Welcome to our little bubble....

Our Honeymoon Story
 

Day 1 – 04 JUN 05

Nothing eventful.  Crossed the Border at Sarnia/Port Huron at 1315. They told us to pull over for a ‘survey’. Nice way to put it. The Agricultural officer was also quite nice and we had to have our Montreal Smoked meat removed from our sandwiches as Canadian beef is still under restrictions in the U.S.  It sure makes a crossing more pleasant when the officers are nice. The Ag officer was telling us that he had lived in Flagstaff and gave us some tips for our trip.  We stopped at the Gibraltar Trade Centre just outside Detroit and did a little browsing.  If I don’t find it anywhere else, we will return so that I can pick up a Gunny Ermey motivational doll. 

Stopped just north of Cincinnati Ohio for the night.  Gas and cigarettes are so cheap here. Two very large looking flea markets in the immediate area.  These need checking out for sure.  I am also happy to report that American Tim Horton’s are the same as ours.

Day 2

Well, on the road early today because the Flea Market we wanted to stop at didn’t open until late.  Covered some ground today.  Uneventful until southern Kentucky.  Stopped at a wonderful little truck stop in Livingston KY.  Had the best brunch with ham, eggs, and wonderful biscuits and gravy….all home-cooked.

Stopped at a flea market in London KY…..yes, London.  What a hoot….much bigger than any flea market in London, ON. 80,000 square feet! Also checked out a HUGE Wal-mart there as well. This one’s open 24 hours a day!

Entered Tennessee and the “Hills” were awesome.  I don’t know how high we climbed, but the scenery was indescribable.  We really couldn’t believe the trees.  It is easy to understand how people could remain relatively untouched in some of these areas.  Lots of churches around here.

Turned West at Knoxville.  MAN, it was hot! Was 91 degrees and getting hotter. Stopped at a truck stop between  Knoxville and Nashville and found these really cool trinkets made of alligator feet….bought some for the kids.  Was going to buy a preserved gator head for me, but passed.  Lots of fun though laughing about it,  Listened to the Blue Collar Comedy Tour #2 CD.  Nearly laughed myself into a fit. 

NASHVILLE – WOW!!!  What a neat place.  Once we got things sorted out, we found a hotel and set up for the night.  We then went out to tour downtown.  Interesting place.  Lots to see and do.  Much of it was closed, but we had a great supper of deep fried catfish, chips and corn cakes.  Oh yeah, southern food.  Got pictures of the General Jackson Showboat and bought some tourist junk. Lots of bars playing good ole country music. Had to stop at every tourist trap along the Wy back.  Had someone take a picture of Diane and I in front of a big guitar. It turned out blurry. We saw the REAL Coyote Ugly club on the main drag. In the morning we are going to get pictures of the Grand Ole Oprey and the Entertainment Centre before heading out.

DAY 3

Nashville to Clinton, OK…….what a ride.  Long day, but well worth it.  Left Nashville after a nice continental breakfast and taking pictures of the Grand Ole Oprey.  We left at 0810.  We were on our way to Memphis.  It rained quite hard for part of the way but cleared up before we got to Memphis. Saw a dead armadillo on the side of the road. We got to Memphis around lunch time, so we stopped and had lunch at Elvis’ place.  He was really surprised to see us.  Har, Har….We actually ate at a replica Diner called Rock-a-Billy’s on the site of the visitor’s centre across the road from Graceland.  Also saw the Lisa Marie jet. Did not spend the $20 on the tour but settled for postcards and pictures from a distance.  At least we can say we were there.

Crossed into Arkansas around 2:30 or so.  Funny how the world changes once you cross ol” Miss……everything got so very flat.   The first leg of the drive was terrible…seemed to take hours.  Saw lots of crop dusters. Shortly after we crossed the State line, I noticed a truck passing me but paid no attention until I noticed that “The General Lee” was also passing me.  I sped up to try to catch him so that Diane could take a picture, but was blocked by traffic.  It was a beautiful sight non the less.  We stopped in Little Rock for a break and lo and behold… the General Lee was there! So, we finally got our picture.

Everything was fairly uneventful until later when we found that Arkansas does in fact have some redeeming qualities.  The landscape changed so dramatically I couldn’t believe my eyes.  We stopped in Fort Smith for supper and to get a look at the Historical sights.  The visitor’s centre was closed up and we didn’t find the National Historic Site, but I will research it and refresh my memory.  I know it had things to do with the Oklahoma land rush and the movement West. 

We left Ft. Smith planning to get as far as we could before laying up for the night.  This was around 8:30 – 9:00pm local time.  I figured we could get to Oklahoma City or somewhere around there.  Diane did a little napping so I just drove.  Not much to see at night, but there were signs along the road pointing out arrive at and leaving various Indian territories.  You need to remember that Oklahoma was the original “Indian Territory” and one of the original “Reservations”.  Lots of names you recognize from your History classes and the movies.  We crossed North Canadian River twice, South Canadian River once, and drove by Canadian County all in Oklahoma. Saw some beautiful lightning storms. Diane’s leg started hurting yesterday. Think she pinched a nerve. Hope it doesn’t affect her trek at the big ditch.

Diane woke up when I pulled in for a pee and coffee break just out of Oklahoma City.  We decided that we would get through the City at night and then see about a place to stay.  As you enter this city, you are presented with Tinker Air force Base on the left side.  This place is massive.  While I couldn’t see a lot, it was evident that this was some place.  Took quite a bit to drive past it.  They have an outdoor museum on the west end of the base and I could see a couple of the aircraft.  The one that caught my eye for some reason was the B47.  What a treat!!  The City itself passed quickly and after a fairly long construction zone, we were back on the road.  Diane fell asleep again, so, you guessed it, I kept driving.  After a while, I could see lighting in the distance.  This was neat as it was high, distant and quite active behind the clouds.  Made for a nice show.  Nothing much to report other than seeing a bunch of strange lights off the highway that looked like a bunch of antennae. But there was something weird about it.  When a large flash of lightning hit, I noticed that it was a windmill farm.  Too bad Diane was asleep and missed the sight. We pulled into Clinton Ok at about 0230 and took a room in heavy rain.  We saw a motel for $22.00…what a price….what a dump!!!  Stayed at the Days Inn instead…J. This is where Miss Oklahoma stayed once.

Well, in case you haven’t guessed, we wrote this on the morning of Day 4.  It is now 9:30….time to hit the road.  More at the end of the day….let’s see where we are then.

DAY 4

Well, what a day.  Had a great drive and no trouble.  Weather was terrific today.  Left Clinton at about 0930.  Soon after, we crossed into Texas.  It was interesting to note that while we didn’t stop, the Texas State Visitor’s Center was also a tornado and severe weather shelter.  We thought that was interesting if a little unnerving.  What a treat.  I was somewhat surprised to find that there was a decided lack of service centers along the highway.  Stopped at a couple of tourist traps and picked up few things. 

Stopped at Amarillo for lunch.  What a great city.  The downtown area was quite historic and there were interesting painted horse statues scattered about the city.  We ate at Dyers BBQ. Miss America had eaten here before. Guess we’re hitting all the hot spots of famous people. Interesting place…the food was terrific and the washrooms had sinks in the shape of the State of Texas.  I found Texas very exciting…after all, I have wanted to go there all my life.  I was a little disappointed to find that it was so very flat.  Really interesting though. 

I must recount one funny story, as I know Diane no doubt will.  I almost allowed us to run out of gas.  I missed a station or two as I was getting down on fuel.  As I said, there was a decided lack of service centers and the signage wasn’t any better.  When I finally saw a station, I was literally on fumes.  I had started apologizing to Diane for stranding us on a long highway in Texas.  Talk about luck.

As we were going along in the western part of the panhandle, I noticed that there was no horizon.  Off to the right, there was an arroyo that looked really neat.  I woke Diane to show her and suddenly, there before us was a hill going down into a huge open cut and the desert beyond.  What a wonderful sight.  It was as if someone had chopped the landscape right off and then formed the desert out of the bottom of the cut.  It was just like the movies showed it.  A short drive along in the desert brought us to the New Mexico State line and the visitor’s center.  Really nice place.  We gathered all sorts of information there and then were ready to proceed.

The drive through the desert toward Albuquerque was really fun.  While we saw no wildlife, we marveled at the landscape.  It was magnificent in its desolation.  Wide open country side with what ever passes for buttes in this part of the country.  We also saw another windmill farm off in the distance along the top of the cut.  I now understand fully the expression “as far as the eye can see” as that is how the landscape was in the desert.  There were absolutely no trees or anything higher than about four feet.  We saw tumbleweed and buzzards flying around. What a treat it was to see all of this. 

As we moved west, we began to see a small mountain range in the distance.  Of course, we ended up climbing it and then the landscape changed to mountains and rolling hills……still very much desert though.  Very interesting to see.  We got into Albuquerque and noticed that they really do it right there.  All of the road bridges and overpasses, walls and retaining structures look just like terra-cotta and are painted accordingly.  I should mention that the overpasses throughout the state are designed much the same way and most have south-west type images molded into them.  Anyway, we went into down town and saw “Old Town” which was either built or restored to reflect the early years of the city.  What a treat for us, unfortunately, we lost light and having forgotten our cameras in the car, we missed getting pictures.  

We left Albuquerque but decided to stop and eat before looking for a hotel.  We ate at the Rio Grande Grill and Hotel.  Had salad and nachos….what a treat the salad was.  It had artichoke hearts and cactus leaves. MMmmmMMm yummy! Nachos were good too.

We have found ourselves at the Sky City Hotel and Casino for the night.  Too tired to write much more. 

I need to comment on the people we have encountered on this trip.  Once we crossed into the South in Kentucky, the people have been really wonderful and kind.  I could really relate to these people and feel very much at home here. 

The trip so far is more than I could have dreamed.  Diane is making this the trip of a lifetime…..everything is so very perfect.

DAY 5

Day five dawned sunny and beautiful.  I am really pleased with the hotel/casino and Travel Center.  The entire complex is operated by the Band Council of Sky City and they do such a wonderful job.  It is clear that these programs are working. The staff were very friendly and the service was outstanding.  I was cheerfully greeted by every staff member I encountered.  I had a great encounter with the maids in the morning when I went to get ice.  I was joking with them about being a tourist when I asked for the ice machine and they pointed to the sign I was standing right in front of and we all had a great laugh.

The scenery in New Mexico is terrific.  The Mesas and desert are amazing.  We stopped in Gallup for lunch and some shopping.  Cute little town, but I was taken aback to see that the majority of the places to purchase Indian goods were operated by whites and most of them were also Pawn Shops,  this makes me very sad as the majority of the population are native and these people are quite obviously using the native population to their own gain.  I overheard one old grandfather in one shop with a younger person.  The grandfather was attempting to pawn his rifle.  That is a big deal here,  For an old man to pawn his rifle, is a clear indication of how these poor people are forced to live in some areas.  It was very sad.

We lunched at a local burger place that was a lot of fun.  The area around Gallup is the scene of ancient volcanic activity and the old volcano is still evident as is the pile of volcanic stone and rock.  It was pretty cool to see.

We decided to try Route 66 for a while and get off the highway.  That turned out to be fun and was very picturesque.  I missed a turn and ended up on a back road, you know, gravel and winding and going way back into the desert.  It was really neat.  We got back on course and then shortly were back on I-40. 

When we crossed into Arizona we were immediately taken by the scenery of the Indian Village trading area and the Visitor’s Center.  The Trading Posts were all nestled against the face of a Mesa that was incredible.  There were large cave-like areas and one had a ridge about half way up the Mesa and they had statues of all the animals of the area perched on it,  It was really neat.  Again, I bought nothing but Diane found a couple of things.  Lots of shopping.  We took pictures at the visitor’s Center and had fun looking around there.  Diane picked up a piece of lava rock.  She was excited.

We stopped at several other shopping places and were struck by the outrageous costs of some of this stuff.  It is very disappointing,  I really want some stuff to bring home from this trip, but it is hard to part with the kind of money they want,.

We bypassed the petrified forest and went on with our trip wanting to get into Flagstaff at a good time.  It wasn’t long before we could see a mountain range off in the hazy distance,  I got pretty excited about that, but recalling mom’s stories about going out west, I knew that it would be some time before we reached them if at all.

Day 6

Nice extended continental breakfast.

Beautiful drive to the Canyon.   The highway 89 route from Flag was just beautiful.  We covered several different landscapes from Alpine woods and meadows, to high desert, to craggy canyon like features.  There is Ponderosa Pine everywhere you look.  We were told to watch out for wildlife, apparently there are many unfortunate encounters between cars and Elk and Mule Deer in this area.  While we didn’t see any wildlife the trip was really neat.  Heading west on 64, we came across a scenic view and decided to stop.  We were really glad we did.  This turned out to be a real gem….it was the gorge of the Little Colorado and was a taste of what was to come.  There were also several tables set up in the parking lot where the Navajo were selling their goods.  They make such wonderful jewelry.  The craftsmanship is something one has to see to believe.  The detail is really quite astounding.

Driving along 64 we finally came to the entrance to Grand Canyon National Park…we made it…the reason for the trip in the first place.  Nothing could prepare us for what we saw.  We took the first scenic stop at the canyon and were treated with the eastern end of the Grand. What a sight.  It literally takes your breath away.  There was a watch tower that had been built in the 30s and provided a really interesting view of the east canyon.  From there we decided to go right out to the airport so that we could book a flight.  We checked all of the helicopter outfits and found only one that could accommodate us.  We booked, paid the money and had only a short wait to flight time.  Unfortunately, the other couple that had pre-booked, didn’t show up and they wouldn’t fly with less than four people,  After much apology and sadness on our part, our money was refunded and we went on our way.  We decided to check out Grand Canyon Airline and found ourselves on a trip of the same length as the helicopter tour at less than half the price.  While not our first choice, we decided that something was better than nothing,  We boarded a modified Twin Otter and settled in for takeoff.  It was so nice to discover that we had made the right choice, or rather that it had been made for us.  Our altitude was such that we could see literally everything.  Although it was quite cloudy, the sun came out over the East Canyon and the view was really something.  I sat in from of Diane and we were wearing headphones for the narration, making communicating with each other difficult.  We spent the whole flight tapping each other to make sure the other didn’t miss anything.  We could see the Helos below us and with 2-3 thousand feet of altitude over them, we had a much better overall view of the canyon.  I can’t begin to describe the view.  The breadth and depth of the Grand cannot be done justice by any pictures that you have seen or that we took.  To be able to see behind all the features was particularly interesting.  I wish I had the words to describe it.  On the flight we learned that the Kaibab National Forest which surrounds Flagstaff and extends to the Canyon and forty miles north of it, is the largest natural stand of Ponderosa Pine in the world.  What a sight.  There was rain coming in from the south west and Diane got a couple of great shots of it from the plane.  The 50 minute flight was over way too soon, and we landed back at the Grand Canyon Airport to continue our tour by car.  We stopped for a coffee and restroom stop at Grand Canyon Village,  Interesting place as most of the park staff live there along with the summer student help.  The train from Williams also terminates there and is a fleet of old steam engines.  We then drove to one of the major overlooks went to see part of the central canyon.  It had started to rain quite heavily so we cut our visit a little short and headed back down the western end of 64 and back to Flagstaff.  

We had been told about a scenic route on the way back so we decided to check it out as it also ended in Flag.  At the turn at a little place called Valle, I noticed some old aircraft out of the corner of my eye so I turned around to check it out.  Sure enough, there was an aircraft museum there paying tribute to military air,  We only looked at the outdoor display which contained an F-84, Mig-15, Vampire, a Japanese jet of some sort resembling the Mig-15 – F-86 type, one of the Blue Angle A-4 Skyhawks and an old USAF Super Constellation.  I was tempted to explore the indoor museum, but passed as we still had things we wanted to do.  The scenic drive down 180 was really nice, through the ponderosa pine forest and around the San Francisco Mountains and back to Flag.

We had intended to return to the observatory, but weather was such that it would have been a waste of time so we had dinner at Garcia’s.  Nice dinner….Mexican food and Chocolate Chimmi changas for desert.  I should mention that when we got back to the Hotel I went to the desk to pick up my computer which I had left there for safe keeping.  They couldn’t find it.  I got really upset although I didn’t freak out yet as they called the girl that worked in the morning and she was to call back as soon as she got in.  I was fit to be tied as this narrative and all of our pictures are on it.  I went out to the car to dig Diane’s lighter out from between the seats and when I returned, there was my computer in the room with Diane.  Bless her heart, the morning girl put it in the safe and forgot to let the next shift know about it.  We were a little miffed that the night guy didn’t bother to look in the safe.  With the weather and the lateness we also skipped a return to the downtown area after supper.  Too bad, but we will be returning to Flagstaff,  Diane and I have decided that this is the perfect vacation spot and we would both consider this the ideal retirement place at least in as much as being snowbirds here.  Flagstaff is perfectly located and has everything one could want.  We can’t say enough good things about this city and the surrounding area.  The mountains are right out the north end and the desert is right out the south,  You can have what ever you want climate wise when ever you want it. 

The temps here are moderate and the views are spectacular.  Took lots of pictures. Got a bad experience with Maverick Helicopters but ended up with a plane ride that was cheaper and a better experience to fly into and around the canyon. The view was breathtaking! This was the highlight of our trip! Rained. Too late for a second chance at observatory or downtown. Had dinner at Garcia’s. Yummy! Went shopping for DVD’s but didn’t buy anything again. It’s so wonderful to share this experience with the one you love. It makes it all the more worth while.

When we got back to the hotel we checked mail and Diane had one from Carol saying that VISA had called suggesting that the card was being misused and they were going to shut it down.  Diane called VISA and was told that the cancellation of the charge for the Helicopter ride that was canceled.  After verifying that all was well, they apologized for the confusion explaining that they were trying to look after us.  It meant some tense moments for us, but all is well.

DAY 7

Decided to take Justin’s advice and headed for Sedona.  We took he back road down and the trip was spectacular,  We stopped at a scenic overlook and saw a wonderful little mountain canyon,  We also did a little looking at the native market set up there.  We went on to Sedona and found another perfect little Arizona town.  It was so beautiful.  We drove through and Diane noticed a Beal’s Outlet Store.  We stopped in to do some shopping.  I got a pair of pants, a shirt and a tie.  Diane got short, pants, a couple of tops and was able to use her frequent shopping card and joined the Friday club, so she got a total of 35% off her purchase.  What a break.  I am amazed that we got such good deals.

We then toured around Sedona a bit and checked out several shops,  The guy a the visitor’s Center suggested that we see a couple of the local attractions.  The first was the Chapel of the Holy Cross.  This was designed and built by a student of Frank Lloyd Wright and was absolutely beautiful.  The chapel is actually incorporated into the rocks on the side of a Mesa.  I can’t begin to describe the beauty of it.  We were both very pleased by it.  Diane go some great pictures of some cactus that were in bloom.  There were several types and they were all very pretty.

We left Sedona and I had suggested that we take Hwy 89A a little further south and double back up and head for Vegas.  What a great decision it turned out to be.  We had the most exciting and wonderful trip south from Sedona.  The highway south and then west on Route 71 west and back north on I-93 was interesting to say the least.  Hwy. 89A turned out to be a real treat.  As we were crossing the desert, we saw a range of mountains to the west and I wondered aloud how close we would come.  In very short order we found out.  We went straight up!  As we approached the mountains I drew Diane’s attention to some sparkling on the mountainside.  I commented that it was a town up there and isn’t it interesting that they would build such a town.  What a surprise when we climbed the same mountain and ended up in this little town.  The town of Jerome is perched on the side of this mountain and most of the houses and buildings were on stilts on the one side.  The elevation of Jerome was 7,023 ft.  Not high, as Flagstaff is a little higher, but the valley was some 3,000 – 3,500 ft below.  The highway up to and down from Jerome was incredible in its twistiness (yes, I know it isn’t a word but it works).  As we were twisting and winding along the Beatles song Long and Winding Road came on the radio and Diane and I had a great laugh.  We also noticed that in the area of Jerome every town had its first letter inscribed on the side of a hill or mountain adjacent to the town.  These letters were huge and could be seen for miles.

On the way down one of the mountains we stopped at a scenic overlook where the view was of the valley below.  There we met a really nice gentleman who described the area to us pointing out old mines and ranches in the valley below.  I pointed to a large complex  just under the mountain and asked if it was solar collectors we saw there.  He said that it was, in fact, the largest range in the area and the structures I mistook for solar panels were in fact shade structures fro the cattle.  This place was amazing.  It even had its own man made lake.  We got a good picture of it although you can’t really get the whole scope of it. 

Our trip through the mountains was really nice. The weren’t particularly high as they were wooded to the top, but it was a spectacular ride non the less.

After our trip through the mountains, we came to a huge valley area between two ranges near the California – Arizona state line.  This Valley was everything you would expect.  Diane was really wanting to see some various types of cactus and she was not disappointed.  One of the Cacti that she really wanted to see was the saguaro.  We saw one at a small road side stop and I pulled in so that she could get a picture of it.  Soon after, we were treated to a National Forest consisting of Joshua Trees.  It was really neat.  There were Joshua trees as far as the eye could see.  As we went along, we started seeing more and more Saguaro.  We stopped at a restaurant in Wikieup for supper and learned that the area starting as a mining and ranching area, the mining didn’t last, but ranching prospered.  The main population of the area is ranchers and their families.  Some ranches were in excess of 1,000 acres and some families have to drive 50 miles to get the kids to school.  There was a fellow sitting in the restaurant near us that was feeding his young son, 3 mos., from the straw of his milkshake.  That brought back memories of Steve and Gord and I when they were babies.  We had a nice chat with them and the baby was really cute.

Heading north toward I-40 we traveled through a large stand of saguaro.  Diane was really happy that she saw so much.  I had been looking for Road Runners all along and have yet to see one.  Oh well, we are seeing so much that there is no way on earth to be disappointed.  The landscape here is, once again extraordinary. 

Getting dark now and not much to see except for the signs that animals are crossing.  So far we have seen Elk, Deer, Mule Deer, and Pronghorn Antelope.  Pretty interesting even though the closest I have come to seeing anything was on the way back from the Canyon.

Heading north toward the Hoover Dam on 93 was very quiet and not much to see in the dark.  There are signs warning of construction in the area of the dam and trucks and buses are told to take alternate routes.  There are also signs telling that you must pull over for a Police security check.  When I got there, I was just waived through.  I woke Diane up for the trip over the dam.  What a sight…..it was lit up like Christmas and everything was visible except for the Lake Mead.  If you didn’t know it was there, you’d never know.  The dam was really neat.  As large as you would think.  After crossing, we pulled into a siding on the road to get out and look at it,  There were also these huge hydro towers leaning out from the rock at a terrible angle in order to the wires where they need to go.

Well, we left the dam and proceeded to Bolder City which we just drove through,  Justin at the restaurant in Flag had told us to arrive in Vegas at night if possible as the lights are incredible and Vegas casts its own halo in the sky from a very long distance.  As luck would have it, it was dark when we approached and Justin was right….the halo was there and as we rounded a curve at the crest of a hill, there was Vegas and Henderson right there below in all the glitter you could imagine.  It was interesting to see a bright needle of light rising in the sky.  This was visible from miles out.  It turned out to be lights from the glass top of the pyramid at the Luxor.  Rounding the curve further brought the vision of the “strip” rising above the rest of the city.  There is no way to adequately describe the scene except to say that it was breathtaking,  As we continued on Hwy 93 we came around the city from the north and found Las Vegas Blvd.  Before we knew it we were right downtown crossing Fairmont Street.  The lights were on and the huge screen over the pedestrian mall was working.  What a sight.  We had seen our target hotel from the ramp off the highway but decided to continue up the strip.  The sight that awaited us was really wild.  The hotels, lights, palm trees, everything was lit up and just wild.  The traffic for the time of night was very heavy and it took ages to travel the length of the strip.  It’s funny how the traffic just didn’t matter.  We spent all of our time looking out the window and gawking at all the sights.  We were actually glad to be stopped in traffic.  We went out to the Airport and turned around to come back to the hotel.  Same story…..drive three feet, stop, gawk, drive three feet, stop, gawk,,,,,what fun. 

We finally got back to the dump…er, hotel and checked in.  To say our room was basic would be kind.  It was worse than the Super 8 we stayed in in Ohio.  It was not all that clean, there was no bell service, it was just yuck.  The only saving grace was the staff.  There were very nice at the desk, and the Valets for parking were also good.  We decided to stick it out and then book at another hotel in the morning.  Dinner was good but I can’t recall what we had. 

DAY 8

Upon getting up Saturday morning, I called around with Diane’s help and after several attempts, we found a room at the Imperial Palace that was about the same price we had been paying in other places.  We had breakfast, checked out of the dump and went to see Freemont Street.  It was neat to see all of the casinos that you are used to seeing in the old movies…..nothing much has changed.  The old neon signs are there and the facades haven’t been changed.  There are new buildings in there as well, but the flavour of the street is much the same.  We had this guy approach us and give a bunch of free tickets on a promotion.  They even wanted to give us $75.00 to use as we pleased,  After much discussion, it was found that as we were Canadian, we didn’t qualify.  So, we continued up the street and did some looking and shopping.  I managed to get pictures of the two U.S. Army race cars that were on display with a recruiting trailer.  We got the car and went to the Strip to find our new hotel.  On the way, we stopped at the “Worlds Largest Gift and Souvenir Store”.  What a blast even though we didn’t find much.  I got a bit turned around getting to the Hotel as I thought the entrance would be on the back street.  I managed to find the entrance and got things sorted out.  We went inside to check in and the Casino was just hopping.  This was at noon!!  Oh, I should mention that when I went down for coffee at the first place, there were people in there gambling and drinking at 0700.  I couldn’t believe it.  Anyway, we were early and our room wasn’t available yet so they gave us our parking permit and we parked the car and went in for lunch.  We ate at the buffet and had a great lunch.  The food was great.  Having some time to kill after lunch we went out and had a look at the strip in the daylight.  It was just as impressive as at night.  People were every where.  I learned that taxis have horns and they USE them.  We found ourselves in Caesar’s Palace mall.  What a place.  The whole mall is laid out like a Roman village and the ceiling is painted like the sky.  The illusion is terrific.  It actually looks as though you are outside and as you look up, you can see other buildings in background.  The statuary is awesome and very close to the originals.  It would be hard to tell.  The floors were marble in all the hotel and casino areas and cobble stone in the piazza.  The store fronts were all just like what you would see in paintings and pictures.  We found a Brook Stone store which has all sorts of cool lifestyle items in it. I found a neat gadget for the car that has a electronic compass, barometer, thermometer and altimeter on sale for $100.  I was quite taken with it and Diane said she wanted to buy it for me.  I was so touched.  What a wonderful wife.  Alas, they were out of them but told us where to find more of their stores.

We toured until it was time to pick up our key at which time we went to our room and rested up a bit before really going out on the town.  I had a wee nap and then showered and changed for the evening.  It was still light out and so we started.  Walking is the only way to go around the strip.  The crowds were heavy already and we toured around looking at all we wanted to see in order to make sure we were there when show time came.  We went to the Venetian to look through their mall.  Same idea as Caesar’s but this time made to look like Venice.  There was even a canal in the mall with Gondolas and singing Gondoliers.  What a treat.  They were really good.  There were wandering minstrels and musical floor shows throughout the mall.  We found the store and Diane indeed bought me my toy.  How wonderful to have a wife that appreciates a good gadget. 

So, we walked and walked and walked…….we saw people walking around with drinks everywhere.  Vegas has the most liberal liquor laws in the world I think.  You don’t even have to hide it.  Yard tall drinks in big plastic yard glasses, bottles of beer, old fashion glasses with every drink you think of.  The cops don’t even notice or care.  We also saw hordes of every kind of limo you can imagine including one that was built on 5 tom ford truck.  There were Hummer limos too.  Every SUV has been turned into limos, I mean they were everywhere.  Cabs too but they were a real pain dashing out into traffic, cutting people off, honking those infernal horns.  It was nuts!  We visited shops of all sorts and took in as many sights as we could. 

It was finally getting into the evening and the shows were about to start.  At 1900 we found ourselves at Treasure Island to see the show.  It was very well done and a lot of fun.  It was called The Sirens of TI and was about a ship of sirens and the pirate cabin boy they captured, and the pirate ship he was from.  The pirate ship actually moved about 30 – 40 feet around the pool and set up in the lagoon where the epic battle took place.  There were dance numbers and songs and a bit battle culminating in the sinking of the pirate ship by the sirens and their magic.  The pirate ship actually listed hard to the port side and sank about half way.  The pirates all abandoned ship and swam over to the Siren’s ship where the battle continued until the Pirate Captain made friends with the head siren and they all lived happily ever after.  It was a great show with cannons that fired, smoke and fire everywhere.

We then went to find Diane one of those large drinks.  She really wanted a Margarita.  We found ourselves at the sidewalk café at the Paris Hotel and Casino.  There we were with a half-gallon Margarita, sitting under the Eiffel Tower and watching the dancing waters across the street at the Bellagio.  We couldn’t see very well, but hey, we knew we were going there later anyway.  We sat and drank for a while and had some interesting discussions with four ladies seated at the next table.  One had had a birthday and they had been celebrating for a week.  I asked if it was a major birthday although they would say which one.

We went for a walk further up the strip to do more looking and shopping.  We didn’t find much, but we stopped in to the Grand Canyon Experience and the place was neat.  It was a store actually and designed to look like the canyon.  It was actually also an outlet for one of the tour operations.  When one went upstairs there was a rope and wood plank bridge that led to a different section of the store where there was a helicopter and the room was automated to run thunder and lightning storms and then return to sunlight.  It was so cool.  Diane and I were so impressed. 

Next stop was the M&M Store.  It was pretty cool, but REALLY expensive.  It was about four stories tall and each story was a different type of tribute to the candy.  There was also the history of the cartoon characters up the wall on one of the flights of stairs.

We then found ourselves on the other side of the street heading back toward the Belagio and the Dancing Waters.  On the way, we found an exotic car rental operation.  How cool…..they had all sorts of neat cars for rent, most notably, several Vipers of different types.

We finally got to the Dancing Waters and all I can say is WOW!!!!  We stopped there to watch one show and finding out that they ran shows every ten minutes or so, so we stayed for four of them.  The show is terrific and the relationship between the music and the water jets was perfect.  We noticed with some interest and excitement that you can here the water guns actually “pop” when they fire.  There were lights under the jets and everything moved and rotated to point the jets in different directions.  The pool was huge ( 8 acres ) and 1000 ft. long.  There are 1000 jets and 4000 lights.  The shows are really amazing.  We were breathless.

We then went down to the Mirage to see the volcano.  They have a wonderful feature with a lagoon, a small mountain with water falls and lots of palm trees.  They have speakers with all sorts of jungle sounds and we noticed at least one family of ducks living there complete with ducklings….they steal the show during daylight hours.  The mountain begins showing little spurts of steam and then red lights come on and jets of water start to spurt up.  The lights are such a brilliant red that they light the water jets and make it look just like lava.  Then the fire pots start to go off and shoot fireballs into the sky among the water jets.  It doesn’t last long, but was really spectacular.

Well, it’s getting late and we wanted to do some gambling so we headed back to our hotel and sat at some slots for a while.  Between us, we managed to loose somewhere between 20 – 30 dollars.  Not bad for Vegas where the city is called “Lost Wages” by the locals.

The comments we made while visiting there were things like “sensory overload” “adult amusement park”, “incredible”, “amazing”, “exciting”, and the list goes on.  What a treat it was to share this all with Diane.  I really can’t think of anyone in the world I would rather have had this  experience with.  

DAY 9

We checked out of our hotel and after a short run down the strip were on our way back to Flagstaff to do laundry as we knew where there was a Laundromat as we had learned from one of the guys at the hotel we stayed at.  We found a swap meet in North Las Vegas, which is what they call Flea Markets.  The place was HUGE!!  The whole place was Latino and we were two of very few whites there.  It was interesting though.  Still no purse for Diane.  We stopped at a place called Toto’s for lunch and ended up with two meals worth.  The food was awesome.  On our way back to Flagstaff, we had the opportunity to see all the sights we had missed in the dark on our way into Vegas.  Of course, we did the Hoover Dam experience again and in the daylight it was just as impressive if not more so.  The terrain surrounding the area was very rugged.  We also got to see Lake Mead on the approach from the west.  Pretty cool stuff.   We decided to overnight in Flag again regardless of what time we got in.  We just love the place.  It is so beautiful.  We checked back in to our original hotel and then went to do laundry.  It took a while but we had lots to talk about and we checked out the local real estate paper.  You never know…..we have already decided that we will at least be snowbirds here if not retire here.  The view from anywhere in Flag is terrific and the town is so nice.  We met some really good people there and the town is nice and quiet.  Frankly, I think we will have trouble deciding between Flag and Sedona.  There are equally appealing.  Being somewhat different in elevation, there is a stark difference in climate even though they are not that far apart.

DAY 10

We rose Sunday morning, had breakfast in the lounge at the hotel with a wonderful view of the mountains.  This was to be our farewell breakfast with Flagstaff.  We are really going to miss it.

On the road now, having decided to turn north at Albuquerque instead of Oklahoma City so that we could see Denver.  What the heck, we are headed north and east, and Denver is north and east.  I had a good reason for hitting Denver.  Betty and Lynn Fick live there and I would love to at least call them.  We enjoyed our trip back through Arizona and did a little more shopping.  We decided at the last minute to stop at Winslow the town mentioned in the Eagles song “Take it Easy”.  There on the main corner is a statue of a guy with a guitar standing on the corner and a mural in the window next to him of the “girl my lord in a flatbed ford”.  It was really neat.  Everywhere you turned there were Eagles songs playing and gift shops galore.  We stopped once again at the Sate Line to shop at the trading posts there.  Diane found some stuff that she wanted and some gifts for Carol and the girls.  It was bitter-sweet to leave Arizona behind.  The landscape is just so beautiful.  We traveled through New Mexico with the same feelings.  This country is just incredible.  We found it interesting to travel through Navajo and Hopi Reservations.  Having read a lot about these tribes, I found it fun to be able to put visual information to the place names.  Turning north at Albuquerque, we were headed for Colorado.  As we drove north we came to Santa Fe.  What a nice city.  It is a short city.  By that I mean that we saw no highrises at all.  Diane was reading to me from the guide book as I was driving through and told me of a city ordinance that said that all new construction had to conform to historically correct construction and colours.  So, if you want to build in Santa Fe you have to have the typical South West design.  Basically it is all modern adobe houses and buildings and nothing tall at all.  What a cool idea.  We over-nighted in a small place in Colorado called Trinidad.  Simple accommodations, but clean and nice.

DAY 11

Well, we are now on our way to Denver.  Along the highway, I was commenting on the lack of wildlife again and then just as the words were out of my mouth, Diane spotted something in a bit of a pasture next to the highway,  There, just as bold as can be were two Prong-horned Antelope.  What a wonderful sight.  As I slowed to get pictures, they got skittish and started to move off.  We did get some pictures though.  We continued on toward Denver and passed through Colorado Springs.  I had forgotten all the sights around there,  There is Cheyanne Mountain which is, of course, the HQ for NORAD.  There is also an AFB as well as the Air force Academy.  Really neat.  I tried to get pictures, but who knows.   We also passed Castle Rock and noticed that there is a really neat large star mounted in top of Castle Rock.  It would be neat to see it at night.

We stopped at the Trail Dust Steakhouse just in the south of Denver and I tried to call Betty and Lynn.  The call wouldn’t go through so I tried collect.  After several attempts, I decided to try an operator assisted call.  It finally worked.  Was Betty ever surprised when I told her we were in the neighborhood and thought we would call.  She didn’t get at first that we were in Denver.  She flipped when she put it all together,  They came over to the restaurant and had lunch with us and we had a great long talk.  Lynn is now making custom golf clubs and Betty is doing some sort of Psychic Business Consulting.  We’ll have to check her web site to get it straight.  I am pleased to report that neither of them have changed at all.  Betty is still crazy and Lynn is still really laid back.  It was nice after 20 years to just pick up where we left off.  Diane really enjoyed our visit too.  Lynn bought our lunch and we sat for three hours talking.  They really wanted us to come to the house, but we wanted to get some miles in as we were behind schedule quite a bit.  With mixed feelings we left the restaurant and headed out.  Lynn led us on a route around Denver and on the way to their place and showed us an easier way to get to I70.  Good thing too…..the radio was alive with accident reports on the way through Denver.  On our way once again.    Well, we left the Rockies behind without getting to see them up close.  Oh well, we are on our way home and we want to make good time.  I am so glad that Diane liked Betty and Lynn.

On to the Great Plains….wow, talk about flat.  Still kind of high up according to our new Altimeter……what a cool toy!!  Somewhere along the way, we noticed the Fick Museum….I can’t wait to email Lynn and Betty about it.  Dusk seemed to last for ever….it was really neat.  We stopped finally at the Summit Inn in Hays, Kansas.  Weather has been great.

DAY 12

Headed out again and trying to get as far as we can.  I noticed a place called Gorham Kansas…..gotta tell mom.  Along the way, we passed Bunker Hill and stopped in Abilene and visited the Russell Stover Chocolate Factory and Outlet Store…..Heaven!!  We then went into town and visited the American Indian Art Center  and the Eisenhower Center.  Ike’s house was there as well as an information center and, of course, the Presidential Library.  Really neat place.

Again, we found more surprises along the way.  I noticed a sign pointing to the Cavalry Museum. WE turned off to see it and found a roadside point of interest that was one of three Atomic Cannon.  On the way up the hill to the big gun, there were a couple of Howitzers.  After that, we crossed the highway and gained access to Fort Riley, America’s Warfighting Center.  This is where the Museum was located.  It was really interesting and we had a good visit.

We stopped in Topeka for lunch at the Cracker Barrel and again had a great meal.  Diane found a T-Shirt in the store that said “Money Talks – Chocolate Sings”.

Back on the road again.  I really want to make St. Louis before it gets too late.  Got to Kansas City, Ks. and then across ol’ Miss and into Kansas City Mo.  Big towns.  Continued on toward St. Louis and found an Outlet Mall but it didn’t open until 1000 so we carried on.  Got into St. Louis and the traffic was heavy even at 9:00 at night.  We saw the Gateway Arch and then in the process of trying to get pictures, and road construction I missed a turn and wound up on the wrong highway.  It wasn’t hard to sort it out and we even got to see the Busch Brewery and the Arch again.  We are now in Troy Il and at the Red Roof Inn….time for rest.

DAY 13

Left Troy this morning for the trip to Dayton.  Not much eventful to report.  Went through Indianapolis but failed to find the Indy Motor Speedway.  Along the way, we found a really neat gift shop.  It was mostly native art and artifacts but was operated by whites.  Prices weren’t too bad.  Diane bought some neat stuff and I didn’t buy anything.  This is starting to get to be a habit with me. 

We went on to Dayton in hopes of seeing the Air Force Museum.  By the tie we got there, it had closed already and didn’t reopen until 0900 the next day.  I was very disappointed, but what can you do.  Diane, bless her, offered to have us stay the night in Dayton, but I knew we wanted to do some shopping in the morning before the Gibraltar Trade Center opened and we still had some ground to cover.  Interesting notes about the museum area.  It is located at Wright-Paterson AFB and close by are a lot of sights particular to the Wright Brothers such as the bicycle shop and such.  We also got to watch a C141 do circuits for a while and took time to clean and sort the car.

We went on as far as a place just north of Toledo into Michigan.  We found a place with Jacuzzi rooms and decided to take one for the night.  What a blast that turned out to be.  It was really fun and we made good use of it.  It totally took all the umph out of me.

DAY 14

Well, we got up this morning and enjoyed a $1.99 breakfast.  It was really good and they were even nice enough to substitute some turkey into Diane’s order in place of pork.  We thought that was very good of them.  We hit the road to return to an outlet mall that we had passed on the highway.  It was very disappointing.  Most of the stores were closed and Diane had found some baby stuff to buy at one of the places.  We had to go to their other store to pay, but when Diane arrived there, no one was in the store.  She called out several times and got no answer so she left the merchandise on the counter and we left.

On to Detroit and Gibraltar.  We stopped first at the south center and found a couple of neat items, but nothing to write home about.  We then went on to the north one where we had stopped on the way down.  Most of the outdoor vendors weren’t there and the guy with the Gunny doll was missing.  Again, we found very little. 

We decided to try to shop at Port Huron and found another empty outlet mall.  We tried downtown, got turned around in construction a couple of times and decided that, finding nowhere to shop, we would cross the border and come home.  We crossed with no trouble at all and arrived home at around 1730.  Vacation ended at 9,471.3Km.  What a terrific trip.

Some general observations:

-         The South is the place to be.  The people are terrific, friendly and very helpful.

-         In many places in the south east, the pavement is beige in colour.  It is much easier on your eyes.

-         The speed limits were 65-75mph the whole way.  What a treat, and no, I didn’t get pulled over at all.

-         Diane and I will be dreaming of Arizona for a long time to come.

-         If you want to see Vegas, do it over several years and take two to three day package trips.  So many people I know have spent a week there and vow never to return.  There is just so much coming at you in Vegas that it is easy to get overwhelmed.  It is best to do short trips and spread it out.  We will go back one day.  It is really an amusement park for adults.

-         If you visit the Grand Canyon, take a plane ride tour of it.  It is money well spent.

-         We have several things to do on our next trip to Arizona that we didn’t get a chance to see this time:  The Petrified Forest, Bryce Canyon, Window Rock, the Aircraft Graveyard, the Painted Desert, and more.

-         When you travel in the South, make sure you talk to the wait staff in restaurants.  They are probably your best source of information

-         I will likely add to this as I remember things.