More Than 14,210 KM Away From Home - Holiday USA!

Hello, USA!

And so, I've decided to (spontaneously) go on a one month holiday to USA!

At the Antelope Canyons

Flying more than 14,210 km away from home with a 15 hour time zone difference, I will be exploring almost the whole of California, rough it out a bit in the desert of Nevada, try my luck in casinos at Las Vegas and definitely hoping to ride in the Grand Canyon.

My rough itinerary

The Plan

Nevada - Mendocino - San Francisco - Half Moon Bay - Gilroy - Monterey Bay - Malibu - Santa Maria - Los Angeles - San Diego - Las Vegas - Grand Canyon - Arizona


Singapore - Beijing - Los Angeles - Reno (Nevada)

Finally, after 3 transits over 26 (freaking) hours, I've arrived at my start point:  

Reno, Nevada - The Biggest Little City in the World.

It's a really small city with quite a fair bit of casinos. I managed to catch Hot August Nights - the largest classic car event in the United States, where proud owners would drive them out on the roads and show off their cars of different makes, models and solid modifications.

Oh, and not to worry, there will be no Traffic Police around to fine them for all that loud exhausts and other modifications because even cops themselves probably mod their personal rides too!

Had a quick dinner before checking into the hotel to catch up on sleep, deprived over the long flight and transit hours. Uh, and sleeping on the plane is never comfortable!

Donner Lake

After getting sufficient rest, it's time to start rolling the holiday with some kick ass wakeboarding at Donner Lake! We've got a sporty boat and wakeboarding gears, off we go!

Chilling before the fun begins

I was still warm and comfortable in my sweater, enjoying the morning breeze with loud music playing Flo Rida, blasting off the boat's speakers, but not for long.

Wakeboarding

Sunbathing, warming up before my turn in the waters!

After the sea sports, we went back to shower and change into some dry clothes before heading to our next spot.

Lake Tahoe, Reno

Lake Tahoe 

Formed 2 million years ago, located along the borders of California and Nevada, the freshwater lake holds the position of being the 16th Deepest Lake in the world, sinking in at a depth of 1,645ft deep.

Brunch @ Smokey's

Had lunch at Smokey's before driving off to one of California and Nevada's top attraction spot, Lake Tahoe.

On the road to Lake Tahoe

It was a 30 minutes drive from where we stayed at in Truckee. Skies were blue, weather was comfortably cooling at 22 degrees, with majestic pine trees lined up along the road side, I was enjoying every bit of the drive!

Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe

One of the most favorite park in Lake Tahoe is Emerald Bay, with it's iconic stand-alone island in the middle. Lake Tahoe is a popular ski spot in Winter, and when Summer warms up, it's great for a swim or paddleboat on the calm waters too.

Paddleboats

Paddleboats were available for rent, but we decided to dive straight into the lake for a refreshing swim. It was cold man, even despite the sunny weather.

A walk in the woods

After a swim, we just lay on the sand, listen to some music, eat some chips and have some beer before taking a stroll in the park. Actually it was more like a forest, where all you can hear is the wind rustling through the leaves, birds chirping and a slight tint of peppermint scent.

A chilled, relaxed day it was!


The Next Day

Lake Donner

Donner Lake

We didn't have enough of Donner Lake, so we decided to go back the following day. This time, on the other side of the lake where it's a lot more crowded, with people taking their dogs for a swim.

It was really sunny today, you definitely have to slather on loads of sunblock if not you'd get burnt in just 2 hours. It's hot under the sun, but once you're under the shade, it's a lot cooler. The air here is much dryer compared to Singapore's humidity.

See, cloudless sky. Which also means, it's hot. After a swim, I found myself some shade under the tree and took a nap there, as the lazy afternoon passed on by.

Fish & Chips (Garlic Fries)

Napped until my tummy started to rumble, time to find some food to fill! Man, I sound like some fat lazy pig. Lol. But who cares hahaha.

Hot August Night

As it was the last day of Hot August Night, we went to the fair where the vintage classic cars were all out in full force, each one of them screaming for some attention.

The Retro Drive

We had our Cobra too! Custom-built by my friend who's super into cars but we didn't showcase the car as it wasn't really attractively done up hahaha. I'm not thaaat into cars too, you knowwwww :p
My heart is made for two-wheelers.


Truckee - Mendocino (6 hours drive)

Our RV!

As we were traveling West to Mendocino where we'll be camping, fishing and abalone-diving in the Pacific Ocean, plannings were done weeks in advanced. Looks easy and comfortable? There's hell lot of preparation work to be done!

Well, thankfully all the prep work was done prior to my arrival (hahaha) so I basically just hopped on and off we go! Woohoo! :p

Using Highway 101 and 5, we drove through the scorching deserts. By now, my lips is so dry it tears every time I laugh. Damn it.. where is my lip balm...

This is where the movie Planet Of The Apes was filmed!
Rows and rows of never ending redwood trees grown densely next to each other with the sun rays dancing in between the leaves as we drove though Redwood Forest.

They look comfortable

Saw a few bikers on the road but majority of them are big bikes like Harleys. For some, they even have a mini-trailer to store their baggage! Haha quite cute.

All the RVs

Mendocino - Albion River Campground

Ah, finally! We reached Abion River Campground where we parked our RVs and spent the following week at. These official campgrounds have full hook up facilities for the RVs, and there is even WIFI in this remote area! Lol, it's a bonus man.

It was cold, about 14 degrees? But the winds were pretty strong. Every km/h the wind blows, it decreases the whole weather temperature.

We parked in our allocated lot but closely with the other RVs to reduce as much wind in the middle and started unloading all the stuffs needed for the stay here. This is camping! Barbeques, campfires, music and chit-chatting.


Abalone Diving In The Pacific Ocean

<Credits to Discovery Channel>

"Abalone diving can be lucrative, but it's perils can be deadly"

Let's go

Abalone diving is not really diving because what we do is a free dive without any oxygen tanks on our backs. We stay underwater for as long as our breaths can hold.

Now, the dangerous part is getting entangled and trapped by the kelps. They are a type of plant with long flowy leaves, like trees underwater and as you can see, can tangle up pretty easily.

The abalone dive site

Sometimes divers get so engrossed in catching the abalones, they are unaware of their surroundings - which would be dangerous. Before you know it, your legs might be entangled with the kelps and when you're running out of breath, you start to panic.

Every year, several divers go missing from abalone diving. Sometimes, you won't even find their bodies because it's a whole other living world down there in the ocean.

<Credits to californiaoutdoorsqas>

We got the gist of it, what to do and what not to do. So off we went! Excited for our catch.

There is also a limitation of our catch - Per diver is entitled to maximum 3 abalones per dive, up to a maximum of 18 abalones in a year. Also, we have a measurement tool with us divers are not allowed to pick abalones that are undersized. Read more here.

<Credits to animalocean>

Splash! Into the water. It was cold, very cold, freezing cold. It is almost impossible to go in without a proper wet suit. Waters were pretty murky and there many jellyfishes around, which is grosssssss and scary. I kept fretting from running away from them, afraid they would sting me.

We even caught a baby and mother seal trying to play with us while we were searching for abalones!
That's nature for you!

It takes a while to get used to spotting the abalone as they camouflage pretty well with the corals and rocks underwater. Once you see them, you take a deep breath, go down, pop it open with your gears (as they suck onto the rock's surface), catch them and surface up to the boat.

Our catch! Our dinner!

After close to 3 hours out at sea, here's our catch of the day! Which will be part of our dinner too! Muahaha. This is the first time I see an abalone ALIVE, fresh out of the ocean. They're huge!

We cut them out

Slice them up

And kept their pretty shells

We fried them, steamed them, made sandwiches out of them, whichever way you like it! I never had so many abalones consecutively for days. Lol.

Fish catch of the day

The other group of our local friends went fishing too! And caught truck loads of them. For us Singaporeans, we dig fish head soups! So, that was exactly what we had for dinner too! In the cold weather, having bowls of warm savoury fish head soup is damn shiok.

Wah, that's a lot of sea urchins man

I met some of the locals here who catches container loads of sea urchins where they would export it overseas. It was just so many.. and all alive. Interesting sight!

Fort Bragg

Point Cabrillo Light Station

Checked out Fort Bragg, the little town in Mendocino to have lunch the next day and checked out the historical lighthouse.

San Francisco - Golden Gate Bridge

San Francisco

After a week of camping, we moved onto San Francisco city! 3 hours drive from Mendocino. But just a brief stop over as I've been here before. It's nice but commercialized. Went to the usual Fisherman's Wharf and had clam chowder which wasn't great.

Steep slopes

These ain't just slopes, but these are the roads in San Francisco! You hear cars screeching off when they move off, especially in such a steep angle. I'm already imagining how fun it'll be on a motorbike here, can take jump anytime. Hahaha.

Had to try their famous fast food chain, In N Out burgers. They have only 3 things on their menus but the crowd is never ending!

Set A

If you're going to eat something, go for the best! We had the double stack! Looks simple, but it's delicious! I'm not a fan of burgers but this one caught my taste buds salivating!

Half Moon Bay

We headed to Half Moon Bay where it overlooked the Pacific Ocean. Parked our cars along a pavement and we walked towards the beach. 

The waves were strong and the beach stretched long, sky was blue and it was clear. It was nice because it wasn't crowded at all, you could actually take a quiet stroll along the shores hearing nothing but the waves washing up your feet.

  
Gilroy Premium Outlets

How can you go to U.S without going to their factory outlets??? We went, and spent all our money in there. As if 1 full day wasn't enough, we went back the second day. Keep shopping and keep chanting to myself "nevermind money can make back one".

Nuff said.

I shan't further emphasis the pain my bank account had to go through. 


Moving on...

Monterey Resort & Spa Hotel

Monterey Bay

Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean, and it lines the central coast of California. The town itself is small, but it's very popular especially among couples because it's filled with tranquility and romance in the air.

We checked ourselves into the Monterey Plaza Hotel & Spa, rated No. 1 by TripAdvisor, featured in Forbes Four Star Hotels and rated AAA Four Diamond Hotel for the past 28 years.

The hotel sits prettily on the coast itself, overlooking the beautifully vast Monterey Bay. You could sit there all day from sunrise to sunset.

Pebble Bay Beach

17-Mile Drive

This a a popular scenic drive in the Monterey Peninsular that passes through Pebble Bay Beach and Pacific Grove. There are mainly mansions of residents living there, golf courses and scenic look outs.

Give the squirrels food

In return, a pat on their backs!

Garrapata Beach

Garrapata Beach was breathtaking. It is one of the most magical looking beach I've seen, the second nicest to Boracay (Phillipines). Standing here just feels so surreal. The best part was we even saw whales surfacing above the ocean to take a breather not far off from shore!

Big Sur in the evening

Whale Watcher Cafe

Have coffee and try your luck at spotting whales from here!

We drove into the night before and slept in the car by the cliff (it was a safe spot so don't worry), so we could wake up to hear the ocean waves crashing against the rocks like the above!
 

The Elephant Seal Board Walk

You won't miss this because you'll see many cars stopping at a parking area along the Highway 1 to see the huge elephant seals sunbathing. They roll themselves up in sand to protect themselves from the sun (just like how we use sunblock) before lying in the sun for a lazy afternoon nap.

Spotted a sparkling white Ducati Panigale on the roads

Morro Bay

The Morro Rock is a 177m volcano plug located on Morro Bay since as early as 1542, which still sits there today. We went for a short stroll along the river as the sun sets, painting the sky in hues of pink blue orange and purple.  

Malibu
 
Most people know it as the alcohol name, but this is actually one of the popular beaches in California especially to surfers.

The sun was so scorching hot, we barely found any shade to chill under.

And since I can't ride my bike here in Malibu Beach, I'll ride the waves ;)

Venice Beach

Located down West of Los Angeles, Venice beach is home to surfers, with residential housing and commercial recreational events ongoing through the day, seven days a week.

Lifeguards here are on the ball and always keeping a look out for the safety of swimmers and surfers.

To swim or surf? Why not do both!

Muscle Beach

With street performances aside, rows of local artists line the streets, showcasing their art material and hoping to sell them for a couple of tens of dollars to make a living. Photos were not allowed but I secretly took this one.

The Muscle Beach

Hahaha over here the famous outdoor gym where people with already-power-pack bodies train. The whole point is to show off their hard work, and they hold body building competitions from time to time to celebrate the sport.

Check out those assesssssssssssss.


Los Angeles

Tada! Finally in LA, I saw the Hollywood sign. Had to use my camera to zoom and zoom and zoom to get a nearer shot of it. It was located really far away from Griffin Observatory Park. And yea, it's really just the sign. Lol don't expect to see any Hollywood stars nearby.

Overlooking the whole of L.A

Summer - It's so hot my hair is almost frying up. 

We checked out Staples Center where Summer Slam was going on! 30 minutes before the doors were opened, the crowd were already all hyped up and getting a little rowdy at the entrance. There will be people trying to sell tickets off illegally but never buy them because they are usually not legit - we were advised by locals.

Managed to snap yet another beautiful sunset while on the drive to Las Vegas.

Las Vegas

In the day, this city looks very ordinary, like any other shopping street down Orchard Road. But when night comes, Sin City comes alive. Very alive.

Sin City - As its name suggests, you'll be spoilt for choice with Casinos, strip shows, circus shows, cabaret performances and many other forms of entertainment all around.

We caught one of the most popular shows, Jubilee. Debuted in 1981, Jubilee is the longest lasting showgirl topless performance that stands till today. Held at Bally's Hotel & Casino, the show was 90 minute long and yeah, there was a lot of boobies! Hahaha but the whole performance was very classy and interesting with song and dance. Oh, get 50% discounted tickets from www.tix4tonight.com!

After the show, we walked the streets and came across policemen who were doing double jobs! Security enforcement and being photo-taking models. Lol.

Stayed at the luxurious yet extremely cheap Alexis Park All Suites for the night. I highly recommend that hotel to those who are vising Vegas. It's different from your usual Intercontinental or Marriot Hotels.


Antelope Canyons, Arizona

We drove about 5 hours from Las Vegas to the Antelope Canyons, through Nevada desert onto Arizona. Finally, with the Antelope Canyon Tours, we enter the scared place I've longed to see.

More than 180 billion years old, I find myself embraced within royal walls of the Antelope Canyon.
They are actually erosion caused solely by wind and water. It's amazing. Let us be reminded by the beauty and power of mother nature.

Can you see the face of a wolf?

Antelope Canyon is the place where the Microsoft default desktop background is shot! Hahaha.

Taking it alllll in

  
Grand Canyons

The very next day, we did another 2 hours drive to the Grand Canyon! Woohoooooo! One more item ticked off my Bucket List!

From surfing along the Pacific coast to climbing more than 7,000ft above sea level, finally - overlooking the Grand Canyon, Arizona. Indeed, the 7 Wonders of The World.

It was intimidating climbing all the way to the edge, but overlooking the Grand Canyon this way is breathtakingly worth it.

Please pardon my messy hair, it was very windy

The dramatic majestic canyons colors are ever-changing, according to the rising and setting of the sun. Every distinctive hue can be seen, in this desert place.

We stayed overnight at one of the scenic look out point so we would not miss the breaking dawn.
Just standing there, watching the sun climb, as it's far-fetched rays slowly touch the canyons and color them alive.. surreal.. until my friend decided to let out a loud FART.

Wonderful.

Having soaked in every essence of the Grand Canyons, we parted with a heavy heart. Just as we were about to leave for L.A airport, this moose came out to say goodbye!

What an awesome holiday it has been. Sad that my trip in USA has come to an end but excited to be back with my baby Ducati! :D