Roadtrip Southwest - Day 1

 

I have returned from my latest vacation.

I covered three states (one new one to add to my 50 states countdown)

Drove well over 1000 miles, two national parks.

A gazillion cactuses and lots of sand.

Yosemite National Park - Part 3

 Day 3

Yosemite National Park - Part 2

 Giant trees, here we come!

Yosemite National Park - Part 1

 Three days in Yosemite National Park

Ver las ballenas - Addendum

We head back into civilization.

Farewells to the sea and the whales.

We have to go back.

But, first, a few more things.

San Diego Part 4

Up early again on Friday. I decided to use my rain check from No-Whales-Seen Monday cruise and went out for another sail.

Dolphins!

San Diego Part 3

Thursday and Friday of the trip was a bit more leisurely. I had checked off the things I wanted to do that were scheduled or dependent on other people. My legs were finally less sore from the race.

San Diego part 2

Another great couple of days in Southern California.

San Diego Part 1

Greetings from the Lower Left!

Since my long-sought whale trip was cancelled, I had to

resign myself to a week in Southern California.

Can't waste good plane tickets!

A Weekend West

two and a half days.

Three states.
Two national parks.
One Ferris wheel/observation wheel.

I flew out Friday afternoon, arriving in Las Vegas about 315PM (Vegas time, gained 2 hours!). Note to other hostel dwellers: certain airport shuttles will not deliver you to the hostels in Vegas. So I wound up riding the shuttle that I had already paid for to the Stratosphere, which was nearest the hostel. The Deuce bus took me the rest of the way.

After finally getting situated in my bunk, and locking away my stuff in the locker, I set out for the Strip. The High Roller was my main objective. I had to skip it last year, but promised myself I would get to it on a return trip. Always vacation as though you will come back, but also as if you don't need to sleep. It's a fine balance between going full bore for what you want and letting go of things you can't control.

The High Roller. The cars don't stop moving,  The wheel moves slowly enough that passengers can simply walk on as they glide by. You then watch the Vegas scenery as the car rises, reaches its apex, then comes back around to the dock. The view is pretty great, and it's a good way to take a moment and gather your bearings before heading back out onto the chaos of the Boulevard.

Saturday had a bit of a rough start. My tour guide had called me the night before to confirm pickup at the Golden Nugget. No problem. I had to be at the hotel (because they didn't do hostel pickups) by 530 to catch the bus. I had arranged for a cab to pick me up and get me there, but they didn't show up. The hostel was fortunately near the bus stop, so I walked around the corner hoping it wouldn't be too long of a wait. The clock was ticking though, so I called the phone number I had received the night before to let my guide know that I was having logistical issues. A few minutes later, he called back and told me he could drop by the hostel to get me. Wonderful, wonderful!