Awww bless...

Watched the extras on the HP DVD last night. The conversation with the cast is really cute. Daniel is so turning into Elijah Wood! Everything about him reminds me of Lighe! Emma Watson used to annoy me a bit, but she's such a lovely girl. Stunningly beautiful at 16 - sickening! LOL. I can't wait for the next movie!! I had planned to watch Hotel Rwanda, but by the time I had finished chatting to Carol it had already started, so got HP out instead. Well done to Leeds last night. Not really that bothered who comes up next year, but I do always think of Leeds as a Premiership club! Seems weird them being in the Championship. Frances's hubby is in a foul mood apparently - he's from Preston. From what I hear the ref had a shocker! Jose made a good point the other day. Players and managers have to come out after games to speak to the press, why don't the refs? It would be interesting to hear why they make certain decisions, and it would be benefit the refs too - putting their side of things over. It will never happen though!And well done to Jose for winning Manager of the Season again! Hurrah! That was a real shocker, didn't think he'd get it this year. I personally think he deserves it for the amount of crap he has to put with from our press and still managing to steer us to our seconf title in two years! But, I didn't think they would give him anything because just about everyone is an ABC (anyone but Chelsea) these days! Mind you, Paul Jewell and Alan Pardew have had fabulous seasons. Great to see two of the three promoted sides get to cup finals and finish mid table. I heard today that Fergie has had another falling out with Ronaldo today, so he probably won't get to play in Keane's testimonial tonight. I can't decide if I feel sorry for Ronaldo or think he's an idiot! He didn't seem to have too many friends among the Utd squad when they came out to warm up at the Bridge. While everyone else paired up he was left to kick the ball about on his own. I think if he didn't act like such a tart I'd probably really like him! Or if he put on a blue shirt that had Samsung across the front. LOL. I was going through some entry lists this morning with Andy and I pointed out that (Bob) Shearer and (Simon) Owen were playing at the AIB Irish Seniors Open. He said it was a shame we don't have a Rooney. Anyway, Andy told me to tell Steven to use that in a headline for any pre-event press stuff - "Shearer and Owen fit to play". LOL.

World Cup Squad announced...

Well, a few surprises then!Goalkeepers: Robinson, James, GreenDefenders: Terry (hurrah!), G Neville, Ferdinand, A Cole, Campbell, Carragher, Bridge Midfielders: Beckham, Carrick, Lampard, Gerrard, Hargreaves, Jenas, Downing, J Cole, LennonForwards: Rooney, Owen, Crouch, WalcottI don't think our forwards are going to strike fear into the hearts of the worldwide defenders! Two with gammy legs, one who is too gangly for words and the other one that, although a great talent in the Championship, has not come up against the world's best before. Not sure about the whole Walcott thing! I mean, what about the top English scorer in the Premiership, Darren Bent?! And poor old SWP! But at least Bridgey's loan spell at Fulham did the trick! I'm surprised that Bent and SWP didn't even make the stand by list. Only one right back, but I guess Carragher could fill that role if Neville were to get injured. No real surprises with the defenders. I would have liked to see Luke Young there, but he is a stand by. I'm thinking that Gerrard or Lampard could be pushed up a bit to play behind Owen (if fit and Rooney isn't) with Carrick in the holding role. Just hope Lamps and Stevie take their scoring boots! Mind you, crazy Joe isn't goal shy! Fingers crossed that Walcott proves me wrong and ends up being the hero of the World Cup!

Grrrrr...

Well, I had about 10 minutes sleep last night. I watched Hostage as planned, quite enjoyed it. But everytime Bruce Willis referred to "the guy" I couldn't help thinking of Elijah in Spy Kids 3! Then I watched Football First so I could see just how dire our performance was. A few dodgy decisions went against us again, but we should have finished with a win over the toon! But I'm pleased for Glenn Roeder - hope he does get the nod to stay on there. And it's sad to think that Shearer will never play again. I love Alan! Pleased I got to see him play one last time this season. I was also pleased he was on the losing side that night though! One thing about the game yesterday that made me chuckle was seeing Jimmy Smith get a game. A couple of weeks ago he turned up with Lenny and they were trying to go pitchside before the game. They were stopped and although Lenny was allowed over, Jimmy was turned away! Poor lamb! And there he was yesterday, getting his first team debut! Looks like he could be a pretty useful player in the future. Would be nice for another young English boy to come through.Anyway, after the footie I went to bed, but couldn't get to sleep for hours! When I finally got to sleep, I was woken up shortly after by a thunderstorm! Pah! So, got up this morning with a bit of a headache and in a foul mood! Grumped my way through the first couple of hours of the day, before getting sufficient caffeine inside of me! And something else that amused me...Spurs favourite chef...Tremendous! I new it would happen, but still very funny! Poor old Spurs!So, England squad is announced in just over an hour. Very exciting! Not sure I'm keen on the idea of Theo Walcott going to Germany. A great young talent he might be, but I don't think now is the time for him to be tried out as an England International! We need our experienced players! Mind you, I'd prefer him to Heskey! I'd prefer Bobby Charlton to Heskey!!!

And rest...

Well, had a very productive day. Mum gave me a huge bag full of my summer clothes yeterday, so I decided I would sort through my wardrobe, drawers and airing cupboard to put away the winter clothes to make room for summer! So I have been washing and ironing practically all day! The last day of the premiership then - I was flicking between the Man Utd v Charlton game and the Arsenal v Wigan game. I was hoping that Tottenham would finish 4th, but I guess at least this way they don't spend the next week and a half looking for to CL next year only to have it taken away if Arsenal win the final! I was pleased Man Utd clinched 2nd place - sorryveegogirl! As for our result - well, at least we didn't need the points!I don't know what I'm going to do with myself now the season is over! I'm really going to miss the Bridge during the summer! It's been a fab season. Hopefully next year will be just as good. Not sure if we'll get a third Premiership title in a row, but you never know. I wonder who will be brought in and who will be leaving. Looks certain to be Del Horno going - boo! But Wayne should be coming back - hurrah! I think the title race could be a lot closer next year as long as Arsenal, Man Utd and Liverpool continue the good form they all ended the season in! And let's hope we get back on track nice and early again! Arsenal's goodbye to Highbury was pretty good, very moving. I'm glad that I got to see a game there, despite not really loving the Gunners a whole lot! But it was a nice ground, very friendly atmosphere. I was well looked after when I went there. I was ill due to the old neck (not that I knew that was what it was at the time) and a very kind steward moved Danny I from the very back row to seats right down by the pitch and brought me water too! Lovely! There was a good interview with JT in the Guardian today. dapooh might be interested in it... http://observer.guardian.co.uk/osm/story/0,,1766464,00.htmlI watched Assault on Precinct 13 last night. Loved it! Got a bit of a thing about Ethan Hawke at the moment. I finally saw Taking Lives a couple of weeks back and loved that too!Finally sat down to relax in time to watch Dream Team tonight - still can't believe they killed off Casper!Anyhoo, Hostage is on Sky now, so I think I'll go watch that.oooh loving the new icon - made by saint_kat

Been there, done that...

Well, here's something I've been thinking about doing for quite a while now. Looking back on my life (how old do I sound?!) I've realised I've done things that some people only dream about doing. But at the same time, there are still so many things I want to do, places I want to visit. So, I thought I'd write down all the things I've done that, when I look back, I'll realise just how great I've made my life! Or something like that! And I'm also going to list all the places I still want to go and the things I still want to do, so I can cross them off as I fulfill those ambitions and add them to the achieved list! So, here goes with the first list, I'll keep popping back with more when I have time and when I think of any!BEEN THERE, DONE THAT...Countries visited (including just passing through):Australia - SydneyAustriaBahamasBelgiumCanadaCyprusEgyptEnglandFranceGermanyGreece - Athens, Kos, ZakynthosGuernseyIcelandIrelandItalyJerseyLuxembourgNew ZealandNorthern IrelandScotlandSingaporeSpain - Grand Canaria, Mallorca, TenerifeSwitzerlandUSA - Florida (Orlando & Miami), New York, Los Angeles, Las Vegas. WalesThings I've done in foreign lands:Australia:Climbed Sydney Harbour BridgeHad a tour of Sydney on the back of a Harley DavidsonTour of the Sydney Opera HouseSydney Olympic Park - Did the tour of the Telstra Stadium, sat in the cubicle used by Jonny Wilkinson when we won the rugby World CupBahamas:Flew there from Miami for the night - cruise ship backCanada:Jeep JamboreeEgypt:Slept out under the stars in the desert at a Bedouin CampFrance:Climbed the Eiffel TowerDisneylandSaw Eminem in concertIceland:Rode an Icelandic horseVisited the original geyserBlue Lagoon - massage includedItaly:Visited VeniceNew Zealand:Visited several of the LOTR film sites:Pelennor Fields, Edoras, the cliff(!) that Aragorn was dragged off, Rivendell, Gardens of Isen, Hobbiton, get off the road!Visited the glow worm caves in WaitomoPolynesian Spa - massage includedSaw a real Maouri concert - the haka!The luge!Did the Skyjump - Auckland Sky TowerSingapore:Had a Singapore Sling atRaffles HotelUSA:The fountains at the Bellagio!Disneyworld Florida and Disneyland CaliforniaIn Hollywood for the Oscars - went to the LOTR Oscar partydown the road from where the oscars were being held. Oscar winners came to the party after the ceremony.In Hollywood for the Premiere of Blade Trinity and Ocean's Twelve - saw the whole cast!Did the Kodak Theatre tour - got to go up on stageWent up the Empire State BuildingVisited Ground ZeroLiberty Island - up to the pedestal of the statueWalked on ConcordeSporting Events I've experienced:Chelsea win the Premiership!Chelsea be presented with the Premiership trophyChelsea play BarcelonaAll of Chelsea's home game (except one) in all competitions 2005-2006 seasonThe Ryder Cup 2002The Open Championship 2001The PGA Championship, 200, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004The BMW Championship 2005Several other golf tournaments including the World Match Play, The Senior Masters, the B&H InternationalMany, many Brentford games! Including games against Tottenham, Sunderland and CharltonMany England International fixtures (qualifiers and friendlies)Football Stadiums visited:Stamford Bridge, Griffin Park, White Hart Lane, Highbury, The Valley, The Friend's Provident at St Mary's, Old Trafford and Wembley.

A day of traumas!

Well, what a day. It took me two, yes that's TWO hours to get over to the east end. Traffic was horrendous and I think it was national let you idiot drive day today. I don't understand why it takes people so long to pull away from traffic lights!! Or why they start slowing down when they approach green traffic lights! Or how some people drive so slowly! Anyhoo, I eventually met Mum and Nan in Asda and I spent a fortune - not one to go hungry! Also bought some t-shirts and stuff! Then when we were packing up the cars, there was an almighty bang - two cars had collided. As I looked round I could see the smoke from the airbags. The noise and the smoke brought back all the memories of my crash and I started to lose it a bit. It's so weird to think how quickly it all comes back, I thought I was totally over it. Luckily the people in the two cars got out and seemed to be okay. Bet it shook them up though! My mum was saying she couldn't believe how loud the bang was - it's a sound that I couldn't get out of my head for months after my crash. We headed back to Nan's for a bit and then Mum and I walked down Crisp Street to get some saveloys and pease pudding - yum! Not had it in years! Then it was back in the car for another two bloody hours to get home! Apparently there was some mechanical elephant being taken around the streets of London, so there were loads of road closures. Why?! Why would you build a mechanical elephant? And why would you drag it round London?! Could they not have waited until tomorrow? Who makes these decisions?! And the journey home was made slightly worse by the football scores. Brentford were 1-0 up when I set off. Then Bournemouth equalised. Then Andy Frampton put us back in front. Then they had a player sent off. And then they scored in th 91st minute! It didn't matter in the end, as Colchester drew at Yeovil. I really hoped Paul Terry's team would have done the business, but it would have been worse if Yeovil had won and we had drawn! So, it's the play offs again. My trip to Cardiff is once again a possibility. But we've got to get pass the curse of third place. Third place never gets promoted! We're playing Swansea in the semi's, first leg on Thursday. I'll miss the 2nd leg - it's the day of the parade. Booger! I wonder if the folks will be back from Italy by then. It's honours even between us and Swansea this year. We won 2-1 at home and so did they. Ah well, fingers crossed! And apparently the News of the World is going to publish some big news about one of the main England players tomorrow. Typical. That's all it's going to be until the World Cup - digging up stuff on the squad. The English press couldn't possibly just get behind the squad and support them!Pah!

Random thoughts...

So, Rooney's foot is still broken. He's still out for at least 6 weeks. Fergie is still doing his best to get "the boy" to Germany. And Sven is still going to name him in the squad. We know! Does it have to be on every news?! Please tell me it's not going to be like this for 6 weeks! And all the "woe is us, that's our World Cup over" talk is doing my head in! We're not a one man team! Sure, he's a great player (even though it pains me to say it!) and yes it would be great to have him fully fit and in the squad. But basically what everyone (media etc) is saying is that all we need to beat the best players in the world, is Wayne Rooney in our team. So, how come the team that he plays for, week in week out, hasn't won the Premiership, the FA Cup and the Champions League? And here was me thinking football was a team sport! Yes, he is a fantastic talent, and he can score great goals. But look at the Premiership's top scorers for this year...Darren Bent has scored more goals than Rooney! Look at the team that won the Premiership - who is their top scorer? Lampard. Is he not in the England squad? And then there is the team currently 3rd in the league - Their top scorer? - Gerrard has scored 10 this season. English is he not? If we had a weak squad with one talent, I'd be more inclined to panic. But we have one of the best squads we have had in years! We've got the best defender in the world (JT!), and our midfield is unbelievable. Whether Gerrard is pushed up a bit, or maybe Lamps or Cole, stick either Ledley King or Michael Carrick in the holding role (whoever is fit, both can do the job). We could go on for hours talking about the amazing players we have in our squad, but it's not the English thing to do, is it? Far better to look at the bad side of things, rubbish our chances before a ball is kicked. I wish our media would get behind the team, let the other players in the squad know that we believe in them, in their talent, and that they AS A TEAM can bring us back the World Cup. Makes me mad! But thank God JT's scan came back clear - now that would have been the end of our World Cup if he couldn't play! ;-) The whole country will probably be hoping Owen doesn't have to play on Sunday in case our nasty defenders hack him down too. Poor old Paulo - it wasn't his fault! What else has been happening lately? Went out for drinks in Hammersmith last night with Raz and Jane. We decided it was too nice an evening to be home indoors, so we sat by the river drinking and putting the world to rights. Raz still can't answer the all important question of "how many times have Liverpool won the PREMIERSHIP". LOL. The change in name made all the difference!!!! Glad the weekend is with us once more. Off to do the family thing in the east end tomorrow, not sure what the rest of the weekend holds. I can't believe the footie season ends on Sunday! Well, FA Cup, CL and play offs aside. I might see if the gang from Chelsea want to watch the two finals in a pub somewhere. I'm sure I can find some claret and blue for the FA Cup. C'mon you Hammers!! Got to go with the London side - and it's my mum's team! Not sure about the CL final. Part of me wants Barca to win, because they knocked us out - always better to go out to the eventual winners. And I don't want Arsenal beating us to the trophy! Mind you, we did beat them to back to back titles! But, again, feeling the whole London thing. And it is Danny's team. But I do hate Wenger! Anyway, enough drivel - it's time for dinner...

That's why we're champions....again!!

Well, what a day Saturday was! I met Emily just before 9am and we walked to the Bridge. The few hours before the game seemed to go on for a lifetime - couldn't wait for the game to get started! The Man Utd fans was great. Everyone goes on about how fantastic the Liverpool fans are for singing and that, but I thought the Man Utd fans were even better! They didn't stop from start to finish, despite losing 3-0 and with that losing any hope of winning the Premiership. The atmosphere was amazing! One of the Man Utd fans wwas telling me that the Liverpool fans had wrecked Old Trafford last week during the semi. apparently they caused half a million pounds worth of damage! Eeeeek! I wouldn't like to be at the Man Utd v Liverpool games next year! i doubt Anfield will be left the way they found it when they visit! When the Man Utd players came out to warm out I felt a bit sorry for Ronaldo. Which is amazing considering what I usually think of him! He came out after the rest of the team and when they were running back and forth across the pitch he was always just a bit behind. Then they split off into twos and thress to warm up, but Ronaldo was left on his own, kicking the ball about on his own. He didn't seem to have too many friends among the squad!I thought it was going to be a really tight game, maybe even a 0-0. So when Willy scored in the 4th minute I was amazed! And then JT went down after Rooney's tackle and stayed down, I felt sick! He couldn't get injured now! Not in this game and not so close to the World Cup! And you know when JT stays down, he's hurt! I was convinced he had broken something and that was his World Cup over! Especially when they brought the stretcher over! But, being the tough guy that he is, he was soon back on, and back putting in those important tackles! He was still limping a fair bit, but he got the job done as ever! Then Cech made that superb save from Rooney just before half time - thank God! It wasn't too long into the first half when my sympathy for Ronaldo evapourated - he is such a tart! People think Drogba is the worst offender when it comes to diving, but Ronaldo?! He only needs another player to look at him and he falls over! It's such a shame, because he has got a great talent, and could be amazing!Second half was just as good, if not better! Joe's goal was fantastic! And just as I was thinking about what a great game Ricky was having, he goes and scores a goal! Bless him! And Paulo was having another great game, I've really been impressed by him this season, I wasn't too sure about him last year, but he works so hard. His tackle on Rooney was fantastic, but then Rooney didn't get up and he was clearly in pain. It was right by where we were sitting. And then the stretcher was called over again and this time it didn't go back empty. As much as I don't like Rooney, I did fell so sorry for him. And then the Man Utd fans (who were suddenly all Welsh) started chanting "there goes your world cup" taunting the Chelsea lot, but it can't have been nice for Rooney, to be lying there, in agony, having his worst fear chanted about by his own fans!The actual presentation of the trophy was great, the usual "We are the Champions" playing. Before the team came out, the crowd sang the Peter osgood song followed by "There's only one Matthew harding" - it was quite emotional! In fact, the whole day was quite emotional! I was welling up! Jose threw his medal into the crowd - shame it wasn't down our end! The players did the usual running round with the trophy. Eidur's kids had a little knock about and the roar that went up when the eldest kiddie put it in the back of the net was incredible! Frankie had little Luna with him - she's tiny! I am so pleased I got to be there to watch it all happen. It was a case of "why just win it when you can win it in style". And to think I nearly went to LA and missed it all!!!!After the game, we wandered down the Fulham Road, soaked up the atmosphere, then went to the pub. Raf was hilarious - so so drunk! There was the obligatory "Champions" chanting - with jane doing her best to throw in a few man Utd chants, while Raz and Jas are still living on past glories for the reds. All great fun though!It was quite sad saying goodbye at the end of the evening, even though we will be seeing each other in a couple of weeks for the party and the parade, it was still our last home game. Pah! What will i do with myself now?! I can't wait for next season already!Anyway, we still have a couple more away games left. We are playing Blackburn tonight and it's kicking off in about 35 minutes and I have to watch it - hope it's not as bruising as last year! I'm quite pleased JT isn't playing tonight - this was the game that I thought he would pick up a nasty injury that would keep him out of the World Cup.C'mon the Chels!!

In other news...

Golf:We had our Entries v Accounts Match Play last night. I beat Inessa 9 & 8 - woo hoo! I was well impressed by my putting skills! Deborah beat Jodie 3 & 2 and Carol beat Kelly by about the same margin as I beat Inessa. So, I was the only Entries girl to be victorious! Pah! My team let me down! We had great fun though and I've now agreed to set up a "Champions League" so we can continue depsite half of the gang being knocked out of the official Tour comp already. I play Deborah in the next round. I'll try and get some practice in before I think - I really want to get to the quarter finals now!Football:Ican't believe it's our last home game of the season on Saturday! But just needing a point from Man Utd is a pretty good end! I've really enjoyed stewarding at the Bridge this season. I can't wait for next season! But we've still got the end of season party to look forward to and (unless the unthinkable happens) the Premiership parade. I think we are going out for a few drinks after the gane on Saturday. It will be a great atmosphere if we do win the title on Saturday. How weird, it was just after Chelsea's last home game, when they had won the premiership and had been presented the trophy that I last updated this! Almost a whole year has passed - where has the time gone? Jo will be back in the UK in a few days too. It's going to be strange not going to the Bridge every other week over the summer. But we've all agreed we will be meeting up over the summer - the boys want to try pitch and putt for starters. And I think Emily and I might do the stadium tour again. And we've got the world cup! And of course Danny is over for a couple of weeks. So, lots to look forward to.

Bad idea to start posting again...

Well, I thought I'd actually start updating this again. I figured it was a great way to keep a record of what I've been up to if nothing else. And then I spent ages typing up stuff about Iceland last week, then it disappeared, never to be seen again - great! And then I typed it all again and it disappeared again! So, here goes again!Wednesday 19th April:The alarm went off at 4.15am - so not nice! The drive to the airport was uneventful - thankfully! We were met as planned by the car people and we checked our bags in and went through. The flight was more or less on time. It was only a 3 hour flight, so that was great. Once we landed in Iceland, we got the bags, collected the car (Hyundai Getz) and heaed into Reykjavik. We found our hotel, which was pretty nice - all that we needed! We had lunch in the hotel - had some lovely fish! I was determined to have some seafood whole I was there so i was pleased with myself! Then we headed out to try the swimming pools! Apparently the geothermal pools are to Icelanders what coffee shops are to Americans - they go there to meet up and have a gossip. You have to shower before entering the pool as they have a low chlorine content. There is a scary woman making sure you shower without your swimsuit on - she tells you off if you don't, as Val found out! They even have posters showing you which body parts to wash - yes really! Once that ordeal was out of the way we headed outside for our swim. It's so relaxing and you totally forget you are in an outdoor pool and it's about 3 degrees out! After a couple of hours we headed out for dinner and then had an early night - we were pooped!The view from our hotel:Thursday 20th April:Up relatively early, breakfast at the hotel, then on the road to do the Golden Circle Tour. First stop was Pingvellir - the original site of the oldest exisiting parliament in the world! It's also "lies within a belt of volcanic activity and fissures which passes across Iceland, a part of the mid-Atlantic Ridge, the junction of the American and Eurasian tectonic plates". it also has a church and a lake. We thre coins in the "wishing well" and had a nice little walk round.Pingvellir:The wishing well:The flag represents where the head of Parliament used to stand:After that we headed to the geysir area. This is where the original geysir that all geysirs were named after is. But Geysir no longer works - people used to throw things into it trying to get it to blow so now it's blocked. But there is Strokkur - a slightly smaller but still active geysir.Strokkur the geysir:Then it was on to Gullfoss - the Golden Waterfall. Absolutely amazing - the sight and sounds of it were unbelievable. I can't remember the name of this church, but it was the next stop. Apparently there is a tomb of some bishop down in the cellar, but we weren't brave enough to go down the creepy stairs!We went to a lovely little restaurant for dinner and then headed back to the hotel for the night.Friday 21st April:We were going to go snowmobiling, but we could only find trips that were all day and we didn't want to waste a whole day on one thing. So then we thought about dog sledding - but that finished the day before! So we went to the mall to see what Iceland shopping was like - pretty much the same as ours! Then we wandered down the main shopping street looking for some souvenirs before we went to the zoo. It was a tiny little place, but we got to see seals and reindeers!We had a quick walk round the botanical gardens then went to the Hallgrimskirkja Tower. We wanted to go up the tower, but it was closed as there was a funeral in the church. So we went to Cafe Paris - I got my soup free as it took so long - tomato soup with an egg in it! Weird, but nice! Then we headed out to Hafnafjorour for some horse riding! The Icelandic horses are supposed to be small - they didn't feel very small up there! It was a lovely ride though, all through the lava fields and down to the lake. We were riding for about 2 hours. We even got them going at a fair old trot!Saturday 22nd April:Breakfast at the hotel again, then drove to the Blue Lagoon. That was amazing! Had a lovely relaxing massage in the lagoon and we joined everyone else in smearing the while silica stuff over our faces - apparently it's good for the skin! The sun was out and it was quite a nice, but chilly day. Then all of a sudden there wasa huge black cloud above us, it got a bit windy, the water got choppy and the hail started. It was quite eerie, especially with all the steam fromt he water. But after about 10 minutes it passed and the sun came out again. We spent a couple of hours relaxing, before we got out, had lunch and headed back to town. The Blue Lagoon:We decided to try the tower again - and this time it was open. We had just got to the top when the bells started to ring - right above us! it was deafening! The views were amazing! Although it was a bit cold up there!The Hallgrimskirkja Tower:View from the tower:We had about an hour to kill before the footie, so we drove up the coast road a bit and found a nice little area with a beach and a lighthouse. We got out and took a few photos before heading back to town to the Sports Bar.A lighthouse we found:The football - what was Jose thinking - Geremi?! With Cole, Duff and Robben on the bench?! We were very poor in the first hald, although their goal was ridiculous! No way was that a free kick! But our wall crumbled too easily. Shame JT's goal was ruled out, but I knew it wasn't going to be our day. If only we had played the whole game like we played the last 20 minutes or so, we would have cruised into the final. So, that's one dream I won't be fulfilling this year! Ah well, there's always next year!After the football we went back to the hotel for a bit before heading out to dinner and then down to the sea road to take a few last pictures. Then it was back to the hotel for bed.A viking boat along the sea road.Sunday 23rd April:No time for breakfast at the hotel, had to get to the airport. Got there in plenty of time in the end. We bought our souvenirs, had something to eat and drink then boarded the plane. Flight was good, London rain felt warm when we got home! I was pooped by the time we got home, but had to do loads of washing and cook dinner for us, so didn't get to relax until quite late. All in all, a great few days. Would recommend Iceland to anyone - apart from the girls at work who find the office too cold and set the heating to 90 degrees!

The amazing adventures of Dude!

Well, my mum's out at work at the moment, so I thought I'd pop on and post my holiday photos! Had a fantastic month!There was quite a bit of hanging around at airports, but I had a good book to read.The flying wasn't too bad. Mum doesn't like it too much so I had to look after her.Singapore was nice. We popped over to the Raffles Hotel for a nose and to get some photos.Next stop was Sydney. We went on a tour od the Olympic Park, that was great fun!And the Opera House was most impressive!So too was the Harbour Bridge. Mum climbed that!Then it was off to New Zealand! In Queenstown, we went up the Gondola!Had a wonderful time in Wellington. The Te Papa museum was really interesting!We were staying right by the Embassy Theatre.Auckland was huge! The harbour wasn't all that nice and it was raining so I refused to get out of the car to have my photo taken!When we got to Hollywood, I wanted to have my photo taken by the Chinese Theatre, but they were having loads of premieres so I had to settle for the Egyptian Theatre - but they did have the LOTR premieres there!We didn't see Mickey Mouse in Disneyland, he was hiding in his house, so I had to settle for a picture with his statue!I was too busy gambling in Vegas for photos!Dude

They think it's all over...well it is now!

So, where did I get to? Ah yes:Sunday 5th December:We did go up the Sky Tower again and watched other jumpers for a bit. And then it was time to leave NZ. We caught the bus to the airport and checked in. Didn't want to leave NZ. Loved it there! But we were soon on the flight to LA. And what a flight it was! We were thrown around all over the place up there! There were all kinds of tornadoes and typhoons around the Pacific and we flew through them all! Not fun! We eventually landed about 1pm (Sunday again) and we got a cab to the Days Inn on Sunset. We were absolutely exhausted so we had an hour's kip before getting up, showering and heading out for dinner. We settled for Pizza Hut after walking for a bit. Went to bed about 10 or 11 I think.Monday 6th December:Up early again and off to Universal Studios. Had a fab day. It was a bit overcast and had a few drizzly bits, but that just meant the park was fairly quiet. We watched the Blues Brother's show, which made us feel all Christmassy! Went on the Jurassic Park water ride and would have got soaked if we hadn't bought our dollar ponchos! It has an 80ft drop - excellent fun! Watched the special effects show, went through the Backdraft set, saw the Shrek 3D thing, T2 3D, did the Backlot tour which included the King Kong encounter and the subway earthquake and we watched the Waterworld show. I'm sure there was lots more we did but can't remember now I'm back! In the evening we had a wander round Universal Walk and had crepes...mmmmmm! Then went to the cinema to see Alexander. Colin Farrell is fantastic in it! Then it was back to the hotel for some sleep!Tuesday 7th December:Up early once again. We were picked up from the hotel by Starline and taken to their office. Once there, we collected our tickets for the tour we were about to take and hopped on the bus. The first part of the tour was up in the Hollywood Hills to see the movie stars homes. Among the many we saw were Tobey Maguire and Keanu Reeves' homes (they live next door to each other and Keanu's looks like a prison!), Courtney Cox, Leonardo Di Caprio, Nancy Regan - and loads more! Then it was off to Beverley Hills where Madonna has two houses and then onto Bel Air - saw the house they used for the Fresh Prince. Then we were taken to the Sony Studios where we had a walking tour through their backlot, which included going on to the three sets of "Joan of Arcadia" - that was very interesting. They are filming a couple of movies there too at the moment. They filmed some of Pirates of the Caribbean there! Then it was back onto the bus and back to Hollywood for some lunch before the next part of the tour. This was a walking tour through Hollywood. Our guide took us to the Egyptian Theatre (where all three of the LOTR movies had their Hollywood premieres), the El Capitain Theatre (where Disney premieres all their movies), a quick look at the handprints outside the Chinese Theatre (couldn't see too much as there was a premiere going on that night so a lot of it was blocked off) then had a quick walk through the entrance area of the Kodak Theatre. Then the bus took us back to the hotel. We walked back to where we had just been (d'oh!) and went to see The Incredibles at the El Capitain theatre. That was totally wicked! There was a live show before the movie - lots of singing and dancing! The premiere for Blade Trinity was taking place at the Chinese Theatre so we had a bit of a nose at that. Saw Ryan Reynolds and the girl from it - can't remember her name. Then we went to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner before heading back to the hotel.Wednesday 8th December:Got up early once again and walked back to Hollywood and Highland. We saw they were setting up for something else at the Chinese Theatre so we went to see what it was - the premiere for Ocean's Twelve! And there standing around was one of the cast! Not Matt, Brad or George though, just Elliott what's his name from Friends! Anyhoo, next stop was the Kodak Theatre. We bought our tickets for the tour and headed upstairs. We were told that today was a great day to do the tour as it was one of only 14 days of the year when we could go up on stage! For those of you that don't know, this where they hold the Oscars. So, it was into the theatre we went, down the stairs, quick stop in the VIP bar and then backstage and out onto the stage - very impressive! And very weird to be there! After thanking the academy we exited stage left and took the elevator the winners use up to one of the boxes. Very big for four people! Then we wandered through to where Winner's Walk is. This is the area that no one but the winners will enter on the night. They close the curtains so no one can see them as they walk through to the hotel next door to do their interviews. As we were leaving the theatre we were given a postcard of the theatre which apparently you cannot buy anywhere and only people that do the tour get them. I asked where all the LOTR cast had sat and the girl showed me and then said "but Orlando Bloom wasn't here" to which I replied "no, but I like Elijah Wood anyway" and she said "he's gay, cute though". Oooookay.We left the theatre and walked back to the hotel, called a cab and headed to the airport to collect our hire car. We had a Chevy Malibu, quite a nice car, lovely to drive. So we drove back to Hollywood and up into the hills to take some photos and then had a late lunch at Mel's Diner. Drove back to the hotel and dropped the car off and walked back to the Chinese Theatre to watch the goings on of the premiere! We saw George Clooney, Brad Pitt (who first of all drove past waving at everyone, then walked up and down the crowd), Matt Damon (stunning!), Bruce Willis (also walked the crowd), Catherine Zeta Jones, Michael Douglas, Casey Affleck, Sharon Stone, the guy from Smallville, a guy from That 70's Show and i can't remember who else! Once that was done we walked to Amoeba Music and I bought some DVDs before going back to the hotel.Thursday 9th December:Again with the early start! Had some breakfast, checked out and jumped in the car and drove to Anaheim - Disneyland! We parked up and hit the park! It was all Christmassy - so lovely! We went on Pirates of the Caribbean, It's a Small World, Splash Mountain, The Haunted Mansion (which had a Christmas theme), Peter Pan, Snow White, Toad Hall, Pinochio. Storyland Canal Boats, Winnie the Pooh, Alice in Wonderland, Matterhorn Bobsleds, Honey I Shrunk the Audience....loads! We watched the parade - really lovely! And we watched the fireworks - they had fake snowfalls at the end! Then it was off to the Disneyland Hotel! That was fantastic! Our room was gorgeous! Huge beds! Once we had dumped all our stuff, we went for a dip in the outside Neverland Pool (this was about 9.30pm) and then a nice relaxing hot spa. Then it was back to the room to get changed before heading into Downtown Disney for a wander. Then it was back to the hotel for bed.Friday 10th December:Got up about 8.30 I think, went for a wander round the shops in Downtown Disney and spent lots of money. Checked out of the hotel and caught the Monorail into Dinsey. Ran the parents, popped outside the resort to get my digital photos downloaded onto a CD and then we went into California Adventure Park. Great fun! Went to the Muppet Vision 3D thing, watched the Aladdin stage show, saw the Bug's Life 3D thing which was fantastic! Went on the Sun Wheel (Ferris Wheel), Mulholland Madness (mini coaster), the River Rapids thing - got soaked! After a day there, we went back to Disneyland and went on Pirates and Haunted Mansion again. At about 6pm we went back to the hotel and picked up the car and luggage and set off towards Vegas. At about 9pm we got to Barstow, we stopped there and found a hotel for the night. Saturday 11th December:Got up at 8am and checked out of the hotel. Drove the rest of the way to Vegas! Got there about midday. we drove up and down the strip trying to find somewhere to park, then decided to park at the Luxor. Then we walked down the strip. First stop was New York New York for lunch. Then it was the MGM Grand to have a go on the slots. We also went into The Belaggio, Ceasar's Palace, Treasure Island, The Venetian and a few others. We watched the fountains for a while too - amazing! We checked into the Luxor, got changed and went to the cinema to see Ocean's Twelve - fabulous! Then watched the fountains again and then watched the Pirates show at Treasure Island. We had dinner at Planet Hollywood then wandered back to the hotel about 1am.Sunday 12th December:Alarm went off about 9am and we got up and packed. Checked out of the hotel, took some photos around the hotel, wandered through Excalibur, did some last minute shopping and then watched the fountains for the last time before heading back to the hotel and picking up the car and luggage. We drove to the airport and after a while managed to finally find the badly signposted Alamo! Checked in and went to the gate to wait for the flight. We left on time and 9 hours later we were at Gatwick. And there were the olds waiting for us...

Our final hours in New Zealand

Friday 3rd December continued:So, after we finished up in the internet cafe, we headed back to the spa. We had about an hour in the hot spas. The coolest one was 36 degrees and the hottest was 42! That was warm! You get used to the smell after a while. Then it was time for my massage. Absolutely gorgeous! Mud pack on the back and all sorts. Then once my massage was over, I sat outside the relaxation room on the balcony by the lake and enjoyed the sunshine while waiting for Val. Once we were both done, we left the spa and headed off up north. We drove to Auckland - it's huge! They had proper motorways and street lighting and everything. It just doesn't fit in with the rest of NZ. We found our hotel, had the car valet parked and checked in. Hotel is nice, although they have messed up our booking twice. Once we had ditched the bags we had a stroll down the road to get some dinner, then it was back to bed.Saturday 4th December:Had a bit of a lie in this morning, got up about 9.30am. We went for a drive down to the harbour - not the prettiest one we've seen! It was raining too - pah! Then we took Ruggedy the Rav back. I was very sad to leave him. Such a cool car - so nice to drive. Then we went for lunch and a stroll round the shops. Didn't spend any money! Then we walked back to the hotel in the rain and had a cup of tea. We decided to go down Queens Street to look in the souvenir shops before going back to the hotel for dinner. I had a little nap and then we got ready for our night at the theatre. We went to see A Christmas Carol. It was brilliant! Bruce was fabulous in it! Then it was off to bed.Sunday 5th December:Got up about 9am, got ready and then packed. Then we checked out of the hotel and went up the Sky Tower. Great views! Then we went to look into the skyjump. When we got there the girl asked if we wanted to do it then, so we said yes! Got our jumpsuits on and got all harnessed up. A guy came down to collect us and took us to the lifts. Up we went. We found the Skyjump area and had all the harness and stuff checked again. I decided I would go first. I had my safety clip put on and I stepped up on to the walkway and walked outside. At the end on the walkway I had the two clips attached to me and the safety one was taken off. I then had to turn and face outwards and hold on to the rails. On the count of three I had to step off. i must admit to a few nerves! It's 640 feet high! Once you step off you are dropped two storeys, so you are level with the observation deck, and you hang there for a bit while they take your photo and then you are dropped the rest of the way. It is such a rush! Absolutely amazing! I then sat at the bottom and waited for Val to come down. The guy then asked if we wanted to do it again and we said yes! This time there were no nerves, just very excited! Up we went in the lift again. I went first again. This time, when I was dropped to the observation deck I was waving like a maniac at the people in the restaurant and on the deck. It was hilarious to see them all waving back, taking photos and filming me! Then it was time to be dropped. This time I had a better look around at the views. It was amazing! So pleased we did it! Then it was back to Mission Control to pick up our photos and certificates. Then we wandered down to the All Blacks shop so I could get my free socks! Because I had bought something in Wellington, they gave me a sock and told me to take it to the shop in Auckland, sing my National Anthem and get the other sock! Okay, so the girl gave me the socks without us having to sing! Then it was lunchtime and now we're here. We're going to go up the Sky Tower again now and see if we can see any more jumpers.Very sad to be leaving New Zealand, but we have so many great memories to take with us. And we now have LA and Vegas to look forward to!

Photos!

A few from Singapore and Sydney first:Me and my Singapore Sling!The Harley!Pulled again! Taronga Zoo.The Stadium where we won the World Cup! And yes, that's the end that Jonny scored!And that's the cubicle he used!I will upload the rest when i get home probably, unless I get time to do it in LA.And here's a few from NZ. Yes, we're being orcs there on Pelennor Fields!Ready to Luge!Aragorn's cliff - namby pamby only fell about 3 inches!This is Pippin - our Motorhome!Our trip to the South Pole.That's Edoras in the background!A wander in the Gardens of Isen.Us in the hobbit's hiding place.Get off the Road!Rivendell!And that's all for now folks!

Another quick update

Thursday 2nd December continued:Well, we got to Rotorua safe and sound and checked into our hotel. It was lovely! We found out that there was a Maori concert every night by the pool so we decided to book for that. We had a couple of hours to kill so we wandered into town for dinner and then went back to get changed. The concert was fab! Especially the haka! After the concert we went back to the room for a bit to write postcards and stuff before heading back down to the pool for a late night swim and spa before bedtime.Friday 3rd December:Got up about 8am and checked out of the hotel. We went to McDonalds for breakfast, wandered the town for a bit then headed out to the gondola. Once we were up there we found the luge! This one is longer than the one in Queenstown and we had to have a go...or five! We love luging! After we were luged out, we went back down the gondola and drove to the Polynesian Spa, we booked a vitalising back therapy for 4.30pm today and then drove to the park to hae a look (and smell) of the hot springs. Mmmmmmmm. :-) Then we drove to the government gardens, found a little cafe and had lunch. Now we're just killing a bit of time while waiting for our spa date! Finally found a pc with a CD drive and I have my CDs, so there will follow some photos! They're a bit big though!

Hello from Hobbiton!

Well, on Tuesday night we headed out to the Hobbit for dinner but it was closed! Pah! So we went back to the hotel and had dinner at the Powderkeg again. Halfway through eating our lovely chicken, we spotted it wasn't cooked properly! Eeeeek! We informed the waitress who told us our dinner would be free, so we ordered cheesecake too. Well, if we were going to be sick may as well go the whole hog! Then it was back to the room to pack and worry about getting food poisoning.Wednesday 1st December:The alarm went off at 8am and breakfast was delivered soon after. Neither of us had been sick during the night, but I think the worry was making us a little queasy. We were determined not to let it ruin our holiday, so we hit the road. (Edit here!) We drove to the Waitomo Caves. The tour started with a little wander through the limestone caves, quite stunning really. Then we hopped into a little boat and floated through the pitch black into the Glow Worm Grotto. That was amazing! All the lights of the glow worms looked like stars in the night sky. After that we headed north to Hamilton. Lovely little town. We had lunch at Subway before hitting the shops! Honest mum, I'm not spending that much! But I did have to buy my Harry Potter DVD! Then we decided to go back to the hotel for a rest. The plan had been to spend the evening writing postcards, having a swim and possibly trying out the steam room and having dinner close by. But about 7.30pm I wasn't feeling 100% so the only place I was headed was bed. Val had to amuse herself for the evening as I was asleep in no time!Thursday 2nd December:Got up about 9am, feeling much better! Think I was just tired. Went into the bathroom to find a little orc Frodo sitting by the sink. One of the things Val had done to amuse herself last night was to buy me him! He's fab! Then we checked out of the hotel and headed for Matamata - home of Hobbiton. We had lunch at Ronnie's Cafe before booking onto the tour. We were taken right into the set where about half of the hobbit holes remain. We saw the party tree and the party field. Our guide, Eric, showed us where Gandalf and Frodo had ridden in on Gandalf's cart, where he let the fireworks off and where the kids had run after them. We wandered around to the lake and saw where the bridge and the mill had been. Then it was up the hill to Bag End. This is the hobbit hole you can actually walk inside. Looking out from Bag End is fantastic! You see Bilbo's view just as it was in the film. Sam's home in FOTR is still there, but unfortunately his home in ROTK, the final shot, is now just a mound of dirt. Apparently they are awaiting permission from Newline to rebuild it. The reason half of the set remains is because they had begun to tear it all down, but then the rain came in and they had to stop for six months. In that time, the owners of the farm asked Newline if they could keep the rest of the holes and set up the tours. Newline agreed. Once the tour was over we came back to the town and went back to Ronnie's for tea. And another cake - they have great cakes! Now we're sitting in the Hobbit Hole Internet Cafe. We'll be off to have a wander round the town now and then we are heading to Rotorua.

Not sure if anyone is still reading but...

Saturday 27th November cont:We went to the Te Papa museum - very interesting. Also somehow found ourselves on a ride we think we were supposed to pay for, but the guy just ushered us through when I asked what it entailed! After the museum we went back to the hotel to change. Then it was out for dinner at The Green Parrot - great food! Sunday 28th November: Got up at the crack of dawn as we were off on a trip today. Colin, our tour guide picked us up at 9am. Our first stop was the Westpac Stadium where they recorded a lot of the orc crowd stuff when they had big sporting events on there. Then we went down to park of the River Anduin, where the boats first set off on their journey. Then it was on to Harcourt Park - the location for the gardens of Isen, the felling of the orc trees and frisbee golf! Yes, really! Then it was off to Rivendell, this location is beautiful. We had photos taken by the tree where Orlando Bloom had his promo photos done. After morning tea, we had a wander over the swingbridge and through the bush. Colin got us to run back over the bridge to make it swing a bit more! Great fun. Then it was off to Mout Victoria, stopping enroute to pop into Old St Paul's Cathedral - a beautiful old wooden church. We drove up Mt. Victoria for some stunning views on the city. Then it was a short drive and a little walk through the locations on the Rohirrim encampment, the run to the ferry, the "get off the road" scene and a photo or two in the hobbits hiding place. Then it was back to the hotel with a quick stop at the dairy for a hokey pokey ice cream - mmmmmmmmmmm! Then we picked up the coolest car on the roads of NZ and drove to Seatoun and had lunch Chocolate Fish Cafe. lovely food again! Sat by the sea and ate. Lovely. When we got back to the hotel we went for a swim. The indoor "heated" pool was bloody cold! But we had a bit of a swim anyway.That night we had dinner at Casa Pasta as recommended by Colin - more great food! Then it was pack to the hotel to pack.Monday 29th November:Got up early and checked out of the hotel. I had had a bit of a money scare the night before when the cash machine wouldn't give me money, so I had to get that sorted before we left. Once that was done, we headed to Lambton Quay for some shopping! Spent lots of money, then had a ride on the cable car to see more great views of the city. Then it was back down, quick walk along Cuba Street, then back in the car and back to the Chocolate Fish Cafe for lunch. Another great milkshake! Then it was time to leave Wellington. Was very sad to leave, I love Wellington! Really want to come back soon. Then we drove up to Ohakune and checked into the Powderhorn Chateau. The hotel is fab! Our room is great! We decided to go for a swim before dinner. The pool was so warm it was like a bath! Bit different to the one in Welly! We messed around in there for a while, found ourselves a great slide! Then it was into the Powderkeg for dinner, then to bed.Tuesday 30th November:The alarm went off about 9am this morning, we thought we'd have a bit of a lie in. Had breakfast - lovely iggs! Then we popped to the shops before driving up the mountain road to find the location where Gollum chased the fish down the river. Wandered around for a bit, got wet. Then we drove to Whakapapa Ski field to visit mordor. It was very misty! Very Mordor-ish. We stopped at the Grand Chateau for lunch then we headed back to our Chateau. Did some washing, then headed back up the mountain road to find the real location for Gollum chasing the fish. Jumped over the stream for a bit, took photos and then got back in the car and headed down here to the internet cafe. We had tried the internet at the hotel but hadn't had any joy. Pah! Now we are heading back for another swim before having dinner at The Hobbit later.

The sun shines in the north!

Just a quick update - I've edited the last entry as we remembered what we did on Tuesday! We got a reasonably early night last night after packing.Saturday 27th November:The alarm went off at 8.30am and we got up and did the usual morning ritual. It had been nice sleeping in a proper bed for the first time in a week! We got the free shuttle to the airport, checked in and went for a bit of breakfast. Finally boarded about 11.30 and we were soon on our way. The flight only felt like it lasted about 20 minutes - why can't they all be like that?! Once in Wellington (hurrah!) wse picked up our hire car - a very cool red Rav 4! Gorgeous to drive - I was born to drive a car like that! Then it was off to the hotel. We've decided we are staying here for two nights and luckily the hotel has room for us for tomorrow night. Once we had ditched the suitcases and changed we drove into the town. Parked up and walked down Cuba Street to Fidel's for a bit of lunch. Very cool place - lovely food! And now we are off to the Te Papa museum. Bye for now!

2 weeks in...

Okay, found another spare few minutes to pop in and update.Monday 22nd November continued:After the internet cafe, we hit the shops. Yes mum, I have spent far too much and bought far too many things! Then we decided to head for the gondola. Some fat old man got in our car which didn't impress us as he blocked the view! Once up the top we had a look round and took photos then it was onto the chair lift up to the luge! That was fantastic! Absolutely hilarious! We had to have three goes as it was so much fun. The third time I went reeeeeally fast! Then it was back down the gondola - an old couple tried to get in with us, but we blocked their way! Ha! Then it was back to the van and off to Deer Park Heights. They filmed quite a bit of LOTR round there - got to see the locations where Aragorn gets dragged over the cliff (stood on the bit of rock!), the area the Rohan people walk on their way to Helms Deep, where the wargs attacked, the hill where Legolas stood and shot at them - cue silly Legolas poses all round! For the non-LOTR fans, Deer Park Heights is also a great place to see a fantastic view of Queenstown. After Arrowtown we drove and drove and drove. And so too did the rain. We decided to go to Milford Sound. To get there, the road is long. And winding. And you have to drive through a mountain. Freaky! (Edit here!) We didn't go to Arrowtown! D'oh! We drove to Te Anau, were going to stay but then we decided to head on down to Milford Sound. We got there late, parked up and slept. It rained all night.Tuesday 23rd November:Still raining. Experienced my first earthquake! The van was shaking like mad! Don't think we saw Milford Sound in it's best light. Back on the road. Had to wait at the mountain tunnel for a while, sat by the lights, still raining. Finally went through the mountain and came out on the other side to heavy snow! It was really weird! (Another edit!) We actually went to Arrowtown on Tuesday! That was when we jumped across the river to find the Nazgul spot and wandered around to find the place where Isildur met his end! Then we headed for Haast. Wednesday 24th November:Drove to the Fox Glacier first. Got out, walked down to the face and had a gander. Very impressive. Big ice block. Then we went into the township for shopping before heading on to the Franz Josef Glacier. We did the little woodland walk up to a great viewing point. All round here was where they filmed the lighting of the beacons. Wow! Very cool. Then it was into that township for more shopping. Then it was back in the car and we headed for somewhere I can't remember the name of! Had lunch there then drove further up to the place that Sandro recommended - sorry, very tired, brain mush, can't remember names at the moment. It's the place that has the blowholes and pancake rocks. It's really lovely round there and apparently very impressive in a storm. Forgot to mention, it did stop raining by the time we got to the Fox Glacier and was beautiful by the time we got to the pancake rocks. Then we drove along to Arthur's Pass and beyond and stopped in Springfield for the night - no sign of the Simpsons. Thursday 25th November:Had a bit of a lie in this morning, got up at 9.30am. Sorted the van out and headed back to Christchurch. We decided to pop into the Antartica Centre - that is fab! Went on the Haaglund ride - fantastic! Then had a wander round the centre. There is a room that has real snow, that they keep at -5 and they generate storm conditions in there. They give you a jacket as it's sooooooooooo cold! Played around in there for a bit, having a go on the ice slide and such. We spent a couple of hours there and then headed back to the van depot as we were going to return the van that night as we had an early pick up the next day, but instead the very nice man sorted out the paperwork and we packed and he told us to drop it back at 8am the next day. So, we parked up in a nearby holiday park. The weather was looking a bit grey, so we had dinner, shopped and then went to the cinema to see National Treasure - which was great! When we left the cinema it was pouring, so we asked a security guard if he knew a taxi number. He found one and then tried to call them on his mobile for us. But he overheard the guy next to him ordering a taxi so he got him to order two. We stood outside in the cold for 10 minutes waiting for the taxi, no sign. The rain stopped so we walked back. Not liking Christchurch a whole lot!Friday 26th November:Up at 7am this morning. Took the van back and headed over to the Russely Hotel to wait for our tour guide to pick us up. The van turned up at about 9.30am. Our guide for the day was the very lovely Mark. There were four other people on the tour, a german couple and a Japanese couple. We drove across the plains, up to Mt. Somers. Stopped a couple of times for photos. Finally got to Mt.Potts about lunch time. Got out of the van for our first look at Edoras. Wow! So very very impressive! Then it was a bit of 4 wheeling over the land (and water) and up Mt. Sunday. We climbed the last bit and stood right where the Golden Hall had been. Mark pointed out where all the different buildings had been, and where Aragorn had sat on his horse when he was looking at Helms Deep and where Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli had ridden up and where Gandalf had ridden off with Pippin. Lots of photos were taken. Then it was back to the lodge for a champagne lunch - Yum! Then we drove back to Christchurch. Finally got back about 5pm. Then it was a quick rest in the hotel before heading here - the city centre. Going to have a wander round before heading back for an earlyish night. Off to Wellington in the morning! Hurrah!

We're in Queenstown!

So, where did I get to the other day? I was in the visitor's centre wasn't I? Okay...Saturday 20th November continued:We left Twizel after updating this and headed up towards Mount Cook. The weather up there wasn't the best, so we decided not to go on one of the walks! Instead, we headed back down to the Holiday Park about 20 minutes away. The weather here was lovely! So we went for a stroll down to the lake and took some photos, then went to do some laundry - we know how to party! It was a nice relaxing evening though, taking it easy, late dinner, then bed.Sunday 21st November:Got up early, it was a beautiful morning. We drove back up to Mount Cook and this time we got out and did one of the walks up towards the mountain. It was beautiful up there. Took plenty of photos. Then we got back in the van and headed further south. We had planned to stop in Tarras, but it consisted of 1 shop and a cafe, so we continued onto Wanaka. Loved this place! Really stunning. We stopped down by the waterfront and took pictures - this was the backdrop used for Gandalf's flight on the eagle from Isengard. Then we had some lunch before driving to Glendhu Bay - another stunning location. Then it was back into Wanaka to stop by Puzzling World. We spent about 45 minutes in the maze - it was hilarious! The idea was to find each of the four corners and then find your way out - we did succeed! We kept seeing the same couple over and over again - and the four of us just kept laughing at each other. Then we went into the optical illusions room. That was hilarious too! One room was on a slope and it made you feel like the room was moving. There were a couple of great photo opportunities - so I'll show them when I can. Then it was back in the van. We drove to Queenstown. On the way I thought we were going to run out of diesel - there were no service stations anywhere! Not even a house! Eventually I saw a sign for Arrowtown and headed in there. We found the service station and pulled in. A guy came out and told us they had closed 20 minutes before, I think he saw the look of utter despair and desperation on my face as he told us he would switch the pumps back on! Now, can you imagine that happening in England?! Once we were filled up, we continued on into Queenstown. The first Motor Park we tried was full, but the second one was better. We parked up, had a quick freshen up and headed into town for dinner. We wandered around a couple of the shops then decided to look for a restaurant - but they were all closing! It seems Queenstown shuts at 10pm on a Sunday! We had to settle for a KFC before heading back to the van for bed.Monday 22nd November:First of all, Happy Birthday Fifs! Hope you have a fab day! Okay - so when I did this the other day I thought it was the 21st when it was actually the 22nd - still would have been the 21st for Fifs though!Got up early this morning, showered and dressed and drove into town. First stop was here - the internet depot. Now we're going shopping, then up the gondola. After that - well, there is so much to do in Queenstown we don't know what we are going to do next!So, the sun is out, need to get outside! Will be back again in a few days. Until then - bye!

Twizel Calling!

Well, I've finally managed to find a spare moment to update this! We are having a fab time, don't want to spend too long in here so please forgive the vague entries! Plus I want to tell everyone all about it when I get home!Friday 12th November:We got to the airport about 6.30pm and checked in. We ate, wandered a bit and finally bordered about 11pm - the flight was slightly delayed. The flight wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be - I slept most of the way! Saturday 13th November:We landed at 6.50pm local time in Singapore. We got a cab to the Swissotel. Our room was lovely! After a little rest and a quick shower and change, we went to the Night Safari. There was a tram ride through there which was great. Very peaceful. We walked the leopard trail, which included a stroll through the bat enclosure! Just after midnight we headed back to the hotel for bed.Sunday 14th November:We got up about 10am and had breakfast before heading out. We had a quick look at The Raffles Hotel then hit the shopping mall. We were going to have a wander outside, but a torrential rainstorm changed our minds for a while. Once the rain had stopped we popped over to the Chijmes and browsed the shops. Then it was off to the Long Bar for a Singapore Sling! Mmmmmm - I like those! Then it was off to another mall and a little rest along by the river. We had a few hours to kill before the flight and we were knackered so we went to the cinema to see Cellular - very good! Then it was back to the hotel to pick up our bags before catching a cab to the airport. Monday 15th November:We landed in Sydney at 11am and cabbed it to the hotel in Bondi. Our suite was fab! Huge! After a shower and change we wandered along the beach before getting a cab into the city. Seeing the Opera House and the bridge for the first time - it finally sunk in...we were in Australia!!! We walked along the bridge, went up the sky tower and did the skyride before heading back to the hotel.Tuesday 16th November:Got up at 7.30am, had breakfast and then we were picked up by Bruce and Barry on the Harleys! We had a 90 minute tour of Sydney, which was incredible! I was with Bruce who was very chatty and told me loads about the city aswell as pointing out Nicole Kidman's and Russell Crowe's homes! They dropped us off at the Opera House and we caught the ferry to Taronga Zoo. That was great fun - had photos with koalas. Awwwww. They have some very weird animals over here! Then it was back on the ferry and off for a tour of the Opera House. Our guide Adam was great. The Opera House is amazing! Learned all about the history pf the place - very interesting! After that it was pretty much time to go to the Bridge Climb HQ. Once we were checked in we had a safety briefing, we had to sign consent forms and be breathalised! Then we were given our jumpsuits - mmmm very sexy! Then it was off for the harness fitting and the radio and lamp fittings. We had a practice run over a little bridge, then it was off to the real thing. It was quite scary at first, everyone was clinging on for dear life! The views were amazing! We had photos throughout the climb including one at the very top. It's quite an amazing feeling - being at the very top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge! Then we had the climb back down. We saw the sunset, then stolled down in the dark. It was great to see the views of the city both in the light and the dark. We were given certificates and photos once we got back to HQ. Then it was time to get a taxi back to the hotel.Wednesday 17th November:Up at 7.30am again. Today we headed off to the Olympic Park. The stadium in amazing1 We took the tour - got to see the view of the pitch from the highest level, the media boxes, the commentator box, the member's lounge, the changing rooms (yep, had a photo in the cubicle Jonny used!) and then wandered down to the sidelines for a closer look at the pitch before having photos on the Olympic medal podium. Then we had a quick look at the pool before going up to the 17th floor of the Novotel Hotel for a great view of the whole park. Then it was back on the train and back to the city for a walk up the bridge pylon to take some photos. Sydney has far too many steps! Then it was back to Bondi for a massage. Oh my God! It was amazing! Then we had dinner before heading off to the cinema to see Bridget Jones - not as good as I thought it would be,Thursday 18th November:Up at 6.15am to get to the airport. When we got there Val realised she had left her purse at the hotel, so she phoned them and they got it sent over in a cab. Once that drama was over, we wandered the shops before boarding our flight to Christchurch. Slept most of teh way again! Got a taxi to the hotel, very basic after the last two, but we had a room each in our little apartment. We had a rest, then showered and changed and headed into the town centre. Okay, can see why Jorn recommended not to come here - it's a bit dull! We had dinner then Val went to her concert and I went to the cinema. Saw The Polar Express - it was fab! When I left the cinema the Cathedral was all lit up and there was Christmas music coming from it, it was such a lovely moment! I guess you had to be there! Then I got a taxi back to the hotel and waited for Val to return.Friday 19th November:Up at 8am, picked up by the Kea man at 9am and taken to the depot to pick up our motorhome. The nice man took us round the van and showed us how everything worked, By 11.30am we were on the road. We decided to head fro Twizel. We stopped a couple of times along the way for photos of the amazing landscapes! This place is beautiful! We parked up at a Motor Park in Twizel, had a wander into the town, which is consists of about 7 shops and a couple of cafes and tea rooms, then went back to the van for dinner and bed.Saturday 20th November:We did set the alarm for 7am, but when it went off we heard rain so we went back to sleep. Eventually got up about 9am, showered and dressed then drove into town. Got our photos put onto CDs in the shop that LOTR used! Then booked our tour to Pelennor Fields. We were picked up at 1pm by Tony who drove us up there. It is amazing! We stood right where Theoden did his speech before they charged and we saw the fields where the battle took place. We had silly Rohan and orc photos taken - it had to be done! Tony played an orc in the battle. Then it was back to town for fish and chips. Right now I am sitting in the Visitor Information Centre. Right, had best be off. Places to go and all that. I'll be back in a few days hopefully!

I'm going on holiday today! Yippeeeeee!

So, the day has finally come. I can't believe it all starts tonight! I had a request from the old folks last night to post my itinerary here, so here goes!
Friday 12th November:
Leave London Heathrow Terminal 3 at 22:15. Singapore Airlines Flight No: SQ 0321 Mileage: 6748 Flight Time: 12 hours and 40 minutes.
Saturday 13th November:
Arrive Singapore at 18:55. The plan tonight is to go to the Night Safari! http://www.nightsafari.com.sg/We're staying at the Radisson Swiss Hotel. I'm sure we'll squeeze in a Singapore Sling at the Raffles Hotel!
Sunday 14th November:
Spending the day exploring Singapore. Thanks to Mr Garland for all the recommendations!
Monday 15th November:
Depart Singapore at 01:05 Singapore Airlines Flight No: SQ 0231 Mileage: 3900 Flight Time: 7 hours and 35 minutes.
Arrive Sydney at 11:40. For the next three nights we make the Swiss Grand Hotel on Bondi Beach our home. http://www.swissgrand.com.au/Check out the Samsara Day Spa - we intend to visit there!
Tuesday 16th - Wednesday 17th November:
Our days in Sydney will be filled with tours on backs of Harleys http://www.flex.com.au/~eastcoast/, surfing http://www.letsgosurfing.com.au/, Harbour Bridge climbs at sunset http://www.bridgeclimb.com/, trips to the zoo for photos with koalas http://www.zoo.nsw.gov.au/ to name but a few activities!
Thursday 18th Novmeber:
Depart Sydney at 09:50 Air New Zealand Flight No: NZ 0182 Mileage: 1334 Flight Time: 3 hours.
Arrive Christchurch at 14:50. Not the nicest place in NZ, according to Jorn! Staying at the Russell Hotel. Val is off to see the Finn Brothers and I'll be hitting the bars!
Friday 19th November:
Pick up the motorhome and head off to explore the South Island. And check out some of the bars that Craig recommended!
Saturday 20th - Thursday 25th November:
No definite plans, just see where the road takes us. Will do our very best to get to the places Sandro recommended! And we have a day trip to Mount Sunday (that will be Edoras to us Ringers) booked that includes a champagne picnic lunch!
Friday 26th November:
Then it's back to the place Jorn told us not to visit at all! Drop off the motorhome and spend another night at the Russell Hotel.
Saturday 27th November:
Depart Christchurch at 11:50 Air New Zealand Flight No: NZ 0430 Mileage: 190 Flight Time: 45 minutes - now that's more like it!
Arrive Wellington at 13:25. Pick up our 4x4 - very excited about driving that! Staying at the Kingsgate Hotel. Will do a bit of exploring and test Jorn's theory that this place is better than London! A visit to Fidel's is in order too.
Sunday 28th November:
No real plans for today, will try to talk Val into an extra day in Wellington. And there are more bar recommendations from Craigy for Wellington!
Monday 29th November:
Drive up to the middle of the North Island. Staying at the Powderhorn Chateau. http://www.powderhorn.co.nz/
Tuesday 30th November:
Still exploring the middle section. Another night at the Powderhorn.
Wednesday 1st December:
It's off to Hamilton, home of Matamata - Hobbiton! Hurrah! Staying at the Kingsgate Hotel.
Thursday 2nd - Friday 3rdDecember:
Off to the very north today - Paihia. Staying at the Casa Bella Hotel. We have a day trip booked - 4x4 drive along the 90 mile beach where we shall be partaking in a spot of boogie boarding down the sand dunes! http://www.dunerider.co.nz/capetour.htm
Saturday 4th December:
We head back down to Auckland - another place Jorn recommended we didn't go! But tonight we're going to see Bruce and Cameron in A Christmas Carol. Drop the car off. Staying at the Sky City Hotel.
Sunday 5th December:
Have a day in Auckland. There is the possibility of us throwing ourselves out of tall buildings here. http://www.skyjump.co.nz/Come on! It's New Zealand - adventure capital of the world! I have to do something crazy! Before hitting more bars recommended by Parker! Funny how the only places he recommended we visit were just places for alcohol!
Depart Auckland at 22:30 Air New Zealand Flight No: NZ 0002 Mileage: 6522 Flight Time: 11 hours and 55 minutes.
Arrive Los Angeles at 13:25. Hurrah! We land before we take off! The afternoon will no doubt be spent reaquainting ourselves with Hollywood! Staying at the Days Inn Hotel on Sunset Boulevard.
Monday 6th - Wednesday 8th December:
We have a few things planned for LA. Star Homes tour, Universal Studios, shopping, sightseeing, that kind of thing! And we pick up our car at some point. Still at the Days Inn.
Thursday 9th December:
It's Disneyland today! Hurrah! Staying at the Disneyland Hotel.
Friday 10th December:
California Park! And then heading off towards Vegas. Stopping somewhere along the way in a motel.
Saturday 11th December:
Las Vegas baby! Staying at the luxor. http://www.luxor.com/index-flash.php3Check out the spa! we plan on having a much needed massage!
Sunday 12th December:
Spend the day in Vegas - might give that gambling malarky a go!
Depart Las Vegas at 16:05 Virgin Atlantic Flight No: VS 0044 Mileage: 5224 Flight Time: 9 hours and 50 minutes.
Monday 13th December:
Arrive London Gatwick South Terminal at 09:55 where Mummy and Daddy will be waiting to collect me!
So, there we have it - the general plan!





Ah, one other thing! I've been given a holiday challenge by Jo! Her challenge is:

"You have to take a piccy of Dude at all these places
Raffles Hotel, Singapore
Sydney Harbour Bridge
Sydney Opera House
Queenstown cable car (whatever it's called!)
Embassy Theatre, Wellington
Te Papa, Wellington
Auckland Harbor
Graumann's Chinese Theatre, LA
With Mickey Mouse, Disneyland
The Bellagio Hotel, Las Vegas"

So, look out for those! For those of you not in the know, Dude is a brown no-eyed bear that will be travelling with me!

How to Speak New Zealandish

Something to help Val and I next week...FOR BIST EFICT, RID THESE OUT ALOUD!!!Milburn - capital of VictoriaPeck - to fill a suitcasePissed aside - chemical which kills insectsPigs - for hanging out washing withPump - to act as agent for prostitutePug - large animal with a curly tailNun tin dough - computer gameMunner stroney - soupMin - male of the speciesMess Kara - eye makeupMcKennock - person who fixes carsMere - MayorLeather - foam produced from soapLift - departedKiri Pecker - famous Australian businessmanKittle crusps - potato chipsKen's - CairnsJumbo - pet name for someone called JimJungle Bills - Christmas carolInner me - enemyGuess - vapourFush - marine creaturesFitter cheney - type of pastaEver cardeau - avocadoFear hear - blondeEar - mix of nitrogen and oxygenEar roebucks - exercise at the gymDuffy cult - not easyAmejen - visualiseBun button - been bitten by insectBeard - a place to sleepChully Bun - EskySucks Peck - Half a dozen beersEar New Zulland - an extinct airlineBeers - large savage animals found in U.S. forestsVeerjun - mythical New Zealand maidenOne Doze - well known computer programBrudge - structure spanning a streamSex - one less than sivvenTin - one more than nineIggs Ecktly - PreciselyEarplane - large flying machineBeggage Chucken - place to leave your suitcase at the earportSivven Four Sivven - larger Boeing aircraftCuds - childrenPits - domestic animalsCuttin - baby cat

How to Speak New Zealandish

Something to help Val and I next week...FOR BIST EFICT, RID THESE OUT ALOUD!!!Milburn - capital of VictoriaPeck - to fill a suitcasePissed aside - chemical which kills insectsPigs - for hanging out washing withPump - to act as agent for prostitutePug - large animal with a curly tailNun tin dough - computer gameMunner stroney - soupMin - male of the speciesMess Kara - eye makeupMcKennock - person who fixes carsMere - MayorLeather - foam produced from soapLift - departedKiri Pecker - famous Australian businessmanKittle crusps - potato chipsKen's - CairnsJumbo - pet name for someone called JimJungle Bills - Christmas carolInner me - enemyGuess - vapourFush - marine creaturesFitter cheney - type of pastaEver cardeau - avocadoFear hear - blondeEar - mix of nitrogen and oxygenEar roebucks - exercise at the gymDuffy cult - not easyAmejen - visualiseBun button - been bitten by insectBeard - a place to sleepChully Bun - EskySucks Peck - Half a dozen beersEar New Zulland - an extinct airlineBeers - large savage animals found in U.S. forestsVeerjun - mythical New Zealand maidenOne Doze - well known computer programBrudge - structure spanning a streamSex - one less than sivvenTin - one more than nineIggs Ecktly - PreciselyEarplane - large flying machineBeggage Chucken - place to leave your suitcase at the earportSivven Four Sivven - larger Boeing aircraftCuds - childrenPits - domestic animalsCuttin - baby cat

Not long now!

Well, we've got the tickets, picked up the money yesterday, the hotels and cars are booked...we're good to go! Well, apart from that small matter of packing! I'll be checking in here as often as I can to keep anyone interested updated on what adventures we're having!