Susanne Gunning

Los Angeles was great – we arrived on April 11 and were met by my brother Robert and nephew Monte at LAX. They took us to Robert’s apartment at Huntington Beach and then out to lunch nearby.

Robert at home - Huntington Beach, Los Angeles

The next day was a day in the life of Robert –starting at his office in Newport Beach, followed by lunch and a famous Mai Tai and onto the warehouse to see the latest motorbikes being prepared for shipping.

A Mai Tai at Newport Beach

Meeting up with Trent, and Lindsay, Travis and Rockee, and Monte and Jessica was very special. I am lucky to have such great nephews.And of course a highlight was seeing my first grand nephew for the first time – Jake Travis – a beautiful boy!  My dear sister in law – Stacy surely agrees!!

Stacy

Marty and I had lots of fun – eating Alaskan King Crab at Captain Jack’s, going out to breakfast and dinner in the duffy, walking out the pier at Huntington Beach and catching up with Kim who drove up from San Diego.

On the way to dinner with Kim on the duffy

We are so grateful to have had some very special family times … thank you Robert! And thanks too to Trent, Monte and Travis.Robert’s generosity extended all the way to taking us to Agoura Hills on Friday April 15, 2011 to pick up the RV and start our USA roadtripStacy – my dear sister-in-law

Marty at the warehouse

Trent and Lindsay

The build up was huge; the four days after finishing work, was mainly cleaning up and packing with a few phone calls and goodbyes. On Monday April 11, we left Sydney at around 1.45 pm Sydney time and we arrived in Los Angeles around 10 am Los Angeles time on the same day. The Qantas flight service was good and and the entertainment screens offered  a good selection of music. Couldn’t recommend the movie “The Tourist” with Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie; a fairly pathetic thriller with Johnny Depp tentatively stepping over the roof tops of Venice in his pyjamas.

Robert's Duffy - Huntington Beach

We’ve been enjoying catching up with family here. Huntington Beach with its waterways, water front homes and boats reminds us a lot of the Gold Coast. We went to dinner last night in the ‘duffy’ – what a peaceful way to see the waterfront homes, relax and chat.  The duffy with its small electric motor putters along, giving us plenty of time to gaze at the palatial homes and comment on the bigger boats, which tend to go out mainly on July 4 and at Christmas.

Update on USA Road Trip