TR Nov 2012: Another Aussie mad dash - Day 10: Final posts, TR finished #932 (02/21)

[Caroline NZ]

Oh gosh, that Airline food looks positively hideous.
I am impressed at the amount of walking you did on the flight. I normally manage a couple of trips to the loo, and that is it. I will try and make more of an effort next time

[PrincessInOz]

Originally Posted by TigerKat

I made it! Now I need to catch up...

You made it! On this thread, just head straight to the November 12 TR section. Won't take you long to catch up as I only just started.

Originally Posted by mvf-m11c

That was a good idea to upgrade to an economy plus seat during your trip from Melbourne to LAX. I would go crazy if I were in your seat during the flight and hear those babies cry during the trip.

I don't like airline food since they are not really good. I always try to bring as much snacks as I can in my bags and eat enough at the airport before we leave so I wouldn't have to eat that stuff.

That is crazy that there is no IFE during your flight. Mostly I don't pay attention to those since I have my iPad, iPhone, DS, etc. with me during the flight. I always bring a battery charger just in case if my devices are low on batteries.

Bret - I normally pack food for domestic flights when in the US or at least get something to take on-board in the terminal. But this was an international flight I was on and food is usually edible. This was about the worst I've been served.

But I did have a muesli bar and some Starbursts with me. And there was plenty of water being served; plus help-yourself to additional cookies and pretzels in the Aft section.

Originally Posted by Caroline NZ

Oh gosh, that Airline food looks positively hideous.
I am impressed at the amount of walking you did on the flight. I normally manage a couple of trips to the loo, and that is it. I will try and make more of an effort next time

Hi Caroline! Nice to see you here.

As I don't sleep on the plane, I tend to get up and walk a lot. I also like to keep active to reduce the risk of DVT.

[PrincessInOz]

DIS Connections




I feel like I might need to explain the title for my next little vignette as it might get lost in translation at a later stage.


Every so often, that most elusive member of Dis comes flittering out of the closet to bring little bundles of joy to a Dis-ser. Yes, I AM talking about the Tag Fairy. Those of you that are regular hit-and-runners of the Dis Community Board will know that every so often, a thread will appear dedicated to that TF. You’ll also know that there are some members of the Dis that are natural TF magnets. Last year, the TF decided to embark on the Scrollie and Bacon War (hereafter known as TagGate) with one of those magnets.

This year, the same magnet decided to start a pure snark with no dedications thread to the TF. As a result of a couple of day’s work for the TF, there are a number of us sporting Boo Boo tags (sadly, it IS in homage of Honey Boo Boo) as a strategically placed post heading in the left-ward direction of Alberquerque was made and the TF decided to run with it. Alas, we remain in Boo BooLand until the TF decides otherwise.

And with another leftward turn of direction as a result of another one of those strategically inopportune posts, some of us are also sporting Moo Moo avatars and milk run references as well.


This year’s entertainment will remain known as Boo Boo and Moo Moo.




Moo Moos and Boo Boos

Mass travel of any kind always brings the reminders and comparisons of cattle trucking to my mind. Afterall, we don’t call it cattle class for nothing. And despite the indignities of cramped quarters on board, in some regards that is more humane treatment than the treatment we seem to get in any customs hall of any country.

Still….I always find something to amuse me whenever I am being processed.

This trip was no exception.


Today’s amusement came courtesy of a cattle….er….crowd controller in the customs hall. This one lady was herding us into one of 3 rows:

• V for Visitors
• US Citizen Kane
• Agent Orange (For those needing fast processing to make a connecting flight, you are given an orange speeding ticket)

Being on a plane from Australia, it stands to reason that the busiest line was always going to be the V-line. And given the time of day we arrived, there was always going to be another group of arriving passengers from another plane ahead of us. So it turned out to be on this morning. As the V-line was really full and overflowing, another crowd controller decided to move some of us into the US Citizen Kane line. The first crowd controller came along 5 minutes later and practically had a meltdown! She pretty much screamed at us and I suspect that there were a few people in danger of deportation for that 30 second period. A stand-up fight nearly ensued as the passengers closest to her spray were arguing back only to find the crowd controller yelling at them to “calm down”.

Fortunately the second crowd controller came back to cool everyone down.

I don’t think either crowd controllers were happy that day; and I guess someone made a mistake. The question remains….which crowd controller made the boo boo with the moo moos in the hall that morning?



(And in the unlikely event that the TF is doing a drive-by reading, I think some of us would like to lose the boo boo tags!!)





DisMeet #1

I always bless the day that franandaj decided to post a response on a thread I created about where to go eat in Long Beach. From those rather humble beginnings and through the Dis, a pretty lasting friendship has developed.

Alison and I have already completed our first DisMeet last year and as with every DisMeet I’ve done, our conversation just picks up from where we left off on the Dis when we finally meet in 3D.

This DisMeet with Alison was really about the continuation of our 2D-friends-in-a-box conversations on the Dis. But this was more than a DisMeet.

When I had originally floated the idea of possibly heading to NorCal with DH with my friends-in-a-box, Alison tempted me with the offer to head to SoCal to check out CarsLand as a stopover. The offer included a place to stay and her coming to pick up/drop off at LAX.

Alright. I. MIGHT. Have. Pushed. That. Boundary. To. 2. Nights.



Let’s just pause and unpick this a little, shall we?

Despite the fact that we’re all aware of stranger danger and the fact that anything is possible over the internet, the measure of this friendship is as such….

1. Alison invited a comparative 3D stranger from a foreign country to go stay with her for 2 nights.
2. I accepted an invitation from a comparative 3D stranger to stay at her place in a foreign country for 2 nights.
3. All of this was going to occur a day after Halloween.

It only took us about 15 minutes for the details to be ironed out on the Dis and before anyone could say Freddy the 13th!



Moving right along.



I had texted Alison when we were taxi-ing on the tarmac that my plane had landed. That pretty much was her cue to start the taxi up and head on down to LAX. I don’t know how long she waited; but it took me about an hour to get through the hall, be processed by The Face of A Nation and grab my bag.
I know she had to wait a little for me but when I headed out of the terminal and got cell phone reception again, we had arranged a spot for her to drive by and pick me up.


So it was. Our DisMeet happened over the front seat of her SUV. I didn’t see any chainsaws in the back when I was throwing my bags in.






(Continued in Next Post)

[PrincessInOz]

(Continued from Previous Post)


Where even an ordinary activity transforms to magical delight




Small things amuse small minds

I’ve always been amused by the quirk of an International Dateline that results in Aussies arriving in the West Coast roughly about 3 hours earlier on the same day than they started out in Oz.

The small side effect of this quirk is that if you haven’t had any sleep on the plane, you might end up having to go without sleep for about 36 - 40 hours so as to beat the jetlag thing.

It does amount to a long GroundHog Day!



My Home for the next 2 night

Alison took me home and this was to be my room for the next two days.





My bathroom facilities were spotless!





On arrival and with a small-to-none amount of sleep, the only small thought my small mind could think of was to lie down to go to sleep. So, I ran out of there as quickly as I could so as not to fall asleep standing.

For the record. It would prove to be a very comfortable bed and I slept great for both nights.



WOW in 20 minutes

For the Aussies reading this, my philosophy to the telecommunication question is a pretty simple one.

Take my unlocked Australian smart phone with me, walk into an AT&T shop and purchase the $2 per day Go Phone unlimited talk and text prepaid option.

First order of the day was for Alison to take me to the nearest store.

The AT&T shop provided me with a (micro) SIM card for free and allowed me to select my number from their available pick list.

About the only thing I did before the (micro) SIM card changeover is to send a text message to my nearest and dearest in Oz with my American number.

For this 10 day trip, my telco costs came to $20.

I could have bought a data plan on top of the Go Phone plan but as I am on holiday, I really want to disconnect as much as possible.

I was WOW (walking out working) within 20 minutes.




Riding Shotgun

I always like riding shotgun with a local; particularly when on holiday.

Afterall, I have nothing better to do than to take in the holiday air and am completely freed from the tedious activity of keeping to a schedule or having to deliver some sort of output.

Alison had a bunch of chores to attend to that day and as the whole reason for my visit was to spend time with her, it made no difference to me what we did as long as we got to catch up and chat.

So, whilst it may have been ordinary everyday activity to Alison, I was in magical delights to help her run her errands, pack up books, feed the cats and make sure Fran was fine. It gave me lots of time to enjoy the little insight to the daily life of my 3D friend.


And……it kept me awake.






(Continued in Next Post)

[PrincessInOz]

(Continued from Previous Post)

The deliciousness of being unencumbered by the routine of everyday life - Time for Proper Food Porn



Is there a Tandoor in the Kitchen?

In planning for these couple of days, Alison and I had thought we would be eating foods of the exotic kind. We had thought to be eating Shabu Shabu as Alison had told me of a place opening up in Long Beach. Sadly, it was not to be…..despite the Opening Soon in October signs clearly plastered all over the front of the construction zone, the Shabu Shabu place was definitely not in any state to be serving delicate morsels of thinly shaved protein for cooking in a delicious broth.


Where to eat for lunch?


I guess Alison was going to take the opportunity to eat a cuisine that we both loved and in keeping with the exotic notion.





We sat at a table with a view similar to this. The only difference was that we were about 3 meters further in and there was a glass window in the way.
It was a lovely place to lunch and do the girly gossip and chit-chat.





The view 180 degrees the other way looked like this.





Did I forget to mention that this was an all-you-can-eat Indian buffet?


At $9.95 per person, this place was a bargain in my book. There were appetizers, 3 types of chicken dishes (tandoori, butter and a curry), loads of vegetarian options, rice salads and Indian condiments in the buffet. My plate looked like this.





Alison and her plate looked pretty good too.





Our server brought out the naan for us to enjoy.





I asked him if they had a tandoor in the kitchen and it turns out that tandoori cuisine is something this place is known for. If the naan and the tandoori chicken that I tasted was anything to go by, I would certainly agree with this claim.


It was certainly a delicious way to be unencumbered by the routine of everyday life!



Say Cheese!

After riding shotgun with Alison and by the time 5 pm rolled round, any brain activity that was still ticking over was becoming increasingly smaller. I suspect that Alison took pity on me……we headed out for an early dinner.


We headed out to a local joint…Kafe Neo. It was billed as an American Kitchen with Greek Soul. The menu certainly lived up to the billing; with all things Greek on offer.





Time for me to come clean. I have to own up now to the fact that every year for the last 10 years, October has been a month of abstinence for me. During this month, I go on a mini-detox and avoid eating processed food, wheat, milk products, sugar and caffeine. I find that I just need the break from these food groups prior to the silly season in order to make it through the rest of the year.

This trip had ticked over into November and all bets were back on the table for me!


So despite the wonderful promise of calamari, gyros and spanakopita, all I saw on the menu was saganaki. The menu indicated that the saganaki cheese was kefalograviera. I was CRAVING cheese. And so, when the food arrived, I completely forgot and started to eat it straight away. You might notice that the cheese looks a little messed up in this picture. Sorry.





I couldn’t fault the cooking and presentation. I did find the cheese a little on the salty side; but that might have been my taste buds needing to readjust back to a normal diet.


Alison ordered the gyros. It looked delicious.





We also had some spanakopita to share.





I liked the spanakopita. It was delicious.


By this stage, I was ready to sleep and when we got back home, that’s exactly what I did. It had been a long groundhog day for me!

[alicia1506]

loving your TR - subbing in

[franandaj]

Wow! You made our day sound so exciting! (although going out to eat twice was pretty cool). I'm glad you were able to disguise the mess in the guest room!

[dhorner233]

Wow Princess! You write so well and your pictures are so thorough! Even Alison's bathroom!

I was drooling all over my keyboard at your Indian and Greek food! Those are my 2 favorite cuisines!!!

Well, I'm on the edge of my seat! I can't wait to see your Disneyland photos!

[mvf-m11c]

Very nice update and glad that you had a great time with Alison. The food looks very appetizing.


Can't wait to see your pictures from the DLR.

[aussietravellers]

I am definitely tuned in for another PIO TR! Filled with humor, wit, fun, lots food porn!

I am a plane walker too. I am always walking the aisles, whilst everyone sleeps usually as I never seem to be able to sleep.

I was looking for those extra 2 inches of leg room you paid your $10 an hour for.

All that food porn is making me very hungry, so I will have to go and get some breakfast.

Looking forward to seeing some more of those 2000 photos and hearing about the rest of the trip.

[tiggrbaby]

What a busy first day! Alison, I thought the guest suite looked very nice!

[rentayenta]

Love the update! I so enjoy seeing pictures of my hometown...I'm from Long Beach.

Both meals look delicious. I bet you slept like a full baby that night. Sounds like you girls had a nice, mellow day.

I like your 2 D and 3 D friend descriptions.

[ACDSNY]

Love the update! Only your sense of humor could find a reference to the Boo Boos & Moo Moos as soon as you arrive in the US.

Both lunch and dinner looked yummy too.

[snapppyd]

I have a lot of catching up to do, but it looks like a great report!

[PrincessInOz]

Originally Posted by alicia1506

loving your TR - subbing in

Hi Alicia! Thanks for subbing in.

Originally Posted by franandaj

Wow! You made our day sound so exciting! (although going out to eat twice was pretty cool). I'm glad you were able to disguise the mess in the guest room!

Well....you were doing your normal thing; and I was riding shotgun. It's definitely more exciting with a shotgun.

The guest room was great. Thanks so much.

Originally Posted by dhorner233

Wow Princess! You write so well and your pictures are so thorough! Even Alison's bathroom!

I was drooling all over my keyboard at your Indian and Greek food! Those are my 2 favorite cuisines!!!

Well, I'm on the edge of my seat! I can't wait to see your Disneyland photos!

Hmmm..... I seem to recall your camera in another bathroom.


Hope the edge of your seat is comfortable. I'm trying to get to DLR as quickly as I can but sadly 3D life is getting in my way.

Originally Posted by mvf-m11c

Very nice update and glad that you had a great time with Alison. The food looks very appetizing.


Can't wait to see your pictures from the DLR.

Thanks Bret. Yes, I had a great time with Alison. Hope you're having fun in your current location!

Originally Posted by aussietravellers

I am definitely tuned in for another PIO TR! Filled with humor, wit, fun, lots food porn!

I am a plane walker too. I am always walking the aisles, whilst everyone sleeps usually as I never seem to be able to sleep.

I was looking for those extra 2 inches of leg room you paid your $10 an hour for.

All that food porn is making me very hungry, so I will have to go and get some breakfast.

Looking forward to seeing some more of those 2000 photos and hearing about the rest of the trip.

I think we'll probably get to see about 500 - 700 of those photos. I'm still unpacking them.

Originally Posted by tiggrbaby

What a busy first day! Alison, I thought the guest suite looked very nice!

The guest suite is very nice.

(And as this was the first day.....it was pretty laid back! )

Originally Posted by rentayenta

Love the update! I so enjoy seeing pictures of my hometown...I'm from Long Beach.

Both meals look delicious. I bet you slept like a full baby that night. Sounds like you girls had a nice, mellow day.

I like your 2 D and 3 D friend descriptions.

Are you from LB originally? I should have taken a few more pictures, then. I love the art deco period so I had a great time looking at the architecture.

Originally Posted by ACDSNY

Love the update! Only your sense of humor could find a reference to the Boo Boos & Moo Moos as soon as you arrive in the US.

Both lunch and dinner looked yummy too.

I thought it would have been harder to find that reference. But there is was....

Originally Posted by snapppyd

I have a lot of catching up to do, but it looks like a great report!

You made it over!

Great time to get here. I'm hoping to have the start of the DL day up sometime this weekend. We'll have to see how much of 3D life I can clear out.