Californa Dreamin'

Saturday 15 June Overcast/dry/warm

Paul:

Packing the suitcase is something I resent doing but has to be done. I have more stuff now than I started with but the case shuts easily. Somehow Amanda fits her voluminous lugguge and assorted cables and electrical equipment into her green case. It weighs a ton.

Breakfast is at the Glen Oaks diner called Ripplewood. The only English speaking guy is from Monterey and says the Spanish speaking staff are from Mexico. "They come in droves across the border, get diner cleaning jobs and work their way up". It seems they are not really assimilated with English speaking California but many are hard working and willing to work for little money. Roberto at the gas station will never return to his native Mexico because he says there is nothing there "no work amigo". He arrived in California in 1984 and this feels like home for him and his children.

The 155 mile drive to SF airport is quite simple; even the six lane highway traffic moves across and between lanes at a steady 65mph. For once I am grateful for the SatNav as it guides us to the car return and soon we are at the luggage check-in being told Amanda's case is too heavy for the huge aircraft.

British Airways suggest I take some of Amanda's luggage to save us $60.00. Amanda finds this stressful because she has to open her case and rummage about for heavy looking stuff. A few minutes later my case contains an industrial amount women's make-up, some electrical equipment and a bottle of booze.

Check-in successful. We will wait until 19.25 hours before take off.

I now prefer to cross the Atlantic by ship than passenger plane travelling Economy class. The plane left just a bit after 19.45 and was full. It is a lottery as to who you are put next to, behind and in front of. In the queue to board are 20 exceptionally noisy US students taking pizzas onto the plane. Nearby is a large family of Iranians who have in their possession five unruly children screaming and carreering around other people's baggage waiting to board. Amanda I were lucky. Peter, a strategic industrial designer and lecturer from Dublin sat next to me. We enjoyed a chat and few drinks. Amanda has the window seat but is hot and uncomfortable. This will make for a long nine hour flight but it could have been much worse.

I cannot sleep on night flights and around 02.00 I look around the low lit cabin at the corpses in their seats some heads bent forward and others tilted back with mouths open. I watch the films Django and Snatch.

We landed at 05.25 [time of origin], which is 13.25 BST.

It has been my best holiday and if we could, Amanda and I would individually thank all those people who, last November, made it so.

Amanda:

It's always sad to come to the end of a holiday - more so now because it's been 3 weeks and because it's been such a special trip, being both our honeymoon and wedding presents. We have been dreading the flight back but it's inevitable and has to be endured - very different to the trip out by boat!

I start the day with a half stack of pancakes - only my third batch of the trip and deliciously crammed with blueberries. Then Paul drives a busy route back to the airport - the satnav lady guides us back to the actual car hire place and Paul almost forgives her for directing us on to the tram line in San Francisco.

The flight is with BA but looking around at our fellow travellers, you'd be forgiven for thinking it's some charter trip back from Magaluf. Paul nobly takes the middle seat and gets on very well with the Irish chap sat next to him - they bond over booze and the fact that the girls in the seats in front of them tip them back so far that the girls must be looking directly up Paul and Peter's nostrils. The plane is unbearably hot - unusual for a plane in my experience - and it makes comfort impossible. The food is dire and I feel ashamed that this is our national carrier.

All good things come to an end (annoyingly) and the only way to get through it is to plan our next holiday (anyone know anything about Virginia or North Carolina?). This has very much been a special one off though, an experience I doubt we shall ever repeat but will always cherish the memory of.

END