So much has happened!

Hi guys!

I am SO sorry for the lack of posts, or rather no posts. So much has happened between now and the last post. Lots of new experiences (including a trip to the Russian river and Joshua tree desert), starting school, moving house and meeting a truck load of people. Where shall I start?

Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start. (I'll give you credit if you get that). Well, soon after our last blog post things started to get crazy!! We moved out of the temporary apartment and into our house and while this was happening Rosie had a friend visit from England. While her friend was here we visited Disney, went shopping, went out for breakfast and in the middle of this the container arrived with all of our furniture. It was so strange, seeing all of our belongings after 9 weeks! I must admit, I forgot that I owned some of my things.

Soon afterwards school started. But our first day wasn't the usual introduction to school, starting lessons and meeting friends. No. My first day consisted of driving three hours in a bus, arriving in a desert and being told to scramble up rocks to get to the top of a mountain. Yeah, you could say we were thrown in the deep end. I won't elaborate too much as I will do a separate post focusing on the trip for anyone one that is interested. Rosie, on the other hand travelled for a good nine hours in a coach, up to the Russian river past San Francisco. And in three days canoed 24 miles down the river out to the point where it meets the sea. I guess you could say these trips were challenging, but none the less they were a once in a lifetime experience that we will never forget.

After we endured these trips school started properly. Once the initial nerves had disappeared we started to enjoy school more. We have discovered that schools in England and schools in LA are extremely different. but this was to be expected. Again, expect to see another post explaining what we have found out.

So, I'm sure, although this is only a very small example, you can sympathize that our lives have been and continue to be very busy. Check back regularly for more new posts, we appreciate you taking your time to come back and read our blog.

Thanks again,
B x

Walking with the stars

Yesterday went to Hollywood. Yes, you read that right HOLLYWOOD! It was awesome, there was such a buzz there it was as if the whole world was excited! If you ever get a chance to go say YES. When you go here are a few things you SHOULDN'T miss out on....

1. Hollywood walk of fame - You can (literally) walk among the stars! (These pink stars make very good Instagram photos haha) Try to find your favourite singer, actor etc they even had one for Donald Duck :) While your there don't miss out on seeing the hand prints, foot prints and writing in the cement (Outside the Chinese theatre.) These are mostly done by older stars from the thirty's and forty's but there were some I knew as well like; Marylin Monroe, Will Smith, Robin Williams and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

2. El Capitan Theatre - If you can, try and go to the El Capitan Theatre. We were lucky enough to go and see Inside Out which is really good. Before it starts there is a man playing the organ with Disney songs, and a pre-show which was dancing. It is an amazing experience and I can't wait to go back next time.

3. Food - There is SO many restaurants to choose from. We ended up going to the Californian Pizza Kitchen and it was delicious! The pizzas were amazing! They have pasta and other food too which looked really good if you're not a pizza fan.

4. More food - At the end of the day we went to the Disney shop on Hollywood Blvd and ordered a waffle cone with one scoop of ice cream each. Omg they were massive (I'm not complaining though haha) it was so yummy :)

5. Have fun - It's a corny thing to say I know but have fun. It is amazing there, make the most of every second because it's easy to get carried away and to not take it all in. There is so much going on but that is part of the Hollywood vibe it is not like any other place I've been before.

Thanks for reading it means a lot :), I will put some pictures below so you can see some of the highlights  x

 

 

 

 

http://www.cpk.com/ - California Pizza Kitchen Website

 

@calpizzakitchen - Twitter

 

 

 

Flying tips

The idea of a long plane journey sounds boring and to some people even a little scary. I didn't used to like flying very much but since we have done a few planes journeys; a short one and a few long ones to LA.  I have realised there is nothing to be nervous about. The flight attendants do it all day, every day and to them it is nothing more than going in a car. It is alright to get a little bit nervous but there is truly no need to be. Once you have settled on the plane here are a few ideas to pass the time.

• Watch movies - if it is a long haul flight and you have a TV make the most of it. Sit back, enjoy yourself, relax and snuggle down.
• Read a book or colour in - reading a book is a pretty obvious thing to do. As most of the time is pretty quiet on an airplane take advantage of the situation. Colouring in sounds really young but in the UK (and probably the US but I haven't seen any) you can get "grown up colouring books" they have cute patterns in which are actually really relaxing to colour in.
• Sleep - if you can you might as well sleep. It passes the time really quickly and most people (I know I could) use a little more sleep. Get a blanket, get comfy and enjoy the journey.
• Pamper yourself - buy a face mask to do on the plane as skin tends to get really dry so make sure you moisturise afterwards as well. File your nails or try doing your hair and make up if that is something you enjoy.
• Do the stuff you never really have time to do - play a game on your iPad, draw or talk to your family or friends.
• These are just a few ideas you could try to pass the time. But most importantly enjoy the flight, look out the window and make the most of being waited on hand and foot.
  
  
  

  

  These photos are from our holiday last Summer.

   

Lions and tigers and bears.. oh my!

Hi world! Last weekend we went to Los Angeles Zoo, in Griffiths Park. Its a HUGE zoo with lots of amazing animals that you can see up-close, it also has multiple cafes and shops to go into. We were lucky that the day we went wasn't too hot. We thought we would give you our top 5 things to do at the zoo...


1) Eat churros - after studying Spanish for 6 years and learning about churros multiple times whenever the topic food came up, it was very educational to try some out..

2) See the chimps - they have a very large enclosure with a glass window. Its a great viewing space especially when they are being fed as they come so close to the window.

3) Have a caricature drawn - shout out to the girl who did the drawing! She was AMAZING, our mum had the picture drawn and she managed to capture her eyes and features perfectly.

4) Visit the lions, tigers and bears - we recommend this just so you can sing the song when telling your friends about your visit to the zoo.. We  actually did visit these animals however they were all sleeping :(

5) Have your photo taken - when entering the zoo a person in a blue top will ask to take a photo. They will ask you to have your hands out on top of each other and later put a computerised tiger on top. I think photos like this are always great to have to look back on.

That's all for now, thanks for reading.

R and B x

Here's the zoo's website - http://www.lazoo.org/

I'm melting....

So one thing we have learnt pretty well already is how to cope with heat. At its highest it has been 100F or 38C in the last few weeks. We wanted to share our tips on how to stay cool, as apparently England is very hot at the moment, who knew?!

First things first (desperately trying not to sing Iggy) ALWAYS carry a bottle of water around with you. In the morning I like to put a bottle in the freezer as by the time you need it, it will have frozen and gradually will melt when you drink it keeping it very cold throughout the day.

Next, air con. Air con is a gift. Honestly, if you can be some where which is air conditioned be there! It is nice to be outside but when it is boiling hot it can get a bit much sometimes. The hottest part of the day is between 11am and 3pm so if you can, keep out of the sun between these times, and maybe go shop...

Make sure that you wear the right clothes and have sunscreen on, it sounds like a nagging thing to say but its very important... If you wear heavy, bulky clothing like a tracksuit or jumpers you will get much hotter than if you wore a strappy top and some shorts. So if you're going on holiday somewhere hot make sure that pack the correct clothes.

Lastly opening windows may seem on a good idea but this actually makes its hotter so keep your windows shut, and shut the curtains, it will also prevent all the creepy crawlies and spiders *shudder* entering your house.

I hope these tips help, these are just what we have learnt from the last week and a half, if you have any tips, we will be very grateful. Even though it can get very hot try to enjoy the
nice weather.
R and B x



As we were talking about heat I thought I would include a photo from our holiday last year. We went to Madeira, it was very hot but lovely :) 

What's new?

I thought I would write a blog post about the differences we have noticed so far in the US. First of all everyone is so much more friendly. Practically every person you pass even if you've never seen them before will say something to you. This is probably normal in America but in the UK it is quite an unusual thing to happen, not many people will say something to you as you pass one another.
 Another thing that we have realised is that everything is bigger. Food portions, shops, roads anything you can think is probably double the size. It takes AGES to look around one shop. We were in target today for about an hour got around 1/15 of it, while in England spend an hour shopping and end up visiting all of the shops you intended too.
The food. I have been enjoying the food (especially when we went out for breakfast) but everything tastes so different - even the bread. How can bread taste different? and orange juice what's that about? For us it is also very strange driving on the wrong side of the road. Well obviously the right side (punny - this is going well) but we have our GPS so we are on the right road (I'm on a roll) although I expect that wont take long.
The last thing is super markets or grocery stores. There is basically nothing the same apart from a few things like naked smoothies or evian water. But everything else is different so trying to work out what's the nice food is another adventure in itself. (Any advice or tips are warmly welcomed)

R and B x

Fathers day Breakfast

On Sunday for Fathers day we treated ourselves to go and have breakfast out. Once we had got up and ready (which did take a while) we left. The place we went to was only a 5 or 10 minute drive so was perfect as by this time it was already around 11:00 and we hadn't eaten anything. When we got there we had to wait which wasn't ideal but was worth it in the end. The food was DELICIOUS! Honestly, they were the best pancakes I have ever tasted! If anyone was in my area and asked for a breakfast recommendation hands down I would say there. I will put some photos below and yes, I do realise all the photos on this blog (apart from 1) are food. Don't worry that wont always be the case but I have been enjoying food lately.
I'm on a role writing blog posts at the moment so I will upload one soon,

R and B x

Waffles with strawberries, bananas and blueberries (Rosies)

Nutella, strawberries and banana crepe (Beth)

Pancakes with strawberries, bananas and blueberries (our Mums)

Scrambeled eggs, breakfast potatoes and bacon (our Dads)

Arriving in Angeles

Hi guys,

We have been in LA for 4 days now and slowly the jet lag is disappearing as we didn't fall asleep this afternoon! We are gradually adjusting to the weather and the ways of LA. The weather is so hot  it was 32 degrees centigrade yesterday which is 90 degrees fahrenheit, thank god for air con! A bit different from an English summers day where you have to bring a coat and an umbrella out with you.
So far we have visited Best Buy to get GPS' as we have no idea where we are headed to, and we went to Target for the first time. When we walked in it was mesmerising and massive! Eventually we bought a kettle to make tea. As I mean we are British but surprisingly I actually hate tea. After that we went grocery shopping at Pavilions. We spent a few hours in there, lost our parents and ended up coming out with a shed load of food. But don't get me wrong I'm not complaining! Then yesterday we went to look around some houses. That's all the adventures we have got up to so far not bad for 4 days when your jet lagged!

We will upload another blog soon and any feedback is welcomed.

R and B x

Almost there

As we write this it is our last day living in England. We have never lived anywhere but in England and within a 5 mile radius, so it feels very weird to say that, although I don't think it's really sunk in. It doesn't feel real just yet. Last night we stayed in a hotel which was really nice and the food was amazing! This morning we came back to our house for the packing to be finished and then the 40 foot container was loaded - the container was HUGE literally the length of 2 houses. It was so strange to see everything you own being driven off and the next time we see it will be 6 to 8 weeks later! Tonight we are staying in the hotel again but have an extremely early start tomorrow morning. We have to wake up at 5 but on the bright side (punny) we will get to see the sun rise.
We will blog soon, come join the adventure!
 All that's really left to say- see you across the pond!

R and B x






The container that pulled up outside our house

Dessert one night - cherry and chocolate pudding

Dinner - chicken and potatoes

Another dinner - halibut and fruit purees

New beginnings - but not a new year

Hello world!

Let us introduce ourselves; we are two teenage girls from London, who have an amazing chance this summer that only happens to a few people but many dream about. This week we are packing our bags  and moving to LA. We have wanted to visit LA for years and here we are this week flying off on Friday to go and live the American dream. The last few months have been an emotional blur of goodbyes, selling the house and exams. We thought that it would be a nice idea to share our adventures with you on here.
We are also thinking of making a youtube channel to vlog and make videos on so you can see the places we visit and explore.
Thanks for taking your time to look at our blog,
We will try our best to blog regularly and update you on how things are going.

Rosie and Beth x