DAYS NINE, TEN, ELEVEN
LAS VEGAS
347.6 MILES
Our time here has been so much fun. Teddi has shown us around
so well, and taken us to things what we really wouldn’t have done otherwise.
It’s so great to spend time in a city with someone who knows their way around.
On Sunday, Kenny and I drove down to the strip and parked in Mandalay Bay. We
walked around there, Luxor, Excalibur, New York New York, Monte Carlo, and the
Belaggio.
These were so awesome to see – the amount of money they put into these places is incredible. I recently read Robert Venturi’s Learning from Las Vegas, and it was so interesting to try to appreciate the architecture of this place in a different way. There are no holds barred, and extravagance seems to be the main goal. I really liked New York New York and the Belaggio, even though we lost $2.00 in the slots. After walking around for a little bit we had to come back to the apartment, it was 104 degrees outside! At night we went to the buffet at a casino that is enjoyed more by locals, Sam’s Town. It was cheap and great! Afterwards, we went back out downtown, and walked along Freemont Street.
This is where you see all of the Vegas stereotypes. People walking around dressed in costume (usually looking a little worse for the wear), the saddest people you’ll ever see asking for money, but surprisingly, no Elvis! We stopped in Golden Nugget Casino to see the water slide through the aquarium, which was awesome. From there we went to a Piano bar, and then home to sleep.
These were so awesome to see – the amount of money they put into these places is incredible. I recently read Robert Venturi’s Learning from Las Vegas, and it was so interesting to try to appreciate the architecture of this place in a different way. There are no holds barred, and extravagance seems to be the main goal. I really liked New York New York and the Belaggio, even though we lost $2.00 in the slots. After walking around for a little bit we had to come back to the apartment, it was 104 degrees outside! At night we went to the buffet at a casino that is enjoyed more by locals, Sam’s Town. It was cheap and great! Afterwards, we went back out downtown, and walked along Freemont Street.
This is where you see all of the Vegas stereotypes. People walking around dressed in costume (usually looking a little worse for the wear), the saddest people you’ll ever see asking for money, but surprisingly, no Elvis! We stopped in Golden Nugget Casino to see the water slide through the aquarium, which was awesome. From there we went to a Piano bar, and then home to sleep.
Monday, we drove back over to Gold and Silver Pawn, which
was pretty exciting because I love Pawn Stars! The place was really crowded and
the cast wasn’t there, but it was still really cool to see!
And we saw what they don’t show you on TV- their gift shop right in the middle of the store. We went out to brunch afterward where I had a really delicious sandwich, and went back to the apartment to do some laundry. Kenny and I went back out a little later to see the casinos we hadn’t seen yet, and we parked at the Venetian. This was probably my favorite, the canals are beautiful, and the architecture looks just like Venice! We also walked around to Caesars, Flamingo, and the Mirage.
We then met Teddi at the School of Rock Las Vegas, where she’s the GM, which was really interesting to see in comparison of Doylestown where Kenny’s GM! We went out to dinner with Teddi and her friends, and then went back down to Harrah’s to see her friend’s band at Toby Keith’s bar. There were two wedding parties celebrating there, and people watching was very entertaining. From there we walked around a bit more, I got one of the famous Vegas half-yard drinks, and we went home after a fun night!
And we saw what they don’t show you on TV- their gift shop right in the middle of the store. We went out to brunch afterward where I had a really delicious sandwich, and went back to the apartment to do some laundry. Kenny and I went back out a little later to see the casinos we hadn’t seen yet, and we parked at the Venetian. This was probably my favorite, the canals are beautiful, and the architecture looks just like Venice! We also walked around to Caesars, Flamingo, and the Mirage.
We then met Teddi at the School of Rock Las Vegas, where she’s the GM, which was really interesting to see in comparison of Doylestown where Kenny’s GM! We went out to dinner with Teddi and her friends, and then went back down to Harrah’s to see her friend’s band at Toby Keith’s bar. There were two wedding parties celebrating there, and people watching was very entertaining. From there we walked around a bit more, I got one of the famous Vegas half-yard drinks, and we went home after a fun night!
Tuesday, Teddi was off from work and we decided to trek to
Rhyolite, Nevada. Rhyolite is a ghost town that was built in 1904, and
completely abandoned by 1912. To top it off, it was turned into a “ghost town”
attraction in the 1930s, which has also since abandoned it. So it’s a double
ghost town. The drive took about two hours, and on the way we drove past the
Nevada Test Site, where most nuclear experiments have taken place in this
country. We also drove past some prisons, and saw the famous “Hitchhiking
Prohibited: Prison Area” signs. At that point we realized our gas light was on,
none of us had cell service, and a gas station was nowhere in sight.
Thankfully, one finally appeared on the horizon in the town of Indian Springs,
and crisis was diverted.
We first drove into the town of Beatty, NV a place that is occupied, but is considered a partial ghost town.
This town’s industry was railroads, but once the other towns around it that worked in mining were abandoned, it didn’t have much of an area to cater to. Rhyolite was about 10 minutes from here, and unfortunately the gps told us to drive onto a really rough unmarked dirt road, with a sudden drop and steep hill… which there was no way our little RSX could handle. After slowly making it back out to the main road, we of course, saw a sign a few feet further down clearly showing a regular road to get to the town. Rhyolite is very spread out, with ruins of buildings in some areas, and lots of metal scrap in others. We saw cans, car parts, and even a full stove, all littered around the area.
There was an abandoned train car, casino, bank, and a fee houses. Kenny really was looking forward to seeing tumbleweed, which he thought he did, until we realized it was attached to the ground. We noticed a mine shaft in the side of the mountain, and drove over to where we could hike up. There we noticed a grave site for a woman named Isabel Haskins, all alone, and we decided to look up the name online.
She was a young girl who was born into the life of prostitution, and at age 21, in 1908, she tried to escape, and was brutally murdered by her pimp. The women of the town were disgraced by her and would not allow her to be buried in the town’s cemetery, so she remains alone, buried next to the jail. It seems like people often visit her site and give her gifts.
We hiked up the hill to the side of the mountain and climbed under the barbed wire to try to get into the mine. You could only walk a few feet in before meeting a large steel gate, but it was cool in there, especially because it was another 100+ degree day.
We drove back to check out the main cemetery, and eventually decided to head back home. We had dinner at the Boulder Station buffet, which was good, and received free slot credit, which we all lost pretty quickly.
We first drove into the town of Beatty, NV a place that is occupied, but is considered a partial ghost town.
This town’s industry was railroads, but once the other towns around it that worked in mining were abandoned, it didn’t have much of an area to cater to. Rhyolite was about 10 minutes from here, and unfortunately the gps told us to drive onto a really rough unmarked dirt road, with a sudden drop and steep hill… which there was no way our little RSX could handle. After slowly making it back out to the main road, we of course, saw a sign a few feet further down clearly showing a regular road to get to the town. Rhyolite is very spread out, with ruins of buildings in some areas, and lots of metal scrap in others. We saw cans, car parts, and even a full stove, all littered around the area.
There was an abandoned train car, casino, bank, and a fee houses. Kenny really was looking forward to seeing tumbleweed, which he thought he did, until we realized it was attached to the ground. We noticed a mine shaft in the side of the mountain, and drove over to where we could hike up. There we noticed a grave site for a woman named Isabel Haskins, all alone, and we decided to look up the name online.
She was a young girl who was born into the life of prostitution, and at age 21, in 1908, she tried to escape, and was brutally murdered by her pimp. The women of the town were disgraced by her and would not allow her to be buried in the town’s cemetery, so she remains alone, buried next to the jail. It seems like people often visit her site and give her gifts.
We hiked up the hill to the side of the mountain and climbed under the barbed wire to try to get into the mine. You could only walk a few feet in before meeting a large steel gate, but it was cool in there, especially because it was another 100+ degree day.
We drove back to check out the main cemetery, and eventually decided to head back home. We had dinner at the Boulder Station buffet, which was good, and received free slot credit, which we all lost pretty quickly.
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| Peanut Butter!!! |
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