I finally made it out. I took the monorail up the Strip to see the fountains out in front of the Bellagio. Then I walked back to the MGM Grand.
It was well worth the trip, even with a sore back. I hit Walgreen’s on the way back and picked up some heat pads. Hopefully that will help.
A view up Las Vegas Blvd.
Flew to Las Vegas today. I don’t really need it, but I simply must have an exit row aisle seat when traveling coach. It makes those tall guys green with envy.
I was hoping to get a good shot of the LAX airport tower, but didn’t have an unobstructed view. Can you spot it?
I’m staying at the MGM Grand. Come on by and see me. I have plenty of room!
Maybe because I’ve been dabbling with beads to make earrings and bracelets, I remembered the other day that I brought home a bunch of sea glass from our trip to the Abacos in 2009. But I couldn’t remember where I stowed it. I guess you can find sea glass along the shore of many beaches. But, I had heard ahead of time that there are certain stretches of beach in the Abacos that are covered with it. It’s kind of sad to think that this is all trash – bottles broken up by the tides over many years. But for some reason the currents deposit a treasure trove of it along the islands.
Well, I found my stash! Can’t wait to go back for more.
I’ve been going in to my office at work this week – a change from the work-from-home mode I’ve been in for the last 18 months or so. In my desk drawer I found a handful of coins from our last trip to the Bahamas – a bareboat sailing charter through the Abacos. A fabulous trip.
I’ve never really looked at the art on the back of the coins before. They capture the nautical life of the islands … fish, sailing, starfish.
So, it’s stuck in the 30’s here all week, and I’m now dreaming of the islands.
I go to come back….
My meetings this week have been running from early AM to late PM. It’s tiring. I took a break today at lunch to walk around outside. These geese are only about half of those that were hanging out in the lake on the property. Before I walked up, they were pointing in all different directions. By the time I got up close to take a few shots, they were all lined up, staring at me, giving me…. the goose-eye. 🙂
I’m headed to Raleigh for the week. I couldn’t avoid the always-dreaded connection today through Chicago. But am pleased to see it sunny and clear outside here as I arrived. I guess I’m only delayed when I’m on my way home….?
I’m trying to avoid all the coughing, sneezing, sniffling fellow travelers. (Obligatory play-on-a-memorable-movie-quote: “I see sick people!”) Wish me luck.
Taking refuge in the Admiral’s Club.
When I arrived in San Francisco on Monday I saw signs welcoming the America’s Cup World Series races that were taking place here… this week! Unfortunately my hotel and meetings were across the bay in Emeryville, so I had no chance of getting a glimpse of the heats and qualifying races that started every day at 2pm and went until about 4pm. I would have LOVED to see them race, but was going to have to settle for getting a picture of the boats.
We did drive over to the city on Wednesday night, but didn’t make it to the Golden Gate Yacht Club, the home marina of the America’s Cup holder Oracle Racing, where the boats were moored.
So today I had a tiny window of time between meetings and the drive to the airport. I was determined to make it to the waterfront. So I braved morning traffic and made it to Marina Green and was able to walk up and down the boardwalk about 50 yards from all the boats.
The shot above is a bit into the sun, but it shows all the boats moored in San Francisco Bay. Alcatraz is in the background. The boats above are the AC45 (45′ class) boats. The mainsails are “wing sails” and they are catamarans. These World Series races are practice for the America’s Cup Finals racing next summer with even bigger boats. In February they will introduce the 72′ (AC72) catamarans that will be raced in the Challenger races of the America’s Cup. If you think these boats are fast, just wait until next year. The final America’s Cup will be in September 2013 in San Francisco. If you want to see them in action, NBC will be carrying this Sunday’s final races live on national TV @ 11:30 AM Pacific. And, you can follow the standings of this week’s races here.
The shot below is a closer picture of the Oracle Racing boats.
And, a trip to San Francisco would not be complete without the obligatory shot of the Golden Gate Bridge: 🙂
After the day’s wrap-up meeting session, we headed to a restaurant closest to the hotel. It’s Polynesian fare tonight, folks. This is the first course. 🙂
I drove into San Francisco with several colleagues for dinner tonight. I had fresh Dungeness crab, and after dinner we ordered a round of legendary Irish Coffees at The Buena Vista.
Deeee-licious!
The restaurant’s website has instructions on how to make one, if you want to try to make one yourself:
| Buena Vista Irish Coffee | ||
 Fill glass with very hot water to pre-heat, then empty. |
 Pour hot coffee into hot glass until it is about three-quarters full. Drop in two cocktail sugar cubes. |
 Stir until the sugar is thoroughly dissolved. |
 Add full jigger of Irish Whiskey for proper taste and body. |
 Top with a collar of lightly whipped whipping cream by pouring gently over a spoon. |
 Enjoy it while piping hot. |
Why, yes I am.
I’m on my way to San Fran for a week of meetings. Before I left the house today Monte sang a verse or two of “Are You Going to San Francisco?” (youtube link here). You know it, i’m sure…
If you’re going to San Francisco…
Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair….
If you’re going to San Francisco…
You’re going to meet some gentle people there…
For those who come to San Francisco…
Summertime will be a love-in there…
Checking my email during the flight I got a note from Monte telling me that the guy that sang that song, Scott McKenzie had died. R.I.P. Scott.
Kind of a coincidence, i suppose. Anyway, that song is in my head now for a while. So, i thought I’d spread it around.
I’m pretty sure I will not run across the summertime love-in on this trip. Maybe next time. But I definitely will try to find some flowers to put in my hair. 🙂
It rained again tonight. We got a good dousing this time. I would like more though, so please do a rain dance for Central Texas and the rest of the country that is in dire need of it.
If you don’t have a rain dance of your own, then just dance with Matt. It’s been 4 years since the last one, but he’s just released his latest Dancing video. Check it out on youtube here. I dare you not to smile. 🙂
I’m on my way back home. Typical commute. Flight delays, short connection, scrambling for carry-on baggage space, hoping for an upgrade to that last seat in 1st class. Bleh. Thank goodness for the Admiral’s club. 🙂
I’ve been using the in-flight wireless on most of my business travel legs. It helps me keep from getting behind on email and todos.
On this flight, I decided to knock off early. Well, i *is* 6PM on a friday night!
I was taking photos out the window after we had leveled off at 35 thousand feet. I had a nice view of the moon above the clouds, and some pretty blue sky, and then I had the brainchild … hey, i should just post it now while I’m online. 🙂
So here goes.
Have a great weekend!
As I was driving past Concord on the way to my hotel on Tuesday night, I saw signs for Walden Pond. THE Walden Pond. You know, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden Pond, from his 1854 book Walden. I remember reading that book back in high school, over 30 years ago. It made a deep impression upon me at the time, but I haven’t thought about it again since then. Thoreau decided to live in the woods and did so for over 2 years, from 1845-1847. He later wrote the book from his notes and observations from the time he lived simply amongst nature.
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived” – Henry David Thoreau
I really wanted to see Walden Pond for myself. So, after my last meeting today, I drove there before closing time and took a walk. It was interesting to see how close the pond is to town, and actually in his book he says that even back in the 1840’s the lot where he built his 1 room cabin was only about 1 mile away from neighboring farms.
There’s a walking trail around the lake, about a 1 3/4 mile loop. The pond is now a state park and when I arrived it was packed with people sunning on the banks and swimming in the lake. A little bit more bustling than when Thoreau lived here.
I walked to the site of his cabin. It’s not there anymore, but the foundation is marked, and there is a huge pile of rocks next to where it stood. A pile that visitors have been adding to over the years – one rock at a time. I placed my rock atop the pile before I left.
The picture above is a view from the edge of the pond closest to where his cabin stood – about 100 feet behind me. I like that I accidentally captured the gibbous moon in the top left corner.
The picture below is one that I took looking up as I was standing in the spot that would have been right outside the front door of his cabin.
Very beautiful.
This is a quote from the park brochure:
“…my friends ask what I will do when I get there. Will it not be employment enough to watch the progress of the seasons?” – Henry David Thoreau
You got that right, Henry.
I’ll have to dig up a copy of Walden to re-read, for old time’s sake.
Sheila365 