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| Josh teaching Camron how to long-board/skateboard! |
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| We gave Camron an old skateboard kit Josh didn't use as a kid! |
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| Josh, Keith & Camron building a skateboard! |
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| Mother's Day BBQ! Thanks for preparing the meal for all of us Mike!!! |
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| Mother's Day laughs & love! A happy mother and daughter♡ |
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| Never too old to longboard! (Irene's always such a good sport!!! And definitely a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother who deserves to be celebrated!!!) |
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| Happy, Happy Birthday Josh!!! Hard to believe you are already 20 years old! Wow, time sure does fly! (Mike holding baby Josh!)♡ |
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| Celebrating Josh's 20th Birthday!!! Mike goofing around: Josh isn't his "little" boy anymore! (Don't worry, Mike's squatting. Josh isn't that tall!) |
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| Birthday BBQ!!! |
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| Yup, that's my step-son! ♡ (His present from us! I think Mike and Josh picked up special gloves too!) |
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| Our hotel bathroom! |
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| Our hotel room! |
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| We were on the corner, so we had a wrap around balcony! This is the side balcony. |
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| Jay and Mike checkin' out the view on the front balcony! |
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| The lights of L.A. |
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| The entrance to the hotel down below |
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| Still so happy to see palm trees |
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| While Mike had to deal with the horrific pain of his abscessed tooth, Jay and I had a "girls evening" and went out for dinner at a nice Italian restaurant! Jay ordered a delicious dessert! |
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| Nice choice! It looked way too good for me not to try one little bite! |
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| We took advantage of the hotel's pool! Jay getting ready to jump in the water! |
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| Me too! |
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| We started in the hot tub! |
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| The classic Jay pose when she first enters a cool pool! |
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| But it doesn't take her long to get used to the temperature! Underwater Jay! |
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| Cool shot! |
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| Jay gliding through the water! |
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| Underwater Daughter and Father!!! |
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| These two have so much fun in the water! |
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| Back in the hot tub warming up! |
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| Enjoying the pool on a warmer day in LA! |
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| and the hot tub too! |
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| Mike, already feeling much better than he did when we first arrived! (Such a trooper, and lookin' hot too ) |
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| A nice relaxing spot to simply chat and soak up the time in LA! |
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| What the Puck is that supposed to mean?! |
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| Really? |
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| After Mike received star-quality treatment for his abscessed tooth at the Hollywood Walk-In Clinic, we had to find our way to a Pharmacy. Mike and Jay studied the map, while I checked out the surroundings and snapped photos! |
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| That's all we are saying...☮ |
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| Loved the variety of paintings and murals along the buildings! |
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| A very funky... |
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| cool... |
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| old school record store! |
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| Oh so true! (Mike waiting for his prescription...) |
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| At this point, the three of us were incredibly hungry! Jay was "getting faint." We fluked upon this classic restaurant. We were greeted by waiters in their 60s, wearing suits who sat us in a plush, vintage booth. A formally clad water boy immediately appeared at the table with glasses of ice water that he continually topped up throughout our stay! This is exactly what Mike needed to take down the swelling! |
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| We were pleasantly surprised to find this restaurant! It felt like a historical building that could be found in Dawson City. We didn't expect to find a piece of history like this on Hollywood Blvd! |
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| We each chose very different meals from the diverse menu, and they were delicious! |
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| Feeling rejuvenated and ready to explore Hollywood! |
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| Across the street from The Musso & Frank Grill |
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| Walkin' on stars! |
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| Mike & Jay playin' tourists! |
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| Palm trees line the Boulevard! |
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| Now I'm craving a Snickers! |
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| We found the Wax Museum!!! (Love this photo!) |
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| King Kong greeted us at the entrance |
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| Hangin' with Marilyn! |
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| And Charlie! |
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| It looks like John Travolta and Jaylene think it's tea party time? |
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| Julia Roberts is tall! |
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| We took this one for Josh and Conor! |
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| Legend |
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| Jay hangin' with the super couple, Brangelina! |
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| "My motto is: more good times." |
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| Movie stars |
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| Samuel L. Jackson pretending to be a wax figure, but he wasn't foolin' us! |
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| Jeannie!!! |
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| He came back! |
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| The "Italian Stallion" vs the "First Nation Creation" |
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| "You're gonna eat lightnin'..." |
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| I Love Lucy! |
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| Ow! |
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| Jay met the president! |
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| MIB |
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| Believe it! |
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| Made out of guitar picks! |
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| Love these two! |
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| For kids only! |
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| It moves! |
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| The actual cape!!! |
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| Made out of junk mail! |
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| This brought me back! "Zoltar says make your wish!" |
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| Mike on the giant piano!!! "What department did you say you're in?" "Computers." "Computers??" |
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| Satchmo!!! |
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| This is what is looks like when Mike, Jay & I dance! |
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| Norma Jean Mortenson - red hair and freckles |
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| It's true! They are! |
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| Chillin' in LA! |
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| Feels like she was part of my childhood |
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| Batman! |
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| Mike and Jay walking in front of the Chinese Theatre! |
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| We found it! |
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| Grew up with her! |
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| Look at that fit! |
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| Amazing actor! |
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| Carpe Diem!!! |
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| "Whoopa dee doo!" |
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| "Laugh as much as you breathe and love as long as you live." |
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| Another perfect fit! Did I find the best leading man or what? |
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| "I'm crazy, but I'm not stupid," Jackie Chan |
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| "You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old." |
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| "All you have in the end is to look back and like the choices you've made." |
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| "Listen to the sound of my voice You can check it on out, it's the weapon of choice" |
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| Going up? |
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| We passed a lineup in front of Jimmy Kimmel Live |
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| Checking out the Chinese Theatre courtyard |
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| "Denis Quaid is here!" |
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| Enjoyed walkin' with the stars! |
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| We could actually see the Hollywood sign from our hotel balcony when the smog wasn't too bad. |
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| Brunch at our hotel! |
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| Check out that burger! |
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| We made it to the beach! |
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| Crossing the bridge to the pier |
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| Mike and Jay checkin' out the view! |
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| Loved finding the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company! We explored the Forest Gump themed store, which was a blast! Of course I bought a couple items! |
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| This is marketed as the end of Route 66 and attracts quite a few tourists! |
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| The amusement park on the pier! |
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| Route 66 everywhere! |
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| Jay and Mike chatting on the pier |
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| Surfin' seagulls! |
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| There were seagulls everywhere. (Judy wouldn't appreciate this.) |
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| Seagull hang out! |
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| The famous ferris wheel! |
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| Catching Mike when he doesn't know I'm watching! Love checkin' him out from afar! |
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| Another of the many tourist attractions |
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| It was so windy while we were at the pier! |
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| But we didn't let the excessive wind get in the way of our fun! |
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| A beautiful beach! |
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| The ferris wheel was always there, ominously waiting... so, of course we had to climb on (whether I wanted to or not)! |
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| aylene was definitely enjoying herself on the famous ferris wheel!!! |
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| She happily took the camera from her dad so she could shoot some photos! |
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| I think part of her enjoyment was the fact that I was scared! |
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| Mike was wondering what I was doing... |
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| Grabbing onto his leg for safety, of course! |
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| I was basically a cling-on for the entire ride! |
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| The Pacific Park from above! (Nice shot Jay!) |
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| The other side of the beach looked amazing from above! (I'm glad Jay took the photos, because my eyes were closed!) |
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| Then we went to the old school arcade! Jay beat me in air hockey! |
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| We raced cars! Jay chose her dad's Mustang! |
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| So I chose my aunt's Corvette! |
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| It was a close, but I think I won that race! |
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| Jay rockin' out! |
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| Even in Guitar Hero Jay scores a 96%! |
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| Shootin' hoops was probably our favourite of the games! |
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| This game was 3D and freaky! Although I didn't scare as easily as Jay, my character died first, leaving Jay's to fend off the zombies herself! (Sorry Jay!) |
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| Motorcycle race! A hilarious start! Neither of us knew how to accelerate! |
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| I was much better at shooting targets with a rifle than I was at zombie killing or motorcycle racing! |
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| We left the pier and had a windy walk toward the street! |
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| What a tree! |
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| The perfect spot to grab a cab and head to our next destination! |
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| We took a Beverly Hills taxi! |
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| The entrance to Universal Studios!!! |
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| The famous symbol! |
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| We made it through the entrance! The line wasn't too long! |
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| Loved all of the "Back to the Future" memorabilia! |
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| The winding line-up for the Universal Studios tour! |
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| The three of us on the tour! |
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| The trams! |
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| One of the sets! |
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| The building that held the clock tower in Back to the Future! |
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| Great name for a fictional Irish Pub! |
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| What some of the sets look like from behind! |
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| Look at the lush vegetation! |
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| Entering the 3D tunnel housing dinosaurs and King Kong! |
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| Photos did not work well. 3D glasses were required. It was quite impressive, especially when one of the dinosaurs starting pulling the trams off the track! |
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| At this point in the tour, they gave us a demonstration of rain and flood water special effects! |
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| A "western" area of the studio |
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| A television show was being filmed as we passed |
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| Pipes burst and water began rushing towards us! |
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| More special effects: This time we were in the middle of an earthquake! |
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| The beach used while filming Jaws |
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| Whoville! |
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| Behind Whoville is the Bates Motel. Talk about contrast! |
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| Home of the notorious Psycho! |
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| The aftermath of a plane crash! |
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| Chillingly realistic! |
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| Posing for pictures! |
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| We checked out the various movie paraphernalia scattered throughout the Universal Studios theme park! |
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| Father and daughter having fun! |
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| Classic diner! |
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| Checkin' out the views! |
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| We decided to go on the Jurassic Park ride! |
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| The ride seemed mellow enough, so I joined them in line. |
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| However, I was unaware of the huge drop at the end of the ride... |
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| The Blues Brothers! |
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| This 3D Transformers experience was absolutely incredible! This is definitely the next generation of rides and entertainment!!! Freakishly believable and thrilling! |
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| There is just something special about old phone booths! Love 'em! |
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| Jay and I stopped to smell the flowers! |
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| An entertaining, enjoyable way to spend a family day in LA with Mike and Jay!!! |
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| This is the public washroom in our hotel. Luxury! |
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| Enjoying the luxury! |
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| Waiting for our tour! |
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| Seat switch! Jay activating her gift card! Mike thinks his little girl looks like she's all grown up! |
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| The famous Roosevelt Hotel which hosted the first Academy Awards and where Marilyn Monroe resided for two years! |
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| It opened May 15th, 1927! |
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| There are also many rumours of hauntings at this hotel! |
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| Unique ceilings in different sections |
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| The main lobby area |
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| What an interesting staircase! |
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| Jay hangin' in the Roosevelt Hotel's lobby! |
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| It's understandable why this hotel is still featured in films! |
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| Check out this window and tile floor |
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| The stars in our movie! |
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| Jay's glowing with the Hollywood sign in the background! |
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| Academy Awards Best Pictures for each year!!! |
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| Mike and Jay exploring |
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| The Academy Awards staircase! |
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| An "LA Woman" on "Love Street," but outside the Roosevelt, not the "Morrison Hotel" |
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| The Sunset Tower: A Hollywood landmark where celebrities such as John Wayne and Frank Sinatra would stay. John Wayne once had a cow brought up to the penthouse so guests could have fresh milk in their coffee... |
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| The House of Blues on the Sunset Strip! |
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| Marilyn Monroe used to live here! |
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| The famous Beverly Hills sign that separates downtown Beverly Hills from the residential area! |
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| Jay and I hangin' out on Rodeo Drive! |
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| The Beverly Wilshire Hotel!!! |
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| This was the primary filming location for "Pretty Woman"! |
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| Elvis Presley and Warren Beatty lived in this hotel for several years. John Lennon also lived here for a few months! |
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| Other famous guests at the Wilshire include the Dalai Lama, Hirohito (emperor of Japan), Barack Obama, Michael Douglas, Farrah Fawcett, Dustin Hoffman, Anjelica Houston, Elton John, Al Pacino and more... |
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| "Little Italy" on Rodeo Drive |
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| Check out these displays |
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| Trend Setting: Man, do the men ever get off easy! But I guess the women are also fools for buying in... |
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| Palm trees on Rodeo |
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| $1.9 million USD car parked in front of a store that requires a $1500 deposit and reservation before entering |
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| The Beverly Hilton Hotel is home to the Golden Globes. The president of the USA usually stays here during his visits to LA. This is also the hotel where Whitney Houston passed away in her room. |
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| One of a few strange bee sightings we witnessed while in the Century City area. We saw this while walking down the Avenue of the Stars! |
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| Jay and I at Bloomingdale's, where we window shopped. Then we went to Macy's where we actually found affordable deals! |
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| Our last dinner in LA! |
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| This apartment building, The Century, was next to our hotel. |
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| The Spellings and Paula Abdul live here! |
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| Our hotel, the Intercontinentlal |
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| Fox Studios was right behind our hotel! (Mike and Jay posing!) |
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| So happy we were able to go on this vacation with Jay! |
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| A fun-filled trip, including some rest and relaxation, which made us feel like members of the rich and famous for week while we walked in their shoes! |
