Arriving in Vegas

We were able to leave work a little early, thanks to Chi Chi and Jaymie "pushing" us out at about noon. By the time we got everything together, it was 1:30 when we finally hit the road. The car was so filthy we decided to stop in Flagstaff and get it washed and also make a stop at the bank to "fund" our Vegas trip. We again were on our way by 3 PM.

The drive on the way to Vegas takes us over the Hoover Dam and gives us a chance to see the progress on the new highway that is being built over the Colorado River at the dam. It is an amazing project and is becoming almost as fascinating as the dam itself. Below is a picture of the current status:

Anybody that knows me, knows that I have a deathly fear of heights. I cannot imagine being a member of the crew that has to stand and work on that center section. Josie said they are obviously strapped to something for safety. The strap hasn't been made that would entice me to stand there, even to take a picture, let alone work there.

Another surprise for us was to see how low the lake level had fallen in Lake Mead. This picture shows the dramatic drop in the water level:

It will take several years of record snow melt and runoff from the Rockies to get the level back to normal - especially with the release of so much water from the dam into the river.

We finally made it to the hotel at about 6:30 PM. After checking in and getting settled we decided to try the buffet in the hotel and then cruise the casino. The buffet was excellent, but expensive ($30). The days of the $5 buffet's in Vegas are over. Time to hit the slots!

We budget so much money for each night so that we don't run out of all our cash the first night. I ran out of my allotment within an hour. Josie found a couple hot machines and walked away from the night $150 ahead. Great start!

We finally got to bed at 11:30. So far, so good...