Ozzie-pics up on my picasa :)

Yepp, brand new pics are up on my picasa:

http://picasaweb.google.com/ingrideftodi/AroundTheWorld2010Australia#

See and enjoy, hugs

Ingrid

Sum up of California and Arizona!

First week in US and Los Angeles:

Landed in LA on the 19th of January 2010, after a night stop in Chicago, had seafood dinner the first night with Rita and Dorin in Redondo Beach.
Salsa dancing in Redondo Beach, at Club 705, LA-style salsa, the people were so nice, I danced a lot even if I didn´t know anyone there, got some tips of other good salsa places in LA.

Downtown LA and visit at Dorin´s workplace high in the sky. Bought my jeans here, so happy that I can change pants to some more proper one´s.
Visit to Griffith Observatory and watched a show there too, my weight on Pluto was zero, nice :).

Went up to the Getty Museum, up the hill in a small train, good that it rained, less people and it was a beautiful exhibition about Rembrandt, sketches and drawings. This a place I truly recommend to you to visit if you´re in LA. On the same day as Getty Museum, we went to some beaches in LA, Marina del Rey, El Segundo, Venice Beach (with the crazy people and funny stuff happening there all the time).

Hollywood Boulevard and the walk of fame saw that too, not much to see actually, not impressive, too touristic for me.

Drove to Pasadena with Dorin, my father´s cousin, my uncle, and had a wonderful afternoon in the Huntington Park, what a place, the most beautiful garden I´ve seen, even in wintertime is was gorgeous. Took a garden tour a guide who know everything there is to know about the garden, the flowers, the trees etc.

Second week in US and Los Angeles/San Fransisco:

Garden visit number 2 to Descanso Gardens, not that nice as Huntington but very peaceful and quite place.

Malibu beach and my first encounter to Swedish people, didn´t talk to them, just listened and walk past them. Did a long walk with Dorin on the beach, many beautiful houses and we had dinner at Paradise Cove, a large plate of seafood of course.
More salsa dancing, in Santa Monica, at Zanzibar, a cool place, lots of cuban style music, lots and lots of dancing, bachata, salsa, merengue …

Had a rest day in the middle of the week, nice change, took a climb walk with Veronica and Dorin by the rocks of Palos Verde, what a climb! Had a wonderful good sushi with Veronica, Dorin, Andy and Marcella at a sushi place in Downy.

Took off towards SF (San Fransisco) on Wednesday, stopped for sleeping along the PCH (pacific coast highway) in San Lois Obispo and in Monterey before we arrived to SF on Friday the 29th of January. Memorable stops along the road were: Santa Barbara, Monterey and Hearst Castle. SF for 2 nights and 3 days, cable cars, Alcatraz Island, bike tour over the Golden Gate bridge, marrocean dinner in SF downtown – lovely good food and drinks there (instead of Bourbon and Branch, they didn´t let me in since I didn´t have my passport with me, left it in LA), salsa night at Café Cocomo – amazing good dancing to live band – probably more than 500 people there! Before we left SF we went to the Young Museum and walked in the gardens there, danced some swing, watched the view over SF and then drove back to LA on the 405 or 105, don´t remember no more.

Third and last week in US and Los Angeles/San Diego/Tucson:

More salsa dancing at Zanzibar in Santa Monica, live band and lots of good dancers everywhere. Thanks for the many salsa and bachata Miguel!

Drive to San Diego, 2 hours from LA, visited SeaWorld, too much of a hype around this place, did like it and didn´t like it at the same time. Terrible that the animals, fishes and birds are all caged in and can´t enjoy the free world … the coolest was the killer whales show with Shamu the big whale and all the acrobatic things they did with the help of some water. Dinner in downtown San Diego, had Mexican food, fish tacos for me, delicious.

Day off with rest on Friday the 5th of February, thai massage, bike tour to the beach, sport photo exhibition in Century City – saw the current expo of Iooss and Leifer …. grand photos! End of day with a Colombian party in the evening, where we celebrated Dorin´s birthday, congratulations Dorin! More salsa dancing here and lots of laughs and talk to nice Colombian people.

On Sunday 7th of February I took the flight to Tucson in Arizona, for 2 days visiting Miguel, who was there with work – one of the biggest jewelry and gems expo in the world … back in LA on Tuesday 9th of February just at couple of hours before my flight to Fiji, tough day and a very long one too.

Bye America and next adventure is Fiji!

Pics for California & Arizona and Fiji are up!

Goday mates :)

Sorry for not updating the pics, but very difficult to do from Fiji, almost no internet connection on Mana Island where I was for two weeks. Sometimes it´s good to be disconnected to the world :)

A short sum up of California and Arizona will come in a few days with some pictures too.

Pictures for California and Arizona are found here (14 new ones at the bottom): http://picasaweb.google.com/ingrideftodi/AroundTheWorld2010CaliforniaAndArizona#

Fiji pictures here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/ingrideftodi/AroundTheWorld2010Fiji#

Enjoy and do tell me if you like the pictures :)
Hugs from down under, Sydney,
Ingrid

New photos are up again!

Hi hi,

I know a photo is telling you all more than my words so I don´t write to much ... have uploaded new pictures on my Picasa instead ....
http://picasaweb.google.com/ingrideftodi/AroundTheWorld2010California#

I have seen so much and done so much, which you will see in the pictures :)

Hugs to you all,
Ingrid

Photos are up :)

Yes, I have now done some homework and I have put up some pictures on picasa;

http://picasaweb.google.com/ingrideftodi/AroundTheWorld2010California#


Hugs to you all,
Ingrid

Hello from America & LA :)

Hejhej,

I´m now in LA after two flights, a 7 hour delay from Kastrup and a night @ Chicago
O´Hare Airport, where I stayed at Hilton. What a grand start for my trip! YEAH!

Started the voyage on Monday morning from Lund, checked in my big back pack at Kastrup and headed out from the airport with mum since my flight was delayed. Took of from Kastrup around 23 and landed in Chicago at 01:00 am Tuesday morning. After a few hours of sleep at Hilton and the big huge good breakfast I took to flight to LA in the afternoon.

Dorin, my father cousin met me and drove me home where I met Tanti Stella, Dorins´s mother who I have not seen since I was a little girl. Yesterday was an easy relaxing day, had dinner with Dorin and Rita (Dorin´s wife) by the beach in Redondo Beach where I ate some crab fish salad and on the way home we checked out a salsa place where we will go back today in the evening, they have salsa there with a live band :) tonight, so wish me luck in a couple of hours!

This is a short sum up of the biggest things so far ... picture will come in a few days so have patience :)

At the moment it´s raining quite heavily in LA, so today we have indoors activities. Hopefully the sun will come in a few days.

Big hugs from LA,
Ingrid

Days to countdown - 11 days now!

The weekly countdown is over and now I count the days to 18th of January.

Nothing exciting has happened since last year :)
The flight tickets are still changing, STA Travel will send me the last ones in a few days so I have the time and ticket number for the flight to Fiji and Sydney.
Air Pacific are slow :)

I have a lot of packing to do now, all my clothes will go down into the basement and I will have to sort out the travel clothes before. Anyone who has some tips in how to pack for a whole year???

Weekly countdown - 4 weeks minus one day to go!

Yes, one more week is gone ....

Biggest news from last week is that I have found someone to rent out my room to and who is okey to live with my brother for 11 months next year. She is a gamelover person who seems nice and reliable. Will move in after I have left Sweden.

The snow is still here in Lund, perhaps it will melt away in a few days ... picture from Vallåsen yesterday :)

Weekly countdown - 5 weeks to go!

From a snowy Lund longing for a hot sun!

On Monday it was countdown time, so now it's one week less my friends and family.

Today I was at Citykliniken and got two shots, one in each arm, one for Polio-fill up basic vaccine and one for Tyfoid vaccine. All good now for the next year's travelling :)I'm ready for mostly everything (I think, not) :) My arms hurt a bit though even now a few hours after.

Happy to go to bed after a fresh walk in the new snow outside,
Ingrid

Less than 6 weeks to go!

Time is running away, so it seems at least...

Yesterday it was countdown to my starting day, the 18th of January 2010. So now I´m 6 weeks minus one day from boarding the plane for US and Los Angeles. It feels actually a bit scarry to think about leaving family, friends, work, my precious training and so on.

The biggest thing to do before I leave is to fix a new apartment mate (flatmate) to my brother so he doesn´t have to pay the whole rent by him self :)

Wish me LUCK on the BLOCKET hunt!

VISA is granted for Australia!

Yes, I may now travel to Australia since I have applied for the Work & Holiday Visa today. It took me about 20 minutes to do the online application with all the requirements, so now I´m happy :) and less richer too :).

Status message from Australian Goverment - Department of Immigration and Citizenshipis:

Applicant approved - you may now travel to Australia. You do not require a label or stamp in your passport before you travel to Australia.

The Australians like numbers and documents to print out, so now I have:

• Permission request ID number
• Client ID
• Transaction Reference Number (TNR)
• Most important number is the VISA grant number ... that is my entry to Australia when I will show the papers and get a visa in my passport.

Big DAY today :)

I have now booked and paid for my grand trip and it´s really exiting and fun that I´m actually on the way towards my dreams and the big continent of Australia and round the world tour of Ingrid :). The price landed on 12 130 SEK for the route (which is OK and I am satisfied with the price, haha:

Copenhagen - Los Angeles - Fiji - Sydney - Singapore

Will leave cold Sweden on the 18th of January and land in Los Angeles on the same day :) after a short 2 hour transfer in Chicago. In LA I will visit relatives and travel around to San Francisco, San Diego and down to Mexico and if time is on my side a big national park in California as well.

I am now looking forward this BIG trip which I will start in 3 months and 5 days from today!

Hope you will read and follow my blog or travel diary here and also on resedagboken.se, (under the name of zuri) I will write short blogs on resedagboken and more long blongs here ... and if I have good internet connection I will put up som pictures ... and YES dad, large pictures with good resolution :).

Have a wonderful Tuesday,
from a sunny and cold Lund,
Ingrid

Bokningsbekräftelsen är kommen!

Yes, nu har jag mer än halva rutten klar ... den är bokad och ska betalas.
Slutligen landade rutten:
Köpenhamn - Los Angeles (via Chigago) - Fiji - Sydney - Singapore

på 11 313 SEK med skatter och avgifter. Mycket okej pris, så jag slår till och köper paketpriset hos STA Travel i Lund. Yes, så imorgon går jag in på resebyrån och betalar min resa fram till Singapore där jag kommer att landa den 20 september 2010 med flyget från Sydney (stort fett plan från Qantas Airways) :)

Dags att köpa eller boka biljetterna

Hejhej,
Har nu skapat denna blogg i syfte att skriva korta inlägg inför resan nästa år, när jag åker iväg på min jorden runt resa med start den 18 januari 2010.

Har ännu inte köpt mina biljetter och det är ju snart dags .... ska gå in på Kilroy och STA Travel i Lund nästa vecka och jämföra priserna och sedan bestämma mig och boka biljetterna och kanske rentav köpa om det går.