Day 54- Dec. 28- VEGAS!!!

Vegas, here I come...

I pulled out of Phoenix at the ripe ole hour of 11:00 am with a large handful of my dad's maps he had printed for me to find my way!! By leaving at 11:00, I should be in Vegas by 5:00, right!?!

Not far after I began my drive, I came to a town called Wickenburg, AZ. This is a must stop if you are in the area. What a cute place with character.

As I approached the city, I found a family after my own heart...

They were having a picnic at the Shell station. How cool is that!? You know, gas station mini marts are great to eat at and they usually have a microwave so you can heat things up.

Being from the Northwest, nature's beauty has always been defined by trees, lakes, and mountains, but here in the desert southwest, beauty is defined in a whole new way.

Cactus... I was making a classic Dana u-turn in a driveway, when I noticed that these three cactus bushes were different colors all in a row. It's a view that deserves me getting out the camera because this defines the landscaping in every yard.

I didn't get far past the cactus plants, when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed another u-turn worthy place. It was getting to be lunch time and I am a sucker for local restaurants? It is called The New Frontier Restaurant in Wickenburg, AZ and was the type of place you would come with grandma. As I walked through the door, it felt like a home with a country mother's touch...

Even in the bathroom...

Where each table was covered with unique designs and the chairs were covered by hand with a different piece of fabric on each section...

The wait for the food flew by because I spent my time reading the signs that hung from the ceilings and walls.

Here are some of the fun ones I read...

-Never underestimate the power of stupid people in a large group.

- A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand.

-This is not Burger King. You don't get it your way- You take it my way, or you don't get the damn thing.

-Housework never killed anyone but why take the chance.

The thing that amazed me the most was the fact that the room was about the size of my living room and there were about 15 people eating but yet the room was as quiet as if only two people were there and had a soft feel to it. The food was the best I have had in a long time and there was enough for me to have two full meals. Bless the owner's heart; he brought my plate and said he had them cook some more fries for me because they didn't get enough at first. I said, "Oh, my goodness, don't waste the food. I have plenty!!" So arrive at this place hungry.

The entire town of Wickenburg had this cute, cozy feel. If you are anywhere near Phoenix, this is a place to come.

Each building had character...

and the people seemed so relaxed. This is outside a local store where a couple was just enjoying themselves...

When you don't travel on the Interstates, you will notice there are no rest areas. This makes stopping in towns to use the restroom a must, but what do you do if you want to have a bite to eat away from the local Shell station?You stop at the roadside table. Go figure. There in the middle of nowhere are a few tables for you to have lunch at, but you had best use the restroom before you leave town because the cactus is the only option out here.

Around the picnic area there were the most unique trees I think I have ever seen. When I was told I would go through the forest, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind...

I always pictured Western Arizona and Southern Nevada as flat with some brush, but I was totally wrong. It was mountainous and the road was carved through the hills.

And traveling through the hills not only showed me new landscape but it led me to a little town called Wikieup. This was a two gas station town. (As defined in an earlier posting as a town with about 600-900 people) It was what I might describe as a dust hole. Some scrub, but mostly dirt and road. That's it!!! Oh, and a tourist wall that made the perfect photo op...

Here is my tourist face...

And here is my crazy person, "Let me out of here," face...

While the landscape proved to be incredible in a desert way, this sight was really neat. Out of nowhere, the hills formed plateaus much like those found in the Grand Canyon.

The cost of living must be fairly cheap since there is nothing around for miles and the properties clearly demonstrated affordable living...
Do you think anyone is going to tell this guy that particle board falls apart in the rain?

And his neighbor up about a mile...

I think Dan's auto repair has a few cars left to fix...

And then my favorite moment of the day...

Sunset...

Not far after sunset, I was about 40 miles outside of Las Vegas. It was 6:00 and I was excited to see the lights of the city. Hoover Dam was only 10 miles away, so I thought I would get to see the dam before the sky was totally black.

Then, I saw this...

Construction. Hmm... That shouldn't be bad. It's evening and there aren't that many people on the road...

Oh, contraire...

I knew I was headed to see the lights of Las Vegas, but I didn't know these would be the lights I would see into and through the night. We sat and sat and sat with our cars in park. After two hours, I had traveled 4 miles. Certainly not breaking any speed records here. Now, if you think of the amount of time all the other travelers and I sat, there was one thing missing...

A bathroom!!!

There was not a town in sight, so there was only one logical option. It's time to find a rock and hope it's dark enough not to be seen. Well, that is for us women at least. After completing my duty, I got back in my car on the driver's side and looked out the passenger window only to see a line of about 7 men standing in a row against the guard rail.

I had to laugh as I listened to them making typical guy jokes as they all stood there with not a care in the world that everyone could see them.

Finally, after about 7 miles, the traffic started to move at about 5 mph. At least we were making progress. Then I saw this sign... Oh, you think. huh? Reduced to what?

You must be kidding me. How much do you think the state had to pay to get a sign made that says you can only go 5 mph just because there is no such sign ANYWHERE else!!

It turns out, we didn't travel 10 miles in 3.5 hours due to construction; it was due to a security checkpoint set up at the dam where they are inspecting every single car. As I approached, I had visions of having to unpack the entire house I have but the guy ended up being really nice and I went straight through.

Success!!! There is Hoover Dam... and when I stopped to take the last picture, I met a new friend...

How cute is he!!?! I think he was a bit perturbed at me for taking his picture, but he was really cute. Like a mix between a cat, a raccoon and a rat.

Welcome to Nevada...

Now, only 30 miles to Vegas!

At the early hour, in Vegas time, of 10:00, I pulled into my home for the night...
This is where the real fun began. I have a recommendation for everyone...

Don't go to Vegas as a female alone. I have never felt so unsafe in my life. Do you think I would get arrested if I wore a can of bear mace on my belt?

I decided not to take the chance.

I don't know how many rooms they have at Circus Circus, but they were sold out and the place was a total zoo...

Since I spent my dinner hours sitting on the highway, it was time to eat a healthy, 10:00 dinner.

I began my search for a place in the hotel.

What happened to the days of cheap buffets? I found a $13 hamburger and a $7 hot dog. What in the world kind of meat do they use? How could chicken butts and beaks be worth $7?

I asked where other food was within the hotel so I didn't have to brave the strip alone at 10:00 at night. The security guy told me to go upstairs and there was a restaurant.

Oh, perfect...

After swimming my way through the heard of people, I found the only other restaurant open that late! YES!! Then the hostess told me it was a 40 minute wait but I could eat at the bar.

Oh, I can do that.

As I walked through the very small bar looking for a place to sit among the 10 tables, a couple of greasy, gross guys started waving and smiling at me and were inviting me over. EEEEEE... Get me out of here!!!

And that led me out to the strip...

My master plan was to get food and McDonalds was only one block down. I decided I could make it safely that far so off I went. Once at McDonalds, I spotted a Denny's down about another two blocks. Oooo...

They have a chicken breast and rice - my favorite- So can I make it there? hmmm...

I came up with a master plan. I waited for people to walk by so I could latch to a group as if I belonged and didn't look alone, but there were only couples walking by and very few at that. SO the next couple that passed me, I latched to as if I was part of their group. I was their third wheel they didn't know they brought. You should have seen the looks on their faces as they kept looking over at me, probably thinking, "This entire block is empty, why are you next to us?" They didn't speak English, so I couldn't explain. I just smiled and kept walking next to them until I reached Denny's.

I had a delicious dinner and then it was time to brave the streets again. This time there was no one and I started alone. There were guys whistling and yelling at me from across the street. I practiced looking strong and walked with purpose until I found another couple to latch onto.

But this time, things didn't go as planned. We were about halfway down the second block and the woman started throwing up in the middle of the sidewalk right in our walking path. OOPS!! Poor choice of companions.

Now, I was alone again but only had one block left to conquer. Again, I lifted my shoulders high and beefed myself up. I had my keys between my middle fingers, just in case.

Whew... I made it back to the hotel.

All that stress needs some relieving at the roulette table...

I had a ball and played about an hour with $20. Once I lost that, it was time for bed.

I don't know what I was thinking by going to Vegas alone!! Clearly it is time to re-evaluate my decision making skills. My mind must have been stuck in Oklahoma!!