Tahiti

On Thursday after an 8 hour flight we got to Faa,a. We then got on a TAXI and went Pension De La Plage which is where we were staying. When we got there we were waiting for Vincent so we could go to Nana who got there the previous night.

In the morning we got up and had breakfast under the open air, thatched roof breakfast area. Then Robin and I were swimming for approximately (approximately means about) 2 hours. Next we were driving around the whole island looking at 1 Marae, 3 Grottos (caves), fresh water springs, a blow hole, and other things. That day for lunch Robin and I had chocolate cake at a roadside roulette (food truck).  Papa, Mama & Nana shared a mixture of vegetarian dishes. For dinner we had pasta and fresh French baguette in our rooms at the Pension.

The next morning (Saturday) we had breakfast again out by the pool, before another swim.  We started our day by walking round Pape'ete, which is the capital of Tahiti (and of French Polynesia).  We saw the Cathedrale de l'Immaculee, built in 1875 and still used today then went to the Marche de Pape'ete, where you can buy fish, fruit, vegetables, ice-creams, ukeleles, pearls, bright fabrics, baskets and many other things.  We then went by ferry over to the island called Mo'orea, only 45 mins away.  Mo'orea is very green, lush, tropical, with tall jagged mountains in the middle of it.  We went to a beach with white sand and that is where the driver lives.  The water is very clear and blue.

Back at the Pension, we went across the road to get the best crepes in Tahiti at a roulette.  I had Crepe avec Nutella et banane!

On Sunday, Easter Sunday, we had easter eggs, so Robin & I did not eat any breakfast.  We did more exploring in Pape'ete, then came back to the Pension for the afternoon.  Papa took Robin & I to the lagoon where I was swimming (with gogles and flippers, as well as fish and eels!).  The water was salty, but was nice and warm.  Mama & Nana went swimming at Pension de la Plage.  We went back to the creperie and had more of the best crepes in Tahiti for dinner.  I had Crepe avec chocolat et banane!

Because we were leaving Tahiti early on Monday morning, we went to bed very early (although it was already dark).  We ended up being the first people to check in at Fa'aa airport and were among the first to board the plane.  On the plane, I watched X-Men 2, Thor the Dark World and part of Bedtime Stories.  We crossed the date line coming back, so arrived on Tuesday morning in New Zealand!  Nana continued flying on to Christchurch, and we came home to unpack.

In Tahiti, I enjoyed it but it was very humid and one day I even felt as if I was going to pass out.  Once we got in the pool, the feeling went away.  There were lots of chickens and roosters in Tahiti, as well as lots of dogs.  People stop and wait for dogs and chickens to cross the road.  There were lots of churches, and lots of people selling food on the side of the roads.

LAX

We are now at LAX Airport in LA. Any Duty Free Requests? If yes, tell me quickly as we will be boarding soon. We saw the HOLLYWOOD Sign and I got a photo of it. We will be in Tahiti for a while so there might not be a blog for a few days. I think America is the same as NZ because NZ has lots of things that America does not have but I like America all the same. We saw lots of homeless people while we were here. When I saw the homeless people I felt sad.

Arriving in LA & Last Day in USA

On Wednesday we were driving to LA. On the way we were looking at missions and bought some food in Solvang. Solvang is a Danish town. When we got to LA we were in Santa Monica. Then we stayed at a Super 8 for the night.

San Francisco 4

On Monday we set off and walked over the Golden Gate Bridge. I had fun walking over it. When we finished walking over it we were exploring  Sausalito. We saw a houseboat community. While we were looking at the houseboat community we saw many different types of boats. When we got back over to the other side we were looking at Mission Delores and went inside it. Later we went and had dinner at Scomas. After that we had Ghirardelli Ice-cream. Ghirardelli is a company that makes chocolate. Last we bought shoes.   

  

San Francisco 3

On Sunday we went  to Alamo Square, to look at the House called the Painted Ladies. The Painted Ladies are houses built in the English style and have been painted in colour to highlight the woodwork.

Then we caught the bus to Golden Gate park to see the Dutch Windmill and the Bison. The Bison are like buffalo and are the largest living native American mammal that once roamed all over America.

While there we show the Gopher below.


Next we went to the California Academy of Sciences. This had a living garden on the roof which my father wood have loved to have on his house. Inside it had multiple aquariums showing both Salt and Fresh water fish that I have never seen before.
Inside the building it had 2 domes, one with rain forest and the other with a planetarium. The screen in the planetarium is the largest fully digital one in the world.
I really enjoyed the aquarium section the most.

Lastly we went to the aquarium at the bay. This is house on Pier 39 and does not compare the previous one  we had see.

For dinner we went Dimsum in Chinatown. All you can eat for $6.

To finish off the night Robin and I were standing on the outside of the cable car.

San Francisco 2

On Saturday we were in San Francisco. We did lots of fun activities.

First we did a talk with a National Park Ranger, who told us about how the waterfront area had changed and become touristy over time.  Our next stop was Ghirardelli's Chocolate Stores where we were given a square of their chocolate.  For lunch, we all had an ice-cream sundae at Ghirardelli's.  Robin & I both had a Rocky Road sundae, which neither of us finished, so Mama had a little bit of Robin's, and Papa finished all the rest.

Then we went down and up Lombard Street, the bendiest, crookedest street in the world.  It has 8 switchbacks and 12 flowerbeds.  I figured out it is just a normal street and they put the bends in so it became crooked and the street became famous.

Next we went to the Farmers Market on Pier 1 then got a streetcar to go to ExplOratorium on Pier 15.  I got ELECTROCUTED at ExplOratorium when I pressed a button and put my two fingers on metal plates.  When I licked my fingers, it was even more shocking, as it went through my whole arm, not just my fingers.  ExplOratorium is an interactive discovery centre, where people can play, tinker and learn about senses, science, electricity, social interaction things and lots more.  The photo of me with a ball on my head is to see how colours make me feel!

San Francisco

On Thursday, we were driving to San Francisco. On the way we went into to Lawrence Sambados cherry farm. It has the biggest cherry sorting machine in the world which was made by Compac, Papas work and Papa was the lead designer. When we got there we were waiting for Lawrence to arrive but he was sitting in his ute with his phone glued to his ear as his assistant described it. Once he got inside he took us to the lunch room to have lunch but first we went and saw the Compac people working on the machine. Once Papa finally stopped talking we went and had lunch. Then we had some ice-cream and soda and read some Geronimo Stilton books. A few hours later we  arrived in San Francisco.  We went across the bay bridge and went to our hotel. Then we went to bed.

On Friday we were exploring San Francisco. First we went on a harbour cruise under the Golden Gate Bridge and around Alcatraz Island Prison. Next we were walking around a old game arcade and  I got to play Ice Hockey and Racing Cars. After that we walked around some more of San Francisco and ended up  at a chocolate factory. We got free chocolate. Later on we waited to get on a Cable Car and went to China Town for dinner. Last we went on the cable car back the motel and I did my blog!!!!

  

China Lake and Yosemite National Park

On Saturday we went to China Lake Naval Museum. We saw many bombs, missiles and aircraft there (one bomb in the top picture is a fat boy that was the successor of the bomb that was used on Nagasaki which killed about 100,000 people).

On Monday we were at Yosemite National Park and got our Junior Ranger Paper. Then we went into the theater and watched a movie about Yosemite. Then we walked around the Indian village. After that we got a new Junior Ranger which was a book and we had to pay for it. Then we were picking up rubbish. After that we put our rubbish bag in the bin and did some activities. After 1 day we finished 13 activities.

On Monday I can not remember what we did but we got our Junior Ranger Badge.

On Tuesday we went to Vernal Falls and had dinner and that was practically all.  

On Wednesday we went to Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite National Park.            

Las Vegas and Death Valley

After we left Grand Canyon on Thursday, we drove to Las Vegas.  There was still snow on the ground at Grand Canyon when we woke up and we had to clear it off the car.

On the way to Las Vegas, we went to Hoover Dam, which was built in the 1930s along the Colorado River.  There was so much concrete it would have taken 100 years to cure, but they put cooling pipes inside it to help it cure faster.  We went inside and saw the power plant generators and we looked out an air vent shaped like a shield and could see down the dam to the Colorado River.  I waved my hand outside the vent and there is a myth that says a person is buried inside the dam and if we wave our hands through the vent, people might see it and think it is true.

In Las Vegas we got a hotel then went to a casino to have dinner and we saw tonnes of people gambling.  We walked along the Strip (Las Vegas Boulevard) and saw people dressed up as people from movies and cartoons, including Iron Man, Minions, Thor, Captain America, Chewbacca, Bert & Ernie and others.  We got to the water and sound show outside the Bellagio casino and the volcano explosion outside the Mirage casino.  There were heaps of people and cars around at night in Las Vegas and the lights on the Strip were terrific.

On Friday, we went to a ghost town named Rhyolite, which was a mining town in Desert Valley.  I didn't like it, as I am scared of ghosts.  There are remains of stone buildings, a wooden building and a house made out of over 30,000 bottles.  At one stage there were over 10,000 people living here, but the town died out within about 10 years as mining stopped.  There is an art gallery there now as well as the ruins.

We then drove into Death Valley National Park, and went to the Visitor Centre at Furnace Creek where Robin & I got our 3rd Junior Ranger badge.  We went to Badwater Basin which is -85 meters below sea level and is the lowest in the Western Hemisphere.  Death Valley is the hottest and driest place on earth, but it was not really hot when we were there as it was late afternoon/evening when we were there.  The colors of the rocks in Death Valley were green, brown, blue and pink - due to the different minerals found there. We finished our day with a long evening drive to Crestridge where we had dinner and stayed the night.