The flight from Sydney to Los Angeles was a long one – we had gotten up at around 5:00 am to avoid the Sydney traffic and get to the airport for our flight leaving later that morning. After 13 hours of flying with only an hour or so of snoozing on the plane for each of us we landed in Los Angeles – it was sill 6:00am on the same day! This, and Maree’s inability to stay awake any longer (can anyone say Zombie!!!), made the 5 hour drive to Las Vegas a painful one. We were both ready for some sleep when we arrived at the hotel at about 2:00 pm. After a quick nap we went for an explore, had some food, and turned in early for the night. Long flights suck.
Over the next few days in Vegas we met up with Michael, Craig, and parts of the rest of the New Zealand Team (they were in Vegas to play some pool). That first morning we tried to have a typical American Diner breakfast, but after some unsuccessful navigating (with Craig laughing at our inability to agree on directions in the back seat) we went to the buffet in our hotel (which took us a long time to get back to). We took a few trips out of the hotel to get our phones and US bank sorted. We also tried to get Michael and Craig to join us at the Hoover Dam on the second day, but due to tiredness (Michael swaying in the doorway with bright red eyes and a dazed look on his face) it was delayed.
We did manage to make it to the National Atomic Testing Museum – by accidently walking past it and popping in for some air-conditioning. A very interesting place and if we had more time I could have spent all day there.
On the Thursday we loaded up the car with Craig and Michael and headed out to the Hoover Dam. All I can say is BIG. We went on a tour that took us down into the area below the dam which contained the pipes that transferred the water though the turbines. This was interesting and you could feel the viewing platform (which was anchored to the rock) vibrating with the force of the water moving though the pipes. A very impressive structure.
We also enjoyed some of the Las Vegas nightlife and went to see a Burlesque show. It turns out that Burlesque didn’t quite mean what we thought it meant, but the show was interesting.
However, the V – The Ultimate Variety Show was wonderful. There were half a dozen different acts performing, but my favourite was the one where they were swinging all over the place above the crowd often only holding on by fingertips or by locking legs.
We also had a chance to go to a fight night and went to see the UFC. It was a good show but we were caught out by the 1L beers and the double double (and some) spirits. It is a vicious sport – no holds barred. I think it was an experience for Maree…
On the last night before leaving I tried my hand at some gambling. Craps, a crazy complicated stats game. I wasn’t too bad at it and after about 4 hours (with lots of free drinks). I had turned my US$100 into US$194. At that point (4:00 am) it was time to call a night on Vegas.
