An LA bonus

Our USA road trip is over. We’ve travelled an extraordinary 3,800km in 16 days, visiting a total of six states (although we spent less than five hours driving through Idaho). Thanks Garry!  We also unintentionally extended our vacation by extra day after missing our flight home.

We arrived at the airport on Saturday evening in time to hear a final boarding announcement. We were naturally stunned and couldn't understand how we'd got the departure time so wrong.  However, Qantas was very accommodating. It promptly shifted our ticket to the same flight number; departing the following day.  As fate would have it the delay ultimately proved a blessing in disguise.

Garry had originally tried without success to secure us a First Class upgrade using points.  He tried again using our new flight details. This time he was successful and, as a result, we flew home in total luxury.  I'll happily spend an extra day in LA to secure a lie-flat bed topped with sheepskin-lined mattress.

The unscheduled delay also gave us time to do a little extra sightseeing in Los Angeles. Up to this point we'd simply spent two mad days scouring city stores for shopping bargains. We began our day with a trip to the California Science Museum. It's currently hosting a exhibition of artifacts from the infamous Pompeii eruption, and is one of only four locations displaying an original space shuttle.

We spent an hour viewing exquisite Roman antiquities in the Pompeii exhibition.  The experience concluded with a room filled with plaster casts of bodies encased in volcanic ash. In the 18th Century, archeologists discovered that life-like cavities had formed around the entombed bodies as their organic matter decayed. They filled these spaces with plaster to recreate the original human form. Some of the resulting “statues”  poignantly capture the final moments of death.  It's rather incredible to see.

Those who know me well will appreciate that the highlight of our museum visit was a chance to see the Endeavour Space Shuttle close up. It was the last shuttle built for NASA. All five of the space agency's shuttle were actually built in factory on the outskirts of LA. In acknowledgment of its origins, the Endeavour was shipped to LA after its retirement and put on display.

The shuttle is currently housed in temporary display “shed” behind the museum. It’s been left much it was after its final mission into space. As a result, scorch marks from its fiery re-entry still streak the fuselage and protective tiles on its underbelly. Endeavour looks well used. I spent more than half an hour marveling at its bulk, walking underneath it wings and viewing it from every angle.

The museum itself is located next to the LA Coliseum. This stadium hosted opening ceremonies for the 1932 and 1984 Summer Olympics. Its iconic arch gateway and Olympic torch were instantly recognizable as we drove into the adjacent carpark. Despite many trips to LA I’d never actually seen it in person.  Neither had Garry.  We took a few minutes to walk up to its main gate and marvel at this piece of Olympic history.

Garry and I then drove past the soaring skyscrapers that make up Downtown LA. Another first for both of us. It’s hard to believe that these towers really will survive a major earthquake. I suspect my skepticism reflects the influence of the 1974 disaster movie, Earthquake. I saw it as an eight year old child and for weeks afterward every tall structure filled me with fear.

Shinjuku in Tokyo has similar high-rise office towers straddling another of the Pacific Rim's earthquake zones. However, for some irrational reason, LA’s structures feel more vulnerable than those in Japan.  I guess time will tell if LA's architects have been wise or foolish.

From Downtown we made our way up into the LA hills.  We were hoping to enjoy the panoramic view from Griffith Observatory. However, as we approached, we discovered traffic diversions in place and cars parked along the approach road for hundreds of metres. We decided to give this location a miss and continued west towards the equally scenic Mulholland Drive.

This purpose-built touring road has a number of scenic outlooks, including one that offers a grand view of the Hollywood sign and LA’s sprawling urban expanse. Our detour proved to be a smart 

choice.  Within minutes of arriving at the Hollywood Bowl outlook we had the scenic spot to ourselves. As the afternoon sun warmed us, we soaked in the view, and expressed just a hint of envy for nearby residents enjoying their hillside infinity pool.  It was the perfect way to finish our extended vacation. 

UPDATE: March 2026

That stunning property with the infinity pool is currently for sale online. The three bedroom property was designed in 1958, by noted architect Thornton Ladd. It’s all yours for a mere USD11.45 million. You’ll find here on Google Maps: 2402 Carman Crest Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90068.

Birds Nests and Pandas

Our last day in Beijing was filled with plenty of memorable “bucket list” activities. The highlights began with a side trip to Beijing Zoo to view its modern Panda enclosure. Cindy, our private guide, had repeatedly warned us that there was no guarantee we’d see any Pandas. They’re reclusive creatures at the best of times. At first her caution appeared warranted as we made our way through the indoor observation enclosure. Not a single animal could be seen.

However, our luck took a turn for the better as we rounded the corner of the neighbouring outdoor area. Much to our delight, we encountered not one, but two Pandas, each chewing contentedly on fresh bamboo stakes. As we watched, one of the bears rose several times to alternate between wandering its enclosure to sitting on its hunches, looking directly at us.

The sight of these majestic animals was mesmerizing. We spent more than half an hour watching their antics, praising our good fortune. My Dad was thrilled. He’d listed the Terracotta Warriors and Pandas on his bucket list and couldn’t believe his luck with this incredible viewing. Even our guide, Cindy, was ecstatic; later confessing this was also her best viewing experience.

From the Zoo we headed north to the Summer Palace. This was my first visit to the Palace since 1998. It was just as I remembered it. The complex is relatively new by Chinese standards. Construction began in 1750, the 15th year of Qianlong Emporer’s reign. The palace buildings and surrounding gardens cover a staggering 2.9 square kilometers. This area includes, Kumming Lake, a meretriciously sculpted artificial lake. Contouring the shoreline and lake bed resulted in a debris mound on the lake’s northern shore. It was subsequently landscaped into a tree-clad 60 metre high hill called Longevity Hill.

 

The hill’s dramatic focal point is an impressive Buddhist temple, Fo Xiang Ge. The temple includes a hillside tower which reached by climbing a heart-stopping series of stairways. The tower itself is 41 metres high, sitting atop an equally dramatic 20-metre high stone platform. Below the temple, tracing the lake foreshore for a staggering 728 metres, is an elaborate open-sided wooden corridor. I’ve heard it’s adorned by more than 14,000 separate paintings.

We walked the corridor’s entire length. At the end visitors are greeted by the sight of a full-scale paddle steamer, built entirely of white marble, resting on the lake’s shore. The Empress Dowager Cixi had it built to provide a shaded place to sit and enjoy refreshing Summer breezes. We then crossed Kumming Lake by boat to meet up with our personal driver.

Our next sight was another bucket list moment for both of my parents. We drove back into the city to see Olympic Park, the home of the 2008 Summer Games. A hefty entrance fee soon had us sitting in the lower tiers of the famous Bird Nest Stadium. My father sat for some time looking out across the athletic track reflecting no doubt on my brother’s participation in the Games.

Four years earlier my brother Hamish had stood in the inner field soaking up the colour and spectacle of the Games’ closing ceremony. Sadly, today the centre field is used by visitors weaving their way around a temporary obstacle course on shiny new Segways. We finished our day wandering through the neighbouring Aquatic Centre, affectionately known as the Water Cube.

 

Innsbruck

Since 1990 I’ve passed through the city of Innsbruck in Austria at least three times. On each occasion I’ve been in transit by train and have never left the station. Innsbruck is located in the Inn Valley, a broad valley that takes traveler north to the Brenner Pass, one the Alp’s main gateways to Italy; or west across the Arlberg Pass into Switzerland. Both are spectacular journeys through truly stunning, snow-clad alpine landscapes. Given its mountainous location, the city has twice host the Winter Olympics; first in 1964 and again in 1976.

Last weekend, my brother Hamish took the entire family for a day trip to Innsbruck. Our one hour journey proved the ultimate test of his family-sized people wagon. We successfully crammed seven of us into the vehicle; Hamish and my sister-in-law; their two children, my parents and I. Our itinerary for the day saw us experience three of the city’s most popular sights; the Bergiselschanze (Olympic Ski Jump), the Innsbruck Riesenrundgemalde (a giant panoramic painting) and the famous Golden Roof, located in the centre of the old city.

The Bergiselschanze is hard to miss. It sits on a low hill overlooking the city. The hill, called Bergisel, was once the site of four battles fought between the forces of Napoleon and the Kingdom of Bavaria against local Tyrolean militiamen in 1809. Today a soaring ski jump dominates its crown. The jump rises 50 metres above the surrounding area. A short elevator ride takes you up to an observation platform offering an uninterrupted view across Innsbruck and the surrounding valley.

The jump track itself runs 98 metres down a 35 degree incline. Jumpers reach more than 98 kmph by the time they’re launched into the air. Ironically, the view directly ahead takes in the cluttered graveyard of Stiftskirche, an ornate 17th Century church on the edge of town. I’m sure more than one jumper has lost their nerve thanks to such a sobering sight.

Nearby is the recently constructed Riesenrundgemalde building. Inside is an impressive life-sized panorama painting of the final battle of Bergisel. The giant 1000 square metre canvas took Munich artist Michael Zeno Diemer three months to complete in the early 20th Century. The completed artwork is impressive. It’s incredibly life-like, bringing the tragedy and triumph of war into stark relief. For most of its life the painting was housed in an aging rotunda on the banks of the Inn River. A delicate and controversial relocation to Bergisel was completed in 2009.

After lunch our final destination for the day involved a leisurely stroll through the heart of the old city. Our route inevitably led us to the Goldenes Dachl, or Golden Roof, a famous local landmark. This an ornate three-story balcony capped by a dazzling gilded copper tiles. It was built in 1500 for Maximilian the First, the regining Holy Roman Emperorn as a royal box from which he could sit in state and enjoy tournaments in the town square below.

1000 days to go

The national media are full of stories about the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games at the moment. Much of the news is focused on this weekend, which marks 1000 days to the Opening Ceremony. We've seen plenty of images of construction that's well underway, like that shown above. The emerging stadium isan 80,000 seat arena, that converts into a more easily maintained 25,000 seat venue after the Games.

I've been fascinated reading about the regeneration of canals around the Olympic Park. Many were built during the Victorian era, but have since fallen into neglect. They're part of the Bow Back Rivers system – which runs north from the River Thames to the Regent’s Canal. The last barges passed through these waterways more than 50 years ago. However a £19 million project of canal dredging and cleaning was recently completed, including the first canal lock to be built in London for at least 20 years.

Beijing Olympic Park

I flew into Beijing for work shortly before lunch today. With a Sunday afternoon to kill I set off for a tour of the city's latest icon; the Birdnest Stadium. Built for the Beijing Summer Olympic Games at a cost of US$423 million, the complex comfortably seats 91,000 people. It stands in the midst of enormous new park carved from the city's northern outskirts and can be reached from downtown in less than 20 minutes via a new subway line.

My route to the nearest subway station took me past the new CCTV tower in the Chaoyang District, Beijing rapidly developing Central Business District. It's seemly unbalanced geometric form towers above the city's Third Ring Road. When I was last in town four years ago, the building's foundations were still being laid. Today it stands almost complete.


Behind the CCTV tower is the new Mandarin Oriental Hotel, an opulent five-star venue that caught fire on February 9. The US$730 milllion hotel had been scheduled to open in May. Now it's completely gutted as a result of a nearby illegal fireworks display that went horribly wrong. No doubt heads will roll. I could almost feel the anguish of its owners as I stood surveying the damage. The fire has clearly destroyed the building, leaving a charred, blackened hulk on the city skyline.


However, the most astonishing sight was that of new, soaring tower in the China World Trade Centre complex. Four years ago, this was just a barren plot of land and had been for as long as I can remember. Today, an almost complete 333 metre building stands in its place.

This is the China I remember. New buildings appearing overnight, almost without warning (like my hotel which was once a municipal bus park). It's mind-boggling stuff. I first came in Beijing in 1998. Back then, I recall witnessing a sea of bicycles in every direction, barely a car in sight and few high-rise buildings of note. Today's Beijing couldn't be more different.


To say that Beijing Olympic Park was impressive is simply an under statement. The complex is stunning. A broad boulevard extending several miles links a number of Olympic venues including the famous National Stadium and the equally impressive Watercube Aquatic Centre. I arrived at the perfect time. The afternoon sun was glinting off every corner of both buildings making for more than one memorable photo.


However, the real highlight today was something totally unexpected. Both venues were open for public viewing. For a few dollars visitors are given unrestrained access to key areas. I couldn't believe my eyes as I entered the Birdnest Stadium and soon found myself standing mid-field looking at the soaring architecture around me. My brother Hamish definitely had a lucky break, standing in the same spot less than eight month earlier as part of the Games Closing Ceremony.


The Watercube was equally memorable. If only for the odd location of the visitor's ticket office which is sited on the exact opposite corner to the ticket holder's entrance. I cannot imagine what bureaucratic process saw fit to force visitor to effectively circumnavigate the entire complex to buy and ticket before entering.


However, the walk wasn't in vain. The venue's inflated plastic skin was almost iridescent in the setting sun; a sight I'll not forget in a hurry. Inside, the venue's four pools are still furbished in television-friendly Olympic hues. The scene bought memories of the Sydney Olympics flooding back. I still recall sitting in the Sydney Aquatic Centre watching the finals of the Men's 10-metre Platform Diving from a poolside seat. Our location was pure luck as the seats had been purchased in a national ticket lottery 18-months earlier.