Warner Brothers Update - We Saw Someone Famous!!!

An update on our Warner Brothers VIP Tour. We saw some guys standing around in Star Wars costumes, clearly working. Although there were no cameras it was obviously for something real, so I took a few photos as we passed.

It turns out, it was a skit for Conan, and the guy who waved at us was Michael Moore!!!! I didn't recognise him at the time.

This has now aired. Check out this video on Conan's website (you will need to sit through an advertisement first), then have a look at the photos below.

In my photos, they were standing right outside the lobby where they filmed this.

Pretty cool huh?

Warner Brothers VIP Tour

So here we are again. We visited here before with my Dad on 1st January 2008. Today it is John's turn.

Last time we visited, apart from being holiday season, the writer's strike was on and the place was a ghost town. The back lots were quiet, nothing was happening. This time, the place was busy busy busy! There were people everywhere, live sets, construction work on sets, etc.

We toured the usual backlots (New York streets, Chicago streets) plus many of the actual areas where they build stuff indoors. We even got to see some actual filming in progress for the Conan O'Brien Show (now known as Conan).

Since the show Friends finished, they have a permanent set of Central Perk to take us shameless tourists to. Here it is!

We were taken inside and down some of the corridors of the props department. Here, all props are stored, and checked in and out for use in filming. The corridors were lined with furniture and other interesting stuff. There were many rooms filled with lights, furniture etc.

We got to walk through the "jungle" which is an area with a lake, a few buildings and lots of trees. This building has been used in countless movies and TV shows, most recently this is the Merlotte's Bar and Grill on True Blood.

We were taken inside to walk through the actual sets for Hart of Dixie, on the soundstage. This is one of Helen's favourite shows and was great to see the actual sets.

Toward the end of the tour, we passed a live shooting for Hart of Dixie in progress. This was great to see, and they were actually stopping and starting filming as we passed. This was in the famous Warner's Town Square, used for so many shows including the Dukes of Hazzard and Gilmour Girls.

The tour lasted about 2 1/4 hours, not too bad. The only disappointment was the restriction of cameras on sets. I can vaguely understand why, but it is a shame nonetheless. Otherwise, we enjoyed it very much and it was worth returning.

We have until this evening to return to LAX and catch our plane to Auckland. All good things must come to an end.

Shopping on Halloween

Today was shopping day. We had decided to stay in Pasadena, for a change of scenery, as we had never stayed here before. By internet, it seemed to be surrounded by the types of stores we needed, and was close to Warner Brothers which we will visit tomorrow.

Pasadena itself it a nice area, but the shops we found on the internet (and GPS in surrounding neighbourhoods) not so much. We ended up visiting two Wal-Marts both of which were in dodgy areas and in one I think we were the only white people in the store! Being on the eve of Halloween, and then Halloween itself, the stored were overrun with Hispanic families, the stores were a mess, and the shelves were just about empty of items we were interested in (especially our favourite socks/undies/singlets which are so cheap here). The GPS took us through some pretty run down neighbourhoods too. I half expected to be carjacked or worse.

The night before, we had stopped in this giant Asian shop in Pasedena, for a nosey. It was like a Wal-Mart from Hong Kong, full of products from China, including a supermarket section but also jewellery, electronics, clothes etc. Everyone was looking at us funny wondering what white people were doing in there. It felt safe however, being in a better area. Our mission was to buy my favourite Sriracha Sauce which we cannot buy in NZ but I love this stuff more than The Oatmeal. We bought some (only $2.35 per bottle) and from reading the bottle I realised the factory was right nearby in Rosemead.

Today, while the GPS took us on a tour of scary neighbourhoods, we were passing through Rosemead. A short detour later, and we stopped by the factory to take a photo. We didn't go inside but could see the place full of boxes of my sauce inside. Yummmmmmm.

At the Montebello Wal-Mart, we did purchase some stuff and I handed the checkout person a $100 bill. To check it's real, they held it up to the light. Everyone was looking at it with their eyes poking out of their head. I was wondering if we would make it out to the car in one piece.


Disillusioned with the shopping, we ventured further afield than we had expected to, and ended up West of Pasadena in Glendale which was a nicer area, then we went to Burbank to book our Warner Brothers tour for tomorrow. We went even further West to Van Nuys and found a nice Wal-Mart. This was cleaner and quite inside, and we blended in better with the clientele. We found the store well stocked, and got what we wanted. My faith in Wal-Mart is restored!

Helen was asked for the third time today, to assist someone, because they though she was a staff member. She must have that look about her.

By now, we were getting on toward dinner time. The trusty GPS took us to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. We expected it to be busy but they seated us straight away and we got a great booth by the window where we could see what was going on outside.

It's Halloween and all day long we've seen people dressed in costumes, both young and old alike. Much like when the Sevens are on in Wellington but without the booze. Especially funny seeing all the little kids dressed as superheroes etc. At the Galleria where we ate dinner, we could see people tick or treating and the mall had a special "Spooktacular" on.

For the trip back to Pasadena, the GPS took us on the freeway. Once we got past 2 accidents, which was slow going, the traffic was humming along at over 70MPH, we were flying. Not bad when the speed limit is 55MPH. The radio had some smooth jazz playing that seemed in beat with the joins in the freeway and it felt really cruisey. Although Helen was driving and may have felt differently. Suddenly, our exit arrived, at speed, and we were trapped in the far left diamond lane (which we can only enter/exit at certain points). The exit point came just before our offramp. At this speed, we managed to push across six lanes of traffic and just made our exit. Phew!!!

We made it back to the hotel free of bullet holes or fender benders. Tomorrow, we visit Warner Brothers in the morning, then fly back to NZ later in the evening. We might not be able to blog again until we are home depending on what happens at LAX.

Thanks for reading!

Arriving in Los Angeles / Pasadena

There is nothing quite like flying into Los Angeles. I was lucky enough to have the window seat today. The sight of those massive freeways snaking across the city, and those massive interchanges, is incredible from high above. Because we were in a smaller plane, our approach to LAX went right past the airport, looking down on it, then we took a steep turn to come in and land. We also got to see the Hollywood Sign really clearly through the left side which was great.

Landing and fetching our luggage was a breeze, the airport was really quiet because of flight disruptions caused by Hurricane Sandy on the eastern seaboard.

We made a beeline for Hertz where our car waited. We did a kiosk check-in, where you stand in front of a kiosk, holding a phone handset, and talk via webcam with a Hertz representative somewhere. The process was quick and seamless and all our paperwork printed on the kiosk.

Once we walked across the lot, we found a big van in the spot where our car should be. The car was nearby, and too small for us and all our luggage. Helen went back inside to do some sweet talking, and next thing we got a free upgrade to the van. Woo hoo! The van is a huge eight seater and has doors that slide open and closed at the push of a button. It also has a special mirror so the driver can keep an eye on the "kids" in the back. In our case, the "kid" is 83 years old.

 
By now it was after 3pm. We hadn't eaten since 7am, but were keen to get to our hotel in Pasadena before traffic got to busy on the freeway. Although not peak hour(s) it was still pretty heavy and with much stop/start. It took about an hour to get to Pasadena.

Pasadena is a nice area, very clean in the main areas (just don't venture too far into the back streets) and this is the view straight across from our hotel room.

While Helen checked in, I perused the pamphlets in the lobby, looking for dinner. I found a single, well used menu for a place called Robins Wood Fire BBQ. Bring it on! As soon as we dropped the bags, I dialed up Robins on the GPS. This meant another short and busy freeway drive. Robins was great, a real authentic BBQ joint, and the food was delicious! John wimped out and had a salad (but helped Helen anyway), I had pulled pork and Helen had ribs. We arrived starving, and left waddling out the door stuffed.

Too early to retire, we went to a local WalMart (see tomorrow's blog post for details) then went home to bed.

Goodbye Seattle & Lynnwood

Today we were scheduled to fly out of Seattle to Los Angeles. Our flight was 11:20am.

We expected bad traffic so were up early. A final bag pack, and clearing of the room, didn't take too long. By the time we had breakfast at the hotel, it was 8am when we were ready to depart.

The drive to SeaTac Airport went south on the freeway, past Seattle downtown and out the other side, during peak hour traffic. We crawled the whole way, the diamond lane being no faster than the others. Only at one point did we get over about 20MPH. 5 lanes of trafffic going nowhere!

Not far before we hit downtown, the freeway has a express lane. This is a great setup. The main freeway is 4-5 lanes each direction. The expressway is an additional 3-4 lanes wide and sits between them. It has a couple of entry and exit points only, and lots of signs and moving barriers. The traffic direction changes at certain times. We took the expressway, where we eventually picked up more speed. It ducks and dives under and over the main freeway, most impressive.

An hour later, once near the airport, we had to fill the car with petrol. The station we went to was run by Indians (as in the Republic of India) and had many Indians in suits hanging around. There were several limos parked outside. The place felt like it was run by the Indian Mafia. Everywhere in the USA we've visited, we need to prepay before filling. I went inside, and before I opened my wallet he waved me outside to fill up anyway. We're guessing nobody would dare do a runner from them without paying.

Once at the airport, we returned the rental car then went to the terminal for 1 1/2 hours of hell. The ticketing counter was a joke, so disorganised, and the guy who served us was like watching a slow motion video. This guys must never get stressed, I certainly was just waiting for him. We then had a long queue for airport security, where we had to remove shoes and jackets along with unpack gadgets. I pity Americans who fly often. The process is horrible but the TSA staff were friendly and helpful.

Our flight was on a CLJ-700 which we'd never heard of, or been on. We were all booked to sit in the back row. The plane is small (2 seats each side in economy) and the overhead bins are small. Many people (including us) struggled to fit out carry on in but we only just managed. The flight is 2 1/2 hours so nothing to do but sit tight.

Next stop, Los Angeles.

A Lazy Day in Lynnwood

As we didn't have anything planned today, we had a sleep in and a later breakfast.

Helen wanted to visit Jo-Ann and then we planned to check out a store we've never visited before called Fred Meyer who actually turned to be a great find, with a selection of clothes at fantastic prices. By the time we finished doing the rounds, with a couple of additional stops along the way, it was after 3pm. So much for having nothing to do!

As we're flying to Los Angeles tomorrow, we packed our bags, then had an early dinner at the hotel. Helen and I decided to return to the outlet malls for a little more clothes shopping.

Our time in Seattle / Everett / Lynnwood has come to an end. Tomorrow we have busy day ahead returning the rental car and flying to LA. Then it won't be much longer until we return home.

Snoqualmie Falls & Casino

A short trip east from Seattle, Snoqualmie Falls is worth a visit. We had an easy drive, as outside the city the roading network around these parts are still multi-lane freeways.

We parked at the visitors centre, so had to walk all of 30 seconds to reach the popular lookout. The noise from the waterfal is immense and the air is full of mist spray.

The falls actually have power generation tunnels on either side, so only excess water runs over the fall. There was plenty of water on display for us today so we really enjoyed the view.

Next we went to Snoqualmie Casino. We didn't know what to expect, but were impressed with the character this building has. Looks can be deceiving however. Styled like a lodge, sitting on the edge of a hill with amazing views, behind is a multi-story carpark and several other carparks. This place means business. There was a steady stream of cars pouring in when we arrived. Everyone had the same idea as us (or did we have the same idea as them?).

We hadn't eaten since breakfast, and knew the dinner buffet opened at 4:00pm, so planned to get there on opening as we were starving. By the time we had a wander around, getting our quota of passive smoking for the year, it was 3:45pm. By then, the queue for the buffet was 45 minutes long!!! We got more and more hungry while we waited for a table.

The wait was worth it, the surprise was that Sunday night is "king crab night", there are crab legs for everyone. They were messy to eat, as we had to break the crab shells, but very yummy. I ate a whole grilled jelopeno from the mexican station, and regretted it. Soft serve to the rescue to sooth my burning mouth!!!! We were there about an hour, and by the time we left the queue was longer than where we started. Very popular.

Tomorrow is our last full day in Seattle, we fly out on Tuesday morning. We have nothing planned so can have a good sleep in.

Museum of Flight

Actually today it was called the "Museum of Fright" because it is Halloween. There were special events on for children and families. The upside, admission was a special price so we saved some money. The downside, the place was full of kids dressed in costumes. I've never seen so many miniature Spidermen in my life!

Helen and I have visited here before but it was worth another look and John enjoyed his first visit. This museum has many exhibits including World War I / II, commercial, space, a general area inside full of planes, and the special drawcards outside. They have the original Boeing 707 Air Force One plane, the original Boeing 747, the original Boeing 737, and a Conchorde. We were able to walk on board Air Force One and the Conchorde.

Seeing the original planes, which feature painted signatures of the pilots who completed the first test flights, is pretty special. How brave must they have been! There was no computer modelling, and the planes were very mechanical. They had to have total trust in the engineers who designed these planes.

Inside is one of my favourite planes, the Lookheed Blackbird. They also have a separate Blackbird cockpit from another plane, so I was able to sit inside it! It's tiny, I would never have made a good pilot.

The museum has a new pavilion opening soon, which features the actual Space Shuttle Trainer from NASA. This has been relocated to here now the Shuttle programme has finished. Although we couldn't go inside, we had a good look at it through the window. It's full size and looks like a Shuttle, although sits on a moving cradle.

Next time we're in Seattle, we'll be back to take a look at this.

Our Day in Seattle City Centre

This morning we had plans to head into the city, to meet up with Amber, who is Helen's second cousin.

Our drive in was difficult, with heavy rain and poor visibility on the freeway. To make matters worse, we couldn't rely on the GPS as we had directions to a parking building (Pacific Centre) which we were following off a piece of paper. Problems aside, we made it there intact without taking a wrong turn.

Already on this trip, more than one person has commented to us that "Seattle has a Starbucks on every corner". To test this theory, knowing we were walking around aimlessly, I decided I would count every Starbucks we walk past, even if we pass the same one twice.

We stepped out onto Pine Street just after 9am. The city was still mostly closed. It was raining, and there were many homeless people around.

We made a beeline for the Starbucks at Pike Place Markets (with a brief stop at the Columbia clothing store on the way). This is the original Starbucks store and as such requires queuing to order a drink. We noticed it has a different Starbucks logo, in brown with a different picture.

The rain didn't stop and to cheer us up, a busker arrived. There were many pieces of paper stuck to the wall, indicating which buskers had "booked" which time slots that day. A busker hadn't turned up for 10am, so he took their place.

Amber, and her man Gilbert, turned up maybe 15 minutes after us. After they bought their coffee too, we took a leisurely walk through the Pike Place Markets. No purchases were made but it is a very lively and colourful place.

Once we emerged from the other end, I guided us down Post Alley, a small underground tunnel. Here we visited the Gum Wall, where over the years people have stuck their chewing gum to the wall. This sounds disgusting and really it is, but intriguing to see. Some parts are just plastered in gum, and some people have been quite creative with what they've done.

Next, we took a set walk across to the Monorail. This was built in 1962 and was the first in the USA. It would have been so futuristic back then, and in a sense still is as they're not common. However the style of it is a bit dated, and the seating inside reminded me of a 60's diner. The ride from downtown to the Space Needle is only a few minutes long. It was much bumpier than I expected too. Still is was a novelty to ride my first Monorail and I enjoyed every second.

At the Space Needle, we walked around the general area, by now the rain had eased. We didn't visit inside any of the attractions (including the Space Needle) but rather just had a nice walk.

After returning to downtown on the Monorail, Amber took us to a nice place for lunch, which did the most amazing garlic fries. After eating these, we weren't concerned about vampires visiting us from Forks.

Amber and Gilbert had parked in the same building as us, so we wandered there together and said our long goodbyes. Then we were on our merry way.

In case you were wondering - we only walked past 9 Starbucks (of which maybe 2 or 3 were the same counted twice). That's not so bad.

By now it was mid afternoon. We bummed around for the remainder of the day driving around. I visited a BMW motorbike shop, they had a great range of bikes and accessories. I was most impressed and spent ages in here. We also visited WalMart to buy more socks, and had Mexican for dinner. I loved the Chile Relleno which isn't generally available in New Zealand.

Microsoft - Surface and Windows 8 Launch

Today's blog is for all the geeks out there. We visited Microsoft.

First port of call was the Microsoft Visitors Centre in Redmond, located in the Microsoft campus. We followed the instructions on the Microsoft website, which were great except on one line it said "left" turn when it should have said "right" turn.

Getting a park was very easy. We wandered in and found it a rather empty inside, a large reception desk and long wide corridors. The only area we could access was the visitor centre, and the store opposite.

The visitor centre showcased many historical products, and their modern equivalent in the Microsoft world. Examples are Atari 2600 console (now XBox360) and Video Cassette Recorder (now Windows Media Centre).

The coolest thing they had on display was an original Altair 8800. This computer was where it all started for Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Amazing what they saw in this array of lights and switches back in the day.

The remainder of the visitors centre was a slick, but ultimately quite boring, showcase of many current Microsoft products. Largely dominated by Kinnect, and large touch screens used as a giant tablet. It would have been nice to see some "museum" type items such as original IBM PC running DOS, older versions of Windows, etc. Instead we might as well have been in a snazzy retail store.

We went across to the shop, full of pricy Microsoft t-shirts and junk for your office desk. The only area we couldn't enter was where their software is for sale, this was open to employees only. No photos allowed of this section either! Oh yes we wanted in.... Error 5 Access denied. Helen bought a t-shirt that says "I visited Microsoft and all I got was this t-shirt". Too true.

Outside, the campus is beautiful, with well groomed trees and flags everywhere. Currently they are promoting Surface and Windows 8.

It's no coincidence we're here today. Today is worldwide launch day for the Surface tablet, and Windows 8. We drove past 1 Microsoft Way" and on the sports field alongside, there was a giant marquee being set up, obviously party time tonight at Microsoft.

Next we made our way to Bellevue Square, which is a massive and very modern shopping mall, in Bellevue, not far from Redmond. Traffic was a nightware and finding a park took some time.

In here, there is a Microsoft store. The first we've ever seen. Here, there was a queue for people to purchase Surface tablets. The wait was a couple of hours. Everyone in the line was fumbling with their phones, no doubt twittering about their anticipated purchases.

 We got to play with the surface in store. Actually not bad once you get to experience it for yourself. Apparently thousands of other store visitors came away with a similar impression

I purchased a Windows 8 media package. After me questioning thoroughly, two staff members confirmed it was a full install retail pack. Later, while we sat to have drinks, I used free WiFi on my trusty iPhone to research what I had purchased. It turned out I didn't get what I had wanted. I went back to get a refund and another staff member confirmed that full retail packs are not available yet. I had purchased an upgrade. What a poor experience that was, given it was launch day I would have thought the staff would know their stuff.

Not worn out yet, we walked the mall and Helen found herself a new carry on suitcase.

The remainder of the day consisted of driving back to Lynwood, driving around for the fun of it, and later having dinner. We will get a small sleep in tomorrow morning, then head into Seattle city centre.

Mountain Loop Highway

Today, after finishing at Boeing, we went for a drive. We chose to drive the Mountain Loop Highway, which is north east of Everett and Seattle. This area is a popular hiking and camping region during summer, but this time of year the roads are quiet.

We started by stopping for lunch at Wendys in Everett. Over the road, we spot Henry's Donuts. This looks like some relic from the '60s or '70s so of course we have to visit. Actually the donuts were delicious.

From here, the road trip went up the I-5 before turning off. The roads quickly narrowed and became one lane each way, the equivalent of State Highway One back in New Zealand. Unfortunately the speed limit was only 45mph. Ridiculous! The road was wet and we were driving a 4WD so I took it pretty easy anyway.

The road took a counter-clockwise route around several mountains, and took a pass where we were surrounded my mountains covered in snow on both sides. Absolutely beautiful scenery. There were also rivers and bridges galore. Here's a couple of sample photos, these look like they could have been taken anywhere in New Zealand.

There was a long unsealed portion of road where our 4WD was useful, for bouncing through potholes and over bumps. It got quite muddy especially on the sides and back. Good fun!

We stopped in Darrington to buy drinks. Here we went into the local supermarket, and found the place full of rednecks and hillbillies. We sat outside and watched the world go by. Most amusing. Mostly old trucks and funny people. To be fair, the town is in a picturesque location below the mountains.

I have so far forgotten to mention, it is Halloween soon. Pumpkins are everywhere and there are huge fields full of them. This one had a scarecrow on the fence.

Eventually we carried on and reached civilisation again about 5:30pm. After a long exciting day, we returned to the hotel for a relaxing evening.

It was great to get out of town, and enjoy the scenery, and see some "real" America. So much more authentic than the cities.