Hi everyone, we are now in San Francisco. We've been in America for 10 days now so here's what we've been up to.

We arrived at LA to really unfriendly staff at customs - completely the opposite to Fiji where we were welcomed by a band singing traditional Island songs! Anyway, we got through eventually and found my mum and dad waiting for us at the airport. It was so nice to see them after so long and me and mum shed a few tears!

Anyway we stayed in Hollywood right near the chinese theatre where they do lots of film premieres. We just missed the Harry Potter premiere so me and mum were gutted! The first day in LA we did a sightseeing tour as the city is so big there was no other way to see it all. On the trip we saw the Walk of Fame which is where celebrities have there name in a star in the pavement, and the Footprints and Handprints of the stars outside the Manns Chinese Theatre. We also saw, Beverley Hills and Rodeo Drive which is the posh area where the stars live, Venice Beach which is where Muscle Beach is and also where they filmed Baywatch. Next we saw Santa Monica and the Farmers market where we stopped for lunch. We drove through Sunset Boulevard where lots of the stars hangout and where all the clubs are. We couldn't tell if anyone was famous as they all wore huge sunglasses so we may have spotted a star without realising it! In the evening we went to the Kodak theatre where they hold the oscars and saw the Hollywood sign.

The next day we went to Universal studios which was so much fun. It was a really hot day but they had fans and water everywhere. We did the studio tour where we saw the sets they use for films like War of the Worlds and Jaws. We didn't see anyone famous but they were shooting a new Will Smith film and lots of TV shows at the time. The park was loads of fun and we even got mum and dad (and me!) on some of the simulator rides and the log flume! Ben had to go on the rollercoaster on his own though as we weren't brave enough for that! There were also lots of shows which we saw there so we all had a really busy but fun day. In the evening we ate dinner at City Walk which is attached to Universal Studios and has loads of shops and restaurants.

The next day we flew to Las Vegas which was the most scary plane ride ever as there was loads of turbulence! It was 4th July so there were American flags all round the plane and fireworks in the evening at Las Vegas. We stayed at a Medieval Castle themed Casino called Excalibur. Our rooms were huge and so nice! We lost some money in the Casino and then walked round and saw the Strip all lit up at night. It was so hot in Las Vegas (about 115 farenheit) so it was really difficult to walk round in the day but we managed to see all the main Casinos, New York New York where Ben went on the big rollercoaster, MGM Grand, Luxor where we went on a simulator ride, Caesers Palace which was the nicest Casino with loads of cool shops, the Bellagio and Planet Hollywood. In the evening Ben and I went to watch a Cirque du Solei show at the MGM Grand called KA which was so spectacular. Mum and Dad went to watch a Beatles show at Planet Hollywood which they really enjoyed too.

The next evening we watched a Pirate show outside Treasure Island and saw the Bellagio fountains at night. We also saw the volcano at the Mirage which blows up at night! After two nights at Excalibur we stayed for another two nights at Circus Circus Casino where we lost some more money and watched some free Circus acts. We had gaming cards for the MGM Mirage group and Circus Circus so we felt like real proffessionals on the machines!

The next day we went to a outlet shopping mall where it felt like the hottest day ever! It was so hot, like being in a sauna where you feel like you can't even breathe. Anyway, we got some bargins at the outlet mall and got back to the air conditioned Casino!

Mum and Dad rented a car to drive us up to San Francisco. On the way we stopped at Yosemite National Park where we stayed in tent cabins and I was so scared a bear was going to come in and eat us! We heard noises all night like things running round the tent and mum thinks she heard a bear being shot in the night! We had to put all our food and cosmetics (anything with a scent) in the bear box (a huge metal box outside our tent) so the bear wouldn't be attracted to the car or tent. To make up for it we had a lovely meal that night and a really nice bottle of wine which made everything seem better!

The next day we drove round Yosemite seeing the beautiful scenery. We stopped at the Visitors centre and did a walk to Yosemite falls which were lovely and then had some lunch. While we were driving around mum saw a bear and Ben and I saw a bear so we knew they were around!

Mum and dad then drove us up to San Francisco where we arrived yesterday. We'll update you again soon.