A Dam Good Time in Nevada

One final week of vacation, and the man leaving for Africa the next week.  We needed a trip that did not require a whole lot of preparation or thought.   We needed to veg.  Vegas.  The man had never been.  I emailed the transplanted NY cousins to inquire about “hotel availability”.   They said yes.  We said yes. Off we go.

Early Sunday morning flight and we actually got First class! They serve the same breakfast they’ve been serving for years.  Cheese omelet, tasty fresh fruit and yogurt, horrible sausage and ham, and that potato-spinach thing.   I love spinach, and potatoes too, but this Continental Combo is truly not fine dining.

On arrival we take the journey to baggage claim. Carrousel #6, and we wait.  And wait…And wait some more.  Then a skycap says the Houston bags are OUT on carousel #10.  Gee, thanks for letting the passengers know!   Off to the car rental yard and we are offered a variety of makes and models.  I choose the WHITE car.  It is 100o + every day.  I will be the designated driver. With the man giving directions, we stand a better chance of actually leaving the airport than when *I* am the navigator. Heh.  I plugged in the GPS and we are off to the LAS Burbs. 

Cousins K1 and K2 are both home and we catch up and regroup. K2 soon off to work and with tour book in hand Man and I head to the nearby Red Rock Canyon. When I say burbs, I mean there is nothing behind their house except a dug out quarry and the mountains. 

Hot, dry, desolate. First stop is the visitor’s center. Nicely done with info, overlooks, artwork and “touch” tables. 

Then the scenic drive. Thirteen miles of overlooks. Hmmm…most of these overlooks over look…red rocks.  Mountain layers with varying shades of red.  Then we start to see them. Zombies.  More specifically, Rasta Zombies!  I think they are yucca plants, but they sure look like Zombies coming to get us!  Rows and rows of them with outstretched limbs reaching out to snare us.  

We watch an old geezer couple smoking while reading the sign that says NO SMOKING.  Amazing.  Towards the end of the route, we veer off to some tables for a picnic lunch before heading home.

We were back at the house in time for dinner with K2. Evening spent talking about and watching old movies. The Cousins are most knowledgeable, and this is Man’s favorite pastime.   They get along well.

Day 2 and we head to The Strip.  I had already noted stops I wanted to make and we parked mid-way.  First stop is the Bellagio. We are just in time to see the fountains.  Inside is the beautiful Dale Chihuly ceiling display.  I love his work.  We wander the casino and I find another, smaller, Chihuly!  Photo Op time.  The lobby attraction is birds in a garden setting.  Next stop Caesar’s Palace and the search for David. He is deep in the labyrinth of rooms, but we find his nakedness and take our pix.

Walking the strip is an interesting adventure.  You can’t really get THERE from HERE. Walking involves side treks up stairs and escalators (if we are lucky), detours into casinos and shopping areas and street crossings.  This is all done while dodging those passing out cards for various shows of …disreputable content.  The man gave up and started taking these cards. We ended up with a large collection of pictures of naked women.

Lunch at the Burger Bar near the Mandalay Bay.  I let the man in on a few bits of my past visits to LAS, when I stayed at the Mandalay and spent hours in the lobby outside the House of Blues.  Nevermind.  No, you don’t need to know what I did back then.   Go read those blogs.  LOL  Sadly I declined to see Rancid that night as I THOUGHT I would see them two weeks later at home on the Honda Civic tour.  Too bad my town was one of the stops they DIDN’T make.   *sad sigh* 

Visit to NYNY, Paris, and the Grand Canal shops. Saw most of the Mirage Volcano before we headed home for the night.

Day 3  Early start to Boulder, NV, home to Hoover Dam.  We opt for the free parking higher up. The dam is immense. When you see it in the scale of things, like a car driving across the top, or looking down, you can feel it.

I put on my borrowed hat (from K2) …FUBAR… and off we hike down to the visitor’s center.  We decide on the full tour. First an historical movie.  Interesting information on the dam project and how it was built. Then the Dam Tour.

We must pass the metal detectors.  Guard notices my hat and asks if that is true.  I grin at him. First stop is the Turbine Room, with huge equipment to move them as needed.  The guide announces that we may take as many Dam Photos as we want. Then…Inward.   Yes, we are actually inside the Dam Wall.   On the face of the dam, you can see four vents.  These bring air into the interior passageways of the dam.  One at a time we walk the corridor to the vent.  This is worth what we paid to get in! How strange to look OUT these vents.   I stuck my arm out and waved.  Wonder if anyone noticed.

Look closely...the VENTS. Just under that line.

Looking OUT the vents.

 We walked along the bridge into Arizona.  After a bit more wandering we headed back. Dinner out with K1 and then lounging in the hot tub and pool, sipping wine. On a beautiful full moon night.

Short and sweet, this has been a great getaway for both of us.  Now, back to the real damn world.