What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas

So Lesley, stop asking me about the prostitutes. If you want that kind of lovin’ you’re going to have to go to Vegas yourself and not expect to live vicariously through me cuz I ain’t telling.

At the moment, I am sitting in the Vegas airport, hours before my flight leaves for DC. Now that Lin has left for Minnesota, I must entertain myself. I could buy a book or magazine and actually read something of value for a change but I’m too cheap. But thank the lord for free wi-fi so I can check my e-mail every three seconds! However, because I haven’t received any new emails since the last 347 times I’ve checked, I might as well update my blog.

So let me back up for a second. As you may have gathered from my last post, I am back in the mother land after spending two and a half weeks driving through western and northern Australia in a campervan with Henry. My final days in Oz will get a post of its own – later. As will my Oz road trip with Lin back in January.

But first -- I’ve just completed an eight week trip through California, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and Nevada, most of it with Lin. The reason I haven’t been blogging this whole time isn’t because I haven’t had any internet access but because, well you know, I’m not disciplined. Blogging used to be a procrastination activity from studying or working on a problem set, but now that I’m on “vacation,” blogging seems to take on more effort than I am willing to exert after a full day of hiking in 90 degree and above weather. But I digress…

Here is the cliff notes version of the last eight weeks. Look for the uncut and uncensored versions in the next week or so…

California:

• Visited Michelle in Pasadena
• Road tripped up to SF via scenic route 1
• Spent time with friends Mary, Val, Kris, and Rahul
• Met up with Lin for hiking and camping in Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, and Redwoods
  

Colorado:

• Met up with Lin and visited her cousin Larry in Fort Collins
• Participated in a week long environmental service trip clearing trails with Wilderness Volunteers in the Eagles Nest Wilderness area near Breckenridge
• Spent time with Ben, my brother-in-law's brother, in Lyons and Boulder
• Hiked through Maroon Bells, Gunnison National Park, and Mesa Verde
  

Utah:

• Hiked in various state and national parks including Arches Nat'l Park, Canyonlands, Valley of the Gods, Capitol Reef Nat'l Park, Natural Bridges, Grand Staircase-Escalante, Kodachrome Basin State Park, Bryce Canyon, and Zion Nat'l Park
  

Arizona:

• Admired the Grand Canyon from both the North and South Rims
• Ventured briefly to Monument Valley

Nevada:

• Did a drive by of the Hoover Dam
• Went for a quick dip in Lake Mead to cool off
• Gaped at the bright lights in Vegas, stuffed myself silly on buffet, went to a show, and well, that's all I'm gonna say...

P.S. - I have changed the title of this blog to more accurately reflect the nature of my posts. If you have suggestions for better titles, I'm open to hearing them.