25. Apr, 2016

25. Apr, 2016

TUESDAY 06-05-08 

Today I finally managed to get the gas oven to light after the guys at Las Vegas RV showed us the knack. To celebrate this momentous event I baked the tin of cinnamon cakes we’ve had in the freezer since we first arrived in the states some 6 weeks ago. When I read the tin I was horrified at the list of additives, so I won’t be buying any more of them. The tin makes 5 cakes and I have to try and eat them before they dry out in this heat, The Chef wisely tends to steer clear of such sugary treats. I have to say they were very tasty, especially when eaten warm. 

I later moved Super-Gazebo from the rear cargo locker to the cab-over bedroom which we tend to use for additional storage. This will help move some of the weight from the rear to the front axle. I decided that when in transit I would move it down to lie on the floor, keeping the weight low and central and taking any strain off the bodywork in the cab-over area. 

Sorting through all of the handouts we had collected for Las Vegas I came across the 27th April edition of ‘Vegas2Go’ magazine.  In it they appear to be running a series of articles on concierges at the hotels along The Strip, and they all get asked the same set of questions. In this edition it was the turn of Richard Urban, concierge of the Wynn Hotel. One of the questions asked is: ‘What is the funniest thing you’ve seen involving a visitor at your property?’ This is a man who has been the concierge at a major hotel here in Sin City since 2001, and his answer – ‘Seeing a guest licking a self adhesive stamp’. Now is this man living on the edge or what? Or is he living with his eyes closed? 

We planned a relaxing stroll down The Strip today, our final farewell to it. We’ve noticed how much hotter it has become since our first visit in April. We were wearing fleece tops in the evenings then. Today it was hard work walking in the heat and coupled with the noise and the crowds, it wasn’t to our liking at all really. To get out of the heat we went in to the Wynn Hotel to look at the display of Ferrari’s they have at the dealership there. When we eventually found it they were charging an admission fee of $10 a head, so we didn’t bother, I didn’t want to see them that badly but at least we had managed to cool down thanks to their air conditioning. The hotel looked very pleasant inside, a bit classy, and much less noisy than some we’ve been in to. 

It’s quite annoying to be treated as nothing more than a punter, and that’s all you are in Las Vegas. There is no public seating anywhere along The Strip, despite its length and the constant heat. The philosophy seems to be ‘If they’re sitting down out there, they’re not spending’. 

We didn’t manage to get all of the way down The Strip but this didn’t bother us too much as we’d already seen all we wanted to see. Our evening meal consisted of a McDonald’s meal which we shared. The reason being it was late, and we were just too tired to sit and eat a proper meal. It wasn’t a burger but chicken nuggets and fries (real class!) bought with the spoils of our winnings on the slot machines. For years I’ve thought that one day I would go in to a McDonalds and order a burger, fries and drink, and when it came I’d open the burger box, show it to the member of staff, and refuse to accept it, demanding, whilst pointing to the pictures of those that look so tall you’d never get both hands around them to pick them up, and demanding one of those. I think they’d have a problem delivering on that which would be interesting. It wasn’t going to be today though as I didn’t need the hassle. 

Tomorrow we set off for Zion National Park which we’re both looking forward to. We must remember to pop in to the campground office tomorrow before leaving as they have hard-wired internet access points and we need to get a print out of our bank statements. It must be about a month since we last accessed them. Unsecured Wi-Fi is fine for most of our needs but much too risky to use for accessing confidential information. 

LOCATION TONIGHT: Circus Circus KOA Las Vegas

25. Apr, 2016

MONDAY 05-05-08 

Considering we were having a freebie, dry camping on what should be a fairly busy road we slept reasonably well, quieter than on some campgrounds we’ve paid to stay at. The only disturbance we had was a guy towing a mobile roadwork’s warning sign who pulled up across the road to unhitch and park the sign. It wasn’t that which disturbed us, it was the very loud music he had playing on his truck radio, not helped by the fact that he left his driver's door wide open whilst parked. 

Once up, washed and fed we made sure the RV was clean and tidy out of respect for the chaps who would be working on it before we drove in through the gates at 07:20 – ten minutes early. They said they might need the vehicle for a good part of the day and it could be a long wait. I said in that case we’d have to get a taxi in to town. I gave them our mobile phone number before we went in to the sales area for a free cup of coffee. We then found ourselves in conversation with one of the members of staff, between us we were putting the world to rights, and before we knew it half the morning had gone. 

The Chef thought it could be as much as $80 to get ourselves in to town and back again. As we’d already passed quite a bit of time chatting we didn’t want to risk arriving in Las Vegas only to have the phone ring 10 minutes later telling us the work was completed and so we stayed and looked around their extensive stock of RV’s of all kinds. It reminded us how much we would have loved to have afforded to buy a new Class ‘A’ diesel-pusher motorhome (the engine at the rear just like UK buses). But we’re pleased with what we’ve got, she’s looking after us well and nobody can say we’re spoiling her. In the highly unlikely event we were ever in a position to buy a large type ‘A’ in the future and make an extensive visit, then this trip in our Class ‘C’ would have been a good apprenticeship. 

The vehicle was fixed by lunchtime, some of the work couldn’t be completed as spare parts were required and these would take days to arrive and then needed to be fitted, and we didn’t have the time to wait for them. This work will have to be done after we hand the RV back in to the folk at Motor Home Specialists in Alvarado, Texas who are going to store it for us between this and our second trip commencing in September. 

We made our way to the Manor RV campground behind the Circus Circus Hotel at the end of Las Vegas Strip. This is a well situated campground for us. 

This evening we made our way to the Stratosphere Hotel next door, and photographed the crazy people on the different rides up on the roof, about 1000ft up. After that it was off to the casino here at Circus Circus to lose a few dollars in the slot machines. I think I can understand the entertainment value of gambling at the tables  provided you knew what you were doing of course, but I do struggle to find any entertainment in sitting on a chair pushing $5 notes in to a slot then pressing two buttons alternately – ‘Single Bet’ and ‘Spin Wheel’. There is no other input whatsoever and the machine will either give you something back or it won’t - it didn’t, and I lost about $10, still, looking on the bright side - I didn’t have to worry about being mugged for any big winnings on the short walk back to the RV. 

LOCATION TONIGHT: Circus Circus KOA Las Vegas (GPS: N36.139920 W115.164314)

25. Apr, 2016

25. Apr, 2016