Mystery Trip 2015: Dam!

The previous night we drove through Las Vegas (cruising the Strip) and bunked down in Boulder City at the Boulder Dam Hotel. Many celebrities stayed at this hotel soon after Hoover Dam (then called Boulder Dam) was opened. It was really cute and quaint and we had a delicious breakfast the next morning.

We made our way over to Hoover Dam where the plan was to take the tour in the morning as we had another (mystery) activity set for about midday. Even though we arrived about 15 minutes after it opened, the only tours left were later in the day. So we flipped the plans and booked the last tour and wandered around checking things out for a little while.

We walked out on the Memorial Bridge to see the view.

We were in two places at once - Nevada and Arizona.

Next we headed to the very tiny town of Nelson, Nevada, to take a tour of an old gold and silver mine. The mine owners bought a large piece of property with other plans (including rescuing antiques) and later discovered the mine. If you think your grandparents have tchotchkes, think again!

Aliens in one of the bedrooms of the main house.

The mine tour was very interesting. When they found the mine, many of the original bridges, ladders, and equipment were still inside. The mine produced silver and gold, and the tailings (materials left over after sifting out the valuable parts) are still there. They have sold them off to a guy who is going to re-sift for other materials people didn't look for at the time.

Back at Hoover Dam, we took the tour which included viewing the massive generators (one was being worked on) and walking through tunnels in the Dam. It was very interesting and definitely makes you feel claustrophobic.

We had to drive a few hours through basically the middle of nowhere to get to our stop for the night, and there weren't many options for food, so I convinced A to stop at In-N-Out since I keep hearing about it. Time to see if it's really all that. Two Double-Doubles Animal Style later, we agreed it was still fast food. Though it tasted slightly better than the competition.

By a twist of fate, the town we stopped in for dinner happened to be home to one of the Golden Nugget's casinos. The one which currently houses the Hand of Faith Nugget! So we got to see it after all. It's the largest nugget found in the world using a metal detector. It weights almost 60 pounds!

Up Next: Trees named after a Biblical story.

Mystery Trip 2015: Viva Las Vegas

As a milestone birthday loomed for me, A offered to plan our first vacation for 2015 all on his own and keep it a surprise. Mystery Trip 2015 was born. I knew literally nothing about this trip until my actual birthday (about two weeks before we were to head out). At that time, A gave me the most complicated puzzle to solve in order to determine where we were going. For those of you who remember the Student Honors Organization (SHO) at UF, dig in your memories to find some epic scavenger hunts. A helped write those puzzles, which were difficult. This puzzle was even harder. But I set my mind to it and with a few hints, found out we were going to the Seattle area!

Wait. No.

But the first clue to the puzzle said "Even when you're right, you'll be wrong." Turns out we were headed to Las Vegas!

But only for a weekend.

After that, the rest of the week was still a mystery which would be revealed day-by-day.

Let's start at the beginning: Viva Las Vegas!

We flew into Vegas early on the most epic of Pi Days (3/14/15) and hit the ground running. It was too early to check in to our hotel, the Monte Carlo, so we took a long walk up the Strip, checking out the resorts. It's definitely like an adult version of Disney World. At Circus Circus, we watched an acrobat show.

One of my friends in Chicago happened to be in Vegas the same weekend, so we met up for lunch at Guy Fieri's restaurant at The Linq. 

That night we saw the Cirque du Soleil show Ka, followed by dinner at L'atelier de Joel Robuchon, a delicious Michelin-starred French restaurant. It was another show in itself as we were able to watch the chefs work their magic. I don't want to give too much away about Ka, but it was amazing. There were times my palms were sweaty just watching the crazy stunts. (It didn't help when A told me there had been a death during this show's run!)

The next day, we had brunch at Mon Ami Gabi at the Paris hotel, then caught a taxi to downtown Las Vegas to take a tour of the Neon Museum. Definitely worth a visit if you're ever in Las Vegas. They rescue old neon signs, many of which are iconic to Vegas. 

After the museum, we headed back to the Strip to do all those things expected of tourists. We took a ride in a gondola at The Venetian.

Saw the volcano erupt at The Mirage.

Watched the fountains dance at The Bellagio.

I also rode the roller coaster at New York, New York (A opted out).

That night we saw Penn & Teller - amazing magic tricks! We don't know how they did most of them (though we have some theories on a few). After the show, we strolled down the Strip, taking in the bright lights.

The next day we rented a car and drove into the desert. I wasn't sure where we were going. Around a bend, we saw these bright orange rocks.

It was the Valley of Fire State Park. Perfectly named based on the beautiful colors of the landscape.

We can't resist a good warning sign in a park. Especially when people blatantly ignore it. (Side note: Recently, part of a cliff at Point Reyes in San Francisco sheared off and a woman died. The park officials had closed the area due to fissures, but she and another hiker ignored the signs. The warnings are there to help you - take them to heart.)

This was marked as a photo spot (as opposed to... anywhere else in the park?), so of course we took one. We're good at following directions (sometimes).

A couple trails took us past petroglyphs. Experts can only guess at what they mean.

We took a trail to Elephant Rock and kept wondering where it was. Walked around a bend and oh yeah, there it is!

After a full day of hiking, we drove back through Vegas and stopped downtown to check out the older casinos on Fremont Street.

We found a taco joint nearby for dinner which ended up being in an open-air mall created from old shipping containers. At the entrance, there was a giant praying mantis sculpture on top of a van. As we walked by, its antennae suddenly shot fire! Turns out there was a person inside controlling the fire and music and he loved to make passersby jump. The sculpture was used in Burning Man.

Next Up: Dam, that's cool!

Not As Good As MasterChef Junior

Warning: This post is a compilation of random things. Much like life. Enjoy!

A and I used to watch more cooking shows than we do now. I think we've gotten a little tired of them. (C'mon, we've already seen you make durian into something delicious on Chopped!) However, one we can't get enough of lately is MasterChef Junior. Those kids can seriously cook! For one finale, a 12-year-old made whole fish in a salt crust. He made it look so easy, we just had to try it at home. In theory, it is easy. You pack salt together with egg whites on a baking sheet. Put a fish stuffed with herbs on top. Cover it with tons of the salt mixture. Then bake!

The moment of truth is when you crack it open. Our fish was good, but not as amazing as the judges felt the kid's tasted. It was definitely an amusing way to cook fish!

There is a board game called Twilight Struggle which is currently considered one of the best in the world. It's for two players, and each person plays as either the USA or USSR during the Cold War. For the first time ever, I won! And changed history... the USSR took over. Hope you like vodka!

For Valentine's Day, A and I tend to skip eating out and instead cook a fancy dinner ourselves. This year we made scallops, Parmesan risotto, and chocolate souffle. We've cooked scallops a few times, but this time they turned out perfect! (Thank you, Gordon Ramsey for your tutorial!) Just like in a restaurant, which justified our decision to stay in.

This was too amusing not to share... this was the first champagne bottle we've come across without a cork. And with a very amusing graphic to aid you in not shooting your eye out.

Not a Winner, But Top 5

Last week we did not receive the record-breaking snowfall the Northeast has been getting, but it did grab fifth place! We hunkered down on Super Bowl Sunday, A working on research papers and me doing crafts and such. But mostly I watched the snow pile up on our balcony. And keeping piling. And then we stuck a ruler in it periodically because I could swear we gained two inches in an hour (and I was right!). 19.5 inches later and we thought it had stopped... only to gain three more inches two days later! This is the tunnel of snow I've been walking through from the shuttle to the office.

I learned something new this past month: Apparently when it's cold enough, the train track switches are set on fire with controlled propane burns. Looks pretty freaky when you see it just out of the corner of your eye and have no idea what's going on.

For Orion, the snow is a gift. She loves to frolic and run around in it when it's fluffy. And eat it by the gallon. However, she's not a fan when it's up to her stomach (probably because it's cold!). And she doesn't realize how deep the snow is when the sidewalks have been shoveled. She thinks there's just a ridge to jump over, and she ends up almost getting swallowed!

I'll leave you with this awesome sign, lending humor to a warning we see for months (and most ignore... until a big chunk of slush falls on your head). So far, I've only see falling ice, but I guess anything could happen!

From Snow to Sun

I have two good reasons for not posting last week. First, that was a week of late nights at work (including an 11:30PM conference call!). Second, last weekend we traveled to Phoenix for my company's annual holiday trip.

A few weeks ago, we got about an inch and a half of snowfall. Enough for Orion to enjoy running around the dog park while simultaneously scarfing down as much snow as possible. She seems to think she's not supposed to eat the snow, so when we walk towards her, she runs away. It's pretty funny. Even though she's technically a "senior" and somewhere around nine years old, she still outruns every dog at the park.

Yummy...

Phoenix was a welcome break from Chicago winter. It got up to almost 80° both Saturday and Sunday! A had to work that day, so we didn't arrive until later on Friday (many people get in earlier). However, apparently the Gulfstream was "quiet" that day (according to our pilot), and we arrived a full 50 minutes early! Friday night was a cocktail hour, and Saturday evening we all piled onto buses for a ride out to the Yavapai Nation reservation where there is an event space. It was a really fun night, with staff on-hand to show you how to shoot a bow and arrow, help you duel with a partner with a real gun (loaded with blanks), and firepits for s'mores (and huddling when the temperature dropped - it's still the desert!).

Disappointingly, this was the oldest part of "Old Town" Scottsdale. Most of it is newer shopping areas and restaurants. Fun, but not "old."

A found something we had to capture for his fellow Urology residents.

I can pretty much guarantee more pictures of snow this week... we're about 6 inches into what they say could be 12-18" by the time this blizzard is over!