Chapter 11 - Family Time in Arizona and Nevada

Hi –

In the last blog, we left off crossing the border in Nogales, AZ on May 2. 

Our first stop was visiting my 87-year-old Great Aunt Jane in Green Valley, AZ.   

Funny thing…she was selling her house on May 5 and moving close to us in Minnesota.

The photo below shows my great aunt's neighbor Rick.  She had a strong dislike for the guy for a lot of reasons.  As a joke, we wanted to take a pic of him, frame it, and give it to her in MN in case she missed him.  LOL

When Corp started taking photos Rick flipped him off.  

Corp so wanted a picture of that but wasn't fast enough.

My Aunt Julie flew down to drive my Great Aunt back to Minnesota.

Enjoying margaritas with my Aunt Julie and Great Aunt Jane.

We visited Desert Meadows Park and saw a ton of different varieties of cacti. Desert plants are definitely very prickly, but beautiful and unique when they are blooming. 

On May 4, we visited Tubac, AZ.  Lots of fun little shops to check out.

Great Aunt Jane and I posing with a super large metal sculpture.

On May 5, we left AZ and headed to Las Vegas to see Corp’s cousin Dave and his family.  

Along the way we stopped at the Lake Mohave Willow Beach on the Colorado River.  It was great to see water and lots of kayakers after driving thru the desert for weeks.

The water was so incredibly clear.

We also stopped at the Hoover Dam.  Homeland Security did a really through inspection of the top carrier.  More thorough than any inspection we had in Mexico.  

Pretty impressive dam.  Lake Mead at the top of the photo.

Look at the super low water line above the dam at Lake Mead.

Dave suggested we check out Boulder City, NV.  

We enjoyed a last-minute picnic in this nice little historic tourist town.  

On May 6, Charlie and I flew out of Las Vegas to return him to Minnesota.  Again, he wasn’t a fan of flying, but at least this flight was shorter.  

No more flying for him.

We decided to fly him home because we were going to be moving up the West Coast pretty quickly and didn’t think it would be good for him to be moving around so much.

Corp stayed in Las Vegas with his cousin Dave and family while I was gone.

Corp really liked Caesar's Palace.

Video of Caesar's Palace.

Corp was shocked a beer, cheeseburger, and small serving of tots
at Wahlburger was $35+.  That didn't even include the water.
He said it wasn't that great.

Fun statute...Buck and Winnie Greenback at Harrah's...
check out the money coming out of their bags.   

Awesome looking Ferrari.....mirrored metal was so unique.

More fancy sports cars....
you can rent these and drive up and down the Las Vegas strip.

One day it was 104 degrees...wow...now that's hot!

Corp had to stop at Gold & Silver Pawn...the set for the reality show Pawn Stars. 
We have watched the show many times.
The show features three generations of the Harrison family assessing pawn items. 
Unfortunately, no filming that day.

On May 10, I returned to Las Vegas.  It was fun walking the Strip.  I think it's been 10 years since we visited Sin City.

My favorite hotel in Las Vegas is definitely the Bellagio.

The lobby features the "Fiori di Como," a colorful glass ceiling sculpture
made of more than 2,000 pieces that were installed in 1998.  It is simply stunning!

A close-up photo of the individual glass pieces.

The Bellagio also includes the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens.  The flower displays are always absolutely beautiful!

We saw the Spring hot-air theme flower show, which took my breathe away.  

Video of the Spring hot-air theme flower show.

Everyone has to take their photo with the Eiffel Tower, which is half the size of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

Say cheese!

We came across some male entertainers on the street.  

Wanna be Chippendales....never a dull moment on the Strip.

We paid them to sing happy birthday to my friend Holly.

Dave got us tickets to the LOVE Beatles Cirque de Soleil show at the Mirage.  

The show was a 50th birthday surprise for me...it was fantastic!!!

Below are some of my favorite videos from the show:

We would highly recommend the show!    

Couples pic of Corp and I.

Couples pic of Dave and Jen.

Couples pic of the four of us. 

Couldn't resist taking a pic with a Volkswagen Bug.

Afterwards, we did a little gambling….$100 between the two of us.  Dave showed us how to play a few electronic games.  I liked the electronic blackjack best...way less pressure then sitting at a blackjack table.  

We left $100 richer.

We saw the Mirage volcano show when we were leaving.  We were surprised to hear that it is going to be removed soon.  Seems like that show has been around forever.  Wonder what they will design in its place?

  

Final photo in Las Vegas...posing with the show girls.

Miscellaneous random cute/funny/interesting/weird pics/videos below...

Video of a guy shaving his head using the mirrored wall on the front of a store.  

Only in Vegas!

Well, that’s all for this chapter!

Next, we will be driving up the Pacific Coast Highway in California! 

And the adventure continues!

Corp & Tammy