Figuring it out

Alright, so my first official day in the city. Not working yet, but just *in* the city.

First, let me back-track to last night when I arrived...

I left New Mexico around 8:00a and started the drive to Nevada. Because I had some time to kill, I stopped in the Arizona National State Park for the Petrified Forest and the Painted Desert. It was gorgeous. I could have spend an entire day there. Looking out over the Painted Desert you could see for miles. In one direction, you could see the mountain range of San Francisco--which was a whopping 120 miles away from the point I was standing. Also, the painted desert changes colors depending on the time of day, and the weather. The rocks can range from light peach colors, to dark purple to vibrant red according to the current conditions in the desert. The Petrified Forest didn't offer as much as far as view-points over the desert, but has lots of great sites to stop and investigate and explore. In addition to waking through forests of petrified wood, I got to see dozens of unique rock formation, arizona wildlife, newspaper rock with petroglyphs, and a section of the original route 66 path. Pictures of this adventure will be posted to facebook soon.

After leaving the park, I got back onto the road and drove... and drove... and drove. Really this trip wasn't longer than my previous adventures, but I was driving after sun-down, so it felt long. Driving is easier in the daylight.

I passed over the Hoover Dam, which even at night was extraordinary. On a day off I plan to go back and visit the dam. 40 miles after the dam, I come to Las Vegas. Everyone kept saying that, 'there wasn't much outside the strip,' but I still didn't expect to see what I did.

Vegas is located in a Valley, and as almost as far as I could see in either direction there were glittering glimmering lights. Off just slightly to my right I could see 'The Strip.' This site truly was incredible.

...after a few short turns off of highway 15, I found myself at my new home for the next 8 weeks. It's a great house with fabulous people and two very friendly dogs. The place is located on the edge of the desert on the southern edge of the city in a lovely safe neighborhood. The commute to TI won't be bad once I start.

Today--to try to catch up on current events--was just a small introduction to the city. We went to breakfast as 'The Hash House' (apparently a famous Vegas staple featured by Rachel Ray and the Today Show) and then did a short drive through the strip. We stopped at Fashion Show Mall, which is located directly across from TI. This mall is 4 stories high, and features a love fashion show every 1/2 hour Friday-Sunday evenings. After this stop, we drove down the strip and went into Aria.

Aria, I learned, is the newest casino to open on the strip. It is a multi-billion dollar building that MGM just opened this past December. Viva Elvis--the Cirque show in Aria--just opened about a week ago. Aria is gorgeous, and I could tell that every detail was carefully chosen and exactitude. The floors are elegant designs made out of several different types of marbles, and every room, wall chair and decoration was expertly selected. The enameled wood for the proscenium arch in the Viva theater costs $100 per square foot. Wow. I also found out that within each casino you have not only the casino floor, but restaurants, bars, your hotel rooms and shopping areas (almost mall-sized areas in which to walk and shop). Aria had 2 floors of shopping with over 20 different stores--including Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Coach and many others. I knew about the casinos and hotels being together, but I was unaware of the shopping situation. I also knew that there would be bars in the casinos, but I don't think I ever pictured them to be as a luxurious as this place. I was spoiled; however, and still need to inspect the other casinos on the strip. Aria is the cream of the crop and one the highest ranked casinos in the world at this moment.

I plan on walking and exploring the trip later this week--I'll report on my findings at that time.

Among the other helpful/interesting things I've learned about Vegas are:
-Don't jog at night. The area isn't dangerous because of crime, but there are coyotes.
-Be careful of your first alcoholic drink in Las Vegas. The elevation is 5,000 ft above sea-level, so one drink may effect you more than you think.
-Vegas population right now is about 2 million people.

And... that's it for today. Sign-on tomorrow morning. Again, thanks for reading!

NV time: 1:40a
NC time: 4:40a -- please forgive me if this post isn't as clear and concise as the others. :)