Viva Las Vegas....and LA.

Well friends - it's that time again! Let me fill you in on all of the weird and wonderful things we've been up to since we left Utah behind. When Matt left off we were heading into Vegas. As we rolled in to Sin City, I could tell that it was going to be everything I expected and more. It was big, flashy and gaudy. We were staying right on the strip, in the heart of the action and there was a LOT of it! Once we parked the car and dumped our stuff at the hotel, we started our stroll down the strip. We wandered in and out of the famous casinos/hotels hitting Circus Circus, the Venetian, Caesar's Palace and the Bellagio. They were all pretty extravagant in their own way. We immediately lost about 20 bucks each playing $2 blackjack but vowed to earn it back later in our stay. After a late dinner we returned to the Bellagio to watch the famous water fountain show in front of the building. Pretty impressive but it wasn't enough to inspire a wild night. We headed back to our hotel casino, Matt bet big(gish) and won so we called it a night.

The next day was spent at the hotel pool - people watching, lounging, reading and swimming. Paradise! We headed out in the evening to eat before returning to the casinos to earn back our LOCs. I'm not much of a gambler but I was getting pretty into it by the end (ie when I started to win a bit). Unfortunately I'm not destined to hit the jackpot in my life because as soon as I get up (even if just by $5) I stop. Matt tells me I have to "risk it to get the biscuit" and "you have to bet big to win big" but that doesn't sound like my idea of fun. He did well though and we spent the night getting free drinks and playing blackjack - Vegas style!

Two nights was enough for us though, the bad food and crowds were getting to us. We had been staying in relatively remote places up until then so we ready to get back to that. Next up? A night at Joshua Tree National Park before returning to the crowds at Disneyland. Joshua Tree seemed positively deserted compared to Vegas and we liked it! It was a pretty cool park - the Joshua Tree is a funny looking cactus/tree hybrid and there were lots of cool rock formations lying about. We had an awesome campsite right in the rocks and enjoyed our night there immensely!



From Joshua Tree we headed straight to Disneyland - it was an early morning as we were trying to get there as close to opening as possible. I don't think Matt has ever been so excited! He was itching to recreate his beloved family holiday when he was 10 bit by bit. We spent the day hitting every ride possible and wandering around the different areas of the park. It was a great day and though the crowds were huge we only had a few long waits. For dinner we hit Thunder Mountain BBQ an "all you can enjoy" affair. What a dangerous idea. Anyone who knows me knows I can't resist unlimited food. We knew we had done some damage when the waitress commented "Y'all so skinny! How did you fit all that food?". With that we promptly rolled out of the restaurant. After a few more rides, a light show and some fireworks we called it a night - very satisfied with our Disney adventure. Please refer to the picture below for my favourite moment captured on film thus far in the trip.



The next day? LA! We did what every true LA'er does....sit in a lot of traffic. We were commuting from our Anaheim hotel and it was BAD! Once we finally got into the city we hit Hollywood Blvd to stroll the walk of fame. After that we drove to Beverly Hills and cruised along Rodeo Dr. Matt ogled the cars (a Bugatti in particular) while I ogled the stores. We were both overwhelmed by the amount of money around. From there we headed to Venice Beach to stroll the boardwalk and people watch the eclectic crowd. After some patio beers and dinner we started the long commute home.



All in all only good things to report! We head out on the Pacific Coast Highway today for a couple days of coastal driving! I'm pretty excited - we'll update you in a few days!

xoxo
Heather and Matt