Is it really all over???

So I have now been in the UK for a couple of weeks living with my brother. It has been really great catching up with him and my friends and thankfully the summer here lingers on so my tan hasn't totally faded yet! I also weighed myself upon my return and was shocked to see that I was a measly 78kg, almost 6kg lighter than when I had left!

The strangest thing I felt when I touched down back in London was that I could clearly recall the day I trudged out of my apartment in West Hampstead with my wheelie bag to embark on this 7 month journey. Nothing seems to have changed much from when I left besides cosmetic alterations. London life continues as it always has and I seem to have slotted in quite neatly without any trouble whatsoever. That's not to say I haven't needed to adjust though! Being responsible is a job in itself I have found. Now I need to find a employment to recoup my funds.

The question I suppose most people are interested in is whether I have changed and whether I have "found" myself. I suppose my answer to this is that I have "found" myself to the extent that I have shed a lot of the unnecessary bothers and worries that used to plague me in London life. I am not a whole new person but I certainly have been enriched by the places I have been to and, more importantly, the people I have met. In this sense I feel I have grown as an individual and I am now aware of so many other things in life. I have unleashed my passion for travelling although I do understand and accept the fact that I cannot carry on indefinitely and that there is a more defined reality for me. I relish the opportunity to settle back into a routine in London for a time until I am ready to start my next adventure. I feel anybody can do what I have done. You just need a bit of courage as it is not a decision taken lightly. Looking back, there are things I would have changed if I could do it all over again (learning Spanish a bit better for example!) but I certainly regret nothing. Everything you go through is a learning experience be it for good or bad. I am almost glad I got mugged in Honduras as I had no idea what it would feel like and it is something I have learnt from!

In conclusion, I would never say that this was something that I needed to "get out of my system" as I feel you can never really shake that thrill of exploring new places. But a person always needs to be sure of themselves and their timing before taking the big leap and going travelling.

Whoever has been reading this blog, I hope you have enjoyed it. I will be taking a break from it until I find a new pursuit that will be suitably interesting to document. I definitely am setting sights on Asia and Brazil for the forseeable future! So watch this blog spot! For any would-be bloggers, I highly recommend it! Looking back at my stories and adventures has been infinitely rewarding. Despite the many hours I have spent editing and posting and the many annoyances with blogging (I should really submit some suggestions to www.blogger.com about things such as text editing and picture uploads... there are some really frustrating things about it!).

Is it really all over? Not a chance.

Adios Amigos

Hasta Luego!

New York and the Conclusion of The Trek

Can you believe 7.5 months have gone by since I took off. I can not even fathom it! What the hell did I spend 7 months doing..... oh wait..... I remember ;-)

I was recommended to take the Bolt Bus service from Washington DC to New York. Not only was this bus cheaper than the others I checked, but it also had onboard WiFi! Amazing stuff. I had an easy start to the day as the bus only left at 2pm. I woke up late, had a leisurely breakfast and said goodbye to Stign and the others I had co-habited with recently. The bus was on time and I hopped on. Washington had been great and I think I had just about seen everything I wanted to!

From warm and sunny Washington I travelled to wet and warm New York City. As I could use my laptop, I could keep myself easily entertained for the 4 hour ride. I was dropped off and promptly got on the metro and made my way to Steph Ligon's apartment in the West Village. This area is around the 20th street region of NYC (bottom half of Manhattan Island) and is known to be super trendy. Steph is a friend of mine from my early days in London. I got to her front door and realised that the handle had been ripped off. Luckily for me I had my Leatherman so I applied the appropriate tool and gained access. Slightly illegal but better then staying out in the rain! We did not linger though as we were both hungry and had a lot to catchup on. We ate at a small gastro-bar nearby and related all we had been through in the 2 years since we had last seen each other. After dinner, Emily was ready to receive me so I collected my bags and walked the short distance to her apartment. Emily had been my housemate in London for close to a year when we all lived in Kensington. This was almost 2 years ago. We had seen each other a few times since but but only on brief holiday trips. I also caught up with her girlfriend Katrina whom I had also met in London. They shared a very nice studio apartment right between the West Village and Soho. I was shown my large sofa bed... quite a luxury considering the dorms I had been living in of late. As it was fairly late, we just talked for a while and then went to sleep.

Katrina and Emily went to work in the morning and I had a chance to start exploring New York City. I had been to New York on two separate occasions and had seen just about all the sights typical of a tourist trip. The weather was pretty bad so I kept indoors as much as I could. I didn't do too much but I did spend time getting admin done. That evening we all went out for some Malaysian food. I also sampled a Sake Bomb which is quite entertaining when you take it. A tall glass is half filled with beer and two chopsticks are laid parallel on top of it. A shot of hot sake is balanced on top. Then everyone sings a song which goes like this:

"I say Sake, you say Bomb.... SAKE!.... BOMB!.... SAKE!.... BOMB!!!!" On the second chant of BOMB! everybody smashes their fists on the table which makes the shot teeter off and fall into the beer. You immediately have to down the glass.

Setting it up

SAKE BOMB!

After a few of those, it was decided to go to a nearby bar called The Standard where chilled for a bit chatting. The plan had been to go to a club called Kiss n Fly as the Roots were playing there. One look at the front of the door made us decide to avoid the place and move to another small boutique club. Somehow we managed to sneak in without paying the cover but beers inside were a whopping $10! Compared to the $1 beers I had been sipping on before, there was quite a New York premium laid on!

Sara and Jen, two Italian fast-talking New York Ladies

Don't mess with those guns

The next day was time to see the NYC sites. I took a huge walk from West 3rd St all the way to Times Square on 45 St. I was dismayed to see the Virgin Megastore there was shutting down... it is one of the places I always visit to pickup some music. I had lunch at the New York Burger Company which was better than McDonalds at least! Walking back down through the West Village was like walking in a separate city with shady trees and greenery and quaint little buildings.

Times Square

I rested back at the apartment for a bit before meeting up with Lauren (a friend I had met in Costa Rica). We were at the Town Tavern where her friend worked. I think the bartenders there were more drunk than any of the patrons as they frequently stepped up onto the bar and poured shots down to the eager people below. Sometimes their aim was off and I saw a girl get totally splashed with red gooey liquor. From 6:30 till 8:30 we were literally having free drinks thrown at us. I needed to get out to eat and recover from that heavy session!

Friday was another walk around day. I saw the east village and enjoyed the brief respite in the rain until it started up again forcing me to retreat inside. Everybody was up for a party that night again... sigh! We met at the office of one of Emily's friends, Kayte. She works for Yelp in the middle of the city. The office had free alcohol and food so, as we were all cheapies, we indulged. We were having so much fun we realised that it was too late to go out! We had a load of fun though, playing random music, throwing large inflatable balls around and generally trashing the office. I actually feel really guilty about the state we left it in! I did manage to break my camera when I dropped it! Luckily the memory card still works so I have all my pictures. Once we had had enough we just caught a cab back to the apartment and fell asleep.

Drinks at the Yelp office

Ready...

Impact was spectacular!

On Saturday, Emily and Katrina were off to a Maxwell concert in Connecticut with Katrina's cousin Sophie. I was intending to go but the event had sold out and ticket prices had tripled to over $120 which was out of my price range. I sadly watched them depart but still had some friends to hang out with that evening. Sara, a born and bred New Yorker, and some other friends showed me to the Off The Wagon Bar. This place is called a Dive Bar and appropriately so due to its shoddy upkeep and slightly off-beat crowd. It was, however, brilliant! The music was good and the beer was surprisingly cheap!

The rest of the house returned early in the morning. We brunched at the trendy Bar Pitti restaurant where we all ate the pappardelle pasta! Desert was at the famous Magnolia Bakery where I had a delicious cupcake. Next stop was the Standard where we lounged on the sunbeds a while before moving to a theatre to watch 500 days of Summer. The movie was alright... bit of a chick flick and the characters could get annoying. A thunderstorm had occupied the city whilst we were in the theatre so we were greeted by flooded streets and Metro stations. Back at the apartment we said goodbye to Sophie as she headed back to Washington DC. Sara and some friends picked me up and took us on a drive through the city at night while we blasted tunes out of the car.

My last day dawned hot and muggy. There were 8 hours for me to finish up in the city. My first choice was to go to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). This had a great collection of Picasso, Cezanne and Pollock (to name a few). The museum conveniently supplies free audio phones to guide you through the exhibits. I plodded around in interest and occasional amusement. Museums have a bad tendency to put me to sleep after a few hours so once I felt my eyelids droop I knew it was time to move on. I got one hour to finalise all my travel arrangements and triple check my details. Then I was off to JFK to end the odyssey.

Getting Stuck into America's Culture in Washington DC

My plan for Washington had been to meet up with Daniel Owens (Mountain Mama), who I had travelled the Bolivian Salt Flats with. Unfortunately he was scheduled to be in the town of Richmond for the time I had, so that would be impossible. So I booked into a hostel and, after a short stopover in Miami, arrived in Reagan International airport in DC at 7am on a warm Sunday morning.

I bought a metro ticket and made my way over to LOFSTEL hostel very easily. This place was slightly different to what I had grown accustomed to. On the surface it seemed like a standard family house, converted to accommodate up to 30 people in bunk beds. After chatting to some of the guests I figured out that almost everyone is staying there for at least a month and is either interning or working in DC. Short term travellers like myself were a minority although I didn't really feel out of place at all. I also felt a bit old as the average age must have lain at around 20 years old with the odd exception.

The informal setting meant that the on-duty hostel officer was not there but rather enjoying an extended brunch. No worries I thought, so I dumped my bags in the corner and took a walk back to the metro to begin my sightseeing tour. I got off at L'Enfant station which was on the edge of the National Mall (not a shopping centre but rather a huge stretch of land, a national park in fact, dotted with museums and memorials) and right next to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Kris (from Vegas) had recommended the place so I popped in. Entrance was free as were guided tours, so I joined one group where we were taken through the history of aviation starting with the Wright brothers and ending at the Apollo 11 space shuttles. Alan Bean, a famous American astronaut, was at the museum that day for a book signing. I got a lucky snap of him!

The main hall in the National Air and Space Museum

The Original Wright Brothers Flyer

Alan Bean signing for his new book

The Moon Lander

Stepping out of the museum and into the Mall, I got to see that I had a lot of walking to do. The Mall stretches for around 4.5km end to end. I was on the east side near the Capitol building so I decided to march over there first. After checking it out for a bit, I turned around and started walking back towards the towering Washington Monument. This thing looks immense from a distance and is even more breathtaking when you stand beneath it. You can even take an elevator up to the top of it but it was closed by the time I had arrived there. After admiring it for a while I carried on the hike towards the World War II Memorial which is in the centre of the mall and on the edge of the reflecting lake. Fountains and large sculpted displays commemorated the American and Allied war effort.

Hippies

The Capitol Building

Smithsonian Castle

Washington Monument

Looking up from the base of Washington Monument

Looking over the Mall towards the World War II Memorial and Lincoln Memorial

Korean War Memorial - Spooky Soldiers

The Mall is headed by the Lincoln Memorial. I made my way towards it, walking alongside the reflecting lake. I detoured slightly to the left to view the Korean War Memorial which is a slightly spooky display of American soldiers on patrol. There was a swell of tourists at the Lincoln Memorial but I managed to sneak through and check out Abe sitting on his pedestal as well as the chiseled speeches to the left and right. Next was the Vietnam War Memorial which bore the names of the soldiers who died fighting there in chronological order.

Lincoln Memorial

Old Abe

A great view over the Reflecting Pool and Mall

Vietnam War Memorial

After absorbing all of this for a while I recollected my thoughts and tried to figure out where my next destination was. I wanted to see the White House but I hadn't brought a map. When I located one I realised it was back the way I came! Stifling a groan, I trudged back along the reflecting lake and took a left to the White House. After getting in the obligatory pictures, I was free to retire to my hostel bunk. The nearest Metro station was a fair way off again so by the time I got back to the hostel I was well and truly buggered. My feet ached from the unsupportive flip flops I had been wearing. A quick dinner and chat with the fellow dormies was followed by a long sleep-in.

Final stop of the day - The White House

I had met an interesting chap from Belgium called Stign. he worked as a business management officer for Verizon and was on a 3 week holiday down the east coast. He suggested we visit the National Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy building. This was an extension of the museum I had visited the previous day but contained much larger exhibits. It was located in a reallocated aircraft hangar near Dulles airport. Luckily for us, Stign had a hired car with SatNav so we got there with a minimum of hassle. Once inside I got to see some incredible aircraft including the F-14 Tomcat immortalized in the movie Top Gun, the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird (fastest aircraft ever built), the Enola Gay (B-52 bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima), an Air France Concorde and finally the Enterprise Space Shuttle. This was a small sample of a massive range of aircraft present. Going through everything took a fair while and it was after lunchtime that we left for our next stop, the Pentagon.

The Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum

Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird... pretty awesome!

Jet turbines

F-14 Tomcat made famous by Top Gun

Enola Gay

Concorde

Space Shuttle Enterprise

Cruise Missiles

Photography is not allowed in the area surrounding the Pentagon although I think Stign managed to get a covert shot in. We were a bit put out not to see any Secret Agents. The people who worked there seemed mainly middle aged computer nerds with large rimmed glasses. Then again we surmised that a Secret Agent probably intended to look like that to throw off suspicion. After much discussion and analysis, we concluded that the most likely Secret Agent candidate was a grey haired 70 year old woman with a walker. There was just something not right about her.

You couldn't really see much of the Pentagon from our vantage point so we decided to move on to Arlington Cemetary. This place is probably one of the most significant sites in American heritage. It is a resting place for a great many of America's war heroes from just about every conflict since their independance. Upon arrival you can take in the huge scale of the cemetary. Identical, small, simple white gravestones line up in the groomed, rolling fields as far as you can see. They are shaded by the odd tree and there is a very peaceful atmosphere. It is quite an experience to behold. One of the main attractions is the burial site of John F Kennedy as well as the tomb of the Unnamed Soldier. We walked in silence along the paths and roads.

Arlington Cemetary

John and Jackie Kennedy's resting place

Guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unnamed Soldier

By now it was around 6pm and we were hungry. We drove back to the hostel where I made some food. Shortly afterward, Mary and Kendra organised a trip back the National Mall to see the memorials at night. Even though my feet were still hurting, I decided to go along. It was well worth it as the sites were all lit up and the crowds were minimal. We hung out around the Washington Memorial and then the Lincoln Memorial, enjoying the balmy summer night.

My brief sojourn was over but I felt like I had seen a lot. I certainly had given my legs some serious exercise! Onwards to the last stop of the Trek. New York City.

Newport Beach, the OC and LA

With Vegas behind me I felt I had a chance to lay back and relax on the beach for a few days. Essentially my obligation to this blog had ended with Vegas, but I think there is a space for a bit more. The Greyhound bus from Vegas to LA was fine... a bit cramped and the odd dodgy person but nothing to really worry about. Lauren picked me up from the bus station and informed me that it was situated in a particularly dodgy neighbourhood. Oops.

Anyway, we drove over to Newport Beach, catching up a lot on all that had transpired in the year since we met. Newport is a small town in the Orange County (OC), 1 hour south of LA and is famous for being the location of the popular TV series, The OC. She was living in a loft apartment 1 block from the beach with 2 other housemates. All 3 girls living there (Erin, Jackie and Lauren) were waterpolo players. I was shown my couch where I was going to sleep for the next few nights and was quite pleased with the size and comfort. Lauren and Erin were eager to show me the Newport nightlife so they drove us off to a bar called The District. It was fairly quiet but there was a hilarious guy singing 60s and 70s covers in the corner. He even had shiny, sparkly coats for his Elvis songs. We stayed for one drink before calling it a night.

The apartment, just one block from the beach

Myself, Erin and Lauren having a drink at The District

The morning started early. I was awoken by the sound of scurrying feet next to my sleeper couch. It turned out that the 2 cats Perry and Marley were having races down the corridor. They would race down to the end where Erin's room was and then walk calmly back before repeating it.This happened at least 5 or 6 times and seemed pretty bizarre to me. When everyone was up, we were off to Laguna beach. This place is also famous for the show Laguna Beach. We took along a beach volleyball and played against some young guys from Vegas. After a fairly close game (we lost), we swam in the ocean which was fairly cold but refreshing and baked in the sun before going back to Newport. We stopped off to buy some supplies for a burger and sausage barbeque later that afternoon and made some punch called Hop-Skippity (Beer, Lemonade and Vodka).

Laguna Beach

I sucked at Mario Kart

Erin and her cat Marley

A bunch of Lauren's friends arrived in the late afternoon for food and to play Mario Kart on the Nintendo 64. Wednesdays were the big night out in town so after the barbeque we went down to Malarky's Irish Pub where I met the whole Newport crew. Lauren and Erin got hold of my camera and took close to 100 pictures! I had to cut out a few gems for the sake of space and respectability.

Party started on the couch already

Drunken Darts

Steve (Erin's boyfriend) and me partaking in a friendly game of darts

Steve pulling off a great face and me appearing to be chewing his ear

I had known these people for one day!

More love

Too much love

The bar staff

Hangovers were communal when we woke up. We countered this with an amazing breakfast at the Omelette Parlour and allowed our meals to digest on Newport beach. We played some more volleyball and swam a bit before crashing back at the apartment. All this activity was exhausting!

Omelette Parlour!

Newport Beach

Water safety was paramount so I donned my barbie tube

Rudi's Sports Bar was our destination that evening. Some of Lauren's friends work there so we popped in to say hi and got some "I know the bartender" drinks specials. I met a cool Canadian guy called Will Farrell... very similar in name to one of my fave actors.

Long tongues

Julia and Will Farrell

My penultimate day was on Huntington Beach which was hosting the US Open Surf champs. We saw some pretty gnarly surfers shredding the waves although the big names were only due to arrive at the end of the week. The surf wasn't too big at the pier but the beach was packed. Lunch was spent at Big Belly Deli (all I seemed to be doing was eat!). They made massive, delicious sandwiches which I managed to finish all in one go.

Goofing around

Another day, another beach - Huntington Beach Pier

Lauren then drove us over to UC Irvine (her university) where there was a big waterpolo match on against UCLA. UCLA kicked butt. Erin cwas a bit of an obsessive Harry Potter fan so she "encouraged" us to go see the latest one with her that evening. Much to my personal chagrin, 10 minutes into the film I realised that I had missed the previous film! The last night was spent at Rudi's again. A DJ had been brought in for the weekend. Lauren's friends, Scott and Tyler, were working the bar so again the drinks were super cheap for us!

My flight on Saturday was only scheduled for 10pm so Lauren and I headed through to LA for a daytrip. We walked around Venice beach, checking out Muscle Beach (where steroided pumped dudes lift weights to entertain the public) and the skateboarders. Next we took a drive through to see the Hollywood sign. Our route took us through a picturesque neighbourhood that was situated on steep, narrow, tree-shaded roads that wound treacherously up and around the slope. We popped out at the top of a valley ridge that gave close views of the Hollywood sign and a large panoramic view of LA.

Muscle beach at Venice beach

Canyon Lake and LA in the distance

Lunch was spent at In-N-Out Burger and from there we moved into Hollywood Boulevard where we saw the Chinese Theatre where most of the big LA movie premieres take place. All along the street are the star signs from famous actors as well as impersonators who will let you take a picture with them for a nominal fee.

Lunch at In-N-Out

Chinese Theatre

Superman!

Last stop was at Rodeo Drive where we window shopped and indulged in wishful thinking. The street was remarkably quiet and serene... not what I was expecting at all. There was a sophisticated, classy feel to the area that was briefly clashed with by wandering groups of tourists. We spotted some beautiful cars too!

Rodeo Drive

This Mercedes Mclaren SLR will set you back close to $500 000

This Rolls doesn't come cheap either

By then it was getting late so I needed to be at the airport to catch my flight to Washington DC. Lauren kindly dropped me off and I was back to reminiscing about the past 4 days of fun.

LAS VEGASSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas

End of Blog entry

However I couldn't be that mean so I will give a bit of news.

I woke up at 5am in Mexico City and got to the airport in time to fly to Hermisillo and then onto LA and finally onto Vegas. Upon arrival I got hold of Hailey (after much frustration with the local payphones) who let me into her apartment at Panorama Towers. These were a family of 3 high rise luxury apartment blocks that sat behind the Bellagio hotel on the main strip. Quite an incredible location and the view was even better from her balcony on the 25th floor. Hailey is a close friend of Nat's and in addition is an employee of the Wynn hotel meaning we had a local connection... an invaluable thing I was to find out.

I entered to see Nat Katz, a friend of mine from Melbourne, Australia, whom I had met in London. We had coordinated for a while to make this trip a reality and it was really exciting for the plan to come together. We sat overlooking the Vegas skyline enjoying a beer as the sun set.

View from the apartment overlooking the strip

This is where I stayed

Hailey introduced me to her housemate Kris and Lindsay. Kris was ex US army and had travelled a great deal. Lindsay worked in Vegas real estate. First order was for us to get ready for a few drinks at a locals place called Blue Martini which had ripping live music and a great atmosphere without the crazy drunkenness typical of Vegas tourists. We then popped downstairs to the Yardarm which serves something like over 160 different types of beers. Kris introduced me to Shiner Bock, a Texan beer that is brewed in the German style. Not too fizzy and quite tasty at the same time... I liked it!

3 Legends - starting off at Blue Martini bar

Next move was to the Luxor hotel (the famous pyramid shaped one) and into the LAX nightclub. Hailey used her connections to get us in for free ($30 cover) and free drinks in the VIP area. We then got invited to the table of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, a UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) fighter. The reason he was around was because there was a huge round of fights setup for the coming weekend (UFC 100) and most of the big name fighters were in town. Despite me being slightly terrified by this large chap he was very welcoming and offered us to drink for free at his table. We met a Kiwi girl there called Joleen who was great to hang out with. We didn't stay too late as the club and music wasn't what we were looking for and we wanted to keep our energy for a big Thursday night.

And onto LAX nightclub

I got dared to go dance with the stage girls - I ended up getting kicked out of VIP

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson - UFC fighter

Joleen (NZ) and Nat (Aus)

The late shift cleaners gave out free rides

Thursday started off slowly. In the morning, Nat and I went shopping at the Fashion Show Mall for party related gear (an Abercrombie & Fitch shirt for me and a bikini for Nat) before having lunch at the California Pizza Kitchen with Hailey who was on her lunch break. After lunch we taxied back and relaxed by the Panorama pool area for the afternoon hours before getting prepared for the night ahead

In the Wynn

We were scheduled to be out at Tryst nightclub in the Wynn hotel. Before that however we made a brief stopover at The Bank nightclub in the Bellagio. Inside Hailey made a beeline for the private tables and secured us a nice drinking spot (drinks all free of charge of course). The music there was mainly hip-hop with a few Michael Jackson tributes thrown in. Occasionally a foam gun would splash around making it look a bit like a snow storm inside. After an hour or so we were ready to move on.

Bellagio

Ladies table at The Bank

A quick trip down the strip and we were in the Wynn. Again Hailey bypasses the large queue and speaks to the doorman and bouncers. In next to no time we were being ushered past the long line of waiting people and straight into the club VIP section. We were joined by Joleen and very soon we were back at a UFC table, only this time it was a large bunch of them. Now I won't lie that, as a guy, I wasn't the most welcome person there but I did have 3 girls in tow which meant I held a bit of sway so I was allowed to chill. These guys were all pretty massive and pumped up. I met Chuck "Iceman" Liddell along with several other big name fighters. The club was stunning. The social area extended around a large blue-lit pool area with incredibly detailed decor. In addition they played house music which bumped up the whole experience another notch!

Poolside at Tryst nightclub

Chuck "Iceman" Liddell

News came to us that another exclusive after-hours club called Drai's would be open and we had a ticket in. We marched over to the club in Bill's Gambling Hall and again bypassed the queue and the $50 entrance fee. More partying commenced. When it got really really late we thought it wise to head home. En route we took a food break at Denny's where I had a Hooburrito which was pretty gross and messed my stomach up a bit. There was also a crazy guy talking gibberish next to our table who got kicked out after causing a massive scene for not getting chopsticks with his chicken burger.

Sleeping in nice and late we got ready for a heavy session of tanning and relaxing at the Wynn hotel pool area. Nat went in before me as I needed to get some stuff done so when I arrived I realised I had no guest identification to speak of. Luckily I was given a tip to sneak through one of the terrace restaurants where security was lax. After my covert operation I cruised to a nice spot where I could bask for the next couple of hours. The pool area was festive. Loud music blared and people with cocktails filled the pool.

Recovering at the Wynn pool

When we got back to the apartment I was intending to head out to a local electronics shop to buy myself a laptop. This trip was cut short by Kris' suggestion we head to the Hard Rock Hotel for some beers. Feeling that this was a much better idea, I accepted. We met Kris' friend Erin by the central bar in the hotel. Kris knew the bartender there so we were getting very very strong vodka red bulls at bargain prices.

Hooters nostalgia - I stayed there the last time I was in Vegas

Boys night out with Erin and Kris

Erin and his girlfriend were going for a dinner at Agu which we joined in on. I tucked into a tender ribeye steak. We finished off with a desert and port before moving to another of Kris' suggested spots... the Hofbrauhaus. This is a copy of the original in Bavaria. They clearly went to pains to make it authentic. Buxom wenches clad in traditional German attire slammed large litre jugs of beer on our tables. A German band played in the corner and a beer holding contest was held (you stick your arm out holding a full jug and hold it as long as you can).

Hofbrauhaus

Authentic German band

Authentic 1 litre Hofbrau beers

It was there we met another of Kris' friends, Jason. he hung out with us for a drink before we took a drive to another interesting place... Stoneys Nightclub. This was an all-American country western hangout. The large dancefloor was filled with people line dancing and a mechnical bull sat in the corner. I was tempted to give it a go but after a moment spent viewing guys getting launched off it, I realised that my bad shoulder would never take the strain.

This girl LOVED the bull. She had like 5 goes

Jason and Angelica

I gave line dancing a go and was pretty bad so I sat down again. After hanging out with Jason, Kris and Angelica it was again time to go home. Another great night!

By now all this partying was starting to take its toll. Waking up groggy-eyed I resolved to go get something constructive done. Kris and I drove to a shopping complex and had some cleansing sushi before I missioned off to Fry's Electronics, a megastore that contained just about anything that could be plugged into a wall socket. I stared at the shiny laptops a bit bug-eyed and picked out one that was to my liking. I spent a bit more than I had planned but quality doesn't come cheap.

Sushi - really good!

This place stocked just about anything that contains an electrical circuit

Once again there was another party that was going on. This was at Tao Beach in the Venetian hotel. After dropping my laptop off at the reception at Panorama, I cabbed to the hotel. Hailey had given me a hint that I should be on JT's list. Nobody had actually met JT but this is how Vegas works. I got up to the pool area and as I was going into the sectioned off Tao beach enclosure I dropped JT's name. The bouncer promptly turns to the guy to his immediate right and says: "JT, this guy says he is on your list". JT gives me a puzzled glance and asks if he knows me. I say no but my friends had told me I was on his list. Thankfully he let me in with no hassle (and no charge!). I entered the thumping pool area of Tao Beach and saw people throwing money into the air and partying to heavy basslines. I caught up with Nat, Hailey and Joleen who had been invited to some guys cabana (sort of like a beach tent with tons of free food and booze). It turned out they all worked in finance and specifically in equity derivatives! We got along well after finding out this common detail. The party roared on into the late afternoon. The pool was filled with people dancing and splashing water around. Everybody was in their swimming costume and sunglasses and pretty drunk! The music was fantastic and kept us all dancing until the close.

Here we go again! Tao Beach party

Getting frisky in the pool

Partying in the sun wa exhausting so we took a tactical 2 hour nap to better prepare for the party later that night. A bunch of Hailey's friends from Texas had just arrived in town and were looking to go out with us. We were invited to their private bungalow at the Palms hotel where we had some pre-match drinks and food. Now it was Adam with 10 hot girls. Picture evidence is provided below. With a harem like this I felt close to untouchable on the nightclub scene. This was later proved as we got to Tao nightclub in the Venetian hotel. We all got into a limo to get to the club. Standard operating procedure was followed - Hailey walks to front of massive line and drops a name (the club owner's in this case), we get led into club with no charge and VIP access. We partied at the owner's table facing in on the dancefloor. Now I met my match as it was just the club owner and me representing the guys with close to 20 girls partying around us. Music again was fantastic and we partied hard. When we left there was talk of going to the famous XS nightclub in the Encore hotel but I was pretty tired and opted out.

This is what I am talking about

My Vegas dream becoming reality

A spot of lifeguard duty by the Palms pool before heading out

The limo ride was fun too!

Partying at Tao Nightclub. We were at the owner's table, pictured here

That was Saturday night but we still had one large party to attend which is probably one of the most famous ones in Vegas... REHAB at the Hard Rock Hotel Pool. We had a very long lie-in. By 2pm we were ready. We called in the private car service at the apartments to take us there.

My Lamborghini... jokes, it was some other dude's who allowed us to sit in it!

Joleen had organised for us on the guestlist so once again I did not have to pay the $100 (ridiculous I know!) entrance fee. Once inside it felt a lot like Tao Beach... just souped up on hardcore steroids! A huge pool area opened up that was packed with people dancing to booming music. This was in intense 38 degree heat. It drew back memories of Space in Ibiza such was the scale. We got ushered up to the private cabana area and were introduced to some British guys who were entertaining. We got the VIP treatment again with some pretty cool guys. The music here must be the best I had heard so far. House music anthems kept us dancing the whole day even though I had largely taken a break from drinking. I had never seen such wild hedonism in my life. Money truly ruled everything here. Roided up muscle bound guys were everywhere as well as silicone enhanced women in the skimpiest bathing suits I have ever seen. We smashed it as if it was our last party and indeed it was.

Welcome to REHAB at the Hard Rock Hotel

Submerged blackjack

Even though there were intentions of going out later... I got back to the apartment and passed out. I woke to join Hailey and Nat in a dinner date at the Daniel Boulud restaurant in the Wynn hotel. Fighting back the urge to sleep I made it out and had a classy meal in front of one of the idyllic Wynn pools.

The next morning Nat was off to Jamaica and I was trying to get onto a Greyhound bus to LA. I could only get on for the next day so I hung around doing a ton of admin and sorting out my new laptop. We had In n Out Burger for dinner and an early night. On the day of my departure, Kris and I went into downtown Las Vegas for some brunch. Fish tacos and beer worked like a dream. We also met a washed-up old surfer who spoke to us of his time as a tunnel rat in Vietnam and his experiences surfing the world. Kris dropped me off at the greyhound bus station and I waved goodbye to Vegas.

Downtown Vegas

This had been a whirlwind stay. Crazy and unceasing in every way but totally amazing. I needed a break!

One night stopover in Mexico City

The trek was nearing to a close now. Vegas was just around the corner... only one night in Mexico City was left... so I decided to make the most of it!

I had taken the express bus from Puerto Escondido... a 12 hour ride as a opposed to the standard 18-22 hours journey. I arrived early in the morning at the bus terminal and cabbed it to Amigos hostel in the city centre. After settling in I was surprised to meet some friends from Tulum who were staying there too. The hostel is quite large and includes bed, breakfast AND dinner in its $17 price... not a bad deal. The place however was eerily quiet as Mexico City had become a tourist repellent due to it being Swine Flu Ground Zero. I had a feeling there were more staff there than guests!

Despite the short time of my stay I still wanted to see the city a bit. We walked out to the main square along the wide avenues. I had heard only negative remarks about the city such as it being noisy, polluted and crowded but I found it quite the opposite with relatively quiet streets and bustling yet unclaustrophobic walkways. My initial impressions was of a similarity to Buenos Aires but there were many more impressive colonial buildings here. We stopped at a small local eatery where we met the very friendly owner who asked us to write on the wall of his restaurant (I think this was on Avenida 5 de Mayo near the main square). I had delicious tacos!

There were some very large impressive buildings on the main square

A fairly typical tower with the setting sun in the background

After our short tour we moved back to the hostel and met up with John who I had hung out with in Isla Mujeres and Cancun. Alice (Eng), Katie (Eng), John and myself got in a taxi and drove to a nearby bar where we shared large bottles of Sol beer and some tequilas. Even though it was very quiet around, we had fun listening to the Mexican music and chatting to some of the locals.

Large bottles of Sol beer and tequilas were the order of the night. Here I am with John, Katie and Alice

I love those shades!

Katie and John doing Lime-faces

An early night was called for a I had a plane to catch at 6:30am the next morning. Despite all the bad things I had heard about Mexico City, I quite enjoyed my brief stay there and would definitely be interesting in going again to take in more of the sights.

VEGAS was one day away.

Puerto Escondido

Another overnight bus meant I wouldn`t miss out much Pacific coast beach action in Puerto Escondido.

The bus was chilly again but I did have my hoodie so I got a few winks in. I arrived at the bus terminal around 7am. The Mayflower Hotel was just a short walk down the hill so I checked in and had a wake-up shower. The place was very quiet due to the early hour so I went to the local supermarket to stock up on supplies. For a large supermarket, they had a disturbing lack of basic things such as tomatoes and bananas!

I took a brief stroll to the beach and watched all the fishing boats come in with their catch. The inner bay near the hostel was calm but as you walk around to Playa Marinero and Playa Zicatela, you get to see the large rough surf the area is famous for. Puerto Escondido is world renowned for being the "Mexican Pipeline" of surf spots. The best surf apparently comes in around November time and professional bodyboarders and surfers flock to ride some of the massive waves that crash in. The Pacific ocean lacks the water clarity of the Caribbean and has a much stronger swell pushing through. The beaches are not the safest places to swim (especially at Puerto) as there are strong rip and cross currents.

Palmtree fronted Marinelo beach

A hand statue coming out of the rock - a tribute to the lifesavers

I met up again with Nick (Aus) and some Swedish friends also arrived so I was not totally lonely. A bunch of us hung out on Zicatela beach before we had some social drinks at the hostel. The hostel was quite large and had a bit of a social party atmosphere.

Nice social drinking ended when the Aussies brought out the beer bong

Alan (Eng)... I don't recall it was fancy dress that evening

The next morning the sky was clear and the sun was scorching. Beach time! Again we hung out at Zicatela. Johnny (USA) took along his guitar whilst Alan (Eng) and myself dug a massive hole to bury some cheeky English girls. It was pretty tough work but we managed to get a big hole after a lot of slogging. After taking some pictures we decided to release them. A long day in the sun meant that I had regained much of my tan making me very happy.

The construction site

Nice and cosy

Once we had them immobile we could take any pics we wanted

Nick getting in on the action

Nowhere to go

Daniel from Sweden was a professional chef so he whipped up an amazing pasta for a bunch of us that evening. We took drinks down to the beach and Johnny (USA) and Joris (Netherlands) took up the guitar and played some great tunes. Another lazy day followed. A bunch of people (most of the fun ones) left for another town for some surfing and boozing as Puerto Escondido was having an election on the weekend so no alcohol would be served at all. I decided not to go as frankly I was getting sick of the continuous boozing and I really needed some good sleep! So without distraction I slept late and chilled out on the beach and took the odd cheeky swim. Then things got boring with no cool people around. Luckily later in the evening some more cool people arrived to entertain me again.

Partying Backpackers (Matt the guy in the front and middle got pickpocketed by a Transvestite that night!)

My last day in Puerto was spent on the little inlet bay of Carrizalillo. The surf was again incredibly powerful and had the strength to chuck you around even at knee depths. We tanned and swam there for a few hours until I needed to depart. Another evening bus service awaited me. 12 hours direct to Mexico City.

Playa Carrizalillo