GRAND CANYON - HOOVER DAM

Day 229

Grand Canyon / Hoover Dam!

LAS VEGAS NEVADA

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What's going on with Ben Cousins???? We heard he has been charged - for possession of drugs?
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Talk about an early morning!

The Grand Canyon is not close to Las Vegas afterall. WHy did i think it was???

I thought the last time i went there..it was just a matter of getting there, eating donuts..and getting home!

But! I'll have to look at my diary when i get home...because the trip took all day..and half the night! We left at 6am and arrived home at 10pm! It was a 600 mile trip with a couple of hours there at the Grand Canyon..as well as some time at Hoover Dam.

I swear i won't be going there a third time!















Hoover Dam was spectacular.....a man made wonder of the world....and incredible to see with the water level so low. There's a huge white line where the water was last year..and to look at the low levels now is quite scary. What on earth will they do if the line gets lower and lower......?

We found out Boulder was a town that doesn't have any casino's at alL! Imagine that.

The story of the Hoover Dam (named from Boulder Dam to Hoover Dam after President Hoover) is quite fascinating..if you get the chance to see it on Fox......be sure to look.....so many people lost their lives building the dam..which was built a year an a half early and way under budget...at the incredible cost of the workers who only had 3 days off a year...(labour day, 5th July and xmas) and were tired an exhausted....and basically worked for peanuts.

The Grand Canyon was spectacular too..we went to the South Rim to look inside the Canyon....(it got quite cold in there) and heard the story of a 4 year old girl who lost her life there last week (sad) which dampened the beauty and amazement of the natural wonder of the world a little..

Lake Mead...the manmade lake from the Colarado river is huge.

We enjoyed seeing it...

The movie at the IMAX was something else...it's footage the National Geographic took..incredible.

But the bus ride was murderous.

My eyes stung..and the people on the bus kept snorting and sniffing (i hate that!)

But who can complain..it's an incredible thing to see!

When we were arriving back - and passed Boulder - and the Hoover Dam....it was even more spectacular than when we saw it in the morning! It was all lit up..and looked so amazing....

THen..as we were approaching Las Vegas....the LIGHTS just hit us!! So many!! I was thinking i'd see those lights if i was sitting on the moon. We tried to take pics..but they won't do that sight justice. I've never seen a place lit up so much~

We hit the sack BIG TIME!!!

What a long day it was going to the Grand Canyon....

But...we wouldn't have had it any other way.

It was definitely wondrous.

CASINO WORKERS!

Day 228

Las Vegas, NEVADA USA

We went next door to the restaurant that has a steak dinner and a beer included for $699. Oh yummo! They know how to make steaks just exactly right..and i haven't enjoyed a good steak since Africa!!

Today was one of those days...we thought...let's explore...and when we went outside our hotel...there was the world..all lit up..in the middle of the day!

Las Vegas is an amazing place!

So many lights..so much building going on..so much activity. I was here 12 years ago..and about the only thing i remember from then is having eggs thrown at us from the sidewalk..(they were aiming shamefully at the Japanese in front of us..and got us instead!) and going up an escalator and falling down once i got to the top, because silly me was looking back down taking photos! (A guy on our tour caught me!!)

And i remember staying at the Excalibur..and thinking...this is a weird place! IT was a castle..full of knights dressed up..and the outside looked more like a cake than a hotel!

Anyway....we went to the 'strip' today..and looked around at all the hotels..

Then..we headed off to Toastmasters!

Greg and I..for anyone that doesn't know, are mad keen Toastmasters. We were members until we came overseas and we thought seeing America is the home of Toastmasters, we'd go check out how things are done here.

SO..off we went...

To the LUXOR!!!!

A huge hotel..which looks like a pyramid! It's funny...because when i rang the club..they said..."Go to the Luxor, and when you face the big sphinx, look to the left and you'll see a big paw...that's where the room for Toastmaster's is!"

So...that's what we did...thinking it was pretty exciting going to Toastmasters in a big paw, inside a pyramid!

We snuck inside....and met the 7 members of the club..and a club coach that was conducting a coaching session for the night...and found it was a warm friendly club. Not unlike our own club. They had a Word of the Night (Wind) and Tabletopics..(Wind) and a speech (Global warming) which was all a bit naff. We realised our club, was far more stimulatin than this club..but after talking to the coach, we realised it was a club that was 'building'...so they were forgiven!

After Toastmasters we headed out...

To...the Excalibur...where a guy told us we could have a free dinner. And show. And cruise.

With one catch.

We had to go and see a presentation!

We're booked on Thursday to see it!!!!

Afterwards we saw the exciting water fountain and singing show at the Bellagio Hotel.

And went to Caesars to book Elton John...

And at 10pm had dinner.....at the restaurant next door (another steak meal!) and lost $5, won $7.50, won $6.00. lost $5.25 on the pokies....

I think we came out a little in front....

At least we didn't lose...

We got called CASINO WORKERS by the staff!!!!!!!!

US? "Casino Workers"............?????

Our new profession!

Tomorrow..early morning...we're off to the Grand Canyon!