Washington - last day.

Our last day in Washington began early as we wanted to cram in as much as we could. Our first stop off the bus was Arlington National Cemetery which we had visited last time but deserved another look. We were really lucky to arrive on the day that the Secretary of Defence was also visiting so there were some extra ceremonies in his honour which we were able to see.
Firstly, we walked up a the steep hill past hundreds and hundreds of uniform white individual
headstones which in themselves are a very solemn reminder of the number of servicemen and women who are interred at the cemetery. We went to the eternal flame at JFK 's burial site where members of his family also now rest.
Then it was on to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier for the changing of the guard, but before that, for the benefit of the distinguished guest there were three magnificent cannons set up and as we arrived they issued a ninteen gun salute. I can assure you that we were truly astounded at the noise and you could feel it as well. We both said how terrifying this must have been to the soldiers, especially as there were so many young soldiers to hear the cannons going off in anger as well as other artillery. 
The ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is very moving and complex in the precision with which it is delivered. The soldiers who are the guards there have to pass a very stringent set of criteria to achieve this honour and it is very highly sought after. We were told by a tour guide that the ceremony takes place in the same manner all day and night every day of the year and is never varied except for the frequency of the change during the summer.
Dring the terrorist strike on September 11 it continued and even during the earthquake and typhoon when the men were ordered to stand down. They refused this order and had to tie themselves down to remain safe. They are very dedicated to their job and perform it with great dignity. 
We also visited the memorial to the astronauts who died and the men who died trying to rescue the hostages in Iran. It certainly is an amazing place and as we left we saw a ceremonial horse being led for a funeral of which there are 30-40 each day.
Back on our bus and on to the Holocaust Museum where we intended to spend a couple of hours. We arrived at 1pm  in time for a 30 minute guided tour and then went on to the rest of the Museum ourselves. Before we knew it it was 5pm and we were too physically and mentally exhausted to do any more than get on to the bus and return to the hotel. I really can't describe the Museum except to say it was an experience we both shall never forget and one not to be missed. One of the most incredible history lessons we have ever had.

Washington

Another great but long day in Washington. Making full use of our hop on hop off tickets again we went to the Crime and Punishment  Museum which was fascinating. Some of the methods of punishment were almost too descriptive but its very hard not to read to the end and then be very grateful for not being born in the era of hung drawn and quartered!
The museum described crime and punishment from the earliest to the most recent and we were impressed with all the meticulous displays. There was even a section on the art and craft some long term prisoners undertake to pass their time. As Maxwell Smart would say " if only they had used their skills for good not evil!"
The museum is also the set from which the Americas Most Wanted is filmed and the statistics of the crimes they have assisted in solving are staggering.
After two hours at the museum we went on to Madame Toussards  and could have very easily mistaken many of the figures for real people. It is really somewhat disconcerting how real they are and we decided it was time for Flat Norah to sit with some really distinguished company so we chose Rosa Parks who said " When that bus driver ..... Ordered us up and out of our seats , I felt a determination cover my body like a quilt on a winters night".  December 1st  1955. So began the Montgomery Bus Boycott after her arrest, which catapulted Martin Luther King into the Civil Rights movement. It's also appropriate as we discovered this afternoon that the reason Washington is beginning to look like a barricaded town is that this weekend marks the 50th anniversary of the " I have a dream" speech. It will be a huge weekend here.
Ian had his photo taken with a display to commemorate September 11 firefighters which we will see much more of when we visit New York in a couple of days. 
After lunch we took a river cruise and saw Washington from a different perspective which was lovely. Cooler too as it has been warm here again today.
One more full day tomorrow with a trip to Arlington and the Holocaust Museum which we are expecting to be really worthwhile.

Washington

We arrived in Washington last night after two flights from Las Vegas. We started our day at 4am,catching our first flight to Los Angeles then a quick (45minutes) change over to our flight to Washington.  We came in to Washington Dulles airport which is quite a way out but considerably less expensive. Ian (hereafter referred to as an excellent travel agent!) had organised the transport via a bus which delivered us to our hotel which is just gorgeous. We arrived at 7pm, tired but really pleased we had started the day early as the traffic is pretty chaotic in the evening.
For my quilting friends, think William Morris and that is what it is. Tudor style and William Morris decorating and we love it. I'm looking at the drapes in the room and wondering if they would miss just one of the because I couldn't fit all of them in the case!
Anyway enough of the hotel! We were up and out at 10 this morning after a lovely breakfast in the dining room and hopped on the bus for which we have a two day ticket. We spent a good part of the day on the bus taking in the sights and changing bus routes to make the most of our hop on hop off opportunities. We finished the day with a visit to the American History Museum which was very interesting. One of the exhibits was about the First Lady's  and had a number of their inauguration gowns. Michelle Obama's gown was absolutely breathtaking. There were also some really interesting displays of American culinary history and a replica of Julia Childs kitchen and details of her influence.
Of course a horse drawn hand operated fire pump caught Ian's eye and there was also a lot of details of the Civil war which we found fascinating. Oh by the way a quilt started for a first son in 1920 and finished 20 years later as a full size quilt. Good to know there are others who take a long time to finish quilts!
Tomorrow we will be out earlier with a long list of places we marked out today.   We think Flat Norah has recovered sufficiently for an outing after we bought sticky tape for some minor repairs today so who knows where she will pop up!

Day Two Grand Canyon

Today was a very exciting day which started with us leaving the hotel at 6am in a stretch limo for the helicopter station at the airport. At 7am after briefing us on the days activities we left for the Grand Canyon via Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam both of which were incredible. The flight in was amazing as we watched the change in the country. There is no doubt in our minds that a helicopter is the way to see the Grand Canyon and we seemed to hover in the air for periods of time but we were really on the move constantly. 
The country appears parched, desolate and yet there is all this evidence of water running through, truly incredible. The Hoover Dam is enormous and spectacular in its construction and was constructed in one continuous concrete pour 24 hours a day for almost 18 months.
After the trip out we went right down onto the canyon for a trip along the river which enabled us to see it from a different perspective. Back into the chopper for a ride back to the top and opportunity to get up close to the rim at a couple of spots. Quite scary as they have no fencing at all, unlike Aust. where everything has to be fenced these days. Very big on everyone's rights here, and they probably have a right to fall if they choose. We looked over a number of interesting examples of American Indians housing, and had a magnificent lunch right at the edge with the most enormous crows watching on. The last bit was the trip back to Vegas and a run right down the strip for a birds eye view of all of the major casino/hotels. All in all a wonderful day at one of the marvels of the world.
Here is where I should present a photo --- wish I could but still can't seem to get a photo from my photo stream on the I pad to go on to the page in a decent size. Any help much appreciated .... Please? In the meantime I will put one on Facebook. Suffice to say Flat Norah is having a great time and now has a Certificate to prove she has been to the Grand Canyon.

Las Vegas

Hot, hot and hotter! Today is our first full day in Vegas and the weather is extremely hot. We had purchased tickets for the hop on and hop off bus so we set off at 10am and went on a tour of the sights of the strip and surrounds and saw how totally huge everything is here. As soon as one building is finished and is declared the biggest, it seems someone builds another, bigger and better although with the more challenging economic recent times the construction seems to have been somewhat quiet lately with a number of sites waiting for better times. 
We stopped off at the Premium outlet complex to purchase some shorts and a t shirt for Ian as jeans are way too hot for here and he now feels much happier.
Tomorrow is our big day here with a six am start for our Grand Canyon Helicopter tour which will be fantastic. As the weather forecast is for hot again we will no doubt be pleased to return here in the early afternoon.
It seems that we are in the minority here as we haven't spent any money on gambling yet, which puts us in the 5 % of visitors. Some facts we gleaned on our tour included the reason why the carpets are so awful (allegedly) in the casinos is so you look up from the floor all the time and then look at the gambling tables and slot machines!  There are no clocks so you can be assured of losing track of the time. The same reasoning applies for windows - can't see how late it is! Also something we hadn't noticed until it was pointed out - the exit signs are very small, guess if you can't find your way out you stay and spend! 
We met a lady in the elevator today who was returning to the poker table after going to her room to refresh after playing all night! Maybe she is spending our share!

On the Road to Tom Price 21st and 22nd June, 2012

We took two nights to reach Tom Price, both nights being spent in really good roadside camps. The second night was at Beasley River roadside stop which we reached by lunch time. We were the first to arrive and so had the pick of the camp and settled in for an afternoon of sewing and reading.

Halfway through the afternoon Ian decided on a campfire which was made possible by some kind person leaving some firewood behind.  We also had tiger prawns brought from Exmouth and to go with them Ian decided to make a very tasty damper and was able to make use of our new firestand which hasn’t had any use on this trip as there are no fires allowed in the National Parks. 

As you can see from the pictures we were able to enjoy a very happy evening with our friends the two doves who arrived during the afternoon and decided to settle in and enjoy the sunshine. There were also a large number of Major Mitchell Cockatoos who are taking on the dusty appearance of the red dirt here. We have well and truly traded the sand from Exmouth for the red dirt now.

Exmouth 22nd May to 5th June, 2012

We travelled from the Blowholes to Exmouth and spent the night in the Big 4 Caravan Park prior to travelling out to Tulki Beach at the Cape Range National Park at Exmouth. Having powered up, food shopped and filled the water tanks we set ourselves up at Tulki where we spent the next 8 nights as planned. The weather was great except for the wind which was unrelenting and on the advice of our terrific camp hosts we tied our awning down to the posts surrounding our site! Still the wind blew, keeping us awake during the night as we heard the awning flapping and straining against the ties until we couldn’t stand it anymore. Despite knowing that putting the awning down was not wise (at all!) in the wind, we did it anyway and I was pleased to be able to hold on to the ropes as we waited for a lull in the wind to put it down and secure it back on the van.  However ……. We did it and then didn’t have to worry any more about it.

We went for a cruise up the Yardie Creek Gorge and saw the Black Footed Rock Wallabies which are really unique and so different from the kangaroos which are throughout the park. We have to be very careful about leaving any water containers about the van as the kangaroos come around in the evening and do their best, sometimes succeeding in taking the tops off to get at the water.  Crafty little buggers!

 Despite all of that we had an absolute ball at Tulki, enjoying snorkelling at a number of sites twice a day, finally settling on Turquoise Bay as our favourite. On one snorkelling adventure we saw a very large octopus sitting on a rock with a large number of small fish hovering around.  We only notice the octopus initially because the fish move as a group whenever the octopus moved.   Each evening we enjoyed chatting with our fellow campers and watching the sun set. We had planned to move back to the Blowholes after our 8 nights at Tulki but having decided that we were having such a great time here we were able to secure another site in a different camp within the National Park. There are no sites available in the pre booking system until August so it certainly is a very popular place. Once you are in the park there is a process each morning of the various camp hosts communicating via radio and discussing any vacant sites which campers already in the park can transfer to. Then any remaining (!) sites are made available to the cars waiting at the entrance to the park which have been waiting there since 4am! So the best plan is to do as we did and book ahead where you are able to and then transfer once you are in the park. Happily for us we are now staying at Lakeside Camp with two other campers from Tulki and have new camp hosts Bill and Hazel who are just as helpful as Patrick and Barbara from Tulki and we can stay up to 28 days in total at Cape Range National Park.

We have continued to snorkel every day and the wind has largely disappeared so we are very pleased with that.  The fish we are able to see here has been fantastic and we are having a ball.  We have seen fish up to 2 feet long and some miniscule. The only thing we had wanted to see and not been able to, was a turtle as it was not the time of year when they are seen in any number.  Yesterday we went back for a second snorkel and low and behold there was a beautiful turtle who was more than happy to stay with us for quite a few minutes, coming up for air and paddling just below the surface whilst we followed him. When he decided he had had enough of us he retreated down amongst the coral and we left him in peace. I’ve called him Harold for absolutely no reason.  We also came across a very large sting ray, which I could have done without.  They stay on the bottom covered with sand except for their eyes and when they decide to move they are quite disconcerting I think because they rise up from the sand and are very large.  We had seen a number swimming which is fine because they are just like any other creature in the ocean but when they come up from the bottom that is another thing altogether for me. We are so lucky to have had wonderful weather with lovely sunny days and warm nights.  Each evening we take our chairs down to the beach to watch the sunset with our fellow campers and discuss the day’s activities and plan what we will do the following day. The photo Ian took was from our chairs and just shows how tough it is!!

Today is the first day we are not swimming as the weather is drizzling and very windy so it is a good opportunity to blog, clean and set ourselves up for a few more days here if the weather improves. If there is no improvement we will probably move on on Thursday to Tom Price and then to Karijini National Park.

We heard ourselves described at the weekend on the radio as “The Grey Haired Stimulus Package”. We’re happy to be of sevice!