Many of you have asked why we decided to go to Las Vegas with our dewy-eyed 13 year-old. We're wondering ourselves! The main reason is that it was on the way to the Grand Canyon and was a staging point for us to get organized and buy gear for the GC hike. Hawaii does not have very many gear stores so we needed to go shopping. And yes, we wanted Kate to see it. It's part of America. Not one we're proud of, but we believe in her seeing the whole picture, within reason. Vegas is still sleazy but it's pretty tame these days.
Doug got us a good deal at the Vdara, a non-gaming, non-smoking hotel attached to the Bellagio. Yes, smoking is still allowed on the casino floors so if you miss that distinctive, unctuous smell there's a place where it's being preserved. Why the casinos cater to the 20% who smoke and repel the 80% who don't is beyond me. Maybe smokers bet more. The little old ladies perched on their stools balancing 3" of ash at the end of their cigarettes, eyes fixed and dilated as they stare at the slot machines, are still there. What struck us most as we walked through the casinos was the lack of joy in the people there. Most looked pretty grim.
The bellman earned his tip when he carted all our gear up to the room. A brace of elephant guns and four or five hat boxes would have completed the picture. We then unpacked everything. It was overwhelming. Before we left Hawaii we had tried to be organized but near the end we just threw things in bags to sort out later. Well, it was later. Sigh.
We spent the first day figuring out what camping gear we had and what we needed. Doug and Kate went to REI to get gear while Jenny stayed back in the room to deal with what she now thinks was a reaction to the typhoid vaccine we were all taking. Fever, body aches and digestive upheaval. Luckily Kate and Doug never had a reaction and were able to finish the series of pills. It took Jenny about a week to get back to normal.
The best part about our stay was going to see Hoover Dam. What an engineering feat! It is huge! We took a tour down into the dam along narrow passageways to the power plant. Other tunnels took us to a point where we could look out through the downstream face of the dam through a ventilation intake. It was cool and creepy to be deep in the dam. We hoped we didn't have an earthquake at that moment.
Back in Vegas we took in the glittery sights. We walked the Strip after sunset, checked out the casinos and even gambled $1.00 at a slot machine. Doug strongly disapproves of gambling - he thinks throwing money away on things he doesn't want once he buys them is a more noble pursuit. Jenny clucked indignantly about the short skirts and high heels all around us. Kate tried to soothe her by reminding her that gingham isn't a fashion option anymore and suggested she get out more often. Doug just kept patting Jenny's shoulder to calm her down, his eyes bugged out on stalks like a hermit crab's. Kate thought the whole place was pretty wild. Seeing gaudy renditions of the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty across the street from one another really messes with your mind. In Vegas, there's no sublime - only the ridiculous.
After three nights and two days in LV we left Wednesday for the Grand Canyon. We were all really ready to leave and get back to natural wonders.
My dad worked on Hoover Dam when he was in college.
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