Time to go home :(

Well, today we leave! Needed to sort out all the stuff in the bags as well as Pete's stuff. It took quite a while and I lacked the usual enthusiasm. Finally got it all done with not too much fuss and headed off for our usual breakfast haunt, although we had missed breakfast. The old lady wished us the best and hoped to see us again.

We thought we'd go and have a look at the California Museum of Science and Technology. The first place we went through was the aviation section where we saw a variety of planes, satellites and so on. Next we went to the technology hall, after deciding to give the IMAX theatre a miss. The technology hall had lots of hands-on exhibits that the kids (and adults) had fun with. There were sections on energy, mathematics, magnetism, and a special section on earthquakes.

After a drink at McDonalds, we went looking for the Brea Tar Pits which Pete & I had both heard about at some stage. These are lakes where oil just seeps out of the ground and forms tar. In the past it has caused many animals to become trapped and fossilised. The world's largest collection of ice age animals was found here.

As well as the tar, you can see methane bubbling up to the surface. The musem was about to be closed so we didn't go in. Just saw a few exhibits in the foyer.

We had planned then to go to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner since Nicole had missed out in San Francisco. We got there alright and no wait. Joel again quite taken by the place, but Nicole didn't like her turkey burger.

Wandered around in the Beverly Centre for a while since we didn't need to be at the airport til about 8:20. A bit of a traffic jam to get there but we arrived in plenty of time only to find out we were in the wrong building and had to walk from Building 3 to Building 7.

We took what seemed an eternity to check in, after being offered a special deal to postpone our flight, as it was very full.

At gate 77 we discovered our flight had been delayed from 10:20 to 11:30 then 11:59pm and finally 12:15am. It's now 12:40 and we've finally taken off. The children are all very tired and I think we're in for a long flight.Read more