Las Vegas, Nevada 2013

10-26-13

I left Zion at 7:30 AM and arrived at the Lake Mead Recreation Area at about 11:00 AM. I had stopped at Walmart in Hurricane to do some shopping, and at a truck parking area to take a short rest.

The campground is located 15 miles south of Las Vegas. Some WINs were here already and now the group from Zion is coming in today. At the 4:00 PM circle meeting the hosts showed us the activities they have planned. So far we are 25 rigs. People I have not seen for a year or more are here. I would have liked to go to Death Valley too, but the friends who joined me there in the past will not go there this year.

There is a lot to do in Las Vegas and surrounding area. Besides entertainment we have to go to Thrift Shops and buy clothing for Halloween and theme clothing for the Dance Rally. At least I have to.

It is warm here. During the day the temperature is about 80 degrees F. and at night 56 degrees F.

At gatherings we usually have a free table. People put books or other items they want to get rid off there. I picked up a book by Robert B. Parker. I normally do not read detective stories, but yesterday it was warm in the motorhome, so I sat outside in the shade and started reading the book. After a few pages I knew I had to find out how the story ends. I only stopped to attend the 4:00 PM circle meeting and then kept on reading. At 11:00 PM I could go to bed, knowing that the main characters were safe and happy and that the crime was solved.  
 
10-27-13

Most of the group went kayaking. I went to the thrift store in Henderson to see whether I can get a Halloween costume. I came out empty handed. The rest of the day I took it easy.

I talked to the two German couples who are here in their own motorhomes. One couple has been in 72 counties. Both motorhomes have all wheel drive, which came handy in Africa. They have toured the US several times. Now they are heading to South America again.

Ingrid and Franz in front of their Mercedes Unimoc.

Ingelore and Rolf in front of their MAN motorhome. 

Later I visited Gilbert and talked to him for a while.

10-28-13

This was an unusual day. The temperature changed about 20 degrees F. Today it was only in the sixties. With the temperature change came a high wind.

Some of us had planned to go to Hoover Dam and take a tour. There was a miscommunication about the time to leave. I looked out at 10:00 AM and did not see any cars line up. Since I had walked with Phil several miles before Hugs and Mugs I laid down to take a rest. At 10:30 AM there was a knock on my door. Three women were ready to leave. I grabbed a sweatshirt and locked the motorhome, and we left. In the hurry I forgot my camera.

We had talked at yesterdays circle meeting about not to bring knives and weapons when going to the dam tours. I also mentioned it while we were driving to the dam. When we went through the security check at the dam one woman had a small knife on her key chain. She was told either get rid of it or bring it back to the car. She went back to the car, which was on the fourth floor of a park house and not very close by. Since the woman has a walking problem it took her a long time to come back.

When we tried to buy the tickets for the dam tour we found out that because of the sequester the dam tour was not available, only the tour of the power house was still open. The woman with the pocket knife took the tour and the three of us walked on the dam and surrounding area. I took some pictures with my telephone.

Trish let me use some of her pictures. The Visitor Center is next to the dam. 

The angels are part of a monument. 

Water from Lake Mead is distributed to many water districts.

The lake is named after Dr. Elwood Mead, a water and irrigation engineer. 

Lake Mead is about 100 feet below its height. The bathtub ring is not a pretty sight. 

Nancy and I pose for Trish in front of the new bridge and Black Canyon. 

On the way home two of the women wanted to stop at a large casino to take advantage of the 99 cents shrimp cocktail. They were hungry. We were only ten minutes from the campground. Nobody would have starved in those ten minutes. Two of us had to sit 45 minutes in the car and wait.

When we finally arrived at the campground I took my telescoping ladder out and trimmed a few branches of a big tree in back of my motorhome. During the night the branches were rubbing on the motorhome. The wind had started last night.

I could not download the pictures from my telephone because I do not have the special cable. Sometimes there are days like this. I think it teaches us to appreciate the good days even more.

Most of the group went to a $ 10.00 steak dinner at one of the casinos. I stayed at home. This was not my lucky day, I probably would have gotten a steak as tough as leather.

10-29-13

We left at 3:00 PM for Las Vegas. 

It took us one hour to drive the 25 miles to the Treasure Island Casino. We bought tickets for Mystere, a Cirque Du Soleil show, and then walked along the Las Vegas Strip. I went on my own since I did not want to eat at a restaurant. We had two and a half hour to spend and I wanted to see part of Vegas and not the inside of an eating place.

The weather had changed. It is cooler now and there were dark clouds in the sky. Outside the Treasure Island casino is their ship. The Pirate show is closed for maintenance. It will be open again in a month.

The Mirage Casino has The Beatles, another Cirque Du Soleil show. Even with the high admission prices the theaters are filled. 

I went by Ceasars Palace. 

The Eiffel Tower can be seen from most places on The Strip.

I walked around the Venetian casino. Since the weather was not that great the gondolas were without customers. 

We bought the cheapest tickets for the show, we sat all the way back and way up. The seats were normally $ 85.00, because of an anniversary special the tickets were $ 50.00 plus the $ 15.00 fee.  Actually we could see the whole stage and was going on above the stage. People below could see the faces of the performers, but had to look up and behind to see what was going

The show was nonstop, two and a half hour long. The comedy routines were kind of childish; the audience seemed to like them though. Besides the trapeze acts and acrobatics was an act were two men do poses. They lift each other from impossible positions. It takes a tremendous amount of strength to do this.

I have seen parts of Cirque Du Soleil shows on television and wanted to see a live show. I was not disappointed.  

10-30-13

One group went hiking today and another group loaded up on calories at a buffet in one of the casinos. I went to the library in Henderson and then went one more time to the Mike O’ Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge.

It is the new bridge near the Hoover Dam. From the bridge one has a spectacular view of the dam.

The parking structure is rather large but getting a space is not easy. The dam is popular with 

 tourists. 

 There is a pedestrian walkway the entire length of the bridge. 

In the evening we had a campfire with life entertainment. 

Lynn and Don provided the music.  

10-31-13

Today was Halloween. At the 4:30 PM circle meeting we lined up to take pictures of the people in costumes. Janet, Margaret and Diane look sharp.

Karen and Chuck are ready to take over Las Vegas.

Most of the WINs in costume came to the meeting. Some were in disguise and surprised us in town. 

At 5:00 PM we left for Fremont Street in Down Town Las Vegas. It is not on The Strip. Part of the street is covered with a metal mesh roof. Thousands of light bulbs are used to create a movie like show. We parked at the parking garage of the Binion’s Casino. 

The casino is located across from the Golden Nugget. 

A bunch of Scottish guys were having fun at the corner. 

The group had dinner at the Four Queens casino. I had fixed a chicken noodle salad and ate before we left the campground. We had agreed to meet in front of the casino at 6:00 PM. At that time they called me and told me that they had not been served their meal and we would meet at 7:00 PM. 7:00 PM came and they were still in the restaurant. 

I walked up and down Fremont Street and watched the people. One lady was dancing on a bar. The little dog did not like the loud music. People had the weirdest costumes. 

The first light show started at 7:00 PM. It was a patriotic show.

At the end came some lighter pictures.

A lot of people try to make money on this occasion, like this woman in a show girl costume. It was two of them. One takes the picture while the other poses with the victim. They work for tips. 

At 8:00 PM the next light show started. There was beautiful scenery on the ceiling accompanied by good music. 

A Rock Band was entertaining people at one end of the street. 

As the evening progressed more people appeared with costumes. 

 Later I met Margaret, Karen and Chuck. 

At 9:00 PM Bonjovi was featured at the light show. 

After the show we were ready to call it a day. I had been at Fremont Street before, but not on Halloween. It was very entertaining, a bit crazy but fun.

11-1-13

We went to the Clark County Museum today. The inside displays tell about the original inhabitants and animals of Southern Nevada. Of course the major impact the Hoover Dam and its generating of electricity had on Las Vegas is also part of the museum.

The outside part of the museum is a street with houses brought from different places in Nevada. The homes are from different time periods and it is very interesting how the appliances and the size of the houses have changed. 

A Las Vegas area museum without a wedding chapel would not look right. 

The motor court cabin from 1935 is very small. The bathroom in a modern motel is larger now than the cabin. 

11-2-13

Some WINs went to see Shania at Ceasars Palace. I joined the group which had a lot of fun dancing at the Skyline Casino. There were a lot of locals sitting there and watching people dance. We filled up the dance floor. A few local men danced with our women. And there were also local women who came to ask us to dance.

The singer announced, over the microphone, that we are all single and available. We are always asked about our lifestyle. Some people would like to do it but tell us that they could never move away from home. They ask us how we get our mail, how do we do banking and ask a lot of other questions.

This was the first time I did not have to count the beat dancing the waltz. I hope that means I am getting better.  

11-3-13

We had a nice one hour morning walk. The trail brought us to a little hill from where we had a wonderful view of the river and surrounding area.

A lot of people went to see movies. I tried to fix the hot water part of the faucet in the shower. Camping World did not have a new part. They sent me across the street to Low’s. Low’s had many parts but not the one I needed. I put the faucet back together and now I have to wait until I find the correct part or have to buy a new faucet.

In the afternoon I did some reading. I am reading the book about the sinking of the Lusitania.  In the evening Trish set up her projector and used the side of her motorhome to show us the film she made while traveling in Europe. It was very interesting.

11-4-13

This was our last day in Las Vegas. Some members of the group went to a casino for breakfast and then to the Chocolate Factory. In the morning I went for a long walk and then finished the book I was reading.

In the afternoon I visited Mark at his motorcycle engine repair shop in Henderson. I met Mark at the Elks Lodge in Oceanside, California, eight years ago. A few years ago I met him again at the Elks Lodge in North Las Vegas. Now he has a permanent place to work and live. I spent more than an hour with him. We had a wonderful conversation.

There were only a few people at the 4:30 Circle meeting. Some members of the group have left for Death Valley to attend the 49ers Encampment, and other people headed south already. It will be very windy tomorrow.