Day 1 — Arrival
We arrive in LA after a gruelling 10-hour flight. Of course that doesn't count the time it takes to sit on the tarmac, get through immigration (a very cheery chap this time), get our mountain of bags (golf clubs had to be left at home as we couldn't get them in the car) and make a dash from terminal to terminal to catch our connecting flight to Las Vegas. The connecting flight is a prop job on which I am usually sick. On this occasion I managed to hold it together and we land in Vegas around 6pm local time — about 2am UK time.
We finally arrive at our hotel after further queues at the car rental, about 21 hours after leaving home the previous day. We had booked our hire car 3 months ago. After queuing for 20 minutes at the desk we went down to the garage only to be told that the car was just going for a wash and vac. Did we mind waiting? After 21 hours of travelling... yes we did rather. We are staying at the New York New York hotel which is themed to look like the Manhattan skyline. They've done it well. Our room on the 16th floor overlooks the strip — very Vegas.
More on Vegas later.
Day 4 — Las Vegas
I am returning to my blog after a couple of days' break — a break which seems to be much longer than the 2-3 days that it is. A time which has been filled with the business of not doing very much. We spent most of the first day relaxing by the pool. By evening we ventured to the strip for the first time.
Carol and I were last here in 1987 and we hardly recognise the place. Back then it was a general election in the UK. Now we have to contend with election fever in the US. If you thought the coverage in the UK was bad just try flicking through the 70 cable channels here.
As ever America is full of contradictions. You have to be 21 to gamble or even watch the gambling but it is OK for people to stand in the street advertising the availability of girls on their t-shirts and handing out pornographic calling cards. On Sunday we went to the Treasure Island hotel to see the pirate show. Having spent a fortune rebuilding the show it has been changed from a pirate battle to a kind of burlesque show. Not entirely suitable for 14 and 15-year-olds.
On Sunday night we went to a Cirque du Soleil show. It was truly spectacular. All the shows here are very expensive but this one was probably worth it. We have also booked to see a magician on Tuesday and Carol is going to see Barry on Wednesday. The concierge is now our best buddy.
Yesterday (Monday) we did a bit more for the US economy and visited Hoover Dam and the West Rim of the Grand Canyon. On the way we were lucky enough to drop in for our second Starbucks coffee and came across a server who knew the route intimately (much better than our concierge friend) and proceeded to give us a very detailed briefing. The West Rim, unlike the more popular South Rim, is owned and operated by the Hualapai Indian tribe. You are not allowed to explore by yourself and have to join one of their organised tours. We were a bit suspicious of this initially but it turned out to be excellent. Their tour included a very scenic helicopter ride down into the canyon and a boat trip along the bottom of the Colorado river. The canyon is utterly breathtaking and the helicopter ride made it even more special.
From there we drove another 2 hours to the Grand Canyon, including 14 miles on a dirt road where our 4WD came in very handy. Our concierge doubted whether the hire company would like us taking this road but we didn't check — ignorance is bliss. Besides there are no other routes. We visited a site containing some ancient Indian drawings and carvings. Some estimates put these at about 2,000 years old. They were completely unguarded and in the open air. Even a cynic like me felt a bit humbled.
Day 6 — Food, Shopping and Barry Manilow
I write this on Thursday afternoon sitting by the pool in about 85 degrees — sorry!
Yesterday we did a bit of shopping. As the boys didn't have the appetite for a full session we sent the girls off in a taxi in the morning and joined them later on. Left alone with a credit card and some real bargains, Caroline can do some real damage — so after having heard nothing after 3 hours, Anthony and I ventured out to find them. They were on fine form.
How can I have taken so long to talk about food? The only way to prepare for the experience is to try and repeat the luggage trick — i.e. don't eat for a couple of weeks beforehand. Unfortunately this isn't possible so it takes just a couple of days for the waistline to start showing the effects. On the first night we settled for a pizza from a place with about 40 varieties. On subsequent nights we have tried the hotel buffet, a Mexican, a steak house and an Italian. Each has been outstanding value and frankly obscene in terms of quantity.
Anthony and Sian enjoy the free refills. In fact the waitresses seem to be almost telepathic. As soon as you start to think that another drink might be nice, one arrives in front of you. From my point of view, the attention you receive is sometimes over the top but it is always good, wherever you eat.
Now I must turn to the subject of Raising Cane's — a place that Sally had recommended most highly, nay pleaded with us to go to. Previously it had been discounted by Mrs K as just a fried chicken fast food place. But like most eateries it was an experience all in itself. We sat in a corner booth and had some of the best chicken fingers I have ever tasted. Washed down with a supersized lemonade. Truly outstanding. We have been back twice since. The kids even insisted on a photo outside — which says it all.
Now a bit about gambling. Mrs K has a belief that she is lucky. I must admit that over the years we have been quite fortunate to win a couple of raffle prizes including a TV and a trip to Amsterdam, but my scientific mind refuses to believe in luck. As we have wandered through various hotel casinos (all of which are free to walk through — the only free thing in Vegas) Mrs K has had a flutter on the slots. She is either very lucky or has a scientific method as she seems to come out every time slightly up. The most that she has made is $18 which resulted in such excitement that she stopped immediately. I had one go on a slot machine and lost $2. Enough of that.
Last night Caroline was stood up by Barry Manilow! Having gone to great lengths to get a ticket, he feigned sickness and cancelled his show. Obviously he didn't realise that his number one fan was in town. Mrs K was devastated — almost as much as when earlier in the day I said it was time to leave the shops.
Vegas — Hotels and Thrill Rides
We have already tried out the NY rollercoaster which was excellent. Sian and Anthony went on twice. There was no queue — that's because unlike normal theme parks you have to pay for each ride. Disney take note. There are some other thrill rides at the Stratosphere hotel which operate from the top of the 1,100-foot tower. One involves sitting in a chair and being launched off the side of the building. Another involves spinning around the top of the tower. A third involves being launched into space from the top of the tower. We settled for the view from the observation deck and some cocktails.
The hotels in Las Vegas have to be seen to be believed. Each is a theme park on its own and can occupy half a mile of Las Vegas Boulevard frontage all on its own. The Bellagio has a huge lake in front where they do a fountain display to music several times every evening, with the water shooting what must be 100 feet into the air. The Paris hotel has a full-size replica of the Eiffel Tower. The Venetian has a full-size replica of the Grand Canal complete with gondoliers. There is an Egyptian pyramid, a medieval castle, a Roman palace and several other themes. All interconnected by walkways and monorails.
Day 9 — The Drive to Phoenix
We set out from Vegas on our drive to Scottsdale (posh Phoenix suburb) at around 9.30am on Friday. According to Google the journey should take about 6 hours but I don't plan to keep strictly to the speed limit. Unfortunately about 45 mins from Vegas, as we are crossing the Hoover Dam, we are flashed by a speed camera doing 40 in a 25 zone. By Vegas standards this is practically stationary. Karma then strikes almost immediately as we get a flat tyre on the highway shortly after. I find the spare and the jack but discover that the car has a locking nut on each wheel for which I cannot find the key. After about 20 minutes of unsuccessful searching I reluctantly call the AA — sorry, AAA.
We get back on the road after 45 minutes or so and ring the hire company to find out where we can get the flat repaired. The trouble is we are heading across desert and towns are few and far between, but we are directed to Kingman which looks like a fairly major town on the map. Mrs K takes the directions, I drive. As we arrive in Kingman she tells me to turn right. I do. We drive for 5 minutes. It seems wrong. She then admits that she has been holding the map upside down. We should have turned left. That cost us another 20 minutes. All of which means that by the time we reach Phoenix we have lost nearly 2 hours. The upside is that we find the tyre place easily, get it repaired in about 30 minutes and only pay $15.
I should finish off our Vegas story before I move on. Remember that Carol was stood up by Barry. Well it happened again the following night. Apparently the mega star is getting old and cannot hack it. Either that or his nose fell off. Obviously Caroline was very upset but was cheered up by winning $30 on the slots the following morning.
Back to the drive to Phoenix. I let Carol take over driving on a section which looks to be straight road for about 100 miles. She is up for the challenge but the kids ask her why the car seems to be weaving all over the place. They get short shrift and I take my chances and get some kip. When we hit the outskirts of Phoenix and the traffic I wake up and take over.
This week we are in a Westin villa which is really comfortable. We have adjoining apartments, each of which has a kitchen, living room, bathroom and large bedroom. The internet is also free. Heaven. (Jason and Holly are seething now.) On our first morning the kids join us for breakfast and manage to eat us out of the apartment. We resolve to keep the door locked in future.
We spent Saturday with Caroline's cousins (2nd or 3rd, I'm not sure). Lisa and Kirk have 5 kids and 4 of them turn up with their parents, having driven up from Tucson (about 1½ hours), including Dillon the second eldest at 17. Later on Tammy makes the same journey with 2 of her kids, just to have dinner with us. We are genuinely touched by that. Lisa and Kirk take us out to a fantastic Mexican restaurant and then on to an ice cream bar. It is just great to meet them and discover more about that branch of the family.
Sunday is a day of rest — which is why I am here again by the pool writing. Mrs K has refreshed her supply of books (we visited Barnes & Noble last night, which was the size of a City library) and is well into her series called Twilight, film out soon. Bad news however is that the weather is cooler this week. Only a mere 80 degrees.
Day 14 — Sports, Golf and the Batting Cage
I can't believe how quickly this week has gone. Time flies as they say.
Let me start this next section of our tale on the subject of Sports. On Monday I ventured out onto the golf course here at West Kierland Villas with Anthony along for the ride as my caddy. It is allegedly a very good course as they play some kind of tournament here at some point during the season. The course is extremely well manicured but very challenging with water on most holes. Temperatures were around 80F which was very pleasant — a much better experience than Palm Springs the previous year. Having not played since the spring, I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome and Anthony was very encouraging throughout. We had a great time and I would definitely play again.
I could go on to tell you about the uninterrupted fitness regime that has taken me to the well-equipped and sparkling gym here at the resort — but that would be a lie. The most I have done is a few laps of the pool.
There are a few things American that I have always wanted to do or own. I would love to drive one of those massive trucks with the luxurious rig and 40-ton trailer. Secondly I would like to own a convertible Mustang (Sian wants one too) and finally I always wanted to have a go in a batting cage. Sadly it was Anthony who got to do the latter, and he was surprisingly good at it.
On Tuesday evening we went out to eat at a place called The Cheesecake Factory. If you have been to the US you may know it. It was our first visit and we were overwhelmed by the size of the menu including about 35 different types of cheesecake. Suffice to say we were not disappointed.
The South Rim of the Grand Canyon
Yesterday was our big trip to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon — really the raison d'être for our trip. We set off at 7.30am from Phoenix on what promised to be a 4-5 hour drive to go and see a big hole in the ground. We stopped in Sedona on the way for breakfast at Ken's Creekside Diner, which was a lovely spot. Sedona itself is a very pretty place, surrounded by spectacular red rock formations.
At the entrance to the park we stopped to buy our park permit and watched an IMAX film all about the canyon. Yes it seemed a bit ironic to travel thousands of miles to see one of the wonders of the world and go to the cinema to see it, but it was a very spectacular show and gave us a real sense of the scale of the place before we saw it for ourselves. And the scale truly is mind-boggling. You simply cannot comprehend the size of it from photographs or film. Standing at the rim looking down over a mile to the river below and across to the other side — which is 10 miles away — is one of those life experiences that is genuinely humbling.
Final Thoughts
The election is now over and Obama will have to convert all those banal sound-bites into actual policies. We'll see. Many people we have spoken to have been looking forward to when they will be able to switch on the TV without being bombarded with election stuff or get late-evening phone calls asking for their vote.
This is probably us signing off from the US now. We have to check out tomorrow and fly home in the evening, arriving back in the UK on Saturday afternoon. Hope you enjoyed hearing about our trip. See you soon.
Jeff, Carol, Anthony & Sian.