Keepin' the Company Busy

Helen's sister Sharon and her husband Larry arrived Tuesday night and we've been keeping them busy seeing the LV sights for the past couple of days.

They're staying at the Luxor and on Wednesday we picked them up at 11:30 and drove down to Bill's where we parked. That gave us easy access to Caesar's Palace where we checked out the action and toured the Forum Shops. One highlight was the HUGE aquarium outside the Cheesecake Factory.

After a while, we crossed the Strip and had lunch at Margaritaville. Larry and I started off with a couple of cooling Landshark Lagers, then we split an enormous Volcano Nachos order. Sharon and Helen both had chicken quesadillas. We were all STUFFED when we waddled out.

We made our way north, past O'Shea's,the IP, Harrah's and into the Venetian, where Larry and I headed to the sports book and the ladies went shopping in the Canal Shoppes. After a couple of hours, we all met up and I drove them back to the Luxor to call it a night.

On Thursday, we picked them up at noon and brought Sharon and Larry back to show them our apartment. Then we drove to the Red Rock casino where Larry and I made a pair of parlay hoops bets (more on them later) and then headed out to the Red Rock Natural Area.

Red Rock is one of our favorite, little-known areas around LV. It's an impressive rocky, mountainous area that is breathtaking in its beauty. You drive a 13-mile loop to see all the sights and there are several stops to take photos and just soak up the view. As a bonus, we get in free since Helen has a lifetime pass to any National Park. It's available to anyone who is disabled. Very cool. Sharon and Larry really liked Red Rock and it's such a change from the glitz and glamor of the Strip.

After a couple of hours at Red Rock, we drove back to the Red Rock Casino to have an early dinner - about 430 - at Yardhouse, a new eatery that claims to have the most draft beers in the world. It's an impressive assortment and Larry and I tried their wares. He opted for Moose Drool, a hearty brown ale, while I went for Alaskan Red, a robust red. Both were excellent, as was the food. Larry, Helen and Sharon went for a hearty mac and cheese dish, while I had a personal pizza. Since we were there during happy hour, all our meals were half price. The tab for the four of us, including three handcrafted beers and soft drinks, was only $60.

While there, we watched the beginnings of our hoops games. Larry and I both went with Florida, Butler and Arizona. And even though FLA had to go overtime, we won all three bets. We each bet $20 and took home $120 profit. SWEET!!!!! It was Larry's first ever sports bet and he's already itching to get something down on tonight's games.

We're picking them up at noon today and some of the things we're considering today are a trip to the Bellagio Conservatory, maybe a meal at Bellagio Buffet, a tour of the car museum at the IP, the Mac King magic show, and perhaps a trip to the Hard Rock Casino, which is off strip a couple of miles. Whatever we do, our adventure continues...