Day 14

*A good friend of mine pointed out to me yesterday that my blog posts seem to have a recurring theme running through them. For this reason I am going to try and avoid all references to food in today's posting in an attempt to break the mold.

Will and Katy joined me on my run today which made it even more enjoyable. We managed just under 8km bringing my holiday total distance up to 58km which i'm impressed with.

In order to spend some girl time together at 11am Holly and I went to a local nail salon to have our nails painted. This was the first time Holly had ever visited a salon before for treatments and so the moment was really quite special. She chose a glittery red for her hands and sparkly turquoise for her toes. I went for a gorgeous hot pink and was so impressed with the beautician that I booked in for some threading next week before I go home.

After a healthy bite to eat (no actual food reference so i'm still doing ok), Katy and I set off for our night out in Hollywood with Jessica and Camilla (Katy's BF from school who now lives in LA and whom she hasn't seen for many years). 

The drive was long and arduous and gave us a glimpse of what it must be like to have to commute through this motoring city every day. 1h 45min later we pulled up at the Grafton on Sunset Boulevard, where the valet parked our car for us. The hotel was very cute, and we had a great room on the ground floor opening out to the pool.

After the big reunion, we cracked open the Prosecco and sat by the pool reminiscing about old school days and comparing notes on the experiences that life had thrown at us over the years. 

Three bottles and four showers later we were dressed up and ready to party. We began the night at the gorgeous Skybar at the Mondrian Hotel which was packed for a private event although we still managed to take in the stunning view and have our first cocktail.

From here we jumped in a taxi to the exclusive Soho House which Jessica had managed to book us a table at as she is a member at their London club. We were seated at possibly the best table in the whole restaurant and to add to the excitement crossed Jon Voight on the stairs on our way in, an academy award winner no less!!

The views over LA were simply stunning and as we talked, ate and drank to our hearts content the evening slipped away before us until we realised it was gone midnight. Feeling slightly on the tipsy side we paused in the corridor to have our photos taken in the velveted photo boudoir! 

Our last stop of the night was to the renowned Chateau Marmont bar which has always been on my 'places to go' list. I was disappointed that the bar was not inside the hotel as would have loved to have seen inside, but it was worth going just for the Facebook check-in! 

Drunk and tired we decided to call it a night and walk back to our hotel (an unheard of activity in LA). In between Chateau Marmont and the Grafton we managed to climb into a white rolls royce, momentarily fall into a strip club and take this hilarious photo, it was a great night, one never to be forgotten!

Day 13

After deciding that it would be really memorable if William and I could spend some time alone together this holiday, we agreed that Universal Studios would be the perfect place for our mother/son bonding to take place. After setting my alarm for 6am and dragging him out of his bed, we set off with Katy and Rita arriving just before the park opened at 9am.

We'd taken the shortest route as opposed to the fastest and so managed to drive through a few of the famous streets including, Melrose, Hollywood and Sunset. Katy was unimpressed with the layout and the atmosphere of Hollywood, commenting how much luckier we were to be staying in Hermosa.

Entering the park at just after 9am, Will and I headed straight for the lower lot in order to be first in line for the most popular rides; Revenge of the Mummy, Jurassic Park and Transformers 3D. We managed to experience all three before 11am which we were told was good going considering it was the hight of Summer. It took me a while to explain to Will that these weren't your ordinary Southend on Sea roller coasters. The rides were more like 'moving experiences' obviously there were large elements of stomach churning adrenalin but there was so much more. Each ride took you on a journey through a particular movie and included special effects such as water, fire, animatronics and stunning 3D visuals. Both Will and I enjoyed the Transformers ride the best but after queuing for 45 minutes couldn't face queuing up again!

The park is separated into upper and lower lots by about five sets of steep escalators. After we'd  exhausted all the rides down below, we headed upstairs to the biggest area of the park in search of more thrills and excitement. The next big attraction for me was not a $2m ride but the word Cinnabon, lit up in front of me. For those of you who have never had the awesome pleasure of trying a Cinnabon classic they look something like this....

I am in no doubt that my writing skills could never do justification in describing this culinary bombshell. But for a cake lover like myself it ticks just about every box there is. The only thing which took the edge of the pleasure of eating 1.5 of them (William left half!!) was when I glanced up at the board and noticed the 800 calories written in small print next to the picture. Determined that that would be the only thing I ate today, I walked away content in the knowledge that every one of my days allocated calories had been spent on something so stupendously scrumptious!

It was at this point that we bumped into Katy and Rita and decided to all go on the Simpsons ride together as there was no height restriction for smaller children. After another 45 minute wait we entered what we thought would be a nice relaxing child friendly experience that we all could share together - how wrong we were! The screaming children coming off the ride before us should have given us an indication of the rides verocity but as the sign on the door had said 'there's no going back now' we buckled our seat belts and hoped for the best. 

I'm not sure who was more scared, Katy or Rita, but it definitely felt like one of those scarring moments in your lifetime, where in 30 years time Rita will trace back years of fear and anxiety to that precise moment when she was forced to experience the Simpsons ride at Universal Studios, aged 5.

Splitting off again, Will and I enjoyed the famous Universal studio tour which took in the studios and locations used for many well known films and TV Shows. We toured the exterior set of Wysteria Lane from Desperate Housewives as well as many historical greats including Bates Motel from Psycho and Amity Island from Jaws.

We decided to leave before the traffic built up to heavily but before we did, Will enjoyed having his caricature drawn and also seeing his face superimposed onto the body of a movie character and printed on a t-shirt. Both activities were vastly over priced I might add, but seeing him enjoy himself was justification enough for the spending.

The journey home was painless thank goodness and it was lovely to hear that Holly and Louis had enjoyed their day at home without us. I felt less guilty for not taking them too after seeing their little happy faces when they received their 'ET' and 'Princess Fiona' soft toys.

For dinner, we visited a different restaurant, the 'Waterfront' which made a pleasant change from American Junkie. Conscious of how much money I had spent and the fact that I had already eaten my allocated calories for the day, I opted out of ordering any food and with good intentions let the children order cheese burgers and chips. 

When the burgers arrived Katy and I made the fatal mistake of trying one and can only describe them as the best burgers we have ever eaten.  We agreed that the secret to their superior taste had to be the 'onions in the patty' and full of self loathing continued to finish off all of the children's plates until we were fit to burst.

The best burger in the world

Day 12

Like every alternate day so far, today was a run day. Feeling fairly tight from so much running it wasn't the easiest 8km but still very enjoyable. I had to laugh when I saw this very patient dog walker with her tribe of dogs and even managed a picture, mid-jog!

Since arriving in the USA, I have been attempting to remain 'calorie neutral', offsetting excess calories with more running. I worked out today that I have notched up an impressive 50km of running so far, banking 4,255 extra calories. The fact that I have gained 3lbs will give you some idea of the temptations that I am faced with on a daily basis!

Arriving home, I discovered Katy and Rita were at the house, suffering the full effects of jet lag they had been awake since 4.30am and already managed two hours on the beach and breakfast at Starbucks by 8am. 

We decided a day at the Seaside Lagoon would be the perfect way to ease them both into the LA time zone. Without a second car we walked the mile journey and pitched our beach chairs in a relaxing spot close to the water. Luckily for us the skies were blue and the sun was beaming down on us. Three hours later, the jet lag was starting to take its toll on Rita and as Katy had plans to see Jessica later in the afternoon we packed up and walked home.

The rest of the day was consumed with visiting three different pharmacies to collect Louis' prescription (still to no avail!) and filling the car with 'gas' which was confusing as I didn't realise you had to pre-pay!  I was however excited to see my namesake restaurant on 'PCH' as I now call it (Pacific Coast Highway). I have to say that after 10 days of driving I am starting to feel like quite the local!

Day 11

As expected, our Sunday morning began with a trip to the local urgent care centre which was located not far away in an area called Torrance.  With no idea how long we would wait or how much it would cost to be seen, Louis and I made the journey. Two hours later and $114 worse off we returned home hungry and frustrated that despite all our efforts their wasn't a pharmacy within the area who had the medication we needed before 3pm tomorrow!

Thankfully we had an exciting afternoon to look forward too, welcoming Katy and Rita from LAX airport. As we approached the airport the little yelps and squeals from the back of the car became increasingly louder, I couldn't remember Holly ever being quite so excited! We parked the car and went and perched ourselves in Starbucks aware that with customs and immigration we could be here for some time. While we were there we met another family also waiting for their sister to arrive from London. The next hour flew by as we exchanged life stories and by the end of it, phone numbers! 

Katy and Rita arrived just after 3.30pm and we wasted no time getting home to familiarise themselves with their new surroundings. After checking into their Motel, the 'Sea Sprite' which was directly on the seafront, we all went to American Junkie for their first night dinner. 

Being a Sunday night, the beach was packed with 100's if not 1000's of people watching the summer concert which tonight was a reggae band. The kids ran around, playing ball and having fun in the sand while Katy and I chatted, accompanied by the mellow, hippy vibes of 'Get Up, Stand Up' and other Marley classics. 

Day 10

After the excesses of the last 24 hours, I thought it would be wise to offset the over indulgences with a 10km run, which I completed in just over 58 minutes. The Strand was heaving with people, it being a Saturday and I had a job weaving my way in and out of the many dogs, bikes, skateboards and pedestrians who had the same idea as me.

Rather than go to the beach, we thought an impromptu shopping trip back to the mall would work mainly so that Misa could do some shopping and I could get a birthday present for Rita who is arriving on Sunday. Of course, being me, that wasn't the only purchase I made. We left with a gorgeous pair of Nike trainers for me and more excitingly new school shoes for the children. I can't explain the relief of having completed this task over here. Taking three jet lagged kids shoe shopping in Ipswich a week before school starts would have been like Japanese torture.

Getting Holly out of the Disney Store was not easy!

Rather more tired and badly behaved than had been expected we abandoned our scheduled trip to Santa Monica Pier for a more relaxing evening back at Hermosa. Hoping to grab a table at our favourite 'American Junkie' we wandered down there at around 6pm only to be presented by the National Beach Volleyball League Championships.  For a 20 year old single male this literally would of been heaven on earth, the bars were over flowing with bikini clad girls of the highest calibre and the men weren't too bad either! But on this occasion, it was no place for children so we sculked back home and made do with home made hot dogs.

On our way to our favourite restaurant

The rest of my evening was taken up with a 2 hour search for a 24 hour chemist. Unfortunately, Louis has developed a tummy bug which needs prescription medicine and so tomorrow morning will be all about .... the doctors!

Day 9

If yesterday morning was fussy, then today was a total black out. We woke up after 3 hours sleep and reached for the nearest source of water as vague memories of the night before flashed before our eyes. Noticing an empty bottle of 'maxi' bar vodka on the side table and the smear of last night's make up on the pillow it was clear that we had fulfilled the 'party hard' requirement for staying in Palm Springs.

As the soberer of the two, I mustered up the energy to go for a morning swim and grab an hour lying by the pool, which was incidentally 94 degrees at 9am! Then we both had a gorgeous breakfast, granola, fruit and yoghurt for me and fruit and eggs for Jess. 

Slightly nervous about checking out we asked for the bill and were pleasantly surprised how reasonable it was considering the standard of the accommodation and the food and more importantly the number of cocktails we had charged to the room the previous night. Feeling fragile, we started our journey back to Hermosa, sadly watching the temperature drop by 38 degrees before our eyes. 

It didn't matter however because our night in Palm Springs had been a huge success. A night never to be forgotten. Ace had delivered on all counts and I hope to return again one day for more fun in the sun!

Reunited with the children, it was lovely to be home. We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing on the beach in front of the house, building ocean defences with the sand and chasing away the seagulls. Due to my lack of sleep, I feel asleep open-mouthed in the chair and awoke half an hour later with a burnt tongue and throat - not a good look and also very painful!

Reunited at last!

Day 8

Awake at 7am and undeterred by slightly fuzzy heads, Jess and I started our day like any great day should, with a run on the beach. Our philosophy being that no matter how naughty we were in Palm Springs we could look back on at least half an hour of the day and feel healthy and guilt-free!

An hour later with blow-dried hair and GPS charged we set off on our road trip with no idea what adventures lay in store. Leaving Hermosa the temperature gauge in the car read 70 degrees, as we cruised inland the thermometer just kept rising and rising at a rate of what seemed like a degree every  mile until the time we reached our first stop the Desert Hills Premium Outlets it had reached a staggering 109 degrees!

Never ones to let a little thing like melting roads get in the way of a shopping trip, we headed into the mall armed with only a bottle of Fiji water and our credit cards. Three hours later, parched and hungry we left a little lighter in pocket but with happiness in our hearts thanks to a certain Mr Jimmy Choo and Diane Von Furstenburg.

Eager to arrive at our destination we returned to the road and admired the surrounding landscape which consisted of dry mountain ranges and literally a million wind farms. At this point I was relieved to have our sat nav safely installed as the view reminded me of a scene from 'The Hills Have Eyes', both of us  had a frenzied feeling we were about to enter unknown territory!

Our hotel, the 'Ace' was remodelled on the grounds of a mid-century modern motel and literally oozed with style and individuality. The design was simple but effortlessly cool, everywhere we looked there were little touches of style brilliance from pieces of vintage furniture to the cleverly designed signs around the pool.  As soon as we walked in we knew we had come to the right hotel.

Entering our room, the only thing we could bring ourselves to say was 'OMG', it was like walking onto a bohemian film set. The mini bar or should I say 'maxi' bar was stocked up with full sized bottles of Jack Daniels, vodka and tequila, this hotel really wanted us to have a good time.

Ready to hit the pool at around 4pm we were hit by a staggering wall of heat as we left the comfort of our air conditioned room. I can honestly say i've never experienced heat like it and i'm astounded that within only a two hour drive of Hermosa Beach the temperature could rise by 38 degrees!

The next great pleasure of the day was the arrival of our food. Both, utterly famished after our run and shopping trip we would have been happy with a Wendy's pretzel bacon cheeseburger but instead were presented with one of the most delicious salads I have ever tasted. Drinks were of course our next big priority and we wasted no time working our way through the entire cocktail menu.

We sat by the pool until gone 9pm, well after the sun had set behind the San Bernardino Mountains. With temperatures only dropping to mid eighties at night the pool stays open until 2am so there were plenty of people still enjoying the facilities well after nightfall.

This of course is not exactly how our night ended but then I do believe somethings are best left unsaid.  After all, 'what happens in Palm Springs, stays in Palm Springs!' ;-)