Tuesday April 5 - Thursday April 7, 2011

Tuesday April 5, 2011

We went to The Trump Hotel to pick up Pete and Leslie to take them to the airport. We were early so Leslie wanted to have a  Caipirinha at the bar. When I was in Brazil we drank MANY Caipirinha's so I was anxious to taste the Las Vegas version. Larry, Leslie and I all ordered a Caipirinha but with my first sip, I could tell it was not even close to what we drank in Brazil. I asked the bar tender if they used Pinga as the liquor for the drink and he said no and told me what they used but I don't remember the name The drink was ok--just not as good a a real Brazilian Caipirinha AND he let us buy three of these for $33.00. In Brazil a fifth of Pinga sells for $1.00 so perhaps he should use cheaper liquor or perhaps we should quit drinking in the bars in Vegas!@!

We loaded the luggage and took Pete and Leslie to the airport about 12:30 and their flight was at 2:00. By the time we got off the 'strip' headed home, they were boarding their plane.

After talking to Pete, he suggested we wait until after dark to go to Freemont Street as they have many light shows. We came back home and I laid down for awhile as I still have been feeling really lousy.


When I woke up I cleaned up and dressed and we headed to Freemont. We were able to drive all the way down and found a self park near Freemont at one of the casinos. When we got to Freemont, we found the 4 Queens Casino so we could make a reservation at Hugo's Cellar, which is inside the casino. They told us the earliest would be 8:30 so we put our name in and headed back outside. Freemont Street is closed to traffic so the entire area is for walking with stages for entertainment and lights galore! The entire street has a cover over the top and about every hour 45 minutes they do a light show that lights up the entire cover. It is all set to music and is just amazing. When the light show comes on, all of the casino's outside lights go off so as not to detract from the show.  We saw the show several times and each one was different. They also have a zip line that people ride from one end of the street to the other. Looked like fun but I think I am a little too old to try it out. I am really surprised Leslie and Pete did not ride it.

We walked around and right away found that several of the gift shops sold single bottles of beer as well as wine and hard liquor. We went in two times for a bottle of beer before our dinner reservation. The beer was something like $2.00 for MGD and you just go outside on the street and drink it while walking around. Vegas is really a different place. You drink on the street and smoke on the street--just about anything you'd like to do.

There was a guy doing drawings so we stopped and watched. He asked us if he could draw us and I said no it was too much money. He dropped his price to do both of us for $20.00. I'm glad we did not spend the full amount as the drawing was like a cartoon drawing of us. Pretty Lousy!

We went back to Hugo's and they took us to our table. There were three tables of VERY loud party's. I think two of the tables were wedding party's and one was just 6 guys that were just as loud. It was very difficult to hear our waiters or to even hear each other. Leslie and Pete had eat here on Monday night and raved about the food so that is why we decided to try it. I had prime rib and Larry had veal. The waiter comes to the table and prepares the salads at your table. Then they bring out sorbet or gelato ice cream in a very small cone. The main meal was then brought out and both included potatoes and green and white asparagus. My prime rib was enormous! There is no way I could have finished it all. It was very tender but I didn't think it had a lot of flavor. Larry liked his veal but said the veal he had at The Mesa Grill at Caesar's Palace was better. I became more irritated the longer we sat there as the noise level was unbelievable! I think the couples setting behind us must have asked to move as they left. We finished our meal and it was $133.00 and as usual -- was not worth the money but when in Vegas--throw your money away like everyone else! On the way out I told the manager that I just had the most UNPLEASANT meal of my life. I told him in the future when they have private parties, they need to locate them away from the other patrons. He apologized and told me he wished we would have asked to be moved. WHATEVER!

Lightshow overhead                                                           Drumner

 
We went back out on Freemont and walked around more and watched some guy playing drums with 5 gallon plastic buckets and pans. Larry said his brother Art could come down and make some extra cash as he is a drummer. Then there were a group of six on one of the entertainment stands singing and they were pretty good. We roamed around for a while and decided to head back home. Out of every place we went in Vegas, this was without a doubt the best as Pete had told us it would be.

Wednesday April 6, 2011

We packed up and left Las Vegas around  9:00am. We drove quite a distance and stopped to fuel and we had a Subway sandwich. We got back out on the road and drove the rest of the day--probably 450-500 miles. We stopped in a little town called Green River, UT. There was not much in the town but the lady at the RV Campground told us there was a nice restaurant up the road. We took the car off the dolli and drove down to eat. It was a nice place right on the river and we could see the mountains from where we sat. Larry had his fried chicken that I have been hearing about since we were in Arizona. No place in Arizona has fried chicken --of course other than Kentucky Fried--which we bypassed.  I had chicken strips but neither were to rave about. He said his chicken tasted like the ones in the frozen dinners.

We came back to motor home and I went to bed to read as it was getting pretty late.

Thursday April 7, 2011

Today was pretty much more of the same. Drove all day but did see some beautiful scenery. The mountains in Utah are pretty amazing and reminded us of Sedona, AZ , as they are mostly red rock. They are such unusual shapes that as you look at them, it hard to imagine how they ended up to be formed this way.
Mountains of Utah


We drove on into Colorado and drove through passes in the mountains that were too high to see the tops. We had a lot of wet highways up high and there was still a good amount of snow everywhere. We drove by many ski areas, Steamboat, Vail, Breckenridge and many, many more. We switched drivers and I finished the drive through the rest of the mountains. At times, I wondered if we were going to make it to the top as the peddle was to the floor and we kept dropping speed. It was a hard pull going through the higher elevations but we held our own with the semi's. It was a beautiful drive today but we had no breakfast, no lunch and finally about 30 miles out of Denver, I pulled into a Love's truck stop to fuel up and our big meal for the day was a Carl's hamburger. And as everyone knows, we are both just skin and bones!@!

Mountains in Colorado

We drove another 75 or 80 miles to Sterling, CO. We found a campground and stopped for the day around 6:30. The wind was terrible driving the last hour or so and as I set here in the RV tonight it feels like it is going to blow us off the map. Hope tomorrow is better as it makes it harder to drive and also cuts the fuel mileage. We are paying from about $4.05 to $4.20 a gallon for diesel. It would not surprise me if Illinois is not higher than here.

The Jersey Boys-Las Vegas April 4, 2011

Erich Bergen, Rick Faugno, Frankie Valli, Jeff Leibow and Deven May

Frankie Valli visits the Jersey Boys in Las Vegas(above)

Tonight we attended the most amazing show--tthe Jersey Boys Show at the Palazzo-Las Vegas. The tickets were pricey as everything in Las Vegas seems to be, but the show was such a wonderful experience, I would spend the money again to see it.

Our afternoon started out by going to eat before we hit the 'strip'. We finished our dinner by 5:00 and decided to drive on downtown, park and shop for awhile before the 7:00pm show. We parked in the Aria Casino deck  and thought we would walk around awhile and then walk on to the Palazzo for the show. We certainly walked around--for an hour and a half but we did not leisurely walk around. After we started walking toward the Palazzo we realized it was much farther than we realized. We were slapping ourselves because we have driven past the Palazzo several times since we've been here. We walked and walked and still did not catch sight of the casino. We walked for 45 minutes through the crowd and I finally asked a doorman on the way,  how far we were from the Palazzo. He informed us that we had a 45 minute walk left to get there! We picked up the pace as we were within an hour of the show. Walking through the crowd is crazy, those who walk slow prevent everyone else from even passing them because of the crowd coming the other way.  If we were not green country folk, we might have stopped and thought about taking a bus or the metro or whatever. We were given correct information because we walked at a very brisk pace and arrived hot and sweaty at the Palazzo at 6:40pm. We were both exhausted and my mouth was so dry I had a hard time swallowing! I think we were both near cardiac arrest!!.

We found the Jersey Boys Theater and paid $25.00 for two drinks at the bar. I weighed the idea of paying $5 for a bottle of water or $12 for a drink--easy choice! We walked into the theater and found our seats and sat and relaxed for the few minutes before the show. A couple came in and sat next to us and I was blowing my nose over and over as I still have the same stupid DISEASE--whatever I've had since Thanksgiving. I turned to the lady and told her that I wasn't contagious--just terrible allergies or WHATEVER! We talked for awhile and she said she had seen the show in December with her friend and insisted her husband see it with her as it was so amazing. She said the Las Vegas show was really the top rated one of all the Jersey Boys shows because they had such a choice of talent here.

As my heart was coming to a normal heart rate, the show began. I don't think I remembered to breath through the first act as it was so all consuming! The acting and signing was so wonderful. The story is about Frankie Valli's life and his climb from being a young man of 15 on the streets of New Jersey to his claim of fame with the Four Seasons. We took an 8 minute intermission which allowed everyone in the theater to stand in line for the bathroom. When I got in line, I noticed there was a family restroom, which was empty, so I told some of the ladies in line that I was going to make use of it. I came out and the line was forming to take my place. If not for taking advantage of that restroom, I would not have had time for anything.

We went back for act II and it was just as all consuming as before. The story was happy and sad as well. It told how he and the rest of his group basically lost their wives and children because they were on the road their entire career. Near the end of the show, Frankie Valli lost his daughter at age 22 to drugs. During the show his daughter had run away from home a few year prior to her death. When they found her she told him he had never been there for her during her life as he was always chasing fame.

The group eventually broke up and Frankie Valli went out on his own for awhile before he replaced the original group and was then known as Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.

So I was not disappointed as I was worried I would be. I have talked about seeing this for so long but was still hesitant about spending the money and insisting Larry also see it. Larry was also very pleased with the show, which I mostly worried about. It was spell bounding to say the least!

When the show ended we walked out of the theater thinking about facing the 2 mile --or more--walk back to the car. I had seen a metro station on the walk down so we asked the doorman about riding it back but he said it would not get us where we needed to go. We started walking away and I decided to ask him about  the bus. He told us how to get to a bus stop. We were nearing the bus stop and there was a bus there so we hurried to get there just as the bus pulled away. I found a bus schedule and it showed the buses run every 15 minutes. While waiting I received a message from Leslie about going to Richmond Street but didn't know what she meant. After catching the bus, a lady told us we could not miss Richmond Street. She said it was the best part of Las Vegas.  Larry said when we drop Pete and Leslie at the airport this afternoon, we would go down and roam around for the afternoon. One of the other ladies setting next to me said their are wonderful little shops and  live entertainment.

We had a great bus ride and arrived close to our parking deck. Again, my mouth and throat were so dry I had to have something to drink. We saw a CVS Pharmacy on our way to the parking deck so we stood in line for 20 minutes to purchase a bottle of water and a coke for Larry. Walgreens and CVS are very popular on the strip because they sell liquor and everyone is there to purchase it as they eventually gets smart about how to drink cheaper in Vegas.

We retrieved the car and got home about 11:30 ---exhausted!

Thursday March 31 to April 3, 2011

Thursday March 31, 2011

Today is Leslie's 32nd birthday. We are traveling from Mesa, AZ to Las Vegas, NV to meet Leslie and Pete tomorrow. The trip is a gift from Pete to Leslie for her graduation in December from Bradley. He made the mistake of asking her what she would like to have as a gift from him. I really am not sure he was thinking quite so big but they are to be here tomorrow. Pete has been in Seattle all week and rather than fly home to Peoria, he decided to fly to Las Vegas. He is due to arrive around noon tomorrow. He said he would make his way from the airport to the hotel so for us not to pick him up. Leslie does not arrive until 9:45pm tomorrow night so wel will pick her up --at least at this moment that is the plan. I'm sure we will spend money here on her as part of her birthday as well.

We arrived in Las Vegas around 3:00pm and we left Silveridge around 8:30am. It is around 330 miles from Mesa to Las Vegas so we did not make bad time getting here. We are staying at Oasis RV Resort which is absolutely beautiful. It is a huge park and spotless. There are two swimming pools, one for the children with a sandy beach and one for the adults. This is really nice to have an adult pool so those who do not have children with them can relax without being bothered by the kids. I don't mind it when I have my grandchildren but I don't like dealing with everyone else's when I want to relax.

We had to buy Internet service for a week which really is a rip considering what we already paid for our RV Site. If you want it you have to deal out the cash. I cannot stand being without Internet. When we went up to the office to pay for the Internet, we asked for a recommendation on a place to eat dinner. They highly recommended Deans Place which was on Dean Martin Blvd and just a few miles from resort. It was an Italian Restaurant so we had pasta again. It was good but nothing too special we didn;t think.

After we left the restaurant, we went to find a grocery store. The only one we found close was one called 'Food 4 Less'. It was actually a decent store and not at all what the name sounds like. As we were looking at the meat, we realized it's some form of a division of Kroger. There were many Kroger brand items in the store but could not use our Kroger card. The prices on the food was not what I considered cheap. We paid $11.00 for a 12 pack of MGD cans. We wanted canned beer to take to the pool tomorrow but MGD is much more expensive than any of the other brands here. It was the same in Mesa as well.

Came back to the resort and all the palm trees on the entrance drive are lighted.  It is so pretty everywhere in the park with lots of palms and grass.

Friday April 1, 2011

Got up this morning and cooked breakfast then pick up and cleaned up motor home some as it was a mess from traveling. We got ready and drove down to the 'strip' to look around. We found that all of the Casino's have free parking in their parking garages. That is a break for sure as I assumed the parking would cost us our pension check for the month. We walked and looked at the Casino's and went into several of them. They are very up class places and inside most of them is lots of shopping. I felt like a farm girl arriving in the city with cow shit still on my shoes!@!! In all the places in the world I have traveled, this is my first trip to Las Vegas. It is quite a sight and everything is pristine from the landscaping to the spotless side walks. When we were walking on the elevated bridges and sidewalks. there was a lady with a mop scrubbing the concrete. We went into several of the gift shops as Larry was trying to find a hat or visor as the sun is terribly hot and very bright. The prices in the shops seem to be pretty normal for a tourist town.



New York New York Casino



New York New York Casino



MGM Casino



Pool at Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort/ Kids Pool has Sandy Beach



Pool at Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort/Adult Pool


We walked a long distance and I suggested stopping for a margarita at an open air bar. We each got a 'house' margarita, which means it is less than a gallon glass--I could not believe my eyes when I saw the size of the glasses of the other margaritas. I do not exaggerate when I say a gallon glass--they were huge. Our margaritas, however, were very normal sized and if anything a little small compared to most I've had. I took a drink of mine just as the bartender collected from Larry for the drinks. I almost spit across the bar when she told him $26.00 for the two.  As you probably have already guessed, we had exactly ONE each!  Larry said he thought we made a down payment on the entire bar!!! I expected expensive but we could have had a beer and a hot dog at Wrigley Field cheaper than we paid for the two margaritas. I really didn't think anyplace was much more expensive than Wrigley. So the country girl had her first lesson on Vegas. We sat at the bar and nursed our drinks while watching the Chicago Cubs fall flat on their face on opening day! Two disappointments in less than an hour!

While watching the Cub game I kept seeing signs in the crowd saying 'This is the Year' --NOT! While watching them at Hohokam in Mesa, I saw nothing more than the same ol' Cubs. I think they had a record for spring training of something like 14-20. Not even close to 500 and they won't be any closer during regular season unless someone sets fire under them. It certainly looked cold, however, at Wrigley today. It was raining most of the time we watched and everyone looked like they were freezing--all of this while we are smothering in 93 degrees today. It amazes me how the weather can be so diverse throughout the US when at times there is only a hundred miles difference from 90 degrees to 30. This is true of Mesa and Flagstaff, which is a little more than a hundred miles apart. I guess we should be soaking up the heat because next week we will no doubt be shoveling snow when we reach Peoria.

We came back to motor home and Pete called. He arrived around 1:00 and went to their hotel, which is the Trump. He said he was going to go down and workout and take a short nap and call us when he woke up to see if we want to go to dinner or just have drinks with him. Leslie's plane does not get in until 9:50pm. We will meet Pete and all go to the airport to get Leslie. We told Pete before he arrived we would pick him up at airport and he said he would find a way to the hotel. The airport is right in the middle of Las Vegas Blvd where the strip is located.

We left before 7:00pm to pick up Pete. We got to the strip and it was bumper to bumper traffic. It took us an hour to get to the Trump Hotel to get Pete as it is on the far end of the strip. We were going to stop someplace along the strip for a drink but each time we saw the 'self park' areas they were either full or we did not make the right turn to get into them. The 'self park' areas are owned by a casino and are free parking. Anyway we spent so much time in traffic and trying to find a parking place, we decided we'd go on to airport and have a snack and drink there. When we got there, only one bar was open and they had no food. Larry and I had nothing but breakfast, which was several hours ago so we were getting pretty low on food. We had a huge draft and a bag of pretzels and a bag of nuts that we shared between us all.

Leslie's plane was on time and we found her without a problem and claimed her luggage. We got to the car and she changed her shoes and cloths--yep inside the car. The windows are pretty dark when it is dark outside so I guess her privacy was safe?? Her feet and ankles were very swollen so I hope after a good nights sleep she will be ok with that.

We left the airport and went back to the strip and parked in the Aria parking deck, which is where Larry and I parked earlier today. We went into the Aria Casino and bought a drink and walked around for awhile in the casino. They had several shops and restaurants inside. Larry bought four beer and a mixed drink for Leslie and paid $37. I guess that was pretty cheap compared to our two Margareta's earlier today. We left the casino and walked along the strip while drinking our beer--which is actually LEGAL in Las Vegas. Wild place here--seems just about anything goes. As we walked awhile, Leslie suggested we call it a night as she was very tired. I assume part of her being so tired was her big night out on Thursday night with the girls for her birthday. I don't think she got much sleep Thursday night. Anyway we made our way back to the car and took them back to the hotel and headed back to the motor home.

When we arrived at the RV Resort and drove down to our street, the fire department and a couple of security cars were blocking the street. One of the security guys told us that someone got lock.ed inside their motor home. How weird is that??? I guess one of the dead bolts stuck and they could not get out. I think they ended up breaking out the door window to get the door open. Kinda sounds like a blonde joke that they were locked IN??!!

Saturday April 2, 2011

Leslie called about 7:30am wanting us to come to the hotel to swim with them at the pool. I told her I'd talk to Larry and get back to her. Larry never did say yea or nah so we did nothing about calling her back. Then she sent me a couple of text messages wanting to know where we were. I just couldn't get excited about driving through the traffic to swim at that hour. When I lay around the pool, I like a beer and it just didn't seem right at 7:30am, however when she called me later, she said she paid $11.00 for a bloody mary so I guess it IS alright to drink at 7:30am as long as you are in Vegas--not to say I've never done it in my younger years!!! The next time she called, she said her and Pete would like to go to Hoover Dam since today was going to be overcast and possibly rain.

We left the resort to pick them up and I suggested we travel route 15 down to almost the end of Las Vegas Blvd, in hopes we would cut out the traffic issue. We made it to their hotel in about 15 minutes going that route. So at least we learned a better way to get there. We picked them up and headed to Boulder City which is technically where the Hoover Dam is. It is about 25 miles from Vegas. We crossed over the dam on the bridge and couldn't see a road that looked like it took us down to the dam. We turned around and headed back to the bridge and saw a sign pointing to the dam. We drove down the mountain and ended up parking on the other side of the dam. We had to walk quite a distance to get back to the visitor's center. It was terribly hot and the sun was out in full force when we got there. We walked up farther to a snack shop and got something to drink as we were all hot and dry. Leslie and Larry both wanted to take a tour of the dam so before I could tell Leslie that I preferred to just wait for them, she had bought us all tickets.


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At Hoover Dam

 


 
We got in line and they told us we needed to watch a movie about the dam before the tour started. We watched the movie and then got in line to wait to take the elevator down to the bottom of the dam, which was something like 500 feet underground. I am a little claustrophobic, so I was a whole lot anxious while down there. They took us through a tunnel into a room where the water flowed through HUGE pipes that ran under the floor of the room. We then took the elevator up a ways and this room overlooked the big generators that create the electricity for park of Arizona, Nevada and I think some bordering states as well. There were seven huge generators on the Nevada side and the guide said the Arizona side had six. It is hard to imagine that this was all accomplished in 1937. Even with our modern machinery, it would be a very complicated project. The workers worked 7/24 and were paid $4.00 a day. They indicated that was very good pay for that era but these people had to work like slaves for their pay. Also the pipes that carry the water were so huge, they could not transport them so they made them on-site. I was impressed by all the information and what it took to accomplish. It's not something that I would have had a problem with had I not seen but it was another 'tic mark' on Larry's 'bucket list'. So one more down and who knows how many more--we have been working on his 'bucket list' for quite awhile now.

We got back to Vegas around 3:00pm  and the kids wanted to go back to their hotel. Again Leslie begged us to come swim but I told her that when I laid around the pool I'd like more than just one drink and couldn't afford it at their pool. I told them to come to our pool and we could bring our own drinks but they just decided to go to the hotel to rest awhile. They called later wanting to know if we were coming back to the strip and both of us said no. Guess we sound like old fuddy duds but I don't enjoy gambling and spending half my pension on the crazy priced drinks. We are going to go to dinner tomorrow with them so will probably do the strip again tomorrow. They were going to try to see a show tonight and they already have tickets for a show on Monday night. My 'bucket list' has included seeing the Jersey Boys for a long while now. I had checked on tickets before we got here and they are quite expensive. I checked again this afternoon and talked Larry into spending the money, then could not purchase the tickets on-line. We will probably just check while downtown tomorrow about tickets for either Monday or Tuesday night.

Pete had a few things he needed laundered so I did all my laundry as well this afternoon and tonight. Almost have it all done and just waiting for my towels to dry.

I think the weather is going to cool down some tomorrow and quite a lot on Monday. It was much too warm today so I'm ready for a little cooler weather. I say that and each time I think about how cold it will be when we get back to Peoria. I am trying to enjoy the heat but I have a hard time when it gets in the high 80's and 90's.

Sunday April 3, 2011

Went to breakfast and then to Walmart--OH DUH--isn't that an everyday trip??? We needed chemicals for the motor home and a few grocery items. We headed back home and let our wonderful kittys outside for awhile to brake their cabin fever. Sat outside with them and had a beer then got changed and walked up to the pool. Since we have an adult pool they allow alchol and smoking! That's relaxing!!! Had our beer and sat around the pool for a couple of hours and read.


Ceiling in Caesar's Palace



We came home and showered and left to pick up Pete and Leslie for dinner. We went to the Mesa Grill inside Caesar's Palace. Don't let the word 'grill' fool you into thinking it is a snack shop type restaurant!! Our bill for 4 meals was $256.00 PLUS TIP! The food was good but not too sure it was THAT great! I had salmon, Larry had veal, Pete had pork tenderloin ,which was very different and Leslie had some type of chicken with a sauce. We had appetizer of shrimp which was prepared in a corn husk like a tamale which was very unusual and tasty. Everyone liked their meal and we were so full we could hardly move when we left. We walked through Caesar's Palace, which is just a huge place and so beautiful. Leslie and I saw the cutest nightgown that was in the style of a Greek goddess. It was sheer material in white with gold trim. They had the gold slippers to match so Leslie bought the gown and I bought the slippers to give to Morgan for her birthday in July.  We walked forever looking at all the decor in the palace. The place we bought the things for Morgan had a high domed ceiling and the ceiling was painted to look like the sky. It was hard to imagine you were not outside on a sunny day with the clouds floating overhead. It was beautiful.

While we were in this area, I noticed a desk that was selling show tickets. I have been on the Internet trying to buy tickets for The Jersey Boys but could never complete through ticketron. We walked over to find out what was available either for Monday or Tuesday evening. We bought two tickets for Monday night at the Palazzo for $260. Money just flows from our hands here. I didn't really care how much the tickets were as I have been wanting to see this show forever. They were in Chicago several times and again in Phoenix while we were there, so I decided if I was ever going to see the show now was the time.

We must have walked a mile or more just inside Caesar's.  Every room in the place was different with unimaginable decor. We went upstairs and when we came down we rode a curved escalator. I have never seen an escalator that curves around like this. There was a thousand shops inside from all the top designers, ones I've never heard of, which is not surprising considering how many designer items I've purchased in my life. Leslie and I could not resist going into The Kid's Kastle, which was a clothing store and when we came out our knees were buckled. OMG, I have never seen prices like they had attached to their clothing. The clothing was just adorable, of course, not like 'off the rack' items from WALMART!!! We really enjoyed looking at all the beautiful little outfits for the girls. I don't think my lovely granddaughters will be able to enjoy anything from this place --at least from their grandma Stafford!!

We finally stopped at one of the bar's inside the palace and had a drink. I was getting to the point that I didn't think I could take another step. It is just hard to imagine how huge this place is. After we sat awhile, we headed out again. Leslie wanted to take us to the Balligo Casino to see the flowers. I had no idea what she was talking about but even being so tired of walking, I told her we would go see them. When we walked outside it was like a winter blast! It was freezing. It was very warm when we first went into Caesar's for dinner earlier in the night. Larry had on shorts and I had capri's and a top with medium length sleeves, which felt good. Pete and Leslie had long pants but Pete had a short sleeve shirt and of course, Leslie had on Pete's jacket,  so needless to say, we were all freezing.


Swans standing in water with flowers in The Ballagio Casino




Carousel among the flowers




Butterfly is made of flowers also



We walked to the Bellagio Casino and again walked and walked. I was almost ready to tell Leslie to forget it when we came into an area that was nothing but flowers. What an amazing sight to see all these flowers in this huge area. I could live like the rich and famous on the money spent in this room along. They had a butterfly house with the live butterflies inside of all different shapes and colors. Their was a large picture hung on one wall that was made totally of flowers, the flowers in the room were of every color and variety. It was just beautiful. We walked through and looked at everything and then walked all the way through the Casino again to go outside. When we got outside we arrived just in time to watch the musical fountain, which only goes off about once an hour. The waters dance to a different song each time and is another amazing thing to watch. The fountain is in front of Bellagio and draws many people each time it plays. At night it is especially beautiful!


Musical Waters in front of Balligo Casino



Eiffel Tower where Pete and Leslie dined on Saturday

Leslie and Pete had dinner on Saturday night at the Eiffel Tower. I can only imagine how beautiful the sights were from there as it is set just across from the Bellagio and right in the middle of the strip with all the lights surrounding it.



Pete's first gambling rage! Spent $2 on penny slots

 We started walking back to Caesar's to claim our car. This was at least another mile trek as we had to walk all the way to the back of the casino to catch an elevator to the parking deck. On the way, Pete decided he at least had to play the penny slots. He told us he had never gambled before so this was a big event! He ended up gambling $2.00. We laughed at him because he would get ahead and then loose the money each time. We had such a good time laughing as Leslie always has 'captions' for everything that just brings you to your knees laughing. She had to 'stage' several pictures of us to place her captions on for Facebook. One was Larry with his hand on Pete's chest and her caption was Larry having an intervention with Pete about the Penny Slots! She is just crazy!When we left the fountain and were walking down the sidewalk, we saw many statues. These are actually people who pose as statues. One was painted gold from top to bottom and Larry and I had seen him during the day on Friday. He stands perfectly still and all of a sudden he would raise a hand or turn his head. Of course they have their tip jar setting in front of them and if you take a picture, they expect a tip. More than one way in Vegas to make a living I guess! We walked on and saw a gal dressed like Lady Gaga and of course she was getting lots of takers for pictures with the guys. Farther down the sidewalk we came to another statue guy that was painted white and of course standing perfectly still. When we walked by him Leslie pointed at him and said something and he immediately lifted his arm and pointed back at her. They are all so awesome and I can't imagine standing for hours bent forward with an arm up or whatever. I guess they no doubt earn what they make in tips.


We FINALLY found the car just as I was placing my last foot forward! I don't think I could have walked another step!!! We got in the car and started to exit. Each time Larry would take an exit, we would end up back in the same place. Of course Leslie and I started laughing so hard we had tears in our eyes and Pete said that this is what Larry gets for being too cheap to have the car parked by the valet. We always go for the 'self park' area because it is free. Of course Pete was joking as he and Larry and I had just talked at dinner about HOW expensive it was to be in Las Vegas. Anyway around and around we drove and FINALLY we accidentally found the EXIT!@! All of us were laughing to the point we couldn't breath and probably most of it was that we were exhausted so everything was so much funnier than normal. It was one of those things you had to be there to appreciate! Anyone who know our daughter Leslie, knows she should have been a comedian as she has been this way her entire life. Pete kept asking each time she'd say or do something stupid--'Is this YOUR daughter'!! We love Pete as he is such a great guy! He treats our daughter so wonderful and is so respectful to everyone!

 We took Pete and Leslie back to Trump Tours and dropped them off and headed home. It was almost midnight--LATE for the old farts. We had a cup of coffee and I headed to bed. Read probably 25 words before I was sound asleep!