Day 1 - Monday 12th May 2008

The blues from Saturday are already ebbing away...

Upon arriving at JFK, after an excellent flight, we were met with drizzle. We left behind 27 degree temperatures for this!

We went out later in search of food and dazzling lights

Todays picture was taken on 7th Avenue, just around the corner from our hotel. It is typical of New York as it shows a lot of traffic and two traffic cops having no effect.

Ps. By-the-way, the NY drivers are ***king nuts!

Day 2 - Tuesday 13th May 2008

A looong day was kicked off in style with an 'All American' breakfast.

First stop, The Empire State Building (King Kong), which through the tradgic events of September 2001 reclaimed it's title as the tallest building in New York. 102 floors. Six of which we climbed ourselves. We went all the way to the top! Well you have to, right?

From there we walked to the New York Public Library (The Day After Tomorrow), then onto Grand Central Terminal (Unbreakable). Nearby we saw the Trump Tower and the Chrysler building.

Then it was down 5th Avenue to Central Park stopping briefly at The Rockafella Center.

After resting our weary feet, walked to Columbus Circle, where we got on the subway back to Times Square.

We ate early as the Kanye West concert started at 7:30. We found N.E.R.D. a bit too hardcore hip-hop, but Rihanna and Kanye were fantastic!

Todays picture is of the Empire State Building and was taken two blocks away next to Macys.

Day 3 - Wednesday 14th May 2008

Another 'All American'.

Then as Arnie would say...
"GET TOO DEE CHOPER!!"
We Taxi'd to the heliport where we (eventually) boarded a helicopter for our flight over New York. Excellent. A unique experience. Seeing all the major sites from the air was great, and the pilot gave us a lot of interesting facts.

Then we had a long walk (sorry Crystal) to Battery Park. So called because it used to be where all the cannon placements were. We bought a ticket to go and see Liberty and Ellis Islands, but will do that trip on Friday morning.

We then walked around the coast to the Brooklyn Bridge where we got the subway back to Times Square.

Todays picture is of our helicopter and was taken 30 seconds before we boarded!

Day 4 - Thursday 15th May 2008

First thing this morning, we booked a Broadway show and our evening meal. We then taxi'd to a deli called Zabars (near Central Park) and bought breakfast (New York style - on the go) and a picnic lunch.

After eating breakfast, we walked down to the American Museum of Natural History. Whilst there we saw a show in the planetarium and learned some interesting facts about North America.

When we started to feel hungry, we headed off into Central Park to find a quiet place to have our picnic.

After a long rest and a slow walk through the park, we made our way, via subway, back to the hotel.

I'm not talking about any evening meals in these diary notes, but tonights meal gets a special mention. We went to Shula's steakhouse within the Westin Hotel and both agree it was the best steak we'd ever had. Simply delicious!

The Broadway show we booked was Wicked! I mean it WAS 'Wicked'. It is currently the best selling show out here. We both enjoyed it very much. So much so, we pinched a couple of souvenir 'Wicked' cups! They may have been giving them away anyway but, we thought it safer to bag 'em 'n' run!

A great final evening in New York!

Todays picture is of us in the Gershwin Theatre on Broadway moments before the performance started. Shortly after this picture was taken we were told off for taking pictures.

Day 5 - Friday 16th May 2008

Last day in New York (boo hoo), but the weather was a lot more miserable than us!

Rain rain drizzle cats dogs rain drizzle WIND!

Ok so we got an early start, packed our bags, had the 'All American', checked out, luggage in store, and a subway to Battery Park. With me so far? Good.

What a sh*t day for a ferry boat crossing to Liberty island. Not as bad as going to Lundy island when I emptied my guts over some blokes peter storm, but still not very pleasant. The weather on the island turned from miserable to pissy tantrum. We decided not to risk our 5 dollar umbrella-ella-ella (as we saw a lot of umbrella casualties) and just take a couple of piccies and get out of dodge. We'll have to get all the history stuff from the books.

Next on the tour was Ellis island. The entry point into the US for millions of immigrants from all over the world. We didn't find any Norfolk Halls or Corleys on the lists.

To catch up we got...
A ferry back to Manhattan, the subway back to the hotel, our luggage out of stock, a taxi to Newark and dinner at TGI Fridays.

We are now in departures at Newark airport in a 3hr20min delay hoping our flight doesn't get cancelled.

Just watched a couple have a wheelchair race!

Today's pictures were taken whilst getting soaked, shortly before we hot-footed it back to the ferry.

Day 6 - Saturday 17th May 2008

New day, new leg, new city, new temperature.

LAS VEGAS! Party capital of the world!

Unfortunately for us we arrived at 6am NY time, and in the hotel by 7am. Thank god Las Vegas is 3 hours behind New york (8 hours behind the UK).

This place is so overwhelming. It was very much alive when we arrived in the early hours. The casino is just amazing and sooo big!

After a short sleep we went and experienced the Bellagio buffet. Wow! You can pretty much have what you want for breakfast...
Bacon, croisants, steak, pancakes, scrambled eggs, beef wellington, salad, smoked salmon, fruit, roast lamb, oh and it sounds crazy but you can get cereal too!

After a large breakfast (well you have to try it all, right?), and a walk around the hotel, we took the Las Vegas monorail to the Hilton hotel to see the Star Trek Experience.
"Fan-bloody-tastic!" - Crystal, 2008
They have two shows, which are more interactive than just shows (Klingon Encounter and Borg Invasion 4D) which were both great fun. We also took the opportunity to do the back-stage tour, where they told us about how the shows are put together, plus a behind-the-scenes peek.

As time was getting on we decided to eat in "Quark's Bar" serving drinks drinks called 'The Borg Sphere', 'Warp Core Breach' and 'Plasma Disruption'. After our intergalactic dinner we got the monorail back the the hotel.

Today's picture is of the dancing fountains outside our hotel, the Bellagio.

Day 7 - Sunday 18th May 2008

Another buffet breakfast at the Bellagio. Tasty.

Then it was off to find our limousine to take us to our helicopter. Yes, limousine (we're not commoners you know!). And yes, another helicopter trip!

The helicopter tour was excellent! We flew over Lake Mead, The Hoover Damn, Boulder City, the onto The Grand Canyon. We landed in the canyon and had a walk before having a light lunch (The temperature was around 40 degrees). We then got back in the helicopter for the trip back. Before Landing, we had the trip finale of flying down 'The Strip'. It was great to see all the hotels from the air.

Once back at the hotel, we relaxed before getting ready to go to 'O', the Cirque Du Soleil show based around water. We had front row seats (wet seats!), but you only get a few sprays. The show was amazing. We saw high divers, syncronized swimmers, trapieze artists, contortionists and more. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take any pictures.

Today's picture is from within the Grand Canyon.

Day 8 - Monday 19th May 2008

Started with another fabulous buffet breakfast. The clothes are starting to feel a little tighter now!

For our final day in Vegas we decided to walk the strip and visit as many Hotels as we could before our legs gave up. We managed quite a few, each one with its own theme. We headed to The Mirage then Treasure Island and then over the road to The Venitian. After watching the gondolas float pass in the shopping area (go figure!) we headed south to the end of the strip to Circus Circus which is one of the oldest Hotels. We then caught a bus to the Northern end and finished our walk off with The Luxor, New York New York and MGM Grand.

We had built up quite an appetite after all that so we did the buffet at our Hotel for dinner. The highlight of the meal being King Atlantic Crab Claws on tap!

Today's picture is of the waterways inside the Venetian Hotel.

Day 9 - Tuesday 20th May 2008

Not much to report today other than our flight to Orlando and arriving at The Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Studios.

With the time difference we lost three hours so arrived in Orlando around 7.30pm and got the shuttle (not the space shuttle!) to the Hotel. The Hotel is themed around the ambiance of Portofino, Italy and it certainly makes you feel very calm and special when you arrive. We had a meal at Mama Della's Ristorante which was bellisimo! We will definitely have to head back there before we leave.

Today's picture is of us by the Harbour soaking up the atmosphere.

Day 10 - Wednesday 21st May 2008

After a lazy morning we headed to Universal Studios as it was apart of the resort and close by. We took the boat from the harbour which takes about 5mins to 'City Walk' and the parks....very convenient!

The park was as we remembered plus a couple of new additions, the main one being the Simpsons ride. It was great fun and so were the other things we went on such as the Mummy, Shrek 4D, Men In Black to name a few. The best thing about the day was our room keys allowed us access to the express line skipping the normal queue. We got on the rides so much quicker, sometimes with no waiting at all!

When we got back to the room we found a bottle of bubbley and some strawberries waiting for us which was a lovely surprise. We finished the day at Hard Rock Cafe.

Today's pictures are of the Universal globe, and of us on the Mummy Ride.

Day 11 - Thursday 22nd May 2008

After another lazy morning at the Hotel, we decided to have brunch at an old favourite of ours, Dennys.

Now set for the day we made our way to the Premium Outlets at the southern end of International Drive. We managed to get some bargins as not only is the dollar rate good, most stores were offering discounts between 30% to 50%. Shops included Nike, Gap, Skechers, Dior, Timberland, Adidas, Levis, Miss Sixty to name a few.

We made our way back to the Universal Resort (after losing track of time) via the 'I-Ride' and stopped at the Nascar Cafe for dinner.

Today's pictures are of our spoils from our shopping spree and of us after a tiring afternoon.

Day 12 - Friday 23rd May 2008

An early start for us today, so we had Breakfast in our room. We headed off to MGM Studios at Disney, which we had to take a taxi to, as there is no direct bus service. $51 poorer!!

It was nice to go on some favourite rides of ours; Tower of Terror, Aerosmith Rock n Rollercoaster and we tried a new ride called Toy Story Midway Mania. It's a 4D shooting range and was great fun!

After a spot of lunch we hopped over to Animal Kingdom. As we were deciding where to head for first, a couple of girls gave us two 'dream fastpass' badges as they were then leaving the park. This allowed us to get on the main attractions using the fastpass line. Result! We managed to get quite a few done including Dinosaur, Primeval Whirl, 'It's Tough to be a bug' and the new ride Expedition Everest which kicks the crap out of Space Mountain.

Once back at the Hotel we headed to Bubba Gump for dinner, as we'd been to the one in New York and had really enjoyed the food. Afterwards we were going to walk back rather than take the boat, but got caught in a down pour, so legged it into a bar for a drink whilst it passed over. Fotunately, the bar had live music so it wasn't a bad outcome afterall.

Today's pictures are of 'The Tower of Terror' at MGM Studios, and the new 'Expedition Everest' at Animal Kingdom.

Day 13 - Saturday 24th May 2008

Today we headed for Islands of Adventure across the lake from the Hotel.

Just as we started to queue for the Hulk rollercoaster, down came the rain with thunder and lightning, which meant all the outdoor rides had to be closed until the storm had passed. Luckily we had an umbrella (we thought) so instead of taking shelter like everyone else, we went to another ride that was open. We headed to Spiderman and although we had the umbrella, our shorts and shoes got soaked!

This seemed to be the theme for the rest of the day; wet, then dry & hot. We did, however, manage to get on all the good rides in between thunderstorms. By the end of the day it seemed that the rain had passed. We had an early dinner at the NBA Cafe and did some shopping at Citywalk, before catching the boat back to the Hotel. As we waited for the boat to arrive, the skies were getting darker and the wind was picking up... This can only mean one thing... RAIN. As the boat set off, down came the rain and by the time we got to the dock at the Hotel it was FCUKing it down! We ran from the boat to the Hotel but didn't stand a chance. We arrived at our room completely drenched, more than any water ride could dish out! It was all good fun though. Nothing could dampen our spirits.

Today's picture is of the 'Islands of Adventure' tower and the Hulk Rollercoaster.

Day 14 - Sunday 25th May 2008

Back to International Drive again, and to Dennys for Brunch. We still haven't managed to finish one of their meals yet!

We caught the I-Ride to Aquatica, the new Water park at Seaworld to see what it was like. We had a great time there, so much so that we lost track of time and didn't leave till 7:00pm. It has many attractions that, two can ride together in tubes, or on your own. There is a lazy river (relaxing), and a flowing river which drags you along with the current. The park also has a beach with a wave pool which is always fun.

We headed back to Citywalk for dinner at Bubba Gumps again as we just love shrimp! Try the 'cajun shrimp' if you ever get the chance.

Today's pictures are of our favourite slide of the day (yes we did it! Twice!), and of our honeymoon flipflops from Leigh-Ann & Steve. Thank You!

Day 15 - Monday 26th May 2008

Had a lazy...ish morning. Annoying for me (Chris) due to having technical difficulties uploading days 13 and 14 into the diary. Had I been able to open the window, the Ipaq would have been flying out of it, shortly followed by the mobile!

Onto the day. We were back at Universal Studios in the afternoon to get some souvenirs and to have another go at some favourite rides. We got the rickshaw service back the the hotel. We felt a little guilty about asking a guy to lug our weights back to the hotel, but it quickly faded.

In the evening we went back to the Hard Rock Cafe as we thought we'd end the honeymoon as we started. We walked it as to work up an appetite! Plus the boat wasn't in and we were damn hungry!

Later that evening we walked back. With all this walking it's a pity we weren't sponsored!

Today's picture's are of the Hard Rock Cafe and of the gates of Universal Studios.

Day 16 - Tuesday 27th May 2008

Spent the morning packing as our transport back to the airport was at 15:25.

After checking out and placing our luggage in storage, we got on the boat to the parks for one last blast.

In the following 2 hours (with the help of our express passes) we went on 'Spiderman', 'The Hulk', break for lunch, 'Dr Dooms Fear Fall', 'The Hulk' (again), then into the other park for 'The Mummy'! Whoa!

Then it was back on the boat one final time to be at the hotel by 3. Transport to to airport was uneventful, except to say the driver wouldn't FCUKing stop talking.

We are now in depatures, it's 1850 which is 2350 in England, so I guess that means it's the end of the day.

Today's picture is of us (just now!) in the departure lounge.

Day 17 - Wednesday 28th May 2008

The flight back was as expected; left a little late, meal was ok, took ages to get off the plane.

After the 'fight' at baggage reclaim we got a train home. Thanks Mum for picking us up at the station.

Thanks to those of you who have been keeping up with our adventure. You have seen us through:
6 Airports
4 Flights
3 Hotels
6 Taxis
5 Subway trips
16 Boat rides
1 Limo
2 Helicopters
5 Theme parks
13 Casinos
3 Shows
4 States
And
17 days!

See you all soon! CC&CC x x

Today's picture is of our (half unpacked) luggage in our lounge.