ramblings of a wandering nerdan aimless amble on a winding road

Well apparently our holiday wasn’t ready to finish just yet.

After a hassle free flight from Las Vegas to San Francisco, we killed 6hrs at the airport and then boarded the plane on time. We left the terminal and started our taxi. During the taxi, we stopped for about 15 minutes and then the captain announced we had a fuel pump problem so we headed back to the terminal.

Half an hour later they served drinks and said we didn’t have enough time to server dinner. Great we thought, not too long a delay. Then 30 minutes after that they said dinner would be served in 40 minutes. Bugger!

So dinner came and went. They turned the electrics off and emptied all the water. Then filled it back up and turned the power back on. Kate was asleep at this stage. They then announced we’d be leaving in 40 minutes (this was 4hrs into the problem) so I started drifting off. I was woken by the PA system and promptly did up my seatbelt expecting that was the ‘get ready for takeoff’ announcement.

Kate looked at me and said what the hell are you doing. I said getting ready for take off. She called me an idiot. 20 minutes later we left the plane and headed for the Hyatt. It was 12:30AM when we arrived at the hyatt. We were about the 3rd busload of people and it took us over an hour to check in. There were another 4 busloads of people behind us.

It’s now 2:20AM and I’m guessing there are still another busload or two of people waiting to check in.

What makes this even more frustrating is the plane leaves early tomorrow which will only stretch our two hour wait at Auckland to a 6hr wait assuming we can get the first flight out.

Not what I had imagined from an ‘extended’ holiday.

Air Newzealand seems cursed for us. Last time we flew home from San Francisco with them their inflight entertainment system was broken. 13hrs of nothingness. At least that time, 13hrs of nothing got us home. 13hrs of nothing this time around got us minus 4 miles.

Well it’s only 24 short hours till we head to the airport for the long trip home. We’ve done most of what we wanted to do and anything we haven’t can always be done next time. Vegas is magical and I’m confident there will always be a next time. I don’t think we’ll stay 7 days again but I can certainly see this as a 3 or 4 day stop-over to anywhere in the US.

So I think we’ll sneak in a few more drinks, some more table time at the Bellagio and then return refreshed and relaxed.

Well after 7 days and 1200miles we (I – Kate was hungover) successfully returned to the car to Treasure Island. Although TI is literally across the road, I can see it as I type this, returning it was no easy feat. I had to return the car full. I had two options when I booked, one was to have a free tank of gas (petrol) and the other was a GPS. The GPS was a no-brainer and how hard can it be to return a car full?

Harder than you’d imagine.

Before I made the decision to fill-her-up, I read my rental agreement and found it was $8USD a gallon if they have to fill it up. This was an unattractive option as it’s only $2.65USD a gallon in Las Vegas. Return it full I’d have to do.

I sleepily asked the valet where the gas station was and he told me. I of course didn’t take any of the directions. So with no idea of where I was going and my trusty navigator fast asleep in the hotel room I set off. They say men can only do one thing and this was highlighted by the fact that I was concentrating so hard on staying on the right side of the road, I was neglecting to note where I was going.

So as turn-offs came and went I found myself on the way to lostville. The one thing I had on my side was the fact that I wasn’t turning, I was just driving straight. So after what seemed like an eternity I came to a gas station. I have no idea if it was the one the valet suggested or not, but it was a gas station. So I pulled in and filled up and through logic (and ease of use) concluded right was the way to go. So right I went and I just started driving towards the casinos.

And in no time, I was back on the strip with the Venetian on my right and TI on my left. I pulled into the TI turn off and drove slowly up the long driveway. Where was I supposed to go? Left right, left right, left right. I chose left. Of course it was supposed to be right so after literally 10 minutes trying to get the hell out of where I currently was, I made it to the TI carpark.

I walked around TI until I found the rental return place. Returned the vehicle and headed back to the Venetian. I was FREE!

If we look back at the trip here are some useful and not so useful facts.

We rented the car from Driveaway holidays in Australia. These guys are just a 3rd party but they charge in AUD and have all the big partners. Alamo, Budget, Avis, Dollar and who knows who else. Booking through them was a breeze and by booking through them, you can really help yourself out because you’ll be able to find a location convenient for you. If you were trying to find a good location through each independent website, it’d take you forever!

Even with the convenience and AUD charging, they were still cheaper than booking direct. Not sure how that works but it did! So would I use them again? Definitely. Total cost was just over $600AUD for 7 days. Sounds like a lot but that was a good car with GPS and unlimited miles.

Petrol is cheap here although they seem to think it’s expensive. I was paying about $45AUD a tank.

We drove around 1200miles.

You have to pre-pay petrol in the US no matter what time of day it is. Don’t bother sticking your Credit Card in a bowser unless you have a PIN. It doesn’t work.

Get a GPS.

Driving on the wrong side of the road is pretty easy although a little terrifying. Always better if you have a passenger so they can keep you on the right side of the road while you avoid hitting things.

The freeways/highways are great in terms of getting you around but in a lot of cases are poor quality.

If there is a polici-man on the side of the road, get in the other lane. Apparently they don’t like you passing too close.

That’s about it. Now that we’ve given it a go, we’ll definitely do another driving holiday in the US.

Internet access is $10 a day in Vegas so this is the first time I’ve been on and I dare say this will too be brief.

The major points since leaving the Grand Canyon;

• Hoover Dam – Awesome. How’d they manage to build it with the technology of the day is beyond me.
• Day One Ambush in Vegas resulted in us getting $10 Blueman tickets BUT we ended up doing a TIMESHARE presentation. Go figure (more on that later – I blame Kate entirely, and funnily enough she blames me entirely…)
• Day Two WAS the timeshare. We rescued the day though by drunkenly wandering the shopping malls and Casinos of the Strip. You haven’t had a shopping experience until you’ve done it with a beer in your hand! (Or a half a yard of MAJITOS!)
• Day Three was the recovery from the above drunken shopping trip experience and was also the returning of the hire car. It was such relief to get it back safely.
• Day Four (wow it’s already day four!) is today (Kate’s birthday) and we have breakfast arriving any minute – hence the brief post – and then we’re heading down to the other end of the strip where I think I’ll do the NewYork NewYork rollercoaster then we’re back here for Cher tonight.

We have the Blueman group on Friday and somewhere in there we’ve got more drinking and gambling to squeeze in. Oh, and some relaxing. Relaxing is important because when we get back, we have a house to paint, doors to install and bucketloads of plaster dust to find and eradicate.

We were both pretty tired after the 8hr drive so we slept brilliantly. At 7am when the alarm went off I quickly reset it for 8 to sneak in another hours sleep.

After we finally got ourselves out of bed it was off to breakfast. At this point it was minus 3 so heading out in a light jacket was the last thing on my mind. We bummed around in the hotel room for a little while and then once the sun was a little higher in the sky we headed for the Grand Canyon.

The hotel is about 4 miles give or take from the first lookout point (Mather). This was where we went the day before for a quick peak after the long drive.

The view was amazing. It’s one of the few things I’ve ever seen where I’ve been left awestruck. There are lots of things on Earth described as “has to be seen to be believed” or “photos don’t do it justice” and I can confidently say this is one of them. Kate was equally impressed.

There was not a cloud in the sky and although the carpark was full, it didn’t seem to be flooded with tourists. There are a couple of different lookout points within about 200m of each other and I think this provides everyone with ample room to get un-inhibited access to the view.

Although it’s way colder than we’d have liked, it definitely seems to be the right time of year. They are currently building three new car parks that will accommodate 600 cars. I’m confident it would be horrific here in peak season. So while it was cold, it was definitely do-able with better clothing. (Well it was do-able without really, just not brilliant).

We then went along the southern rim to the Angel walking trail. This walking trail is huge and takes you all the way to the bottom. You don’t have to do the whole lot of course. We walked down a little but had no intention of doing a big walk. Every time we left the sun, the temperature dropped a good 10 degrees. A walk to the bottom is an overnight experience and something for fitter people than us.

That’s the great thing though. There is something for everyone here and you can make the experience whatever you like.

After a beer (wine) and lunch at the Bright Angel lodge (worst service of the trip so far by the way – avoid it) we walked around a little then headed back to Hotel to freshen up for the IMAX movie we had pre-booked the day before.

The movie was OK. We were hoping for info about the forming of the Canyon but they focused on the human element – who had lived here before, the exploration of it etc. This wasn’t the angle we were after but having said that, it offered plenty of amazing footage of the canyon which you’d only ever see if you were an IMAX photographer. Bottom line, worth seeing, but don’t expect too much information.

Finally, it was back to the Canyon (it was almost 7pm by this time – the Canyon is open 24hrs a day which is brilliant!) to check out the stars. It was bitterly cold by this time so our stay was brief but we did get to see the stars in all their un-light-infested glory. Again, if we’d had warmer clothes we’d have stayed here a bit longer and would have tried to get some long-exposure photos.

But we didn’t have warmer clothes so we bid farewell to the Grand Canyon and headed back to the hotel for food and sleep in preparation for the 5hr drive to Vegas (via the hoover dam) the following day.

It was a brilliant day and one we’ll remember for many years to come. We are both keen to return.

Our two regrets from the time spent here. We didn’t pack warm gear (my bad) and we didn’t get down to the canyon floor.

Our two pieces of advice. Avoid peak season and if you’re thinking about doing a day trip from Vegas, consider getting a car instead and spending a couple of nights here. We paid less than $200AUD for the two nights accommodation. If you add the $25USD park entrance and a couple of days car hire, it would only be moderately more expensive than a tour.

I try to be organised and pride myself on my holiday research but I seem to have missed something fairly major….. The maximum at the Grand Canyon today is 6c and the minimum is -13c.

Oops… With a light summer jacket, no beanie and no gloves, I’m thinking memories of the Grand Canyon are going to be of a spectacularly……… cold…….. view…!

Fortunately Kate has a heavier jacket so hopefully the pictures shouldn’t be too shaky! We’ll see if we can find something warm to buy.

Clear skies and 18 in Vegas tomorrow for our arrival though so all good there! Besides in Vegas we’ll have the Margaritas and Beer to keep us warm!

Another lamo post tonight. It’s 8pm (gained an hour as we went from west to central) but I’m spent after a 6:30am start. Arrived at the hotel at 4 and then we headed off to the grand canyon visitor centre. Picked up an entry ticket ($25USD for a car which lasts 7 days – great value!) and headed in. It’s only 7 miles from the hotel so we thought what the hell.

It was brilliant. But I’m going to leave it at that for tonight. We have a full day there tomorrow then Hoover Dam and Vegas the day after so I’m thinking I’ll sort the photos and entries out when I have time in Vegas.

Till next time…

Haven’t caught up with the blog yet as we’ve been pretty busy. Day two in the Napa was great. We went to Stirling Winery which was recommended by the hotel. It was great. I think next time we’ll do the wine train so we don’t have to worry about driving. There are so many wineries it’s not funny. Way more than the Yarra Valley and Tamar Valley which is all I can really compare it too.

Kate has a mild cold so it after her 5 tastings she was done. I was too since I was driving and if there is one thing you don’t want to be doing in a country that does everything arse about, it’s drink driving!

I’ve pretty much got the driving sorted now. Didn’t take too long. It’s very easy to remember that you’re in a different country so while it may still not be an automatic reflex to get on the ‘right’ side of the road, it IS a reflex to slow down and think about which side I’m supposed to be. This is ‘close-enough’.

So we headed off at 8 this morning for the drive down to Bakersfield. It was pretty good. A little slow leaving the Napa but it would have been peak hour so all in all, not too bad. The country-side is not really country-side. There are plenty of farms but there is an amazing amount of industry and towns that line the highway. We took C99 not I5 which was the original intention. We have a GPS that doesn’t seem to agree with Google Maps. We’re following the GPS although she does seem to have problems with highway exists every so often.

The drive tomorrow will be big, 8hrs but we know at the end of it we’ll be at the Grand Canyon which we’re both really looking forward to. We’re staying at a hotel about .5miles from the southern rim. With close access to, we’ll aim to spend all day there on Day two and hopefully sneak in a sunset tomorrow night.

Kate got plenty of photos from the car today so we’ll post some soon.

We ducked into a supermarket today to pick up dinner since we had a microwave in the room. The place we went to was like a movie. Everything was MASSIVE and our initial thought was it was just a bulk-buy place. It wasn’t, but if you wanted the MEGA version of any grocery item, this was the place for you.

We couldn’t find anywhere to buy bloody CDs so tomorrow it’s the radio again. They play mostly R&B and Rap which is really annoying us but life goes on.

Grand Canyon – Here we come!

I have a heap of updates but it’s almost midnight and we have an early start tomorrow (headed for Bakersfield) so I’m just going to do a couple of pictures. More to come….

We were checked out by 9 this morning and made the 2 minute walk across the road to collect the car. There seems to be plenty of rental places at hotels and we were fortunate enough to find the right car at the right location. We can also drop the car off at Treasure Island (across the road from the Venetian) in Vegas. Talk about lucky!

Getting the car was easy and after a quick rundown on using the GPS we were sitting in the beast. With the key in the ignition it was time to toughen up. With a shrug of my shoulders and a mumbled ‘here goes nothing’ under my breath I turned it on, chucked it in reverse and backed out of the carpark.

After a quick spin around we were out of the garage and headed in the wrong direction! Fortunately we were familiar enough with the area to realize this and we quickly changed course. (The GPS at this stage was not turned on). After another wrong turn we were on Lambart st headed for the Golden Gate Bridge.

By this stage I was feeling pretty good. On the bridge things got a bit tighter as the lanes narrowed but fortunately people drove within the speed limit and I was acutely aware of where I was in the lane with the constant thudding of the reflectors on the right side of the lane warning me to keep just a fraction left-er.

Once over the bridge the lanes widened and I relaxed a little in the seat. Kate got some pictures (to be uploaded tonight) which is good because the whole Bridge experience is a bit of a blur for me. We stopped at a roadside Maccas since we skipped breakfast and picked up twinkies and a starbucks coffee drink in a CAN. (Wanted to see what it tasted like)

Driving is actually easy when following someone. The trick has been either when leading or when turning. I’ve been concentrating on not hitting anything and Kates been concentrating on making sure I’m on the ‘right’ side of the road. So far it’s been effective and there hasn’t even been any arguments or near death experiences.

Anyway, getting to the Napa was a breeze and after an early check-in and a coffee we are getting ready to head out and see what Napa (the town) has to offer. Tomorrow will be a full day of wineries and I think we’ll be getting some bottles shipped back to Oz. Also high on my list is a Napa Valley Pale Ale. I was going to get one when we checked in but Kate wouldn’t let me Not to worry, there is always this afternoon!