1983 - Snow and QE2 - 4 January 1984 – Anaheim

Wednesday 4 January 1984 – Anaheim

Up bright and early this morning to give Rab time to wash her hair. Despite this we still did not start as early as I would have wished, finally getting away at about 08.10. it was another splendid day – the temperature has been in the 70s(F) since we arrived. I managed to fit in a run before we left.

The highway was pretty clear and we had no problems apart from the fact that Matt was being a little silly, having had a very late night watching the pilot of a new TV show – Riptide. We made pretty good time because we found that no one seems to stick to the speed limit which is still 55 mph. At one stage I found I was doing 75 just keeping up with the other traffic. The 5 North which, so we were told is the longest freeway in the world, running 1,401 miles goes right through Anaheim, so finding the town was not a problem either.

Matt with the Matterhorn

Our hotel is right near Disneyland so we circled the block and found that too. We were checked in by 10.00 and then caught the next shuttle to Disneyland, which only opened at 10.00. We had a good day there although the other party members were a little unenthusiastic and Matt positively hated the Pirates of the Caribbean because there were two waterslides in the darkened ride. A woman had been killed on the Matterhorn ride yesterday, so Matt refused to let Rab go on that, for which I was duly grateful because I hate those rides.

Matt at the wheel

I did agree to go on Big Thunder with Rab and that was enough for me. It is much faster and more hair-raising than the one in Florida. Matt enjoyed driving the cars and also the trips on the People Mover but basically they had both had enough by about 15.00, which surprised me. The consensus between them was that Florida was much better although I think that there was nothing to choose between them and the rides, if anything, are better and longer here. Certainly the food seemed much cheaper and better here. We had a very nice lunch at quite a reasonable price.

 

Jungle Adventure made us quite homesick

We popped into the Bear Jamboree on the way home as we had missed that in Florida. I enjoyed it very much I must say. We got back to the hotel soon after 17.00 and although the pool is right next to our room, it was a bit nippy at that stage for a swim. It seems to get dark here soon after 17.00 at present.

Rab wanted to get some bits and pieces and I wanted to see if I could get some bottled water since the tap water tastes too foul for words – full of chlorine and goodness knows what else. The inside of our little travelling kettle looks awful. So off we went and found a K-Mart which kept her busy for a while – they are a little like OK Bazaars but on a much larger scale and of course are full of all manner of novel things. Rab finally bought a skirt for about $12.00 while Matt and I got a Freezee each.

Since we had dipped out on breakfast and the lunch, while pleasant, had not been substantial we were all a bit peckish. We found a very pleasant little restaurant where Rab had Broasted Chicken while I had spare ribs and Matt had a burger. With a pitcher of draft Coors and a drink for Matt the entire meal was $25.00 – good value we felt.

And so to bed.

1983 - Snow and QE2 - 3 January 1984 – San Diego

Tuesday 3 January 1984 – San Diego #2

Another great day! I was awake at six, actually worrying about money believe it or not. Rab has been going on a bit about running short. We have about $2,000 left so I think that is a little unlikely but I am not at my logical best in the early hours of the morning.

I went for a run again this morning – it is about one and a half miles as it turns out and then Matt and I worked out in the fitness centre on the beach before having a swim. What a start to the day!

We had our home brewed coffee in our room (we had learned from our first trip to the USA that it was not easy to get a decent cup of coffee in the hotels we stayed at, so we bought a small kettle and coffee and made it ourselves) and got going soon after 09.00 I was a bit wary of driving in the rush hour, but there were no problems as we headed for Seaport downtown. It turned out that the shops only opened at 10.00 but the Jolly Roger was open so we went there for breakfast – and what a meal it was – first decent breakfast we’ve had since we arrived. Matt and I had pancakes, bacon and fried eggs with hash browns on the side while Rab swapped the pancakes for toast but had the rest of the items.

 

Shopping at Seaport

Fully fed we wandered around the shops down there until about 12.00 and bought a few bits and pieces. Then we headed up to Fashion Valley where there was the most enormous shopping mall with four department stores including Nieman Marcus and over one hundred small speciality shops! Took us quite a time to look around I can tell you! I got a couple of denim shorts on Woolworths sale – for $4.00 – and Matt got a Star Wars T-shirt for $2.50. incredible buys. Rab found a material shop to her delight and managed to buy a couple of metres more. I restrained myself as far as the books were concerned as there was an incredible bookshop there.

Matt and me on Point Loma

We didn’t eat lunch after our big breakfast – apart from sharing a very tasty sausage in pastry and a couple of ice creams. When we finally dragged Rab away from the mall we went off to the local equivalent of the Bluff in Durban – Point Loma. There is an old lighthouse there and a whale watching station. The grey whales are passing down the coast now to their breeding grounds in Baja. In fact I was hoping we could go on a whale-spotting trip, but the helicopter rides were $69 each and the boat trip was vetoed by my co-travellers with memories of the QE2 still fresh in their minds.

It was a beautiful afternoon and the view of the Pacific and the city was stupendous. We parked our car and walked up to the lighthouse which has been restored and is furnished in appropriate style – very nice. We walked over to the whale spotting station which had an interesting recorded commentary on whales and I was thrilled when I spotted a couple of spouts. They were a long way off but clearly seen through my binoculars.

The sunset was spectacular  as was the thought, as one guide book said, that we were about as far West as it is possible to go without going East. (thinking about this now, this does seem like a piece of travel hyperbole!) the sea was like glass and dotted with little craft. A cruise would have been quite safe this afternoon after all.

 

A fishing boat comes home

We strolled back down the hill to the Cabrillo Monument which records the first white man who landed in this area in 1565 or so – quite a long time before we got there. I took a shot of the lighthouse silhouetted against the sunset which should be one of my better ones if it comes out. 

 

Not such a great shot after all!

We had thought of going down to the tidal pools at the foot of the Point but light was fading and Matt had urgent need of a lav. One of the reasons for this was that he had gone to the restroom at one of the department stores in Fashion Valley but was disconcerted to find that there were no doors on the stalls and that four out of five were already occupied by squatters. It all proved to be too inhibitive and affected his performance.

We had spotted what looked like a very nice fish restaurant on the pier this morning – Anthony’s – and as it had a good write-up in the guide we headed there. Matt was able to relieve himself in private and although we had to wait half an hour because there were so many people it was no problem as we sipped our draft Coors and watched the lights on the bay. We got chatting to a very nice couple from Illinois so much so that we missed our call. We were pretty peckish by the time we got our food and dived into seafood cocktails, prawns, crab etc etc. all very good value.

 

Sunset at Anthony's

Home to watch TV for a while ahead of an early start tomorrow.

1983 - Snow and QE2 - 2 January 1984 – San Diego

Monday 2 January 1984 – San Diego

Morning has broken

 

I was awake at about 06.00 this morning but Matt and Rab slept on a bit longer, waking at about 06.30. As soon as I had given them their coffee I went off for a jog along the footpath. The sun was just coming up over the hotel and the bay was beautiful. Lots of birds and a few fishermen. I saw the plaque marking the spot where the Spaniards had camped in 1760 (or whenever it was) and also a beach bum who obviously didn’t know (or care?) about tides. He had pitched his camp just below the high water mark. He was still sound asleep but his gear was very wet.

Our first move once we got going was to get hold of a car, which we did at the airport. Avis seemed to be the best buy after we had made all our enquiries so now we drive a black Dodge Aries. $139 a week with unlimited mileage. We intend driving up to San Francisco. I was a bit worried about driving as it was over a year since I had last driven in the US but it wasn’t too bad at all, despite the fact that my navigators were not too hot.

The first stop was to get some food as it was about 09.30 and we hadn’t eaten. We stopped at a roadside place advertising breakfasts but it wasn’t quite what we thought it would be – offering beef sandwiches (cold beef on a soft roll) or savoury croissants. We settled for the beef rolls and Rab and Matt had a warm cinnamon roll and a fruit pie respectively. I had my first taste of Dr Peppers – and very nice it was being almond flavoured. At $10 I guess it was not too bad, but we did wish for a Lum’s.

Matt and Rab with seal

Next stop was Sea World which we found without too much difficulty. We loved it there and Rab swears it is much better than the one in Florida. I am not so sure, but it certainly is a marvellous place. We saw three most enjoyable shows – the killer whales, seals and otters and the dolphins. How they train these animals I just don’t know but they put on a wonderful show. There were also some most interesting exhibits including one on penguins which I found fascinating as were the white whales and the sea otters.

The latter was the last exhibit we saw before leaving at about 15.00. when we got to their tank, they were all lying in the water on their backs looking, as Matt said, rather like a bunch of drowned cats. One started grooming himself then dived down to the bottom of the tanks to get himself something to eat. Lying back in the water after he surfaced he ate his meal off his chest. Gradually the rest came to life and got their own food – all except one who just lay there and watched everyone else eating.

From Sea World we headed towards the Old Town via a very complicated route from which we kept going astray. We finally landed up there at a very fancy shopping centre but many of the shops were closed as today is a public holiday. Still we enjoyed ourselves wandering around and bought more T-shirts and caps/hats. We really have to stop buying soon – our luggage wont take much more!

The plan was to eat at a seafood place nearby but it was not open and as we had eaten nothing but a churro and a double sundae (that had to be seen to be believed!) since breakfast we were a bit peckish. On the advice of one of the storeowners we decided to go to a restaurant at the end of this island. Driving back was a bit of a strain since it was dark and the only way we could get the inside light of the car to work was by opening the door. This made the limited navigation aids even more difficult to use.

Matt outside our room

We finally made it to the restaurant but found it was a bit pricey so, in desperation, we settled for El Berto again and once more had a most enjoyable meal. And so to bed, having watched the last ten minutes of the Orange Bowl Final.

1983 - Snow and QE2 - California Here We Come!

Sunday 1 January 1984 – New Years Day to California

The alarm going off at 06.30 wasn’t the greatest sound in the world after our late night, but we were all ready to go by 08.00. Despite Nora’s somewhat gloomy forebodings, there was very little traffic about on our way to J.F.K. although we saw a number of badly damaged cars along the way.

One of the reasons we left so early was that we wanted to drop off two of our cases with our heavy winter gear at the airport to be collected on our way back later this month. We found the storage area in the end but got a bit of a shock when we found the cost. This had been said to be “about $5.00 or $6.00” which turned out to be the per diem price. So we are going to have to pay up about $66.00. Mind you I think that will be money well spent, as I would hate to hump those two monsters around California.

Having accomplished this we drove over to United Airlines to check in for our flight only to be told that the flight had been cancelled – no reason given. But not to worry. Another flight, leaving from La Guardia, unfortunately, would take us and United would pay the taxi fare of $14.00! We forewent the contribution and all trooped back to the car for poor Uli to take us across to La Guardia. Thank goodness we were early.

The Schafers dropped us off there – perhaps heaving a sigh of relief since we had broken the basic rule – “Guests, like fish, stink after three days.” It was great seeing them again – nothing like old friends. In no time at all we were aboard a brand new 767 which was a most comfortable plane to fly in but a bit noisy. We didn’t have a window seat unfortunately as the seating was 2.3.2 and we wanted to all sit together.

There was an in-flight movie – the new James Boand with an ageing Sean Connery which I thought was lousy. But the lunch was very nice. We arrived at Denver a little early at 12.35 local time. There was only a small amount of snow around, much less than I thought there would be. It was just above freezing – about 2°C. Our onward flight was due to leave at 14.05 but there was some sort of hitch. It seemed to involve a missing pilot – perhaps he had overslept after celebrating New Years? He finally came scuttling along and we hoped he had sobered up! We finally got off at 14.45.

The flight to San Diego was a very interesting one, flying as we did over the Rockies and then the Grand Canyon. We were in a stretched 727 and had a window seat so were able to admire the spectacular views. We touched down at about 15.35 local time (18.35 NY time) and the descent was great because the afternoon sun was shining on the rocky outcrops and making them glitter. I suggested to Matt they were sparkles of gold – not sure he believed me.

Very nice airport and pretty warm when we landed – about 15°C. We liked it as soon as we got into the airport and it was rather nice not having to put a thick coat on to go outside. We phoned through to our hotel – Sheraton Harbor Island – and in due course our courtesy bus arrived. Marvellous hotel. Because we are on a cheap rate ($78 per night) we could only be offered a room in one of the annexes, but that suited us. We are right at the water’s edge and overlook the marina. We are right between two of the swimming pools – both heated. As soon as we could Matt and I were into that water, having missed our swims for some weeks.

 

Glorious sunset - and no snow in sight!

Having unpacked we went for a stroll in the cool of the evening to look at the lights across the bay. We landed up at El Berto, a very nice Mexican restaurant. A couple of margaritas and sea food tortillas made a good meal at a reasonable price of $27.00. We got back to our room at about 19.15 local time and were all asleep by 21.00 after a long day.

1983 - Snow and QE2 - New Year's Eve - Ringwood NJ

Saturday 31 December 1983 – New Years in Ringwood

I must say I find the Californian wines very pleasant to drink but a little acid – I woke up during the night and had to take a Peptobismol. Mind you that might have had something to do with the quantity consumed because Uli also seemed a little shaky this morning.

The original plan for today was for Uli to take us shopping but when we all got together over breakfast the plan had changed and Nora was to be our chauffeuse while Uli cooked dinner and tidied the house. They had invited five people around for dinner to see the New Year in. Nora and I shot off at about 08.20 to get some boxes at the Post Office so we could pack and send the books and Matt’s more bulky toys. Of course the PO only opened at 09.00 so we had to hang around for a while down there. Since the Grand Union was open we popped in and did a bit of shopping – once again it was fascinating to see the incredible variety of goods on sale. Multiple choices everywhere.

We got back about 09.20 and packed the boxes as fully as I could. The parcels weighed 18 and 19 lbs respectively and cost $42 in postage. Hope they make it in good nick. No doubt we will have a schlep in getting them through Customs in Zimbabwe. (Everything arrived in good order and there were no problems with Customs – no duty payable!)  Having dropped the parcels off we set off for Willowbrook Shopping Mall which Rab fancied. Nora was less keen because she was a bit nervous about driving there without Uli, but Rab was adamant so naturally we went there.

It was a tremendous shopping centre (we didn’t know the term “mall” back then) and enormous number of shops as well as some excellent department stores so Rab was in her element. The only parts I enjoyed were some very good ice creams and a nice schwarma (known here as a gyro) on pita for lunch. We finally got back at about 17.00 to find that Uli had been out to do the rest of the shopping and had got everything done with the help of Nora’s mother.

I got on with the final packing and tidying up as we are leaving early tomorrow. I managed to fit everything in and had just finished when I heard the guests arriving. Kirsty from Uli’s office and Rene her husband plus his mother and two old neighbours from across the road. Pandemonium was reigning when I got upstairs with Rocky hurtling around and barking furiously. I introduced myself, Rene and I re-arranged the furniture so there were enough seats and drinks were soon to hand.

It was a little odd and we were fascinated to learn that the neighbours had never seen, tasted or heard of curry which was part of the meal Uli had prepared. Rene and Kirsty were very good company and the evening was a pleasant one. When the witching hour approached Uli was fiddling around trying to find a radio station and open the champagne at the same time. I suggested we should go through and watch the television which we did. It was quite something to see the apple come down in Times Square – the crowd was estimated at 500,000.

The party was a little sedate and Matt was most disappointed. He recalls with nostalgia the very noisy parties we used to have in Cape Town with Queen at full volume. We finally got to bed at about 01.30.

1983 - Snow and QE2 - Friday 30 December 1983 – Leaving New York City

Friday 30 December 1983 – Leaving New York City

Another good day today. Set our clock for an early start (at 07.00) so that Rab could wash her hair but we didn’t get off much earlier thanks to Ira Joe and his friends. The sun was shining beautifully and our room was hot as hell, so Rab and Matt were all for leaving off some of their heavy gear. But Ira had said that it was 17°F in Central Park (We were not used to converting Fahrenheit to Centigrade and didn’t realise that this made it about -8 °C) When I nipped out to the Fox to drop off a film for developing I found out just how cold it was – well below freezing.

So I persuaded everyone to dress warmly and we set off, after making a hotel reservation for San Diego and leaving our bags to be picked up later. While we were waiting in the foyer, an oddbod came up to us and tried to borrow a comb from us! When we refused he went on to pester other people in the lobby. Matt suggested he may have been an eccentric millionaire!. We were soon heading for Battery Park and the ferry to the Statue of Liberty. Very nice cabbie and not too expensive, but we missed the ferry by a couple of minutes and had to wait an hour for the next one. There was a refreshment kiosk at the terminal so Matt and Rab had a hot dog and a donut  while I went on my walk.

Seeing ice like this was an unusual experience for us

A man's home is his castle

It really was freezingly cold down by the river and I was fascinated to see large lumps of ice floating around. There are some really impressive memorials down there and also an old castle which, like Cape Town Castle, was never used to fight in anger. I was amused to see that a bum had made one of the castle windows as his home and was ensconced there in his sleeping bag away from the biting wind. (It was unusual for us to see destitute people. Not that there were none in Zimbabwe, but they were kept away from the city centre.)

The ferry duly arrived and we got in line and then we were off. Matt and Rab stayed below in the warmth of the cabin, but there were such magnificent views of Manhattan in the sunshine that I stayed out on deck. It was perishingly cold there of course, so much so that when I took my gloves off to change a lens it felt as if I had frostbite and it took me a while to get my fingers working again.

On the freezing ferry

Unfortunately we could only stay an hour at the Statue as we had to catch the 15.30 bus back to Ringwood. There is only one elevator up the Statue to the base, which is ten stories high, so the line was quite a long one. I was tempted to walk  right up to the crown – another twelve stages – but in view of the shortage of time and the fact that the view from there is said to be limited, I gave it a miss. Lovely views from the pedestal however – plenty of helicopters and light aircraft buzzing around. It would have been a terrific day for a helicopter flip today.

 

Upskirting Liberty

We caught the ferry back in good time and this time I too stayed below. A short walk through the park – quite a few squirrels frolicking around and then another cab ride back to Lexington Avenue, this time to Bloomingdales to see if we could find Jack Klugman’s Korn Krib serving gourmet popcorn in twenty eight flavours. No problem in getting to Lexington but before looking for the popcorn we had a bite to eat in a very nice coffee shop. I had souvlaki on pita – a new taste experience – and enjoyed it,

After lunch we found the popcorn parlour with no trouble and bought what they called “small” packets of watermelon, pina colada and apple for ourselves and a large pizza flavour for the Schafers. Time was getting a bit short, so we hotfooted it back to the hotel to pick up our bags, which we did without any problems having bought a new wheeled flight bag as my old faithful blue bag was coming apart at the seams under the weight of our books.

Out we went to get a cab and that’s when our problems started. We were still there twenty minutes later. All the efforts of the diminutive doorman, jumping up and down, waving his arms, blowing his whistle were in vain. Only one cab stopped in this time, asked where we were going and then drove off! Finally the doorman gave up and I approached the somewhat surly driver of a cab parked up from the hotel who was, so he said, waiting for a fare, why no one would pick us up. It turned out that this was change over time and none of the drivers was interested in anything but getting back to their garage and finishing their shift.

We were getting a bit desperate because we had arranged with Nora for her to meet a specific bus and we also wanted to avoid the rush hour (or commute as it is known here). The bus we intended to catch only ran every hour, so if we missed the intended one it would be very awkward. Finally an angel in a Cadillac turned up – well, perhaps gnome might be a more accurate description. It was a limo driver who pulled up next to us and, quite illegally, offered to take us to the bus station for $10 – about four times the cab fare.

We didn’t hesitate and piled in – Matt up front next to the driver. What a hairy drive it was too, culminating in a U-tun at the bus station when we narrowly missed a collision with a flying Datsun. We hurtled through the holiday crowds to the platform where we thought the bus was leaving from but found we were at the wrong place, at the top of an escalator with no obvious way down and with ten minutes to go to take-off!

Dodging busses we crossed over several lanes to the correct platform but found that for some extraordinary reason there were two busses with the same number leaving within minutes of each other but going to different destinations. Managed to push our way through to the correct one with Rab leaping ahead to get tickets from the driver. By the time I arrived, laden with the luggage, she was just starting a terrific argument with the driver who insisted that the bus did not go where she said she wanted to go and in any event he didn’t issue tickets which we should have purchased in the concourse.

Tempers got a little frayed before the language barriers were finally crossed and I must say in defence of Rab that she was the innocent party. We bought our tickets and boarded the bus with all our goods under the glares of the other passengers and the muttered imprecations of the driver. (We have often said that this was the only time we ever encountered any rudeness in all our trips to the USA – and who could blame the driver on New Year’s Eve with snow being threatened trying to deal with a couple of really dim aliens who couldn’t speak proper American English!)

From then on the trip was uneventful although we were twenty minutes late in the end. Uli was there to pick us up having knocked off early. We were given a very warm welcome by all, including young Rocky. We had a very pleasant evening, just chatting and having a few glasses of wine.

1983 Snow and QE2 - Thursday 29 December 1983 – New York City Day 3

Thursday 29 December 1983 – New York City #3

Good day today! We slept late – until about 08.00. it was a fine day despite the weather forecast which had predicted more rain. Once again TV held us up – the morning show is great fun, especially a bloke called Ira Joe.

I phoned Uli to see if he had found a way to get our spare luggage to JFK if we left from La Guardia but there isn’t, so I asked him if he had any objections to our leaving from JFK. He didn’t, so I went up to the United office on 48/5^th where a most helpful clerk sorted out our bookings for us. So we are now leaving from JFK at 10.45 on Sunday (New Year’s Day) which is a bit rough on Uli, but there you are.

Rab and Matt at the market

Having done the business we caught a cab down to South Seaport – a pleasant ride and quite reasonable at $6.00. we had a good time down there – it is an old fishing area which has been modernised and made over as a shopping mall with catering. There were dozens of stalls with different ethnic foods – right up our street.

We had a look around all the shops and the old ships tied up at the pier, including a beautiful four mast barque, the Peking. We bought a few bits and pieces and then got down to the more serious business of eating. There had been hardly anyone in the food area when we arrived but when we got back for food, the place was jumping. We managed to find a table and then I nipped off for my starter – beef enchilada and a beer. While I kept the table Matt and Rab went and got their baked potatoes. I then had some Japanese Ginger Pork which was excellent and we finished off with some French fried onion rings. (if this choice of food sounds a little ordinary or dull, please remember that we had never seen a food court before. Hamburger and chips was about the limit of our non-restaurant eating experience.)

Greenwich Village seemed an interesting destination and we decided to walk up there, although it was a bit of a haul. An interesting trek crossing over Chinatown and working our way up Broadway through the clothing and garment district. The Village proved to be interesting but not spectacularly so. It gradually got more cold as the afternoon drew on, but we had taken the necessary precautions so that was no problem.

Grabbing another cab we headed back uptown to the Trump Tower, a new building on Fifth Avenue which Rab had read about. On the way there, we were fascinated to see, ducking in and out of the traffic, a bloke on roller skates. We first spotted him at about 42^nd when he had to brake hard to avoid being hit by a bus. We kept passing each other all the way down the avenue and he finally shot in front as we turned off. We had seen cyclists in the traffic previously and had agreed that they must be mad, but this bloke must be out of his mind – although having very quick reflexes.

What a place Trump Tower turned out to be!! Crowds of people there: two guardsmen as doormen, the whole place made of rose marble, brass and bronze glass. (We knew nothing of The Donald and didn’t realise that the colour scheme matched his complexion.) The Atrium is five stories high with cascading water down one end. The shops are unbelievable too – what prices! We had intended having a quick drink there, but at $5.00 minimum charge we decided against it.

 

Me and Rab freezing in the cab

Instead we walked down to the Plaza Hotel and caught a horse drawn cab for a ride around Central Square. It was a very pleasant ride, but nothing like the sleigh rides in Zermatt, and a good deal colder. It felt well below zero when the ride finished at about 17.30 and the rush hour was on. Matt was busting for a wee and since there were no toilets handy, we popped into the Plaza – best pisshouse Matt has ever been in, I’ll be bound.

 

Matt's private pissoir - all lit up

Off we went for a bite to eat at the little coffee shop where we had lunch yesterday and had a darn good meal for $16.00. I had soup and fruit salad: Matt and Rab had soup, tuna salad and rice pudding. We walked back to the hotel – only ten blocks and I took a detour to take some photos of the lights using 1000 ASA film. Hope they turn out OK.

We were back by about 19.00 so I packed for tomorrow and caught up with this journal while the TV blasted away in the background. I fear the quality may have suffered as a result.

Wednesday 28 December 1983 – New York Day 2

Wednesday 28 December 1983 – New York City #2

We all got off to sleep pretty well despite a variety of odd noises from pipes etc, and the fact that we couldn’t get the blinds closed. We started stirring at about 07.30 but took a long time to get going.

I had to change the flight bookings first, which took a lot longer than I thought it would and then off we went. It was raining gently as we left the hotel and got steadily harder. I dropped my film off for developing and then we set off for 59^th and Bloomingdales where Rab wanted to get a very specific lipstick.

It was just after 12.00 when we had finished at Bloomingdales and as we hadn’t had breakfast we decided to have brunch and popped into a coffee bar opposite the store and had a typically American meal, which was very reasonable. Despite the rain we decided to walk the three blocks to FA & O Schwartz and it was coming down quite steadily by then. Matt had been looking forward to visiting “the best toy shop in the world” but we were all disappointed at the paucity of the goods. From there we tried to find the Star Wars shop in 6^th Avenue, but failed to do so despite the fact we had visited it previously.

We hailed a cab and went up to the McGraw Building on 47^th to see The New York Experience which had been highly recommended to us by the Schafers. We decided not to go up to Times Square for tickets today because I didn’t fancy standing in the teeming rain even though it was a little warmer – scarcely Zero Centigrade! There was a lot of traffic around and our cabbie said he had never seen it so bad. We thought this was a bit of bull for the visitors, but the TV News has now confirmed that it was the worst ‘gridlock’ for years. Two burst water mains in Herald Square were to blame.

We had to stand in line for about twenty minutes before we got into the Theatre and we enjoyed the show, although as Rab said it was not for those of a nervous disposition, being very loud in parts. It lasted about an hour and then as the rain seemed to be lifting we walked back to the hotel to dry off. Rab and Matt watched TV for a while and I brought this journal up to date. Then we set off for an evening meal. We didn’t want to go too far in view of the weather conditions as we didn’t want to make our limited supply of clothing any more wet than necessary.

We found a nice little coffee bar up the road with very reasonable food, but the meal was a disaster with a most depressing argument between my companions. Let’s hope it has cleared the air.