~the wanderlusting life~: 8 days to Christmas and California!

My Grandpa phoned me up today saying that another store similar to ours a few streets away in the same area was robbed and the shop owner and his kids were threatened with a knife for money. It's blocked off by the police (who probably came 20 minutes too late) and everything. Not too sure of the details yet but our family knows theirs pretty well, the shop owner has a son that's my age and two other children we used to babysit. My grandpa says the shop owner and kids are all scared out of their minds. I feel bad for them, I would have total nightmares if I was at the cash register or something and a knife-wielding guy demanded money. I hate how dangerous Sydney is :( now I'm freaked out because my Grandpa's sometimes alone in the shop, and if it's not him its my mum. The store that was robbed is near the library and further away from the shopping center where Hot Dollar is, so there's not many people walking near there. Chances are it's hopefully never going to happen to my mum's shop because it's close to Mcdonald's and everything.

I'm doing my head in from all the research I've done on Southern California lately, so taking a break by posting. I love Google maps but it doesn't have all the public transport companies, so I've been doing A LOT of research. I'm planning out every single hour in America, but I've only done 2 full days so far. I like how cheap and simple the buses are (I HATE how some of them come like every 2 hours) but I don't like how expensive the train system is. My family there lives a 1 and a half hour train ride away from Los Angeles, and about 2 hours and 40 minutes away from Anaheim (where Disneyland is).

This is a very simplified itinerary (I'm currently planning the much more detailed version with all the directions and transport to where I'm going, and where I'm visiting):

Day 1 – Sunday 25 December

-The day I arrive (I get there at 9:30 am but not doing anything because it's Christmas and everywhere is either crowded or closed. I think my relatives could be going to a Christmas party. Or maybe mass because they're Christian. Hmmm do Christians go to church on Christmas day, or is it Christmas eve?)

Day 2 – Monday 26 December

-Downtown Los Angeles

Day 3 – Tuesday 27 December

-Oxnard and Camarillo

Day 4 – Wednesday 28 December

-Thousand Oaks

Day 5 – Thursday 29 December

-Hollywood

Day 6 – Friday 30 December

-Santa Monica

Day 7 and 8 – Mammoth Lakes

Day 9 – Monday 2 January

-West Hollywood and mid-city

-Beverley Hills

Day 10 – Tuesday 3 January

-Disneyland and downtown Disney

Day 11 – Wednesday 4 January

-Disney’s Californian Adventure

Day 12 – Thursday 5 January

-Anaheim

Day 13 - Friday January 6

-Los Angeles again

Day 14 – Saturday January 7

-Malibu

I don't have enough time in America! I want to go to Los Feliz and Griffith park, and Santa Barbara and San Francisco and San Diego and Las Vegas as well, and many more days in Disneyland, but I simply don't have enough days to visit everything :(

I'll probably go everywhere alone, except Mammoth Lakes and maybe Malibu. My mum's cousin and her husband work on weekdays and I really don't want to drag around my 8-9 year old cousins or my 70 year old great uncle.
I went to Zhouzhang a few days ago with some relatives. It's a little water town. I actually like how derelict and falling-apart it looks, it kind of has a nice charm to it. I also went to Suzhou which is famous for its ancient gardens. They weren't actually that beautiful.
My uncle and I went to a cool restaurant today for lunch called 'Mr T' where they cook the food in front of you. It tasted pretty good to me, though my uncle didn't think it as that tasty. I've been eating SO MUCH chocolate lately. Remember that picture of the food I brought over?