So I’m officially in the US, has having survived a marathon wrong way around the world trip from Sydney to LA – 12 1/2 hrs from Sydney to Abu Dhabi, 3 hr layover and a 15 1/2 hour flight to LA.
The Emirates service was outstanding as you would expect. Leg #1 to AD was the new Airbus A-380 which is luxurious even in economy (ok I had an entire row to myself so effectively got a bed for the whole trip), and fly brilliantly, but is an absolute monster to land. We pitched and yawed quite a bit at the end!
Bad thing about back to back longhaul legs with the same carrier is that the list of available movies doesn’t change on leg #2 – I can safely say that I have now watched every new release available on Emirates E-box system. Best of the bunch was the new Amy Winehouse doco!
One really good thing about doing it this way was US security and customs pre-clearance in Abu Dhabi – took less than 5 mins (I was first cab off the rank for the day at around 7 am), which meant no customs in LA – just a walk out of the terminal to baggage claim and straight onto US soil.
Thinking about it now – it might mean that you could potentially buy up big at duty free in LAX as there is no security or customs check – I suppose they will have thought of that but…
The Alamo rental car shuttle arrived in about 3 mins, a quick 10 min trip to the office, 5 mins of paperwork and I was the proud owner of a Nissan Versa Note SV (the Americans call it a “compact” because it has a small boot), equipped with Garmin GPS.
Those that know me will shudder at the thought of me driving RH drive on LA freeways (having chosen not to own a car since around 2006), and I did give myself a stern admonishment to CONCENTRATE! as I exited Alamo and made my first right hand turn.
I admit that the sight of downtown LA with the Hollywood sign off in the distance was a little thrilling as I came down the freeway from LAX, but it was quickly back to “eyes on the road buddy” as I started hitting peak hour traffic and passing all those freeway signs seen on TV shows and movies.
Clearly though, my sublime driving abilities have laid dormant rather than decayed over the years – 45 mins later I’m safely at my Airbnb destination with only one missed exit (due to not knowing I could drive in the FastExpress lane) but it only cost me about 3 miles and 10 mins.
Time for a shower, a change of clothes, then it’s off to cruise San Gabriel’s restaurant strip for dinner.
Tomorrow – the search for my new car/home for the next 6 months gets underway, as well as needing to get a us phone sim to use.
Plus a bit of sight seeing in la la land.
Night y’all
