Show me the way to go home.....

Not very much action and not a lot to write home about I’m afraid. After all the excitement of Sin City, Hollywood and the Oscars, today has been very quiet, which is just as well I guess because we have a long flight ahead of us tomorrow. The helicopters woke me up very early this morning and I left Phil to sleep and went down to spend some time on the lobby floor. The free tea and coffee was open and I hung around waiting on the washing and drying. Luckily the internet café was open at 7am so I spent some time in there surfing everything and nothing while I was waiting on the laundry. This is the first time we’ve stayed in a Big 6 motel and it has been an experience. Our particular motel just off Hollywood Boulevard is great for the location but it is not the most luxurious, far from it.

Sure the rooms are big (no vomit stains on the carpet which is always a plus) and the sheets are clean and we have hot water. And that’s about it. The front reception staff spend almost all their time kicking out the undesirables (not me) from the lobby who try their luck on the free coffee, internet and I guess, at other times, if they make it into the lift (that is if it’s working of course) to a free bed. I saw all of these things with my very own eyes this very morning as Phil lay in bed sleeping. I will not be sad to leave this particular motel.

When Phil was in the wide awake club I packed up our staff and we both loaded up the car, both not too sorry to be leaving Motel 6. As usual, the LA traffic was horrendous and it took us an hour to travel to the airport hotel that we had booked, even though it was only 25 miles away. Phil is a very experienced driver but I could tell he was anxious winding his way over 6 or 7 and sometimes 8 lanes of the freeway, and boy, so was I. To be honest we could have seen a lot more of LA but the traffic congestion was crap and at the last leg we are a little jaded. It would have been better to do LA at the start of our journey and do Bali at end as a little relaxing treat. Never mind, we live and LEARN. It was a huge relief to reach La Quinta Inns & Suites just a stones throw away from Los Angeles airport. I wasn’t worried because I’d chosen this hotel and had done my research. Trip Advisor reports were excellent and they weren’t wrong. The rooms aren’t huge but they are modern and well equipped and well, although we’ve yet to sleep in the big king bed, so far, all is so good.

We left the luggage locked up with security and drove a couple of miles to the car rental place to drop off the car. The sat nav directed us but I’m sure we would have made our way without it. The return procedure was very easy and we were done and dusted in a few minutes. So very different of our experiences of car rentals back home in the UK. We could have got a courtesy bus back to the hotel but the sun was shining and we decided to walk. Unfortunately it was further on foot than it seemed in the car and took us nearly an hour. Never mind, at least it gave us some exercise for the day. Breakfast-cum-lunch was a one dollar double cheeseburger from Burger King. Not good for the cholesterol but easy on the wallet but no worries; we were desperate and starving. I seem to have lived on cheeseburgers for these past 3 weeks and it wouldn’t bother me in the least if I never eat one ever again. In fact, when I get home, which won’t be a moment too soon, I’m giving up red meat for at least a month!


Check in at La Quinta was friendly, easy and quick; in fact I’d go as far to say, that it was the best customer service we’ve had in LA. We were way too early for check in but we had the room keys and were already unpacked by midday. When I say unpack, that’s really an exaggeration; we don’t really unpack, it’s more a case of getting out the toilet bags and the laptop. When you’re in and out as much as we are, unpacking is just a waste of time.


As I said earlier, I was pleased with my choice of hotel and so was Phil. Only 85 dollars a night which includes free internet, breakfast, a good choice of movie channels and we also have an ice machine and laundry just outside our room. What more could a girl want? The big plus for Phil is the fridge and for me the coffee machine which means I can make a cup of tea as soon as I open my eyes. If you come to LA and have an early morning flight this is definitely the place to stay. We are right next door to a Ramada and a Hilton but these are twice the price.

Phil, quite quickly, got stuck into a movie but I managed to persuade him to take the shuttle bus down to Manhattan Beach. He was reluctant, but eventually agreed and we caught the 1.38pm red bus down to the beach. It only cost 3 dollars a piece (return) and took about 20 minutes. The Manhattan Beach Boulevard was interesting and we ventured down to the pier but it was blowing a gale so I let Phil get a couple of photo’s then we quickly scampered back up the hill to the main strip. Some how and I don’t remember quite how it happened; we ended up in a real local spit and sawdust bar which was pretty awesome. One beer turned into 2 and a complimentary bowl of peanuts and a pleasant way to spend an hour or so. The plan was to eat, but once again, we couldn’t find a restaurant to tempt us so we hopped back on the red shuttle bus which took us in a roundabout way back to La Quinta. And, yes I am plugging it, because it’s a real find. And no I’m not on a commission!

And so, here we are, on the eve of the last day on our around the world trip. As the title of this blog suggests, I am tired and I am ready to go home, and so I think, is Phil. It’s been a truly great ride but we are weary from being on the road. How is that, I’ve been on vacation for almost 4months and I’m more knackered than I was before I set off? How does that work? I have already got my book out and am writing ‘to do’ lists although I think by the time we hit home, the jet lag will have set in and there won’t be much ‘doing’ on Thursday. I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed, catching up with friends and family, eating home made food and getting back into a routine. Maybe it will only take a few days and I will be fed up of the weather and the rut and will be wishing I’m back travelling (grass is greener and all that). Who knows? Forgive us if we are quiet for a few days, we fly tomorrow and it may well be that the next posting from us will be on Friday (UK time).


We’ve survived this long, so lets just hope we get home safely. As the song goes, “ Show me the way to go home!”............