Days 26 to 28 - Anaheim to Los Angeles to Sydney to Canberra

David - driving the last of the 3,479.5 miles of our trip; returning the rental car in one piece; seeing Jane and Tim, friends from Sydney, in the queue to board the flight home. Awesome.

Megan - getting the highest score of all the Pigrams on the Buzz Lightyear ride; doing a last burst of shopping, including duty free at the airport; reading the description on the 'Fully sick bag' on the plane - Virgin have some very funny commentary on their material. Awesome.

Bridget - getting home to my own bed and not having to share a room with anyone. Awesome.

Declan - going on the Indiana Jones ride one final time with Dad; seeing 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice' for $2 at Santa Ana. Awesome.

Patrick - going on the Buzz Lightyear ride and getting my highest score; skipping 7 October 2010 and never getting it back. Awesome.

Day 25 - Anaheim

David - having bugs poke me in the back, drop stink bombs and run under my bum during the Bugs Life 3D movie. Awesome.

Megan - pre-empting the day of non-stop rain by getting soaked on the Grizzly River Rapids before the rain started. Awesome.

Bridget - flying off my seat in the Tower of Terror. Awesome.



Pigrams do Bug glasses



Declan - talking to Crush from Finding Nemo, who asked me what my name was and then kept calling me 'Deep sea diving Declan Duuuuuuuude'. Awesome.

Patrick - going on California Screamin, my first 360 degree loop rollercoaster, and loving it. Awesome.

Day 24 - Anaheim

David - going on the Dumbo ride; having as much fun as the kids. Awesome.

Megan - riding the tea cups at Disneyland. Awesome.

Bridget - meeting Mickey Mouse and having my photo taken with him. Awesome.

Declan - Dad's reckless driving on the Indiana Jones ride (well he was in the driver's seat). Awesome.

Patrick - being able to spin the carriage and shoot lasers on the Buzz Lightyear ride. Awesome.

Day 23 - San Diego to Anaheim

The spectacle bear

David - listening to the tour guide at San Diego Zoo talk about the coukaburra and the wallaby kangaroos. Awesome.

Megan - learning that zebras identify one another by looking at the stripes on each other's butt - has the potential to make covering your ar*e all the more important! Awesome.

Bridget - seeing the Disneyland fireworks from the top of the stairs at our hotel. Awesome.

Declan - sitting up the top of the tour bus at San Diego Zoo and looking into the exhibits from above. Awesome.

Patrick - listening to the (Phillipino) priest at Mass talking about ships, except that he was actually talking about sheeps. Awesome.

Day 22 - San Diego

Bridget on the flight deck

David - touring USS Midway and imagining what it would have been like on the flight deck at sea. Awesome.

Megan - buying jeans off the shelf that fit and touch the floor. Awesome.

Bridget - going on a 360 degree flight simulator ride with Dad, which moved as the plane moved - we spent a lot of time upside down; buying nail polish that changes colour in the sun. Awesome.

Declan - Mum and Dad sending me and Patrick to see 'Legend of the Guardians' at the movies while they were shopping, and finding that the movie was much better than I'd expected. Awesome.

Patrick - going on a flight simulator that was used to train Navy pilots and not crashing, unlike Declan who wouldn't listen to his navigator (me) and crashed twice. Awesome.

Day 21 - San Diego

The Blue Angels

David - spending the day at Miramar; seeing the Blue Angels (the US equivalent of the Roulettes) who fly within 18 inches of each other at simply astounding speed. Awesome.

Megan - channelling my inner Jim Hayes (aviation enthusiast friend); seeing the fighter jets take off to the Top Gun music; seeing a Harrier take off and land vertically. Awesome.

Bridget - watching a helicopter do things that a helicopter isn't supposed to do, like a 360 degree flip. Awesome.



Fighter Pilot Patrick



Declan - seeing the bombs display; watching the Blue Angels. Awesome.

Patrick - seeing the Raptor fly past at the speed of sound; sticking my fingers in my ears for half the day because the jets were so loud they made the ground shake. Awesome.

Day 20 - San Diego



Shamu the killer whale

 David - patting the stingrays at Seaworld - seriously slimy to the touch; watching the whales soak the boys. Awesome.

Megan - Patrick's attitude to the fact that it rained on and off all day at Seaworld so they didn't have a single ride operating - 'That's okay Mum - we've got our whole lives ahead of us to come back.' Awesome.

Bridget - feeding and patting Toby the dolphin - she was surprisingly silky to touch. Awesome.

The killer whale punch buggy



Declan - sitting in the front row of the Blue Horizons show and getting soaked to the skin by the pilot whales (my shoes squelched for the rest of the day); feeding the stingrays. Awesome.

Patrick - feeding the sea lions at Seaworld; getting soaked with Declan. Awesome.

Day 19 - Kingman to San Diego

David - finishing the last of the long drives, to find that we all had our own room in the suite. Awesome.

Megan - rescuing David from the great M&M disaster (think chocolate in the desert, 'protected' by ice, which funnily enough turned to water) - you can achieve anything on the internet in America with a credit card. Awesome.

Bridget - learning that M&Ms might not melt in your hand, but they do get ugly if you get them wet, but they still taste okay. Awesome.

Declan - going for a swim both before AND after dinner after a six hour drive in the car. Awesome.

Patrick - Dad stopping at Indio for lunch instead of making us look for rattlesnakes in the desert for lunch like Bear Grylls. Awesome.

Day 18 - Las Vegas to Kingman

Hoover Dam wall

David - touring and driving over Hoover Dam; seeing the new bridge that they've built over the Colorado River which means that we are some of the last people to drive over the dam wall. Awesome.

Megan - sticking my hand out of the ventilation shaft window halfway down the Hoover Dam wall; learning that there's enough concrete in the dam to build a 4 foot wide path around the equator; seeing the Grand Canyon change colour at sunset. Awesome.



The Skywalk



Bridget - jumping on the glass skywalk, 4000 feet above the floor of the Grand Canyon; Mum and Dad buying the photo to prove it. Awesome.

Declan - seeing the native American Indian dancers at Guano Point at Grand Canyon West; eating lunner (it was 4.30pm - too late for lunch, too early for dinner) on the edge of the Canyon, with no guard rails. Awesome.

Patrick - climbing to the top of Guano Point and looking down to the Canyon floor; seeing the biggest Ravens ever - I think they were on Raven steroids. Awesome.

Day 17 - Las Vegas

Poster at M&M World

David - riding the roller coaster at New York Casino with Bridget and Declan. Awesome.

Megan - shopping til we dropped, literally; cruising the Vegas strip at night. Awesome.

Bridget - going to M&M world and getting my photo taken with Red. Awesome.

Declan - seeing the Sirens of Treasure Island show out the front of the casino at 11.30pm. Awesome.

Patrick - buying a Simpsons 'Ronal D'Oh' t-shirt at Nike. Awesome.

Day 16 - Barstow to Las Vegas

David - driving long desert highways, including Route 66; seeing the Las Vegas strip for the frst time; passing the time waiting to check in at Treasure Island (an hour!) chatting to Norman from San Francisco. Awesome.

Megan - seeing the world's largest thermometer in Baker, reading 100 degrees; seeing the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge, albeit the fake ones at New York casino. Awesome.

Bridget - the hyenas in The Lion King - ugly but very funny. Awesome.

Declan - the lights on the strip. Awesome.

Patrick - seeing The Lion King, the best stage show ever; Rafiki speaking gibberish and then asking everyone 'Do you understand?' Awesome.

Day 15 - Kings Canyon to Barstow

Hundreds of wind turbines

David - watching the temperature rise from 57 at Kings Canyon to 101 at Barstow; the checkout chick at the 'Save Mart' telling me that I'd saved $7.52 (apparently that was 13% of my bill) by shopping today; driving past Edwards airforce base in the desert and imagining the space shuttle landing there. Awesome.

Megan - driving and washing, but it was driving and washing in America. Awesome.

Bridget - seeing a HUGE wind (300 or more turbines) farm in the middle of the desert; having a hot fudge brownie with hot fudge sauce and icecream. Awesome.

Declan - spending three hours in the pool at Barstow. Awesome.

Patrick - bottomless glasses of softdrink at Chilis - the waiter bought me a full glass before I'd even finished the last one. Awesome.

Day 14 - Kings Canyon & Sequoia National Park

David - meeting General Sherman - the world's largest tree by volume (55,000 cubic feet and growing) - so big that five of us with arms outstretched couldn't cover its diameter. Awesome.

Megan - walking through the giant forest and communing with nature, including hugging a giant sequoia; having my first nana nap of the holiday. Awesome.

Bridget - seeing a wild bear in the forest (about 30 metres away) who stopped, not to eat us, but to wait for her two gorgeous baby bears. Awesome.

Declan - climbing the stairway to heaven, aka the 400 or so stairs to the top of Moro Rock, where the views were amazing. Awesome.

Patrick - going kayaking on the lake at the lodge and getting quite wet in the process; canoeing with Mum, who told me she wasn't half bad. Awesome.

Day 13 - Yosemite to Kings Canyon

David - feeling the serenity, sitting on the porch of our cottage overlooking the lake at the lodge in Kings Canyon; watching Patrick close all of the blinds in the cottage so that the bears couldn't see him. Awesome.

Megan - watching the boys clamber over the rocks at the foot of Bridalveil falls in Yosemite; seeing the scenery change as we drove from Yosemite and climbed through 7000 feet to Kings Canyon. Awesome.

Bridget - having a "s'more" (a toasted marshmallow, squished between two biscuits with a thin piece of chocolate) for the first time. Awesome.

Declan - playing tennis with Patrick at the lodge. Awesome.

Patrick - sitting around a campfire singing; asking Whammy (the guitarist) if he could play 'Beat it', which he couldn't, but he had fun trying. Awesome.

Day 12 - Yosemite

David - the most spectacular views from Glacier Point (Yosemite is truly nature at its finest); saving Bridget from certain death as she stepped into the raging torrent of the Merced River. Awesome.

Megan - driving 47km of narrow winding road from the wrong side of the car on the wrong side of the road and not killing us or anyone else; hearing Patrick say that this was the best holiday ever, even though he hasn't had much holidays because he hasn't been alive for long. Awesome.

Bridget - hiking 4.2 miles from Glacier Point down 3200 ft to the valley floor, and then stepping in the only 2 inches of water in the Merced River (hardly a raging torrent Dad). Awesome.

Declan - climbing rocks and boulders at Glacier Point and giving Mum heart failure. Awesome.

Patrick - riding bikes around Yosemite Valley with Declan; surviving the trip down the mountain with Mum driving (thank you God). Awesome.

Day 11 - Sacramento to Yosemite

David - Yosemite, Yosemite, Yosemite; the drive up some pretty spectacular mountain roads; the first glimpse of the valley as we drove in. Awesome.

Megan - Half Dome and El Capitan (rock mountain cliff things) in the setting sun; hearing Bridget and Declan suggest that Patrick should sleep closest to the door so that he could get eaten if we were attacked by a bear during the night. Awesome.

Bridget - wildlife in Yosemite - squirrels, raccoons and deer, oh my! Awesome.

Declan - listening to a ranger talk about rock falls in Yosemite, particularly when a 'rock' the size of a football field fell 1500 feet and caused massive damage by making winds of 200 miles an hour when it hit the ground. Awesome.

Patrick - having squirrels run through my legs while we were having lunch - my favourite was Usain Bolt squirrel - he was fast! Awesome.

Day 10 - Sacramento

David - chatting to the very friendly owners of the world's longest corn maze, who actually grow tomatoes for Campbells soup and just plant the corn to make the maze, and who gave the kids free t-shirts and lanyards. Awesome.

Megan - being in Sacramento and figuring that doing a Jelly Belly factory tour and the world's longest corn maze (and a spot of shopping) was enough for one day; sitting by the pool on a balmy evening as I type this - gotta love wifi. Awesome.

Bridget - everything about the Jelly Belly factory tour and shop, especially buying the most amazing headphones. Awesome.

Declan - channelling my inner Bear Grylls by doing the world's longest corn maze alone, without a map, in one hour twenty minutes - ten minutes faster than everyone else. Awesome.

Patrick - tasting 'Skunk Spray' jelly bellys at the Jelly Belly factory (and finding that they weren't very good); getting super cool green Converses. Awesome.

Day 9 - Ukiah to Sacramento

David - having something genuinely green and healthy for dinner, accompanied by a fine glass of local cabernet. Awesome.

Megan - getting a message from home to say that I'm an aunt - Elizabeth was born this morning (19/9/10). Awesome.

Bridget - watching the eagles soar overhead as we drove along the (otherwise boring) highway. Awesome.

Declan - having Taco Bell's for the first time; seeing a service station made out of the trunk of an old redwood tree. Awesome.

Patrick - taking a horse and carriage ride around the bumpy (cobblestone) streets of Old Sacramento. Awesome.

Day 8 - San Francisco to Leggett to Ukiah

David - finding that the car would actually fit in the Drive Thru Tree with heaps (millimetres) to spare; driving through the Drive Thru Tree no less than three times. To all the doubters (you know who you are), it was 100 percent, absolutely, totally, Awesome.

Megan - seeing 'Foamhenge' on the TV (it's exactly what it sounds like); spending an obscene amount of money on uber kitsch souvenirs at the uber kitsch gift shop at the Drive Thru Tree. Awesome.

Bridget - having apple pie and icecream at 'Mom's Apple Pie' in Sebastoppel. Awesome.

Declan - videoing the 10 second drive through the Drive Thru Tree; finding my lost wallett in the bottom of my suitcase and not in San Francisco. Awesome

Patrick - going over the Golden Gate bridge and actually being able to see almost all of it after almost all of the fog lifted; having wild blueberry pie and icecream at 'Mom's Apple Pie'. Awesome.

Day 7 - San Francisco

David - driving down, walking up, walking down and then driving down (Dad, can we do it again?) Lombard - the crooked - street. Awesome.

Spot David on Lombard

Megan - seeing the painted ladies on Alamo Park; not seeing the Golden Gate Bridge (stoopid fog). Awesome.

Bridget - shopping at Macys - need I say more? Awesome.

Declan - exploring Fort Point (at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge) which was the first American fort on the west coast; learning about firing canons from the Ranger. Awesome.

Patrick - hanging out of a cable car going down California St; driving down streets (hills) where cool car chases are filmed. Awesome.

Day 6 - San Francisco

Baseball in the fog

David - knowing what the Coit Tower was (courtesy of Phil on 'The Amazing Race'); having a Bud at the baseball (it doesn't taste any better at the baseball). Awesome.

Megan - food 1: a giant pretzel (not great); food 2: clam chowder in a sour dough bowl at Fisherman's Wharf (good); food 3: garlic fries at the baseball (great); singing 'Take me out to the ballpark' with 40000 people. Awesome.

Bridget - learning about all of the escape attempts at Alcatraz; laughing at Patrick when he said 'The rain's a-coming' at the baseball when it was just the fog rolling in. Awesome.

Declan - going to the baseball at AT&T Park; seeing three home run hits; the Giants winning 10-2. Awesome.

Patrick - the audio tour of Alcatraz - you could hear the 200lb metal doors clang together to lock the prisoners in their cells; the Giants beating the Dodgers; chanting 'BEAT L A, BEAT L A' at the baseball. Awesome.

Day 5 - Pismo to San Francisco

Everyone - Hearst Castle. A great tour and the most amazing pools you are ever likely to see. Truly. Awesome.

David - starting up a conversation with strangers at Hearst Castle who told us that there were roadworks on the Pacific Coast Highway and the drive that we thought would take 4 hours would take more like 6 hours (we took the easy drive up the 101 instead). Awesome.

Megan - having my first bagel for breakfast in America; watching the fog roll in over San Francisco; driving on the wrong side of the road for the first time, albeit into the garage in the apartment in San Francisco. Awesome.

Bridget - the fantastic view from a little spot on the side of the road at the top of a hill between Highway 1 and Highway 101 with the ocean in the distance and the cloud hovering over the coast. Awesome.

Declan - the pools, the pools, the pools. Awesome.

Patrick - having free breakfast at the Pismo Lighthouse Suites ('It's great having free breakfast, isn't it Mum?' 'Yes Patrick, whatever you say'); finding that the tour of Hearst Castle wasn't even a little bit boring. Awesome.

Day 4 - LA to Pismo

David - Driving past MMMMMalibu; sinking two hole-in-one putts at the putt putt course at the hotel. Awesome.

Megan - Seeing how the rich people shop on Rodeo Drive; driving down 'Ventura Highway in the suuuuun shine'. Awesome

Bridget - Not having to share a bed with anyone; buying a seven dollar Nike t-shirt in my school house colour (purple) which says 'Winner takes all'. Awesome.

Declan - Seeing your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman (Tobey Maguire) - well, seeing his house in Beverly Hills. Awesome.

Patrick - Playing MASSIVE checkers on the huge outdoor checker board at the hotel with Mum and Bridget in the sun by the beach (and getting smashed by Mum). Awesome.

Day 3 - Universal Studios

David - saving Declan and Patrick (and two Japanese chics in front of us) who were all absolutely terrified at the House of Horrors. Awesome (and very funny - they were REALLY scared ;-)

Megan - plunging to (almost) certain death on the Jurassic Park ride and getting soaked in the process. Awesome.

Bridget - meeting the Madagascar Penguins ('Just smile and wave boys. Smile and wave.); finding bargains in the souvenir shop. Awesome.

Declan - going on the Mummy Ride and freaking Bridget out by screaming my head off. Awesome.

Patrick - going on the Jurassic Park three times and not screaming the third time as we plunged down the 84 foot vertical drop. Awesome.

Day 2 - Los Angeles

David - getting as close to the Hollywood sign as is legally possible, courtesy of a 'Google is my friend' moment before we left home. Who knew Google maps and street view could be so useful? Awesome.

Megan - getting as close to the Pope as I'm ever likely to when the Cardinal said Mass at the very modern LA Cathedral; having dinner with my friend Kevin who I haven't seen for almost 15 years. Awesome

Bridget - getting up close and personal with Johnny Depp (or at least with his star on the walk of fame); listening to Kevin talk about all of the celebrities he's interviewed. Awesome.

Declan - finding that my feet fit in George Clooney's footprints at Grauman's Chinese Theatre. That almost makes us brothers doesn't it? Awesome.

Patrick - seeing all of the stars on the Walk of Fame; seeing the hand and foot prints of the Harry Potter cast. Awesome.

Day 1 - Canberra to Los Angeles

David - it's all about the car - we got the shuttle to the car rental lot; they actually had our booking; they upgraded us to a Dodge Caravan 'Town & Country'; all of the bags fitted in the back; TomTom worked (after a moment or two trying to figure out where to plug it in); I drove on the wrong side of the road for 20kms after no sleep and got everyone safely to the apartment without incident. Awesome.

Megan - a bus trip to Sydney that was super painless; watching back to back episodes of Glee on the plane; not having heart failure while we drove on the wrong side of the road. Awesome.

Bridget - having the only mobile phone in the family that works in America. Awesome.

Declan - having a birthday that lasted for 42 hours; getting a text from Grandma to say that the Raiders beat Penrith. Awesome.

Patrick - getting to watch movies and play games on the plane while they bring you food and drink. Awesome.

The blog of awesome

Awesome is such an Americanism that we thought what better way to record our Californian adventure than with a blog of awesome.
Each day we're going to post about what each of us found awesome on that day.