Vegas via the Hoover Dam
This morning was a 3 hour drive to the Hoover dam before Vegas. The drive was pretty easy, I think it was 3 roads in total and the speed limit is 75mph so I did some of the fastest driving I've ever done!
I got stuck between about 8 trucks all trying to over take each other at one point which was pretty unnerving! Apart from that the trip was uneventful and boring on extremely straight roads.
We stopped off to walk over the memorial bridge next to the Hoover dam and got a great view over the edge. We didn't last a huge amount of time as Edd got a bit uncomfortable with the height. We then wandered over the dam, it's weird as a tourist attraction because when you're actually there you can't see it!
We walked along and back to stretch our legs but chose not to pay to go into the museum as we're now very much trying to save money! The dam was pretty incredible, it's really amazing you can see where the water used to come up to on the rocks.
There's a water mark 45m above the surface of the water on the rocks. It used to be that the dam lake had side run offs built in 1933 which let any excess water run out of the lake down the side of the dam rather than flooding the road on top of the dam and damaging the dam. The side run offs could take as much water as flows through Niagara falls but now it hasn't been used for 3 decades as there isn't enough water.
We left the dam and crossed over into Nevada from Arizona and drove on to Vegas! We were both really excited but first we had to actually survive the road into Vegas, 7 lane roads going one way with people and cars everywhere! I was soooo delighted when we arrived and was buzzing having driven down the strip and seen the bright lights!!
Lunch was an experience, we walked into a dark room outlined in neon lights! Edd had looked up a highly rated diner just off the strip. We both had burgers and unlimited refills, we also got a complimentary souvenir photo of us!! I've never had a souvenir photo at lunch but I have to say I very much like the concept!
We then made it to the hotel for check in, Edd did an amazing job on the hotel and we are right opposite caesars palace on the strip so perfect location. The hotel was buzzing with people gambling already!
Edd and I had a quick shower and rest before heading out to explore the Vegas nightlife. We basically walked up and down the strip in amazement! This place is absolutely insane. There are lights and big buildings everywhere, there's music, screens and neon everywhere!
We stopped off to watch the water display outside the Ballagio. We only saw one song, I don't know if they play titanic theme tune every time but it was beautiful. Celine Dion is practically royalty here!
After a quick drink in a craft beer/sports bar we decided it was time for some gambling! The only slight problem was, we had absolutely no idea what we were doing or how to even go about it!! We sat and watched a craps table for a while and was still no better off.
I had decided that I wanted to play on a slot machine, to me that's what Vegas is about so we found the cheapest slot machines we could - 1c. We started with a dollar each and within a few games I had $2.35. I quit whilst I was ahead and was extremely pleased with my winnings! Edd made $2.50 on blackjack. We got a bit carried away and almost lost it all!! At one point Edd had 2c left! Luckly he pulled it back and we finally walked away with $2.25, a $0.25 profit! Winning!!
We then decided we had to do a table, I ended up asking one of the croupiers for help! I explained that we were totally and utterly clueless. She was very kind and tried to explain craps to me, I lost her half way through and said that we would try roulettes. It seemed easier and had less chance of losing massive money fast!
We made our way over to an empty table and were quickly joined by others. We started with the minimum of $10 and lost it on the first spin. The next $10 went better and we soon had quite a little pile of chips. We both got distracted as we met a guy from Manchester who lives in LA and comes to Vegas to play poker.
He says he makes a fortune. We soon lost the next $10 but it was fun playing, I wasn't too disappointed we lost it, I never expected to keep anything we played with. They say 'never bet what you can't afford to lose'.
After our gambling we went for more of a wander before picking up some Ben and jerry's and drinks to have in our hotel room. Flying to San Fran tomorrow, 3rd to last flight!
This morning was a 3 hour drive to the Hoover dam before Vegas. The drive was pretty easy, I think it was 3 roads in total and the speed limit is 75mph so I did some of the fastest driving I've ever done!
We stopped off to walk over the memorial bridge next to the Hoover dam and got a great view over the edge. We didn't last a huge amount of time as Edd got a bit uncomfortable with the height. We then wandered over the dam, it's weird as a tourist attraction because when you're actually there you can't see it!
We walked along and back to stretch our legs but chose not to pay to go into the museum as we're now very much trying to save money! The dam was pretty incredible, it's really amazing you can see where the water used to come up to on the rocks.
There's a water mark 45m above the surface of the water on the rocks. It used to be that the dam lake had side run offs built in 1933 which let any excess water run out of the lake down the side of the dam rather than flooding the road on top of the dam and damaging the dam. The side run offs could take as much water as flows through Niagara falls but now it hasn't been used for 3 decades as there isn't enough water.
We left the dam and crossed over into Nevada from Arizona and drove on to Vegas! We were both really excited but first we had to actually survive the road into Vegas, 7 lane roads going one way with people and cars everywhere! I was soooo delighted when we arrived and was buzzing having driven down the strip and seen the bright lights!!
Lunch was an experience, we walked into a dark room outlined in neon lights! Edd had looked up a highly rated diner just off the strip. We both had burgers and unlimited refills, we also got a complimentary souvenir photo of us!! I've never had a souvenir photo at lunch but I have to say I very much like the concept!
We then made it to the hotel for check in, Edd did an amazing job on the hotel and we are right opposite caesars palace on the strip so perfect location. The hotel was buzzing with people gambling already!
Edd and I had a quick shower and rest before heading out to explore the Vegas nightlife. We basically walked up and down the strip in amazement! This place is absolutely insane. There are lights and big buildings everywhere, there's music, screens and neon everywhere!
We stopped off to watch the water display outside the Ballagio. We only saw one song, I don't know if they play titanic theme tune every time but it was beautiful. Celine Dion is practically royalty here!
After a quick drink in a craft beer/sports bar we decided it was time for some gambling! The only slight problem was, we had absolutely no idea what we were doing or how to even go about it!! We sat and watched a craps table for a while and was still no better off.
I had decided that I wanted to play on a slot machine, to me that's what Vegas is about so we found the cheapest slot machines we could - 1c. We started with a dollar each and within a few games I had $2.35. I quit whilst I was ahead and was extremely pleased with my winnings! Edd made $2.50 on blackjack. We got a bit carried away and almost lost it all!! At one point Edd had 2c left! Luckly he pulled it back and we finally walked away with $2.25, a $0.25 profit! Winning!!
We then decided we had to do a table, I ended up asking one of the croupiers for help! I explained that we were totally and utterly clueless. She was very kind and tried to explain craps to me, I lost her half way through and said that we would try roulettes. It seemed easier and had less chance of losing massive money fast!
We made our way over to an empty table and were quickly joined by others. We started with the minimum of $10 and lost it on the first spin. The next $10 went better and we soon had quite a little pile of chips. We both got distracted as we met a guy from Manchester who lives in LA and comes to Vegas to play poker. 
He says he makes a fortune. We soon lost the next $10 but it was fun playing, I wasn't too disappointed we lost it, I never expected to keep anything we played with. They say 'never bet what you can't afford to lose'.
After our gambling we went for more of a wander before picking up some Ben and jerry's and drinks to have in our hotel room. Flying to San Fran tomorrow, 3rd to last flight!
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