The rest of L.A

After our cruise, we spent a bit of time in L.A.

We stayed close to the Walk of Fame, just behind the Hollywood and Highland Centre.  

Oh my, there are some real 'characters' out there.

It was quite sad, really, that some people had to resort to impersonating others to earn a living in the way they did.

The walk was crowded with tourists and touts, that sometimes it was hard to get anywhere, or not lose your patience with people stopping you every few metres wanting money from you for some reason or another.

We took a tour of the strip, Beverly Hills and the stars' homes.  

I really don't know if the homes the guide was pointing out were really theirs, because really, we wouldn't know one way or another.

Our guide was rude; he thought he was being funny but really, he was just sarcastic and insulting. 

He must have taken us for typical tourist mugs, which I took offence to.

Needless to say, he was not impressed when we didn't leave him a tip at the end of the tour.

We spent two days at Universal Studios.

There was an offer at the time where you get a second day free with your ticket.

We did most of the park in one day, the upper lot, so when we came back on the second day to do the lower lot we were in and out within a matter of hours.

The lines for the Simpsons ride and the Backlot tour were the longest we had to endure.  

Oh, and those for food.

I liked the Shrek 4D but it was pretty much the same as the one at MovieWorld on the Gold Coast (in Queensland).  

I can't do 3D, though, so I didn't get much out of this one.

But I love the extra dimension!

The House of Horrors had me almost in tears with fear, until I realised if I waited a bit, I could see what was coming up ahead and prepare for it.

In the end, I was giggling like a child.

Well, I shouldn't say that because The Princess wasn't giggling, she was actually terrified and in tears.

The poor thing.

Little Man would just close his eyes and bolt through each section when he went through with The Groom who was overly amused at his scared little family!

We didn't buy much in the way of souvenirs here, but I did wish I had have bought this shirt...

As Little Man loves Lego we drove to San Diego for couple of nights to visit there.

Some awful person had reset the GPS so it took us all over the place and more than 6 hours!

But we got to see some lovely places on the way, plus travel along the Ortega Highway (which was way too close to the mountain for my liking, considering I was on the 'wrong' side of the car!)

Let me say straight up, Legoland was a massive disappointment after Disneyland.

Little Man was at the upper end of the age range, and while he loved it, the rest of us were wishing the day would just end.

I won't trash it here, but I am glad he had such a lovely time even if many of the rides were a bit tame for him after what he enjoyed at Disney and Knotts.

I did like some of the Lego buildings but many of them were faded and peeling, some weren't functioning or were even broken.

I've heard that Legoland in Florida is a lot better.

L.A isn't somewhere I'd be in a rush to head back to.

It is a city that is not that different to many others and the one thing I did really enjoy most about it though, were the people we met when we wandered around.

We met some lovely people in the laundromat, too.

Ripley's Believe it Not was great (we always try and go wherever we see one in our travels) but were a bit let down with Madame Tussaud's - it wasn't what we were expecting.

Next stop, Montana - skiing and a white Christmas!