanne, Picasso, Monet, Gaugin, Rembrandt, . . . You could spend weeks there and still not cover it all. I had lunch in the cafeteria downstairs and then headed off to the Guggenheim Museum which is about 5 blocks north along the eastern edge of Central Park.

The Guggenheim museum is very modern. It consists of a rotunda with a spiral ramp that winds up the circular space. It was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

It presents paintings by a wide range of artists such as Picasso, Cezanne, Kadinsky and van Gogh over the last few hundred years.

After leaving the Guggenheim, the sun was out and the rain had gone away. So I decided to walk to the top end of Central Park. I walked past a huge lake, playgrounds, joggers and cyclists.

I decided to catch the subway back to the hotel but that proved to be a bit of an adventure. I had planned to catch a train on the B-line as we did yesterday but eventually I found out that the B-line does not run on the weekend. To cut a long story short, I caught the C-line train to the 59th Street station and changed to the D-line for the trip back to Bryant Park station.

When I got back to the hotel, there was long queue waiting for the lifts. It took about 10 minutes to get up to my room.

By that time, I had taken more than 27500 paces and felt I needed a drink. So I opened the bottle of wine that the hotel manager had left for us. Soon after that Graham rang and invited me to his room for another drink. He had decided to have a quiet day and had spent most of the day at the hotel.

The shoppers eventually returned at about 7pm. It turned out that John and David had stayed all day with the shopping expedition.

The shoppers had decided that we should go to Greenwich Village again and find an Italian restaurant. We set off at about 7:30pm and caught a couple of taxis back to Bleecker Street.

We wandered down the street checking out the Italian restaurants. We found one that claimed we would only have to wait 5 minutes for a table and sure enough 15 minutes later we were out of the cold and inside sitting down enjoying the atmosphere. It was another great evening - pizza, meatballs, risotto (glutten free), panini, wine, etc.

We were back at the hotel by 10:15pm ready for bed after another long adventurous day.

New York - Day 2 - PM

Friday 22nd December.

Suzy wanted to go back to the Spanish restaurant that she and I went to last week in Greenwich Village when we had been staying at a hotel in Washington Square. I rang and booked the restaurant for 8pm and booked for 7 people on the assumption that Graham and Joan would come with us because they were due to arrive in New York late this afternoon.

Suzy and Steph went shopping at Macy's. Nick and John had been to the Guggenheim museum. John dropped Nicky at Macy's to join the others. John and I decided to go to the Museum of Natural History which is located on the west side of Central Park. We caught a taxi at about 3:45pm to the museum.

We joined a tour at the museum starting at 4:15pm. It gave us a good overview of the museum especially because the tour guide was so knowledgeable and experienced. The museum closed at 5:45pm and so we had to leave.

We decided to catch the subway back to the hotel, partly because it had started to rain. There was a subway station next to the museum and we got off at a subway station near Bryant Park about a block away from our hotel. It turned out to be a quick and inexpensive way to get around.

The girls were still out shopping and so John and I decided to go to the hotel bar for a beer. Graham and Joan had flown in from San Francisco and joined us at the bar for a drink. Later Suzy and Nicky joined us there too.

We had to get two taxis to get to the restaurant and we arrived on time at about 8pm. Once again the restaurant was busy, the food was great and the service was very good. We had lots of paella and Sangria. Another great meal - great food, great wine, great company.

We caught taxis back to the hotel. Soon after we returned at about 10:30pm, David arrived at the hotel. John had organised that we were all on the same floor in adjacent rooms. So we had 4 out of the 5 rooms on that side of the 24th floor.

Most of the others went back down to the hotel bar for another drink.

New York - Day 2 - AM

Friday 22nd December.

All three of us went downstairs for breakfast in the hotel. It was so busy there were people sitting on the floor to eat because they couldn't find a seat. We didn't see Nicky or John.

We had decided to go on a bus tour of the downtown area (from Time Square to the southern end of the island) this morning. The temperature was below 40F and so we rugged up and set off. The buses have an open top and so Suzy had planned to sit downstairs to keep warm.

In Time Square, we spoke to a man selling tickets for the tour bus. He had a hand-held device for receiving payments and dispensing tickets. We all sat upstairs despite the cold.

The tour took us past the theatre district, Macy's, Madison Square Garden, the Empire State Building, the Woolworth Building, the Chrysler Building, the Flat Iron Building, Greenwich Village, Soho, Chinatown, Little Italy, City Hall and the Brooklyn Bridge (and lots more).

We got off at the stop near the World Trade Centre site. First we went in to a Starbucks to have coffee and warm up. Then we walked a couple of blocks to the World Trade Centre site. After spending about 20 minutes there, the girls noticed that there was a department store across the road (Century 21) and so we went over there.

Next we got back on the bus to continue the tour. The tour guide this time was much more friendly and informative. Steph sat downstairs. Suzy sat upstairs for a while but soon went downstairs to join Steph in the warmth.

The tour took us past the entrance to the Staten Island Ferry, Lower East Side, East Village, the United Nations Building, the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, Trump Tower, Central Park and back to Time Square.

We decided to buy sandwiches and take them back to the hotel for lunch. The first place we stopped wanted to charge us $15 per sandwich and so we gave them a miss and went further on to Starbucks at Time Square and got sandwiches for about $5 each. We got back to the hotel at about 2pm.

New York - Day 1 - PM

Thursday 21st December.

Steph and Nicky went on a Sex and the City tour. Suzy, John and I decided to go for a walk to Central Park. John had bought me a pedometer to replace the one that broke on the second or third day of our trip.

Central Park was probably not at its best because there were no leaves on the trees but it was still very pretty. It's a huge park. I'm not sure what the dimension are it but must be at least 10 times bigger than Hyde Park.

We saw horse-drawn carriages, rickshaws, lakes, statues, bridges, skating rinks, ovals, baseball areas and a castle. We walked about half the length of the park before deciding to head back because it was dark.

Along the way back, we searched for a restaurant in the park that Suzy had heard about. Eventually we found it and decided to book a table there for Christmas Day dinner.

We caught a taxi back to the hotel and had a drink at the bar. We asked the concierge for a recommendation for dinner and he booked us a table at Shelley which is a jazz club on 57th Street.

Steph and Nicky were still out shopping and so they said they would meet us there. We walked to the restaurant - about 30 minutes. The restaurant was very busy. Suzy and I both ordered fish and chips. It was by far the biggest fish and chips I've ever seen.

Nicky and I walked back to the hotel whereas the others caught a taxi. When I got back to the hotel, my new pedometer showed I had taken more than 14000 paces since 3pm.

New York - Day 1 - AM

Thursday 21st December.

After a long day yesterday, we decided to sleep in until 8am. However, it wasn't restful sleep because the air conditioning wasn't working properly. We turned it off and the room ended up getting hot.

Suzy and I went downstairs for breakfast in the hotel. It was very similar to the breakfast we had at the Residence Inn in Ottawa. It was very busy but it was fine. Steph stayed in bed.

After breakfast, Suzy set off to the TKTS outlet in another Marriott hotel in Times Square. Steph and I were in the Starbucks at Time Square getting some breakfast for Steph, when Suzy phoned to say she needed us to hurry to the ticket office because she wanted to buy some tickets.

When we got there, she told us she can secured half-price tickets to the Christmas Spectacular the Radio City Music Hall and it started at 11am - in about 30 minutes. Radio City is a large theatre near the Rockefeller Center about six blocks north of Time Square. Apparently it has been refurbished. It's very grand and impressive.

The stage is probably about 25m wide and the arch is probably 20m high. The orchestra isn't just in a pit because they raise the entire orchestra up to stage level at various times during the performance and they even roll the orchestra holus bolus from the front to back of the stage.

The show stars the Rockettes which is a troupe of about 30 very attractive dancers. At times they danced in a chorus line across the full width of the stage. They didn't miss a beat - they were in perfect unison all the time.

Santa was there too. They gave us 3-d glasses so we could watch his arrival in dramatic fashion. All good fun.

They have a very large cast and even used live animals. There was a horse and cart, camels and sheep. Most of the scenes related to Santa themes but at the end they had Christian scenes. It was good to see a Christmas show that wasn't censored by political correctness.

They called it a Christmas Spectacular. True to their word, it was all about Christmas and it was truly spectacular. It was more than just spectacular - it was stunning. In fact, it was professional, precise, polished, perfect. A brilliant performance.

After the show, we went across the road and had lunch at the Rockefeller Center. The deli we went to had an amazing selection of food. After lunch, we checked out the ice skating rink, a huge Christmas tree, a gold-plated statue, and lots more.

We walked back to the hotel. The girls checked out the shops along the way.

Ottawa to New York

Wednesday 20th December.

We decided to allow plenty of time to get to the airport and so we checked out of the hotel at about 2:30pm. We asked them to organise a van so we could fit all the bags for the three of us. Although they had told us we might have to wait an extra 15 minutes for a van, it arrived as we got downstairs to street level.

Steph wasn't ready when we arrived at Carleton University because everything had happened quicker than we expected. The taxi driver was happy to wait. He was from Lebanon whereas other taxi drivers so far have been from Pakistan, India and Iraq. He and I had a long chat about the price of cars in Canada and Australia.

When we got to the airport we found that the check-in and security was relatively hassle-free - possibly because of the friendly, obliging nature of Canadian people. For example, at the Air Canada check-in, we were too early to go through and so they offered to hold our checked luggage in a security area while we went to have a cup of coffee.

When we picked the bags, we proceeded to customs. There was no queue! We went to security and there was only a short queue. I was picked out for a random security check. I had a long conversation with the security guard about our trip, our family and holiday. We ended up shaking hands and wishing each other a happy Christmas.

Next, believe it or not, we went through US customs. Once again there was no queue. We commented to the officer that we had waited for over an hour in LA on the way to the US. This was a lot better than having to go through customs when we landed.

The plane was on time. The flight went well although it was yet another small plane. We landed on time and the bags came through soon after we reached the carousel. We caught a taxi without waiting and he delivered us to our hotel without any hassles at all.

As usual the Marriott hotel is great. We are on the 24th floor and we found out later that we are right next to Nicky and John's room. Steph will be sleeping on the fold-out lounge in our room.

After unpacking, we headed off for Time Square which is only a few blocks away. Nicky and John have been in New York already for a few days. Nicky had told us that we would be gob-smacked by Time Square because of the bright lights, activity and atmosphere. When we arrived at Times Square, our gobs were well and truly smacked. It's an amazing place.

We decided to have dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe which is on Time Square. It's a very large cafe and the music was very LOUD. Great atmosphere.

It is full of memorabilia from rock stars. At the bottom of the stairs, there was a Beatles display window containing outfits they wore in the 60s. Our table was next to a display of Madonna pictures and one of her outfits. Elsewhere in the cafe, there were countless outfits, photos, instruments, etc from other rock stars. Even a saxophone from Bill Clinton.

After we ordered our food and wine, we got a message from Nicky that they had just left a movie. They joined us a few minutes later. It was the first time they had seen Steph for many months.

They told us about their adventures so far in New York including their attendance last night for the filming of the David Letterman Show. They were in the front row and were shown on the TV. They were seated a few seats away from Beyonce.

A momentous day.

Ottawa - Day 2

Wednesday 20th December.

When we woke up this morning, it was clear and sunny. I checked the weather on the web and it said the current temperature was minus 4C and the forecast maximum was +1C. So when we set out after breakfast, we made sure that we were well rugged up. There was still a little snow on the ground in some areas.

We walked up to Parliament House and bought tickets for a 45 minutes guided tour. Parliament House was built in about 1860 and so it has plenty of character. The building is constructed in stone on the outside and with limestone on the inside.

The main building has a tall central tower called the Peace Tower that was opened in 1927 to commemorate the first world war. On either side of the main building are similar buildings called the East Block and the West Block. Across the road and down the street, there are other old stone buildings such as the Supreme Court.

The tour took us through the majestic corridors to the House of Commons, the library and the Senate chamber. In the House of Commons, we looked through the glass doors at the entrance but in the Senate we entered the chamber and stood on the red carpet. The library was a magnificent circular room with a tall dome and elegant carved timberwork throughout.

After the tour, we took the elevator to the observation deck in the Peace Tower. The top of the tower is over 90m above ground level whereas the observation deck is at about 60m. On the way up, you go past the bells and so we waited there until 11am to hear the chimes. The observation deck gives fabulous views of Ottawa in every direction. The view down the river is particularly beautiful.

After we left the building, we strolled around the grounds looking at the statues and admiring the view.

Next we walked down Wellington Street to the ByWard Markets. After a cup of coffee, I left Suzy there to look through the markets while I headed back to the hotel.

We had a quick lunch in our hotel room and packed our bags for the trip to New York.

Ottawa - Day 1

Tuesday 19th December

When we woke up, we noticed a few snow flakes falling past the hotel window. The snow flurry became thicker as time went on. It was very pretty - rather like those glass globes you find at novelty stores: turn them upside down to watch the snow flakes.

We took advantage of the coin-operated laundry in the hotel to get our clothes washed. In the meantime we had the complimentary breakfast provided by the hotel. This might not have been as good as the full buffet breakfasts that I've been having at the other Marriott hotels bit it was more than adequate.

At mid-morning, we set off to catch the bus to Carleton University to visit Steph. We bought a set of 10 bus tickets on the way at a small supermarket and caught the bus outside the parliament building. There was a little covering of snow on the ground but some areas had been cleared with salt. The bus trip took about 20 minutes.

Steph took us to her room in her residence building. She was in the process of cleaning it up in preparation for leaving tomorrow with us for New York. We then went for lunch with her at the student cafeteria. There she introduced us to several of her friends.

After lunch she showed us around the university including the convenience store where she works and the residence where she will be living next year. Her new room will be much better than her old room. We travelled through the tunnels that connect most of the buildings thereby protecting students from the cold weather outside.

In the distance she pointed out the sporting venues. All of them are indoors including the football stadiums and athletic tracks.

She took us to her bank so we could sort out a solution for getting money to her now that she can no longer use her credit card. In the end we transferred enough money to her to keep her going until the end of January and then we will arrange a new credit card when we get home.

Next, we caught the O-train to Greenbro and walked to the shopping centre. The girls went into Walmart and I went into an electronics store next door. Once the girls had bought what they wanted, we caught the train back to Carleton Uni.

Steph had to call Air Canada to reorganise her flights after her skiing trip because she now needs to return to Ottawa for another semester. The man she spoke to did not seem to be with it because it took an eternity to organise what seemed to be a simple transaction.

We caught the bus back to our hotel and Steph met us later at our hotel so we could go out for dinner.

The hotel had suggested a couple of restaurants nearby including the Piano Bar which was less than a block away. We looked at the menu outside the Piano Bar and decided to give it a go. We asked to go upstairs because that was where the piano player performed after 8pm.

The building dates back more than 130 years. It has lots of character - tall ceilings, dark timber, timber staircase, etc. The food was great. Steph was looking forward to a good meal such as a steak. She and I ended up ordering prime rib roast beef and Suzy ordered salmon. We ordered French wine that came in a fascinating curved bottle. Later we ordered desert and coffee.

There was a large group celebrating a man's 80th birthday. Some of his seven daughters were there with their husbands. They weren't any introverted family. The "birthday boy" took to the microphone several times and sang along with the pianist. A lady from another table got up and sang too. None of our table sang but I asked the pianist if he knew any Australian songs and so he sang Waltzing Matilda.

Several people came up to us to talk about Australia. Steph told us that during her time in Ottawa, she gets a consistent response from people when they find out she is from Australia. First, they express surprise that she is so far from home. Second, they ask why she has left such a wonderful place as Australia to come to Canada.

It was a very special evening.

We went back to our hotel and Steph went off to catch up with her friends at another pub.

Toronto to Ottawa

Monday 18th December.

Most mornings I wake up and turn on my laptop to get the news. The most important news is the cricket score and so this morning I was particularly happy to learn that we had won the third test in Perth and hence we had regained the Ashes. What more could you ask for as a great way to start the day.

I went downstairs to the hotel restaurant for a hot buffet breakfast. The breakfast was just as good as at the other Marriott hotels we have stayed at but it was cheaper than at Niagara Falls.

After breakfast, we set off by taxi for the CN tower which is claimed to be the tallest building in the world. The highest point of the tower is over 500m but we went to the first observation area that is 350m above ground level. There is a higher observation area but the ticket desk suggested the first one because there was limited visibility because of the cloud cover.

Before we got to the ticket office, Suzy realised that she had lost her hat that matches her scarf. We retraced our steps and luckily found the hat still sitting on the footpath where we had got out of the cab.

The journey to the top of the tower only takes 58 seconds and travels on the outside of the building and so it offers fabulous views. The view from the observation deck was even better partly because you can walk around the full diameter of the tower to see Toronto from every angle.

After taking lots of photos, we went down one level to the glass-floor area. This was spooky. They have glass floor panels that look straight down to the city 350m below. There were people walking on the glass panels and there some people jumping up and down on them to prove that the panels don't break. I eventually summoned up the courage to walk on one panel gingerly for a few seconds.

We caught a taxi back to the hotel, packed up, checked out and walked the couple of blocks to the bus depot to catch the bus to Ottawa.

Every seat on this bus was full whereas yesterday's bus from Niagara Falls was almost empty. Suzy thought this bus (Greyhound) was much more comfortable than yesterday (Coach Canada) because the seats were better and it did not rattle as much. However, there seemed to be problem with the gearbox because every time the driver changed gears, there was a crunching noise and the floor beneath our seats shook.

Because the bus was full, we left 15 minutes earlier than the scheduled time of 11:30am and arrived in Ottawa at about 4pm. Steph arrived a few minutes later. It was great to see her. We all caught a taxi to our hotel.

Next we set off through the city. Ottawa is very pretty especially with all the Christmas lights. It has the feel of a friendly town rather than a big city.

The temperature was much lower than we had experienced so far. I had my heavy coat, hat and gloves but next time I will wear a thicker jumper and my scarf. On our bus trip this afternoon, it had seemed to get colder as we approached Ottawa because we saw some frozen water and some very light snow.

After walking through the cold for about 15 minutes, we entered some shopping malls. Steph wanted some new boots and so we went looking for shoe shops. It amazing how many shoe shops there are in Ottawa. We visited all of them and ended up buying nothing.

Next we headed off for Ottawa University to visit Steph's friend Felicity who is heading back to Australia next week. Felicity showed us around her residence and then we walked back into the city to an Italian restaurant that Steph likes.

After dinner, Steph was going to meet some friends for a drink and so she caught the bus back to a bar near her university. Suzy and I walked back to our hotel.

Niagara Falls to Toronto

Sunday 17th December.

We had breakfast in the hotel restaurant and headed off down the hill to the falls. The hotel staff had suggested that we use the inclinator opposite the hotel to get down the hill but this was closed.

The weather was cloudy and it was sprinkling every now and then. However, we were well protected because we had decided to wear our raincoat and spray jacket anyway because of the spray from the falls. The weather site said it was 54 degrees F which the locals told us was warmer than normal for this time of the year.

On the way down the hill we chatted to an English couple. We took photos of them with the falls in the background and they reciprocated with us.

At the bottom of the hill, we entered the Behind the Falls tour. You take an elevator down through the cliff face and then walk through tunnels to get to viewing areas behind the falls. There are two portals inside the cliff from which you watch the water crashing down in front of you and an outside observation deck next to the descending water.

We took lots of photos from every angle - before, during and after the tour.

Next, we went back up the hill to take another tour consisting of an elevator ride up the outside of the Skylon tower. This takes you to a circular observation deck about 50m above ground level. It provides fabulous views of the falls, the town and surrounding areas. Apparently on a clear day, you can see some of the lakes and other cities such as Toronto in the distance.

We got a call from Steph saying she had lost her credit card last night and so Suzy had to spend ages on the phone to Westpac and MasterCard when we got back to the hotel to stop the current cards and trying to sort out an emergency card for Steph.

We checked out from the hotel by 1pm and caught a taxi to the bus depot. We had been planning to catch a Greyhound bus to Toronto but the man behind the counter suggested that we catch a 1:45pm bus with Coach Canada because it was earlier than the Greyhound bus.

The bus trip was easy and comfortable. There were no hassles with security and luggage. We arrived at the bus depot in Toronto at about 3:30pm. It turned out that our hotel was only a block or two from the bus depot and so we simply walked there.

Once again, the Marriott hotel is very nice - great location, very modern, well equipped, good service, spacious rooms, comfortable bed(s), high-speed internet connection, coffee-making facilities, wide range of TV channels, etc.

The internet connection cost varies from one city to another. In Toronto, the internet connection package also gives you free phone calls within Canada and the US which is just as well because Suzy had to spend ages again on the phone to MasterCard trying to sort out Steph's credit card problem.

MasterCard were a disappointment. They hadn't recorded any of the details Suzy had given them in her previous long conversation when we were in Niagara Falls and so she virtually had to start again. As with some other parts of our trip, there was a communication problem because of language and accents. In order to get the details through, Suzy had to spell out certain words to the MasterCard person - including words like "America".

Suzy decided to go shopping in the Eaton Centre next door. We are very close the centre of town. From our window, we have a good view down the street past the civic centre and we can see an open-air skating rink. Because it's Christmas time, there are colourful lights up the street and in the malls.

After she got back, she had to talk to MasterCard and Westpac again. The upshot was that we'll have to wait until we get home to organise a suitable credit card replacement.

For dinner we went to the Baton Rouge restaurant in the Eaton Centre. The food was excellent. In the shopping centre, there was a huge beautiful Christmas tree with expensive crystal hanging from every branch.

New York to Niagara Falls

Saturday 16th December.

We set the alarm for 5am because we wanted to leave plenty of time to sort out the Amtrak train ticket. We'd checked out by 6pm and caught a taxi to Penn Street station - which did not take long (about 10 minutes) at that early hour.

The ticket office was open and the check-in took only a few minutes - much quicker than an airline check-in. We had plenty of time for breakfast before getting on the train at 7:15am.

For the first couple of hours, the track ran next to the Hudson River and provided great views. A Canadian couple behind us pointed out some of the sites along the way. They had just been to New York for a holiday and gave us advice on what to see and do when we return to New York ourselves.

Because we were travelling business class, we were in the first carriage behind the engine - the same carriage as the on-board cafe. We had plenty of leg room, wide aisles, good luggage storage, free coffee and soft drinks and so it was a comfortable, relaxing trip.

We arrived at the Niagara Falls station on the Canadian side of the border at about 4pm. The Canadian authorities were a bit slow and disorganised. We were told to sit on the train until the customs and passport people had seen us. A customs officer came but nobody came to stamp our passport and then they eventually said we could get off.

We caught a taxi to the Marriott hotel. Our room is on the seventh floor and has a great view of both falls.

For dinner, we went to Fridays (part of a chain of restaurants) in a nearby hotel. The food was fine but seemed expensive once they added on all the taxes.

After dinner, we went back to our room and I signed on remotely to my PC at home in Killara so I could watch the cricket highlights. After a few minutes, the window closed by itself and then a Notepad window appeared in which Philip wrote that he had closed the window before he realised that I must have been signed on. I can only imagine how surprised Philip must have been for my PC to have burst into life unannounced and for Bill Lawry to start screaming "Got him".

At 9pm, we went to a hall in the hotel to watch a magic show. We were the only adults there without children or grandchildren.

Washington - Day 3

Friday 15th December.

Breakfast at the B&B included Alan, the young couple we met yesterday and briefly a young Japanese girl. Alan and Jason certainly have different views on politics. We could hear raised voices after we left the table to pack our bags. I later jokingly asked them if they were about to come to blows and they assured me they were just having a vigorous American discussion.

We left our bags at the B&B and headed off on the Metro for Nicky and John's hotel. John was still in the restaurant having breakfast and Nicky had just got back from the gym. So we didn't get away until about 10am. John and I headed to the White House and the girls headed to the Holocaust museum.

John and I met a Brisbane family outside the hotel. One of the sons was wearing a Wallabies scarf. They offered advice about New York and we offered them advice about Washington.

We then walked all the way along the mall to the Supreme Court which is at the top of the hill behind the Capitol. The tour took us into the courtroom itself and we heard a 20 minute talk about the history and practices of the court.

Next we went next door to the Library of Congress. The security guard was the most officious we have encountered. When I went through the detector, it went off because of my watch and some coins in my pocket. John tried to hand me my passport, but the guard pushed him away several times until he was a few metres away from me. Over the top.

We only had about half an hour and so asked at the information desk about highlights. She sent us to the second floor to look at the main reading room. She said we'd be extremely impressed and we certainly were. It is a majestic structure - rather like a European cathedral with a huge dome ceiling.

Time was running out to catch the plane and so we set off down the mall. I caught the Metro back to the B&B and John went across the mall to meet Nicky at the Museum of Natural History.

Solomon (the same driver who brought us to the B&B) picked us up and took us to Reagan airport. As usual, the check-in and security were a hassle but eventually we got through it all and had a light lunch.

After the plane taxied out to the runway, the pilot informed us there was a problem at the New York airport and we had to wait for clearance. We sat there on the tarmac for almost 90 minutes before taking off. At New York we circled for a while before being cleared to land. We never found out what the problem was.

The taxi trip took a while because of very heavy peak hour traffic to Manhattan Island. It was good to get to the hotel (Washington Square).

We went looking for a restaurant for dinner and found a fabulous Spanish restaurant a couple of blocks away. We had heaps of Sangria wine and excellent food.

Washington - Day 2

Thursday 14th December.

Breakfast was ready on time for us this morning. Besides Alan, there were other guests at the breakfast table including a young couple who had very different political views to Alan.

We set off early because we wanted to get to the Capitol before any long queues formed. This time, we got off the Metro at the Capitol South station. From there it was only a few blocks to the Capitol.

You needed a free pass to get in and had to walk about 300m towards the mall to a tent to get the pass and then walk back up the hill to the Capitol. We were just in time for the 9:00am tour, the first of the day.

Security was very tight. Apart from the normal screening of bags, we had to put all our coats and equipment through the screening machine - just like at an airport. They would not even let Suzy take in an apple she had in her coat pocket.

Our tour guide was very informative and the building was very impressive. We saw the rotunda and its huge dome, the old Supreme Court, the old congress hall and lots of statues.

Next we headed off down the mall to the National Air and Space Museum which has a huge display ranging from the early days of flight (Wright brothers) through to space exploration. There are planes of every vintage hanging from the ceilings as well as space vehicles.

After a while Suzy decided she had seen enough and headed off to catch the train to Metro Center to do some shopping. I found out later that she didn't find too many shops but did manage to find the White House and the hotel where Nicky and John will be staying tonight. She bought a cashmere jumper at Filene's Basement.

The cafeteria at the space museum was not as good as the one at the Indian museum yesterday. In fact, the main part of today's cafe was a McDonald's. However, there was another part upstairs that was a bit better.

Many of the staff at the shops seem to be of Hispanic background. This can make communication difficult - partly because they can't understand the Australian accent. For example, they had little bottles of white wine on display and I asked if they had any red wine. She didn't have a clue what I was talking about.

I left the space museum after lunch and went down the mall to the Holocaust Museum. As you would expect, this was very confronting.

Security was tighter at this museum than at the other museums (but not as tight as at the Capitol). After I left the museum, I went to their cafe which was just outside the museum exit. Believe it or not, I had to go through the same full security screening just to get into the cafe.

Later, I strolled along the edge of the river, back along the mall and then caught the metro at the Smithsonian station back to the B&B. This time I took the right exit from the station at Dupont Circle and didn't get lost.

Each of us had to renew our rail tickets. You put the old card in the machine and then put in an extra $5 note (say). It gives you a new card on which is printed the residual value plus your extra $5.

We set off at about 7pm to take the metro to the Soffitel hotel where Nicky and John will be staying. We got there before 7:30pm and Suzy rang Nicky only to find that they had flown in to Dulles airport and had just got in a cab and it would be about 40 minutes before they arrived.

We decided to go for a walk to look at the White House by night. After initially going in the wrong direction, we found it and headed back to the restaurant for a drink at the bar.

Nicky and John arrived at about 8:10pm while we were in the b ar, checked in, came down to meet us and we went for dinner at the Soffitel restaurant. Great food (but small servings), excellent service. Suzy and I left at 10:30pm and caught a taxi back to the B&B after organising with Nicky and John about our plans for tomorrow.

Washington - Day 1

Wednesday 13th December.

We set the alarm for 7am because breakfast at the B&B was scheduled for 7:30 to 8:30am. But there wasn't any sign of life until about 8:15am when someone called Alan appeared. He said he was the owner and the lady who normally arranges breakfast hadn't turned up. He arranged something for us and we sat chatting to him about everything including politics for about an hour. He is definitely not a supporter of George W Bush.

He gave us directions to the metro underground and suggested that we go to museums because it was raining.

The metro station is only a block or two away. We had to travel two stops, change at Metro Center and catch a train on a different line for two stops to the Smithsonian station. The hardest part was figuring out their ticketing system because you cannot buy a ticket for just the trip you want to do. We ended up getting a $5 card each which will be enough for today and part of tomorrow.

At the exit from the station, we were approached by a charity guide who suggested that we go first to the Museum of Natural History. There are 7 or 8 museums around the mall, some of which are owned and operated by the Smithsonian Institute. The mall is about 2km long and about 300 wide (not including the museums).

The Museum of Natural History was very worthwhile. In the entry hall, there is an impressive African elephant. They have extensive displays of dinosaurs, mammals and much more.

Next, we headed off to the American Indian Museum - partly because our host at the B&B said they have the best cafeteria. After lunch, we started on the top floor and worked our way down through exhibits about the culture and lifestyle of the Indians. This museum is quite new and extremely well presented and informative.

Suzy was feeling tired and so she caught the metro back to the B&B while I went for a walk down the mall. On the way, I saw the World War II memorial, the Washington monument, the Lincoln memorial and the Vietnam memorial.

On the way back to the B&B, I managed to get lost. I walked around the DuPont Circle many times before having success. It turns out that 19th Street North is on the south side of the circle as well as on the north side. My difficulties proved what our tour guide had told us in Europe back in 2000 that you never leave your hotel without taking a card giving the exact address of the hotel. I had to ring Suzy several times before I arrived at the right address.

The B&B had a long list of recommended restaurants and so we set out to find some of them. We went around Dupont Circle and down various side streets and couldn't find any of the recommended restaurants and so we gave up and went to the restaurant closest to the B&B. It was fine and it gave me an opportunity to try out several local beers.

Boston - Day 3

Tuesday 12th December.

Nicky and John had arrived in Boston last night and we had arranged to meet them at Boston Common at 10:30am so we could walk the Freedom Trail together.

We checked out the hotel, left our bags with the porter and headed off on foot through Copley Plaza, the Public Garden and into Boston Common. Along the way, we saw the public library (nice architecture and ceilings), Trinity Church, John Hancock Tower and lots of squirrels in the park.

All four of us headed off on the Freedom Trail following the red line that takes you from one historic site to the next.

For lunch we found an authentic Italian restaurant run by Italians. We chatted with the owner about our trip to Italy last year.

We went a little further along the freedom trail but decided not to finish the trail because we had run out of time - Suzy and I had to get to the airport for our flight to Washington. So we caught a cab back to our hotel. Suzy and I got our bags from the porter and used the same cab to get to the airport, leaving Nicky and John to explore the Copley Place area of Boston.

The taxi driver was very nervous about waiting for us at the hotel because there is a local ordinance that taxis from outside central Boston are not allowed to pick up from these hotels. He said that undercover police pose as passengers to nab them for this horrific crime.

As it turned out, we had plenty of time at the airport before our flight. The flight took us to Baltimore airport which is in a nearby state rather than Washington DC but we had chosen this destination because it was much cheaper. The B&B had arranged a shuttle bus to pick us up and take us to Washington.

This time the baggage was very fast off the plane - it arrived at the carousel about five minutes after we did. The shuttle driver was waiting for us and so it all went like clockwork. The trip to our B&B took about 40 minutes, mostly on freeways, and even took us past the Australian embassy.

The B&B had left us instructions and a password for retrieving the key. James Bond would have been impressed (perhaps). The B&B consists of two old terrace houses joined together. They can accommodate about 6 couples in their three or four stories. Lots of character. Our room is on the ground floor next to the lounge and breakfast area.

Boston - Day 2

Monday 11th December.

This morning we caught up on lost sleep by sleeping in until about 9am. Originally we had planned to make an early start so we could get to Salem this morning but I think sleeping in was the right choice.

When we did get moving, we caught the underground train from the Prudential Centre across the road from the hotel and changed at North station to the commuter train that took us to Salem.

The commuter train looks more like one our Sydney trains whereas the underground train (T-train) looks a little more like a Melbourne tram.

For the underground system, there are four or five different lines that intersect with each other to serve all of Boston. Each is named by a colour. The area where we are staying is served by the green line and the orange line.

On the other hand, the commuter lines radiate out from Boston and bring people into Boston from surrounding districts elsewhere in the state.

The ticket system for the underground is fully automated. You buy a ticket from a machine and then use it to get through the turnstiles - similar to Sydney but you don't have the option of buying from a ticket office. By contrast, you go to a ticket office for the commuter train and there are no turnstiles.

When we found the correct platform, we made the mistake of just getting on the first carriage because the train was about to depart. Inside we were surprised to find the carriage empty. No sooner had we sat down but two ticket inspectors came up the carriage calling out to us. We had slid open the door to get onto the carriage but apparently you are only supposed to get onto a carriage where the doors have already been opened by the railway staff. Another lesson in local customs.

Another custom that is different from home is that a lot of people buy their tickets on the train (about half of them). Ticket inspectors come through the train as soon as you leave the station, collecting tickets or collecting money from those without tickets. This made more sense later when we realised that most stations on the line outside Boston don't have any staff let alone a ticket office.

When we had stepped out of the hotel, we were surprised to find that the ground was wet. The weather forecast had said it was going to be fine and sunny and from our hotel room (on the 30th floor), there was no sign of rain. Although it was overcast most of the day, we only encountered a few very light showers. At Salem there were still signs of a snow storm they had a few days ago.

Salem is only about 30km from Boston. The railway station at Salem is a few blocks from the centre of town and we walked first down to the wharf area. After looking at some of the sights such as a restored sailing ship, we had lunch at a restaurant called Finz that had been recommended to us by the lady who checked us in yesterday when we arrived at the hotel.

Suzy was determined to have clam chowder during her trip to this part of the world and today was the day. I had prawns (although they call them shrimps here) that were cooked in clam chowder.

After lunch we visited the tourist information centre and watched a movie about the history of Essex County (the Salem area). It was a large auditorium and we were the only people in it because there are very few tourists here at this time of the year.

Next we went to the Witch Museum and sat though an audio-visual presentation about the witch era at Salem. Once again we were the only people in the theatre.

After a stroll through the mall and a cup of coffee, we caught the commuter train and the T-train back to Boston. I went back to our hotel room while Suzy went shopping by herself in the Prudential Centre (without a bored husband hanging around).

We asked the hotel concierge for a restaurant in the buildings connected with the hotel complex so we did not have to venture out into the cold. He suggested Legal Fish which is a chain of seafood stores. He had an outlet in the Copley Centre.

His recommendation was spot on. The food was great and, as always, the service was excellent. One interesting idea was their option to try a selection of 3 different wines - 2 oz of each - which adds up to be equivalent to one normal glass. In other words, you can sample three different wines and then order another glass of the one you prefer if you want to - which I did.

After dinner we went to the Top of the Hub bar on the 52nd floor of the Prudential Center. They have live jazz music and a fabulous view of the lights of Boston. I had coffee and a port. They serve Creme Brule and so naturally Suzy ordered it.

Boston - Day 1 - PM

Sunday 10th December.

This afternoon we went on a trolley-bus tour for about two hours that took us through the highlights of Boston giving us a worthwhile overview.

In the evening, we went for a walk along Newberry Street which is an up-market shopping street a couple of blocks from our hotel. The street is very tasteful with wide footpaths and lots of nice boutique establishments. When we arrived this morning, the taxi driver had told us that there are regulations in this area that preserve the character of the neighbourhood. For example, they cannot use neon signs.

As with other parts of Boston, they use strands of small lights on the trees and shopfronts as Christmas decorations. Very pretty. Although it is Sunday evening, some of the shops were still open.

We took the advice of the concierge at our hotel and went to a restaurant called Stephanie's on Newbury for dinner. It had caught our eye when we were coming in this morning in the taxi and so the concierge's advice reinforced our decision. It turned out to be a great choice. It was well-priced (if you ignore the dollar conversion rate), the food was good, the atmosphere was very pleasant and the service was excellent.

On the way back to our hotel, we dropped into a 24-hour supermarket to see what a US supermarket is like. It was a large supermarket with plenty of choice. I noticed that they had a wine department and found that they sell Australian wines too including Rosemount, Penfolds and McWilliams. We bought some fruit and Suzy couldn't resist also buying some dark chocolate - just for research purposes I guess to see if dark chocolate tastes just as good over here as it does back home.

Boston - Day 1 - AM

Sunday 10th December.

We had a restless night in the hotel near JFK airport after the long trip from Sydney. Perhaps it was jet lag or perhaps it was the noise of the air-conditioner, the traffic on the freeways outside and a car alarm that kept going off in the middle of the night. Eventually I got up and took the other half of the Mogodon tablet I took on the flight over in order to get back to sleep.

Nicky rang on Skype (from Sydney) soon after we woke up. She commented that I sounded groggy. I'm not sure if this was because I had just woken up up or because the effects of the sleeping pill had not completely worn off.

We caught the hotel's shuttle bus to JFK airport for the flight to Boston and had breakfast at the airport (Starbucks) while waiting to board.

We had to walk across the tarmac to the plane and were surprised by the plane because it was smaller than we expected. Anyway, once we got in the air, the flight only took 30 minutes to get to Boston.

From the plane, we had a great view of New York including Manhattan Island and then the coastal areas of Connecticut and Massachussets on the way north to Boston. I suspect that we passed over towns such as Newport in Rhode Island. The weather here is clear, the skies are blue and so visibility is excellent. What's more it's not as cold as usual for this time of the year (but it is still cool by our standards).

It took a while for the bags to come through at Boston airport but I suspect that this might have been a blessing in disguise because, by the time the taxi got us to our hotel, our room was ready for us.

The Marriott Copley Place is a very big, modern, up-market hotel. We are in the tower on the 30th floor which gives us a great view back over the city towards the wharf area and out to sea.

The hotel staff were very helpful when we checked in. They suggested places to visit, places to go shopping and places to eat. Several of them thought we were from Bermuda because of our accents. People from Bermuda must be rich because one of the staff commented to us that the expensive stores in the nearby up-market areas should not be a problem for us.

There is a fancy shopping centre in our hotel complex with lots of fancy shops and then there is an air-conditioned pedestrian bridge across the road to the (large) Prudential Center with more fancy shops and restaurants. Apparently there is a viewing area on the 50th floor on the top of the Prudential tower.

Sydney to New York

Saturday 9th December.

Philip took us out to the airport. People had told us that we needed to get there 3 hours before the flight to clear customs and security - we achieved this because the flight was due to leave at 12:05pm and we reached the airport at 9:05pm.

Although they boarded most people at the appointed time, we sat on the tarmac for an extra 45 minutes because connecting passengers from Melbourne had been held up by the smoke from the fires in Victoria.

We had booked our seat allocation on the web months ago. We'd booked the last row in the back of the plane. This proved to be a good move because there were only two seats side-by-side and there was more space between the seats and the fuselage. Furthermore, since there was nobody behind us, we could put items under our seats instead of under the seats in front of us (as well as in the overhead locker). All this meant that I got more leg room. This is important to me because I normally have trouble finding somewhere to put my feet in economy class and hence I normally find it hard to get comfortable and get to sleep.

The flight had movies on demand. In other words, you could select any movie you like (from a long list) and start it whenever you wanted to see it. At least that was the theory because the system wasn't working properly and they had to reboot it several times over a period of an hour or more. When it was eventually working OK, I saw two films I had wanted to see in Sydney but hadn't got to yet - namely Kenny and An Inconvenient Truth.

Suzy had no trouble sleeping - she can sleep anywhere anytime. I took a sleeping tablet and managed to get 1.5 hours sleep but I had been hoping for more. This leg of the trip ended up being less than 12 hours.

In Los Angeles, we had to get off the plan to clear customs. As usual for US customs, the queue was ridiculously long. They off-loaded our bags and we had to cart them about 20 metres to put them back on the plane. We only just made it to the plane in time and this was only because they decided to find us a new plane because of the problems with the entertainment system in the first plane.

The leg from Los Angeles to New York was only about 4 hours. Furthermore, the in-flight entertainment was working fine and I watched another move I had wanted to see called Ten Canoes.

Because we were tired, we caught a taxi to the hotel in New York rather than waiting for the fee shuttle service. When we got to our room, I tried my laptop. Everything worked well - email, banking, etc and we called Steph in Ottawa using Skype.

So far the Hilton Garden Inn is fine. We had dinner in the restaurant downstairs and we are now looking forward to a good night's rest before we head off to Boston in the morning.