Day 1
Today we started in – London, Heathrow
We finished in – Castaic, California
Miles travelled today – 5456 Flight, and 50 Car
Miles so far driven this trip – 50
Tonight we are staying at – Rodeway Inn, Magic Mountain
Friday 22nd March
It seemed so simple.
“Follow the signs for Short stay parking, but when you get to the Ramp, keep left and follow the signs for the Off Airport Parking.” Said the directions on the instructions.
So I did, but there was no sign anywhere indicating where the Off Airport parking was. So I went around again, thinking I must have missed it.
Nope, nothing. Just big signs saying “Drop Off Only” or “No Waiting”.
Signs that were so big, so difficult not to see that you dared not ignore them. If you did, you can be certain they had a sniper somewhere ready to pop you off. A team of people come out, sweep you up, crush your car, and neither of you will ever be seen again.
I had to take that risk, so I pulled over and got out. A quick conversation with a couple of nice gents convinced me the directions were wrong.
Again I go round, only this time I keep right. 20 minutes later the car was dropped off, and I was walking to the terminal.
I see what I did wrong now. I actually followed the instructions. Little did I know that when the good folks at Good to Go meet and greet said keep left, they actually meant keep right. Silly me!
That was yesterday, and before I started using Heathrow Terminal 5 as a roundabout, we had driven from home. The drive was good, the hotel room fine. The beer cold but the food and drink way too expensive. Shame on you Sofitel.
£10.50 for a gin (without the Tonic!). No children’s menu, and simple bottle of Oyster Bay wine £63.
£6 for a beer, so let’s be thankful for small mercies
I guess that’s literally the price we pay for a short walk to the terminal the next morning.
An early start and the high prices prevents us from making a night of it, so we head back to the room, for a hopefully decent nights sleep before a very early start and a ten and a half hour flight.
23rd March – 5.30am
We both awake at the same time, before the alarms and after a restless night. Up and at ‘em!!
Max is still fast asleep which allows us to get showered and half ready. It is not long before he joins us in the land of the living.
90 minutes later we have strolled to the terminal and after bouncing around the bag drops, Zone B “No” said the nice BA man, “you’ll be better off in Zone C”
Off to Zone C “No” said the nice lady “You’ll be better off in Zone A, the Family Check in”
We have managed to get rid of our bags placing them on the conveyor belt, praying the systems works and we see them on the other side.
We blagged our way through the priority security lane. Reserved for First class and Gold and Silver Executive club members. We are executive club members, but I don’t think Gold or Silver status yet.
We made a note while queuing at our third bag drop off. A place called Huxleys let kids eat free. We make a beeline for it as soon as we get through, only to find out BA had been telling porkies. A big Huxley Pig porky.
After breakfast and paying for all three of us we amble around an finally our gate gets assigned to our flight.
B47. It was clear we were taking the first part of the 5,500 mile journey by train!
Eventually we board. Shuffle through the Club class and World Traveller class to World Traveller. Or Economy as it’s better known as.
Took off 30 minutes late, and before we knew it, the plastic-laden tray was handed to us.
Chicken or Pasta. Max chose pasta and ate little. We chose Chicken and ate lots.
The 11 hour flight was now down to 7 and the monotony started to set in. There is only so much TV you can watch on a screen the size of an iPad.
10.5 hours entertaining Max was tough at times but as always he was generally a good little boy.
Despite constant suggestions, Max decided not to sleep. And despite constant telepathic messages, the lady in front didn’t put her seat forward. Almost all of the 11 hour flight meant my cramped personal space was even more cramped!
11 hours later and we debouch from the confines of the long white tube, into the vastness of LAX. The arduous task awaits of making sure our luggage has arrived at the same place and at the same as us.
But before that, customs.
2 hours shuffling through ropes. Trudging closer to having our photos and finger prints taken.
But something is different. We get herded a different way. Automatic Passport Control. A row of probably 50 machines await.
Scan passport. Take photo. Scan fingerprints. Take the little slip that gets printed to the nice but serious man at the desk.
15 minutes later and we are through. We have actually beaten our luggage to baggage claim!!
The shuttle bus journey to Avis, a short wait and before we knew it we were enroute to our first motel. What a shame Avis didn’t have time to clean the car though.
Dirty carpets and a half eaten muffin in the back door pocket!
7pm and we arrive at our first stop, the Rodeway Inn in Castaic. Basic rooms, the age of them give the impression they are not very clean, but on closer inspection it seems ok.
Curtains and bed covers my Nan would have been proud of.
A two storey motel, it seems a popular place for Truckers. There also seems to be a few shady characters about, but I am sure it is our tired imaginations getting the better of us.
We drag a sleeping Max from his car seat, and we feel instantly sorry for him. McDonalds in the room, and we turn the lights off at 8.30, knowing we will be awake in the early hours.
Day 1 complete. 23 to go!!
See Full Itinerary of our trip here