viva vegas

I just woke up from a nap. My eyes are puffy, my limbs sweaty, my hair a disheveled mess. I've been on vacation all week, basically being a lazy fuddy-duddy and sleeping in, but after I got off the plane today I was suddenly so tired, I could hardly keep my eyes open on the drive home (don't worry, I wasn't driving). Ben and I watched tv for a little bit and then we've been sleeping.

I had a wonderful week in Las Vegas visiting my dad. Also, since my last post, I've turned one-half century old, 25. I don't feel any different; I don't look any different. But now I can rent cars! A man sitting next to me on the airplane, a chatty old fart, was shocked to hear that I was as "old" as I am..."Do you attend school in Utah?" "No, I teach school in Utah." "But you look like you're just graduated from high school!" "I turned 25 on Wednesday." "No! Well, whatever you're doing, keep it up."

Here are some of the highlights of my trip, coupled with pictures. A big thanks to my dad for footing the bill and being a good host.

We had to make my every-visit-to-Las Vegas-visit to the Bellagio. Near the entrance of the hotel is a fabulous courtyard. For each season, they put together a beautiful display of flowers and have a seasonal theme. This is me standing next to a fancy car at the entrance; this summer's theme is Route 66.

Here I am at the end of the Route 66 exhibit at the Bellagio. I kind of look unsure of something and it looks like I'm slouching. How unpresentable!

We went to the Stratosphere one day to ride all the rides up at the top of the hotel. This is the hotel that kind of represents the Seattle Space Needle and the only ride that was open (the wind was blowing like crazy and they closed two of the three) was this one called Insanity. We were definitely insane for riding it. The contraption you see here begins safe on the "ground," (we're hundreds of feet in the air) and then once everyone is inside, it goes over the edge and the closest thing to your feet is the ground of the strip. The green thing spins, eventually getting up to 25 mph, and your seat, and body, eventually become nearly parallel to the ground. You look straight down. It was fun, but sure gave me a dizzy feeling for a bit after we got off. The next picture shows what the view from the ride kind of looks like. You'll also notice it looks like it is going to rain; this day in Vegas was unusually windy, cold, and cloudy. It didn't rain, but it was weird weather!

I asked the ride attendant as the ride began, "Are you sure this thing isn't going to break?" She laughed and said no, but looking at this view, it's kind of hard to believe that it was all that safe

of a ride.

Even though it looks like I'm wearing a maternity shirt, I'm not...On my birthday, my dad took me first to dinner at Red Lobster (Yum!) and then to see a performance of the musical "Mamma Mia!" I was once obsessed with the music of a little 70's band called ABBA and this musical is a fun story with only ABBA music...they created a musical with these songs that actually all go together. This is a picture of me outside the theater before the show. It was fantastic. I used my birthday money to purchase the soundtrack...a total treat!

Here's a great picture (if I do say so myself) of the fountain show at the Bellagio. They choreograph these fountains "dancing" to music. I was lucky enough to hear my favorite version: Singin' in the Rain. It is just as thrilling to see it now as it was the first time I saw it in high school. We stayed for about 3 shows. A must see for anyone visiting sin city.

Me in front of the fountain show. This is probably my favorite thing to see in Las Vegas; I will never get sick of seeing these shows.

So, as you can probably tell, I had a really good time. I also relaxed a lot, watched a few movies, and had a good time visiting with my dad. Now, back to reality. I missed my Ben and Zeus so I'm very glad to be back. On Monday I start my ESL classes...these will last for 2 weeks, then my summer vacation will begin again. Thanks to ALL of my family who called, texted, or sent me birthday wishes. You ALL made my day!!