Monday, December 05, 2005
Day 27 - Universal Studios
Mark and I headed on out to Universal Studios today to do the tourist bit before we both head off tomorrow.
Manuel lent me his car for the day, so I drove to pick up Mark and then braved the LA freeways. It was mostly uneventfull, and we got there about 30 minutes after opening.
We hit up the backlot tour first thing. It was pretty cool, and at one point we had to stop for a little while because they were filming the Ghost Whisperer at the time.
The Mummy ride was awesome - we did it twice in a row, and if we'd had time later in the day I would have liked to have hit it up a couple more times. We did all the rides - Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, etc - as well as all the special effects stage tours, and the Backdraft show. After lunch we saw the Terminator 2 and Shrek 3D/4D movies (3D movie plus seat movements and other added effects), and last of all we watched the Waterworld show. It was a good way to wrap up the day and is quite the spectacle.
We tried to delay a little by spending some time in Universal City before hitting the road - we were running the risk of hitting peak hour traffic otherwise. After a half hour or so we got a little bored, so headed off, only to get caught in traffic as soon as we got on the freeway. Thankfully I was comfortable driving the car by then, so I wasn't phased too much by it, and after 30 minutes or so we were getting up a bit of speed.
We phoned ahead to tell the others we were on the way back, and organised a dinner at a microbrewery on the waterfront as a going-away dinner. It was a good meal, and I said my farewells to everyone. It was kinda hard to do, but I realised that I'm looking forward to heading home. It's been a long trip, I've seen so much, met so many new people, but I miss my own bed, my cat, my car, etc.
Mark and I headed on out to Universal Studios today to do the tourist bit before we both head off tomorrow.
Manuel lent me his car for the day, so I drove to pick up Mark and then braved the LA freeways. It was mostly uneventfull, and we got there about 30 minutes after opening.
We hit up the backlot tour first thing. It was pretty cool, and at one point we had to stop for a little while because they were filming the Ghost Whisperer at the time.
The Mummy ride was awesome - we did it twice in a row, and if we'd had time later in the day I would have liked to have hit it up a couple more times. We did all the rides - Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, etc - as well as all the special effects stage tours, and the Backdraft show. After lunch we saw the Terminator 2 and Shrek 3D/4D movies (3D movie plus seat movements and other added effects), and last of all we watched the Waterworld show. It was a good way to wrap up the day and is quite the spectacle.
We tried to delay a little by spending some time in Universal City before hitting the road - we were running the risk of hitting peak hour traffic otherwise. After a half hour or so we got a little bored, so headed off, only to get caught in traffic as soon as we got on the freeway. Thankfully I was comfortable driving the car by then, so I wasn't phased too much by it, and after 30 minutes or so we were getting up a bit of speed.
We phoned ahead to tell the others we were on the way back, and organised a dinner at a microbrewery on the waterfront as a going-away dinner. It was a good meal, and I said my farewells to everyone. It was kinda hard to do, but I realised that I'm looking forward to heading home. It's been a long trip, I've seen so much, met so many new people, but I miss my own bed, my cat, my car, etc.
Monday, November 28, 2005
Day 26 - Watching Manuel at the Autocross
Another day, another 6am start, and we were at California Speedway just after 7am. The wind was incredible, so we did our best to prepare the car (remove anything unnecessary, attach the number, etc) without getting blown away.
Manuel did his session, with a couple of little slip-ups, then we sat back and watched the other cars - mx5s, corvettes, mustangs, and all manner of hondas.
Tomorrow Mark and I are headed to Universal Studios, so that should be some fun.
Speaking of which, I better go charge up the camera.
Another day, another 6am start, and we were at California Speedway just after 7am. The wind was incredible, so we did our best to prepare the car (remove anything unnecessary, attach the number, etc) without getting blown away.
Manuel did his session, with a couple of little slip-ups, then we sat back and watched the other cars - mx5s, corvettes, mustangs, and all manner of hondas.
Tomorrow Mark and I are headed to Universal Studios, so that should be some fun.
Speaking of which, I better go charge up the camera.
Sunday, November 27, 2005
Day 25 - Back in Los Angeles one last time.
Nothing had changed this morning - the thin layer of snow from yesterday afternoon was still there, but was no bigger.
I decided that I'd join John and the twins when they headed home, having felt a little ordinary last night. I think the altitude might have been getting to me a little - it felt like my lungs were aching for about 2 hours. Plus I hadn't slept well the night before due to the snoring symphony the other 3 were making, so I'd ended up in bed at about 8:15. So between the ordinary snowfall to this point, the slight altitude sickness, and the not-so-comfy sleeping conditions, I was ready to go home. Well, to home here in Los Angeles, anyway.
We got home about 3pm after seeing a couple of volcanos, a dust storm, some tumbleweed, the Mojave Desert, the airplane graveyard, and the San Andreas Fault.
After unpacking John's car, we put on some washing and put all the snowboarding gear away, and then headed out for a movie - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. It was pretty good, but I think the Prisoner of Azkaban was marginally better.
Since then I've been uploading pics, and catching up on the days I've missed, but I think it's about time to call it a day. Manuel is going to an autocross event tomorrow, and I'm going to join him to check out the cars and get some pics/videos. The only problem is we have to be there by 7:30, so it's yet another early start.
So the missing days will have to wait a little longer yet.
Nothing had changed this morning - the thin layer of snow from yesterday afternoon was still there, but was no bigger.
I decided that I'd join John and the twins when they headed home, having felt a little ordinary last night. I think the altitude might have been getting to me a little - it felt like my lungs were aching for about 2 hours. Plus I hadn't slept well the night before due to the snoring symphony the other 3 were making, so I'd ended up in bed at about 8:15. So between the ordinary snowfall to this point, the slight altitude sickness, and the not-so-comfy sleeping conditions, I was ready to go home. Well, to home here in Los Angeles, anyway.
We got home about 3pm after seeing a couple of volcanos, a dust storm, some tumbleweed, the Mojave Desert, the airplane graveyard, and the San Andreas Fault.
After unpacking John's car, we put on some washing and put all the snowboarding gear away, and then headed out for a movie - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. It was pretty good, but I think the Prisoner of Azkaban was marginally better.
Since then I've been uploading pics, and catching up on the days I've missed, but I think it's about time to call it a day. Manuel is going to an autocross event tomorrow, and I'm going to join him to check out the cars and get some pics/videos. The only problem is we have to be there by 7:30, so it's yet another early start.
So the missing days will have to wait a little longer yet.
Day 24 - Mammoth Mountain: overcast and showers
Today's forecast was for afternoon showers, but it's 9am and it's raining ever so lightly outside. It's on the verge of snowing, but it's not cold enough to down here in the town.
Some of the others have already headed up to the mountain to see what it's like. The rest of us are here waiting to see what it's like up there - it's possible that it's snowing up there, but we don't want to spend money on a lift ticket if it's raining there as well.
I'm still stiff and sore from yesterday, but at least it seems I'm not the only sore one.
I'm not sure if I'll do much boarding today if I go up. I really want to get some photos/videos but as yet haven't even taken the camera up there. If we go up I'm thinking about making my way part way down one of the runs and getting shots of the others as they go by. If these clouds move on a bit or if it's snowing I should be able to get some good shots.
For now I'm going to go back over some of the days I've yet to write up and hope that this rain turns into snow.
Update: The rain did turn to snow, but not enough to make a difference, so we stayed indoors. The decision has been made to hold off going home till the morning to see if the snow continues through the night.
Today's forecast was for afternoon showers, but it's 9am and it's raining ever so lightly outside. It's on the verge of snowing, but it's not cold enough to down here in the town.
Some of the others have already headed up to the mountain to see what it's like. The rest of us are here waiting to see what it's like up there - it's possible that it's snowing up there, but we don't want to spend money on a lift ticket if it's raining there as well.
I'm still stiff and sore from yesterday, but at least it seems I'm not the only sore one.
I'm not sure if I'll do much boarding today if I go up. I really want to get some photos/videos but as yet haven't even taken the camera up there. If we go up I'm thinking about making my way part way down one of the runs and getting shots of the others as they go by. If these clouds move on a bit or if it's snowing I should be able to get some good shots.
For now I'm going to go back over some of the days I've yet to write up and hope that this rain turns into snow.
Update: The rain did turn to snow, but not enough to make a difference, so we stayed indoors. The decision has been made to hold off going home till the morning to see if the snow continues through the night.
Day 22 - Mammoth Mountain: a beginner's lesson.
We left LA at 4:10am, and as uncomfortable as I was, I half-slept for the first hour or two of the trip. After a couple of stops along the way, we got to Mammoth Lakes at about 11am.
I think it was Derek who needed some new gloves, so we stopped in at a store so he could pick up a pair. I made a last-minute decision to demo a pair of boots. That's kind of like renting, but you get a brand new pair of higher-quality boots in a try-before-you-buy type arrangement. So for $20 a day I had a brand new pair of $400 boots.
At around midday we got to the slopes, and I decided to get an afternoon beginner's lesson so I didn't hold any of the others back.
The lesson was pretty good, and by the end I was starting to get a feel for what I needed to be doing (and not doing). I fell down a few times, and once or twice landed a bit awkward on my wrists. It wasn't bad enough to break any bones, but it convinced me that wristguards will be needed before I go much further.
As the afternoon came to a close, we found our unit, grabbed some groceries, and settled in with a few beers.
Mark and I waited up for the others to arrive, though I didn't last long enough to see Chris and Ness arrive at around 3am.
We left LA at 4:10am, and as uncomfortable as I was, I half-slept for the first hour or two of the trip. After a couple of stops along the way, we got to Mammoth Lakes at about 11am.
I think it was Derek who needed some new gloves, so we stopped in at a store so he could pick up a pair. I made a last-minute decision to demo a pair of boots. That's kind of like renting, but you get a brand new pair of higher-quality boots in a try-before-you-buy type arrangement. So for $20 a day I had a brand new pair of $400 boots.
At around midday we got to the slopes, and I decided to get an afternoon beginner's lesson so I didn't hold any of the others back.
The lesson was pretty good, and by the end I was starting to get a feel for what I needed to be doing (and not doing). I fell down a few times, and once or twice landed a bit awkward on my wrists. It wasn't bad enough to break any bones, but it convinced me that wristguards will be needed before I go much further.
As the afternoon came to a close, we found our unit, grabbed some groceries, and settled in with a few beers.
Mark and I waited up for the others to arrive, though I didn't last long enough to see Chris and Ness arrive at around 3am.
Day 23 - Mammoth Mountain: boarding practice and Thanksgiving
Today we headed up to the slopes at about 10-ish and I had my first go at boarding solo, though not before sourcing some wristguards.
The wristguards came in handy, but more than half the time I landed ass-first, so my tailbone would have appreciated some extra protection as well. The first time I went down, I went down real hard. It hurt enough to make me seriously contemplate how much I wanted to try finishing the rest of the run. After a minute or two sitting on the ice and debating whether or not you could die from a broken tailbone, I plucked up the courage to get back up and give it another go.
I didn't really have much more success on the rest of the run, spending more time falling down than not. I finally made it to the bottom and ducked into the lodge for a drink or two. On the way back out to meet up with Mark as we'd planned, I bumped into Ness and Chris, who were just about to have lunch. I grabbed Mark and we all hung out at the lodge for half hour or so.
I figured one run wasn't enough, so I had a second crack at the beginner's slope. This time was a little more productive, and I was starting to get a little bit of a grip on things when Derek & Manuel rang to find out where I was. They met me half way down, and John gave me some much-needed pointers, and I really made some progress. Unfortunately my legs were getting pretty tired and I was having troubles controlling the board, so we headed back to the unit to watch the Thanksgiving Day football.
For dinner, most of the others decided they weren't really hungry, but Chris, Ness, Mark and myself headed to a bar/restaurant in the village for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.
As much as it hurt, it was a very enjoyable Thanksgiving.
Today we headed up to the slopes at about 10-ish and I had my first go at boarding solo, though not before sourcing some wristguards.
The wristguards came in handy, but more than half the time I landed ass-first, so my tailbone would have appreciated some extra protection as well. The first time I went down, I went down real hard. It hurt enough to make me seriously contemplate how much I wanted to try finishing the rest of the run. After a minute or two sitting on the ice and debating whether or not you could die from a broken tailbone, I plucked up the courage to get back up and give it another go.
I didn't really have much more success on the rest of the run, spending more time falling down than not. I finally made it to the bottom and ducked into the lodge for a drink or two. On the way back out to meet up with Mark as we'd planned, I bumped into Ness and Chris, who were just about to have lunch. I grabbed Mark and we all hung out at the lodge for half hour or so.
I figured one run wasn't enough, so I had a second crack at the beginner's slope. This time was a little more productive, and I was starting to get a little bit of a grip on things when Derek & Manuel rang to find out where I was. They met me half way down, and John gave me some much-needed pointers, and I really made some progress. Unfortunately my legs were getting pretty tired and I was having troubles controlling the board, so we headed back to the unit to watch the Thanksgiving Day football.
For dinner, most of the others decided they weren't really hungry, but Chris, Ness, Mark and myself headed to a bar/restaurant in the village for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.
As much as it hurt, it was a very enjoyable Thanksgiving.
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Day 21 - Returning to Long Beach
We got back from Vegas at 3pm this afternoon, and are heading off to Mammoth Mountain first thing tomorrow (some time between 3 and 5am) so this will be just a brief post.
We didn't have internet in Vegas, and I was too busy to prepare blog updates offline, so I'll try and write everything up over the next few days as I have time. I won't have any net in Mammoth either, so things will be a little quiet around here again for the next few days.
So expect a flood of updates and photos around Sunday or so. :)
We got back from Vegas at 3pm this afternoon, and are heading off to Mammoth Mountain first thing tomorrow (some time between 3 and 5am) so this will be just a brief post.
We didn't have internet in Vegas, and I was too busy to prepare blog updates offline, so I'll try and write everything up over the next few days as I have time. I won't have any net in Mammoth either, so things will be a little quiet around here again for the next few days.
So expect a flood of updates and photos around Sunday or so. :)
Day 20 - Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon
Today Mark, Manuel and myself did a day trip out to the Grand Canyon, with a stop at Hoover Dam.
As we left Vegas we stopped at a camera shop and I picked up a tripod, with the intention of using it for photos of the Strip at night. This turned out to be a handy purchase.
Hoover Dam is about 40 minutes out of Vegas and is right on the Nevada-Arizona border. I've seen it in movies and photos etc, but I was struck by just how narrow it is in real life. There were masses of people everywhere, so we had a quick look, took a few photos, and hit the road again.
The Grand Canyon is about 250 miles or so from the Hoover Dam, and we were making quite good time, which we needed - we were going to be getting low on light when we got there, but we didn't know just how low.
The last leg of the trip - 50 miles from Williams to the Grand Canyon - was a single-lane 65mph road, and we were up against a little bit of traffic. On one straight, Manuel overtook a pickup truck, pulled back into our lane, and then noticed the car coming the other way was a patrol car. He pulled a u-turn, and pulled us over - 83 in a 65mph. Fortunately he dropped it to a 75mph ticket, and a few minutes later we were on our way again.
After paying the $20 per car entry fee to the national park, we were at the Canyon. We had maybe 10 minutes of sunlight left, so I grabbed a few quick shots of the Canyon right near the car. There was no guardrail at that point, so my fear of heights kept me at a good distance from the edge, but not without a few quick glances down. It's a LOOOONG way down!
The south rim of the canyon - where we were - is 6000 feet above sea level, with the north rim another 1000 feet higher. I'm not sure what height the Colorado River as at that point, but it'd have to be at least 3000 feet down I'd reckon. I might look that up when I have internet again.
As we walked to the lookout point that juts out into the canyon a little, we had a quick estimate at the temperature - I guessed maybe 5-8C at most.
Due to the failing light, I set up the tripod and got many photos while Manuel did a brief bit of videoing. He gave up claiming that his hands were too cold. I don't really blame him either!
We left after about 45 minutes or so, which is apparently the average stay at the Grand Canyon.
After dinner at Dennys back in Williams, I took over the driving. I drove back to Hoover Dam, where we stopped again for some night shots of the dam. They turned out really well so I might have to get a few of them developed and framed when I get home.
We got back to Vegas at about 10pm, and after about 11 hours in the car I didn't feel up to walking the Strip for night photos, so while I did use the tripod, it wasn't for what I initially bought it for.
Today Mark, Manuel and myself did a day trip out to the Grand Canyon, with a stop at Hoover Dam.
As we left Vegas we stopped at a camera shop and I picked up a tripod, with the intention of using it for photos of the Strip at night. This turned out to be a handy purchase.
Hoover Dam is about 40 minutes out of Vegas and is right on the Nevada-Arizona border. I've seen it in movies and photos etc, but I was struck by just how narrow it is in real life. There were masses of people everywhere, so we had a quick look, took a few photos, and hit the road again.
The Grand Canyon is about 250 miles or so from the Hoover Dam, and we were making quite good time, which we needed - we were going to be getting low on light when we got there, but we didn't know just how low.
The last leg of the trip - 50 miles from Williams to the Grand Canyon - was a single-lane 65mph road, and we were up against a little bit of traffic. On one straight, Manuel overtook a pickup truck, pulled back into our lane, and then noticed the car coming the other way was a patrol car. He pulled a u-turn, and pulled us over - 83 in a 65mph. Fortunately he dropped it to a 75mph ticket, and a few minutes later we were on our way again.
After paying the $20 per car entry fee to the national park, we were at the Canyon. We had maybe 10 minutes of sunlight left, so I grabbed a few quick shots of the Canyon right near the car. There was no guardrail at that point, so my fear of heights kept me at a good distance from the edge, but not without a few quick glances down. It's a LOOOONG way down!
The south rim of the canyon - where we were - is 6000 feet above sea level, with the north rim another 1000 feet higher. I'm not sure what height the Colorado River as at that point, but it'd have to be at least 3000 feet down I'd reckon. I might look that up when I have internet again.
As we walked to the lookout point that juts out into the canyon a little, we had a quick estimate at the temperature - I guessed maybe 5-8C at most.
Due to the failing light, I set up the tripod and got many photos while Manuel did a brief bit of videoing. He gave up claiming that his hands were too cold. I don't really blame him either!
We left after about 45 minutes or so, which is apparently the average stay at the Grand Canyon.
After dinner at Dennys back in Williams, I took over the driving. I drove back to Hoover Dam, where we stopped again for some night shots of the dam. They turned out really well so I might have to get a few of them developed and framed when I get home.
We got back to Vegas at about 10pm, and after about 11 hours in the car I didn't feel up to walking the Strip for night photos, so while I did use the tripod, it wasn't for what I initially bought it for.
Day 19 - Hitting up the Stratosphere in Vegas.
The plan today was to check out the Stratosphere and go on some of the rides. It's at the complete opposite end of the Strip to us, so we drove up there to save some time.
After paying the entry fee and going through yet another security check (I've lost count of how many I've gone through in the last few weeks), we were on our way to the indoor observation deck on the 106th floor.
We checked out Vegas and the Strip from there for a while, and got some pics & videos (videos coming when I get back to Brisbane) and made our way back to the elevators to go on up to the outdoor observation deck.
This is where the action really is. You can watch the X Scream and Insanity rides from here - both of which dangle their riders over the edge, almost 900 feet (300 meters) above the ground.
After watching these for a bit, we moved up to the top level, where the Big Shot and the High Roller are. Mark went on the Big Shot, then I went on the High Roller, both of which are fairly tame compared to the two newer additions.
So back down we went for Mark and Manuel to ride the X Scream, and lastly for Manuel to go for a (solo) ride on the Insanity. He admitted later that it was rather scary.
Once we'd finally tired of looking down on Vegas, we wen't back down to the car and headed to The Gun Store, where you can try out a wide variety of guns - including full-auto machine guns! Mark wasn't interested (what he actually said was it too redneck for him), so Manuel and I settled on sharing 100 rounds each in the M16 and MP5. That was good fun, especially seeing what they are really like after using them in so many computer games. Again, videos of that will be up when I get back to Brisbane.
After a quick stop back at the hotel, we returned to the Strip, this time on foot. Our first destination was back at the source of the $2 Corona Lights. :) A couple of rounds later we were on the move again, in search of some cheap tickets to a show of some description. Unfortunately everything we were interested in was either sold out, or way up the other end of the strip (ie, it'd pretty much take a cab to get there).
Instead, we went looking for something other than a buffet dinner and found ourselves at Ah Sin in the Paris casino. It was a very good meal and we were soon satisfied enough to visit the hold'em tables in the casino. I laid down $60 at one $3-6 limit table, as did Mark at another. Unfortunately I only lasted 45 minutes or so, but I did win a few hands. I was so nervous at the start that I couldn't even pick up the cards! Mark fared a little better, not only lasting longer than me, but walking away with over $30 still intact.
At this point we called it a night - we're hoping for a somewhat early start in the morning so that we can get to the Grand Canyon at a decent hour.
The plan today was to check out the Stratosphere and go on some of the rides. It's at the complete opposite end of the Strip to us, so we drove up there to save some time.
After paying the entry fee and going through yet another security check (I've lost count of how many I've gone through in the last few weeks), we were on our way to the indoor observation deck on the 106th floor.
We checked out Vegas and the Strip from there for a while, and got some pics & videos (videos coming when I get back to Brisbane) and made our way back to the elevators to go on up to the outdoor observation deck.
This is where the action really is. You can watch the X Scream and Insanity rides from here - both of which dangle their riders over the edge, almost 900 feet (300 meters) above the ground.
After watching these for a bit, we moved up to the top level, where the Big Shot and the High Roller are. Mark went on the Big Shot, then I went on the High Roller, both of which are fairly tame compared to the two newer additions.
So back down we went for Mark and Manuel to ride the X Scream, and lastly for Manuel to go for a (solo) ride on the Insanity. He admitted later that it was rather scary.
Once we'd finally tired of looking down on Vegas, we wen't back down to the car and headed to The Gun Store, where you can try out a wide variety of guns - including full-auto machine guns! Mark wasn't interested (what he actually said was it too redneck for him), so Manuel and I settled on sharing 100 rounds each in the M16 and MP5. That was good fun, especially seeing what they are really like after using them in so many computer games. Again, videos of that will be up when I get back to Brisbane.
After a quick stop back at the hotel, we returned to the Strip, this time on foot. Our first destination was back at the source of the $2 Corona Lights. :) A couple of rounds later we were on the move again, in search of some cheap tickets to a show of some description. Unfortunately everything we were interested in was either sold out, or way up the other end of the strip (ie, it'd pretty much take a cab to get there).
Instead, we went looking for something other than a buffet dinner and found ourselves at Ah Sin in the Paris casino. It was a very good meal and we were soon satisfied enough to visit the hold'em tables in the casino. I laid down $60 at one $3-6 limit table, as did Mark at another. Unfortunately I only lasted 45 minutes or so, but I did win a few hands. I was so nervous at the start that I couldn't even pick up the cards! Mark fared a little better, not only lasting longer than me, but walking away with over $30 still intact.
At this point we called it a night - we're hoping for a somewhat early start in the morning so that we can get to the Grand Canyon at a decent hour.
Sunday, November 20, 2005
Day 18 - Viva Las Vegas!!
Mark should have arrived this morning (Chris was picking him up), and at midday today he, Manuel, and I are heading off to Vegas :D
We should get there about dusk - just in time for the action to start.
We're there until Tuesday, but are doing a day trip out to Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon on Monday.
The last few days have been very uneventful, mainly consisting of me and Spanky battling each other on the Xbox.
I did have to drive to LAX yesterday to pick up Manuel and another of their friends, who works on a cruise ship based out of Long Beach. So that was a 30 minute drive on my own through mid-morning LA traffic in a manual, but I survived, as did the car. :)
I'm all but over the sore throat I picked up last week, which is a good thing. The other day I was exhausted by just walking to the supermarket around the corner and back, so at least I have enough energy now for Vegas. I think I'm going to need it ;)
Update: We're in Vegas, and made it here in about 4 and a half hours. We even had time for a quick stop to see the world's biggest thermometer :P
We're in the Luxor Hotel, which is the big black pyramid on the strip with the world's brightest light on top of it. Because it's a pyramid there's no elevators, only "inclinators", which just means they travel diagonally upwards. That's disorientating. It's also disorientating that all the hallways only have rooms on one side of them - the other side looks out over the edge to the interior of the building. We're 15 floors up, and there's no glass or anything. Add the fact that all the floors converge towards the top and you tend to lose a sense of where vertical actually is.
After we'd checked in and brought in all our gear, we hit the strip. We walked up to the Bellagio (well, we caught the tram from the Monte Carlo for the last bit, but walking would have been quicker) and watched the water show. I'll have to take the cameras there again before we leave cos it's very cool, although more brief than I imagined.
Then we stopped in at Paris for a beer. We watched a bit of Texas Holdem, and grabbed another beer before moving on.
A short way down the strip Mark's student-quality cheap drinks radar kicked in and we found ourselves drinking $2 Corona Lights. Seeing as it was my shout and it wasn't fair to get it for half price, we downed one, and I bought a second round before we left.
It's a funny thing to be walking down the road, beer in hand. Mark had assured us it was legal here, but it still didn't feel right. The test came when we walked right past a few police standing by their car. They didn't even flinch, we all breathed a sigh of relief (and joy at the possibility of not being limited where we drank!) and continued on.
We met with some of Manuel's friends at Mandalay Bay for the buffet dinner. They'd all just seen Mamma Mia there, which we'd had the chance to go see, but we weren't interested enough to justify the $90-odd dollar outlay. That money would be better wasted at the tables :P
After a quick stop back in the room so Mark could have another Red Bull (he'd slept about 2 hours in the last day and a half) we ventured downstairs to the tables.
When we couldn't find any $5 tables, so we stopped to watch a few black jack tables and finally settled on a roulette table that had come up red the last 5 spins.
3 guys beside us put in $100 each to put on black. Red came up - $300 gone.
They chipped $100 each again. Red came up - $600 gone.
Two of them left, and the third threw $200 of his own green on black. Red came up - $800 gone.
He had one last go, throwing I think another $300 on black. This time Manuel and I felt confident in it, so we put $20 each on there too. Red came up - $1140 gone.
At this point the unlucky punter left, tail between his legs, probably to try and make it up elsewhere. We were satisfied we'd placed our first real bets of the trip, although were disappointed with the result, so the action quietened down a bit, with only a few chips (no cash) on black - one of which was a $500 chip however. This time black did come up, so the casino didn't clean up quite so much this time.
By this stage it was after midnight and I decided it was probably time to call it a night. Tomorrow will be a full day on the strip so I figured I'd save the rest of my gambling budget for a full offensive strike then. :P
Mark should have arrived this morning (Chris was picking him up), and at midday today he, Manuel, and I are heading off to Vegas :D
We should get there about dusk - just in time for the action to start.
We're there until Tuesday, but are doing a day trip out to Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon on Monday.
The last few days have been very uneventful, mainly consisting of me and Spanky battling each other on the Xbox.
I did have to drive to LAX yesterday to pick up Manuel and another of their friends, who works on a cruise ship based out of Long Beach. So that was a 30 minute drive on my own through mid-morning LA traffic in a manual, but I survived, as did the car. :)
I'm all but over the sore throat I picked up last week, which is a good thing. The other day I was exhausted by just walking to the supermarket around the corner and back, so at least I have enough energy now for Vegas. I think I'm going to need it ;)
Update: We're in Vegas, and made it here in about 4 and a half hours. We even had time for a quick stop to see the world's biggest thermometer :P
We're in the Luxor Hotel, which is the big black pyramid on the strip with the world's brightest light on top of it. Because it's a pyramid there's no elevators, only "inclinators", which just means they travel diagonally upwards. That's disorientating. It's also disorientating that all the hallways only have rooms on one side of them - the other side looks out over the edge to the interior of the building. We're 15 floors up, and there's no glass or anything. Add the fact that all the floors converge towards the top and you tend to lose a sense of where vertical actually is.
After we'd checked in and brought in all our gear, we hit the strip. We walked up to the Bellagio (well, we caught the tram from the Monte Carlo for the last bit, but walking would have been quicker) and watched the water show. I'll have to take the cameras there again before we leave cos it's very cool, although more brief than I imagined.
Then we stopped in at Paris for a beer. We watched a bit of Texas Holdem, and grabbed another beer before moving on.
A short way down the strip Mark's student-quality cheap drinks radar kicked in and we found ourselves drinking $2 Corona Lights. Seeing as it was my shout and it wasn't fair to get it for half price, we downed one, and I bought a second round before we left.
It's a funny thing to be walking down the road, beer in hand. Mark had assured us it was legal here, but it still didn't feel right. The test came when we walked right past a few police standing by their car. They didn't even flinch, we all breathed a sigh of relief (and joy at the possibility of not being limited where we drank!) and continued on.
We met with some of Manuel's friends at Mandalay Bay for the buffet dinner. They'd all just seen Mamma Mia there, which we'd had the chance to go see, but we weren't interested enough to justify the $90-odd dollar outlay. That money would be better wasted at the tables :P
After a quick stop back in the room so Mark could have another Red Bull (he'd slept about 2 hours in the last day and a half) we ventured downstairs to the tables.
When we couldn't find any $5 tables, so we stopped to watch a few black jack tables and finally settled on a roulette table that had come up red the last 5 spins.
3 guys beside us put in $100 each to put on black. Red came up - $300 gone.
They chipped $100 each again. Red came up - $600 gone.
Two of them left, and the third threw $200 of his own green on black. Red came up - $800 gone.
He had one last go, throwing I think another $300 on black. This time Manuel and I felt confident in it, so we put $20 each on there too. Red came up - $1140 gone.
At this point the unlucky punter left, tail between his legs, probably to try and make it up elsewhere. We were satisfied we'd placed our first real bets of the trip, although were disappointed with the result, so the action quietened down a bit, with only a few chips (no cash) on black - one of which was a $500 chip however. This time black did come up, so the casino didn't clean up quite so much this time.
By this stage it was after midnight and I decided it was probably time to call it a night. Tomorrow will be a full day on the strip so I figured I'd save the rest of my gambling budget for a full offensive strike then. :P
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Day 13 - Spanky does DC!
I got up nice and early this morning so I could get to DC as early as possible. Spanky and I packed our things, and, after saying goodbye to our hosts, we hit the road around 7:30am.
The drive went well, and I got to DC right around midday. I cruised around looking for a park for a while before giving up and parking at Union Station. I grabbed some lunch then walked down to the National Mall to take some photos and check out the sights - the US Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Smithsonian Institute, and the Whitehouse. After walking for about 2 hours I got sick of it and grabbed a cab back to Union Station. I returned my hire car and jumped in another cab to the airport.
$55 later I arrived at Dulles Aiport, with about an hour and a half before my flight. I checked in, only to find I'd been selected for a random security scan. That's a whole lot of fun, being patted down and having your carry-on stuff swabbed and tested, all in front of everyone passing through the metal detectors. Thankfully I got to remain fully clothed during the process, so I guess it could have been much worse.
Then I got to the gate and found that the flight was going to be about an hour late. Good thing I had a book with me, so I got some reading done while waiting, and at about 6:30 we were boarded and under way.
5 and a half hours later we arrived in Long Beach - 9pm local time, or midnight EST.
So it was another long day in the end - over 10 hours in cars & planes, with a couple of hours in DC in between.
I'm glad to be back in LA now with a few quiet days ahead of me. It was sad to leave Raleigh, but hopefully I'll get to see Sara & Dave again in the future (hint hint!! ;P)
So I won't have too much to report in the next few days cos I'll mostly be watching cable, playing Xbox, and maybe going to see a movie or two or something.
Basically the next few days are a holiday from my holidays before I head to the next few destinations. :)
I got up nice and early this morning so I could get to DC as early as possible. Spanky and I packed our things, and, after saying goodbye to our hosts, we hit the road around 7:30am.
The drive went well, and I got to DC right around midday. I cruised around looking for a park for a while before giving up and parking at Union Station. I grabbed some lunch then walked down to the National Mall to take some photos and check out the sights - the US Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Smithsonian Institute, and the Whitehouse. After walking for about 2 hours I got sick of it and grabbed a cab back to Union Station. I returned my hire car and jumped in another cab to the airport.
$55 later I arrived at Dulles Aiport, with about an hour and a half before my flight. I checked in, only to find I'd been selected for a random security scan. That's a whole lot of fun, being patted down and having your carry-on stuff swabbed and tested, all in front of everyone passing through the metal detectors. Thankfully I got to remain fully clothed during the process, so I guess it could have been much worse.
Then I got to the gate and found that the flight was going to be about an hour late. Good thing I had a book with me, so I got some reading done while waiting, and at about 6:30 we were boarded and under way.
5 and a half hours later we arrived in Long Beach - 9pm local time, or midnight EST.
So it was another long day in the end - over 10 hours in cars & planes, with a couple of hours in DC in between.
I'm glad to be back in LA now with a few quiet days ahead of me. It was sad to leave Raleigh, but hopefully I'll get to see Sara & Dave again in the future (hint hint!! ;P)
So I won't have too much to report in the next few days cos I'll mostly be watching cable, playing Xbox, and maybe going to see a movie or two or something.
Basically the next few days are a holiday from my holidays before I head to the next few destinations. :)
Day 12 - Living the Southern Life.
Today we spent most of the day watching the NASCAR race live from Pheonix and flicking across to the football during the ads.
At one point we decided to head to a nearby sports bar to watch the race on the bigscreen. We get there only to discover that the race is nowhere to be seen among the large array of tvs - it was all football. So we didn't even sit down before heading back home to continue watching it there.
Dinner was at Angus Barn - Sara had a gift voucher there she wanted to use. It was quite a meal - there were crackers and cheese at the table, then I had the Sweet Potato Bisque, an 11oz New York Strip steak with Garlic Mashed Potatos, and finished off with a Cappucino Cheesecake. I washed it all down with a couple of Beck's Darks. It was some meal! The only thing better was the bill - $140 for the 3 of us! That's almost $200AUD, not including tip! :-S
Today we spent most of the day watching the NASCAR race live from Pheonix and flicking across to the football during the ads.
At one point we decided to head to a nearby sports bar to watch the race on the bigscreen. We get there only to discover that the race is nowhere to be seen among the large array of tvs - it was all football. So we didn't even sit down before heading back home to continue watching it there.
Dinner was at Angus Barn - Sara had a gift voucher there she wanted to use. It was quite a meal - there were crackers and cheese at the table, then I had the Sweet Potato Bisque, an 11oz New York Strip steak with Garlic Mashed Potatos, and finished off with a Cappucino Cheesecake. I washed it all down with a couple of Beck's Darks. It was some meal! The only thing better was the bill - $140 for the 3 of us! That's almost $200AUD, not including tip! :-S
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Day 11 - The Raleigh Trolley, and the Confederate Dead.
Yeah, I missed a day again. There wasn't too much to write about yesterday after I slept in till about 11 (best night's sleep I've had in about a week!). and at about 2pm or so Sara took me for BBQ, which was really nice - shredded pork with coleslaw, hush puppies, and pork rinds. I skipped the pork rinds, but everything else tasted pretty good.
Then last night Sara and I went for a bit of beer tasting at a local restaurant while waiting for Dave to finish work. We then picked up some pizza, sushi, and beers and headed on over to their friend Derek & Kathy's place to watch a movie. They have a pretty good home theatre setup, and we watched the Manchurian Candidate, which was nothing like what I expected it to be.
Today Sara and I went to Raleigh to ride on the Raleigh Trolley. It travels around past all the historic buildings in the city, with the tour guide giving some of the history. Well, that's how it's supposed to go. Sara almost laughed during most of it, because they were running late ("due to traffic"), so the tour guide - who Sara said sounded like she arrived from Jersey that morning - was constantly interrupting herself to tell the driver to "just go straight on" while she kept talking. At a couple of points she had to check with her notes, and towards the end she had to remind the driver which street to turn down "cos we always miss it".
But it wasn't all that bad, really. Sure it was a bit comical at times, but the area has some interesting history, and some picturesque buildings.
On the way back we stopped off at the Confederate Cemetary for a while, and picked up some Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. Krispy Kreme actually started right here in North Carolina, about an hour and a half from here, in Winston-Salem.
Tonight we're off to see the Carolina Hurricanes. They're on a 9-game winning streak at the moment, so touch wood and all that :)
I'm still amazed by the colours of the trees. I don't think the photos really do them justice. I definitely picked the right time of year to visit. :)
In other news, I picked up a sore throat at some stage, probably while I was in NY. :(
Update: Well that was a huge letdown - the Hurricanes lost 0-9 :(
They scored a goal 36.6 seconds from the end of the game, but it was disputed, and classed as not a goal.
It was a good night other than that. It's funny when the game stops just so two players can have a good go at each other, but when one hits the ice that's it - the refs step in and lay down the law. Also, the crowd just sort of "oohs" and "aahs" most of the game, until either a) the Hurricanes score, or b) it looks like some biff is about to happen - then they get right into the game. Classic :)
Yeah, I missed a day again. There wasn't too much to write about yesterday after I slept in till about 11 (best night's sleep I've had in about a week!). and at about 2pm or so Sara took me for BBQ, which was really nice - shredded pork with coleslaw, hush puppies, and pork rinds. I skipped the pork rinds, but everything else tasted pretty good.
Then last night Sara and I went for a bit of beer tasting at a local restaurant while waiting for Dave to finish work. We then picked up some pizza, sushi, and beers and headed on over to their friend Derek & Kathy's place to watch a movie. They have a pretty good home theatre setup, and we watched the Manchurian Candidate, which was nothing like what I expected it to be.
Today Sara and I went to Raleigh to ride on the Raleigh Trolley. It travels around past all the historic buildings in the city, with the tour guide giving some of the history. Well, that's how it's supposed to go. Sara almost laughed during most of it, because they were running late ("due to traffic"), so the tour guide - who Sara said sounded like she arrived from Jersey that morning - was constantly interrupting herself to tell the driver to "just go straight on" while she kept talking. At a couple of points she had to check with her notes, and towards the end she had to remind the driver which street to turn down "cos we always miss it".
But it wasn't all that bad, really. Sure it was a bit comical at times, but the area has some interesting history, and some picturesque buildings.
On the way back we stopped off at the Confederate Cemetary for a while, and picked up some Krispy Kreme Doughnuts. Krispy Kreme actually started right here in North Carolina, about an hour and a half from here, in Winston-Salem.
Tonight we're off to see the Carolina Hurricanes. They're on a 9-game winning streak at the moment, so touch wood and all that :)
I'm still amazed by the colours of the trees. I don't think the photos really do them justice. I definitely picked the right time of year to visit. :)
In other news, I picked up a sore throat at some stage, probably while I was in NY. :(
Update: Well that was a huge letdown - the Hurricanes lost 0-9 :(
They scored a goal 36.6 seconds from the end of the game, but it was disputed, and classed as not a goal.
It was a good night other than that. It's funny when the game stops just so two players can have a good go at each other, but when one hits the ice that's it - the refs step in and lay down the law. Also, the crowd just sort of "oohs" and "aahs" most of the game, until either a) the Hurricanes score, or b) it looks like some biff is about to happen - then they get right into the game. Classic :)
