From Bombshells To Just...Well...Bombs

Greetings readers! I apologize for the delay in this, my final entry for my trip to Nevada in May. I've had a lot going on for the month of June, so this is truly the first moment I've had to tell you about my time at the National Atomic Testing Museum.

Above the ticket booth inside the museum

This was my sister's choice for a museum outing- I personally was not interested in the atomic bomb testings or on those kooky 1950s stories about aliens and UFO crashings. However, since she picked it, we went there. It was accessible via the Deuce Bus (you'll need to transfer) and took about 20-25 minutes total in traffic to get there from the MGM. This museum is a Smithsonian Affiliate, and as I also work at a Smithsonian Affiliate institution I received a nice discount on admission (half price if I remember correctly). When you first walk in, it seems as if this place is going to be a weird homage to aliens and pie-tin flying saucer movies (as you can see from the picture above) but thankfully the entire museum wasn't like that.

Display case showing all of the products marketed using an atomic theme

Essentially, the museum touched on both the scientific and cultural impact America's nuclear testing had on history. Admittedly, some of the more boring parts (to me) were the scientific areas- while it is cool to see actual bombs and replicas of the parts, reading about technical achievements weren't exactly up my alley.

Try and contain your enthusiasm folks...

I did, however, learn a lot from the cultural aspects of the museum. Like the JC Penney fall out shelters (maybe those would help boost sales for them now), the economic impact the testing companies had on the region, and the tourism sparked by mushroom cloud viewings and bomb parties. Those sort of tidbits make the time seem relatable, more than a 1:18 scale model ever could.

Take that Walmart! We sell bomb shelters!

There was an "Area 51" section that you have to pay extra money to enter, which we did not. Also, there was a seemingly out of place display about September 11th that had pieces of actual building in it. Upon further inspection you find out that it is dedicated to men and women from the area that have lost their lives to tragedies such as that.

Piece of steel from the Twin Towers after September 11th

My only negative from my time here actually came from my sister. She picked this museum, and wasn't taking time to read or learn or interact with the exhibits. Just kinda breezing through and rushing me as if she was doing ME a favor. Folks, museums are places to immerse yourself in a particular topic, or art, or history, or whatever-- just running through everything (unless you are an expert museum goer such as myself) pretty much misses the point. She slowed down a bit once I told her we didn't have to rush or be anywhere by a certain time. It was a reminder to me that not everyone frequents museums the way I do, so some things just don't occur to them.

A hallway in the museum designed to look like it's underground
with my sister prepping to take a picture

Well, that (finally) wraps up Nevada. I leave for Oklahoma in just over 2 weeks, and you know I've got my itinerary ready! I can say this- I'm excited most about the food! Chicken fried steak, barbecue, and whatever the heck an onion burger is are all things I've read are must haves!

Still working on finalizing a few more travel plans for August, September, and October (Georgia, New Jersey and/or New York, and Michigan, respectively) but I really need to see what my life and wallet are looking like at that time. Also, some other things on the horizon that may hinder my blog goal- but we'll get more into those if they become an actual factor.

As always, thank you for reading my blog, and I'll see you on the next adventure!

A Different Hall Of Fame

In the (almost three!) years since I started this blog, I've been to a few halls of fame. There was basketball in Massachusetts, tennis in Rhode Island, and football in Ohio. Those were all great in their own ways, and while in Las Vegas, I was able to add another- albeit more risque- hall of fame to my list. Ladies and Gentlemen, presenting The Burlesque Hall of Fame!

Imagine a trumpet fanfare and some sexy red curtains revealing this fab sign

This museum was located in Downtown (read: old) Las Vegas, one block away from the last stop of the Deuce Bus. Let me warn you ahead of time- it's tiny. My sister and I walked past it three times before we realized the BHOF was actually a smaller component of some hipster looking bar. It was free to enter, which is a good thing because the "museum" is actually just three small rooms with information on the walls and a few outfits on display.

Image from the wall of the Museum

That's not a slight, mind you. The information covered was very interesting and told a story that I feel is a huge part of the whole Las Vegas "mystique". I was a bit disappointed because I'd missed the exhibit about people of color in burlesque by about a week or two. The woman working pointed out a few postcards left from the exhibit that were still for purchase in the gift shop, but without the story behind them I wasn't as interested. Hopefully (maybe) someday they'll publish a book on it- they'll have at least one customer!

Some of the costumes on display

Now, part of me hopes that one day the BHOF will get its own space and be this big huge marvelous testament to the art of burlesque-- not the seedy soft porn vibe people sometimes associate with it. It's a great concept that deserves a few minutes of your time (my sister and I stayed about 15 minutes). While we were on our way out, another woman came in and started a conversation with the woman working there- apparently they both actually PERFORM burlesque- which was cool. But I was trying to make a check donation and the conversation kinda killed the moment by not being able to step in and ask who I should write my check to. I didn't end up making that donation because she hinted that they didn't accept checks, which kinda sucked because I had no cash on me and didn't want to put my donation on a credit card. I highly encourage everyone to donate a few dollars to them though, it is one of those quirky places that often get ignored in the world of cultural giving. If you don't want give money they also have a wish list of stuff they need too!

Doubly sad I didn't get to add money to the pasty-adorned donation box!

Overall, a pretty cool stop while in Vegas. I'd be interested to see where it goes from here!

You can see the rest of my pictures from the BHOF on my Facebook page, and as always, thank you for reading my blog- we'll see you on the next adventure!

EDIT (6/19/2014)

So in my rush to get this entry typed, I forgot to include the link to a very informative podcast that I listened to days before the trip. It is from the podcast "How Stuff Works", and the topic is of course, burlesque. It gives a very detailed history in about 50 minutes of dialog. I still have it on my phone and will probably listen to it again someday. You can listen to it here. Enjoy!

Tips for the Strip

I was in Vegas for 5 days.In that time I did a lot of bus riding and a lot of walking along the famous Las Vegas Strip. This is the part of Vegas everyone thinks about when they think about "Vegas". And it is pretty impressive. Huge casinos/mini worlds with bright lights loud noises all around. It was tacky and elegant all at once, if you can imagine that. This post is going to highlight some features of the Strip and give you a few of my suggestions if you find yourself on your first trip to Vegas sometime soon.

The Las Vegas Strip at night
Image from Wikipedia

First and foremost. I don't care how close you think that next building is-- understand that it is NOT. Vegas blocks put me in the mindset of New York City, in that the blocks were long, crowded, busy, and did I mention they were long? Look, I am an AVID walker...and even I was getting frustrated with how long it took to get to places. Even crossing the street could be a lengthy process- because of the large numbers of people walking around, they have installed escalators to take you up and over streets. Which I guess helps drivers, but easily adds time on to your already lengthy walk.Do yourself a favor, and pay the $20 for a 3 day pass to ride the Deuce Bus.

It felt like Christmas every time we saw one of these babies!

With temperatures that easily rise to over 100 degrees in the day time, these frequent, air conditioned beauties will be your best friend! They don't always stop directly in front of where you want to go, but they get you a lot closer, a lot faster than your feet alone will. At most stops there is an actual employee standing there to give directions and help orient you. Quite a few times my sister and I rode just to see the sights. The express version of this, the SDX, skips a lot of stops and gets you out to Downtown Las Vegas (read: old Las Vegas) a lot faster than the often sluggish Deuce will. 

The Las Vegas Monorail

Another transportation option is the Las Vegas Monorail. It doesn't stop at every casino, but it's even faster than the express Deuce. We rode it from our hotel (the MGM Grand) to Harrah's where we could transfer to a free shuttle to get to the Rio (which is off the Strip) and see Penn & Teller perform. This baby costs $5 each way to ride, though it's cheaper if you buy your tickets round trip ahead of time.

Another option is to hail a taxi. Let me go ahead and tell you that your best bet for catching a taxi is to hoof it to the closest hotel to you, and waiting in line with everyone else- it's nearly impossible to get a cab off the street! I will say every last cabbie we had was friendly, and the rides were reasonable. I don't think we paid more than $10 to get anywhere, and most of the cabs had the machinery to take credit cards (a huge plus for me as I rarely carry cash!)

The Luxor

There were lots of beautiful buildings along the strip, but my personal favorite was The Luxor Hotel and Casino. Shaped like an onyx pyramid, and for some reason beaming a bright light up into the sky, my sister and I came here often- especially when we found out both the MGM and Luxor (and a host of other properties, including New York New York with it's awesome looking roller coaster that I didn't get to ride...) are owned by the same company. The main perk of the Luxor? They not only had the best tasting food from the casinos we tried, they had the most AFFORDABLE food on the strip! Whereas a breakfast buffet at MGM cost us nearly $40 each, at the Luxor, we paid $18 for the buffet- and they have a non-buffet menu with prices starting at $9 for pancakes. Our wallets were very pleased when we found this place!

The famous "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign

Then there was that Vegas icon I talked about on my post on the Neon Museum- the famous "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign. Remember how I said that no matter how close things look, they are much much farther away in reality? My sister and I walked for nearly 40 minutes down Las Vegas Boulevard to get a picture of/with the sign. I went at night, following other travelers' advice that said it's let's crowded than in the day- but I paid the price for avoiding the confusion. Because the night is SO dark and the sign is SO bright, it was nearly impossible to get a good picture. There were "professional" photographers there, but they were so busy arguing among themselves they didn't even bother to try and help us until we'd already taken our shots. Take my advice if you wanna see it. Get up early, ride the Deuce to Mandalay Bay (the last stop in that direction) and be prepared for another 20+ minutes of walking. Take the pic early, then scramble back up to the Luxor before it gets crowded for breakfast.

The beautiful Bellagio

My favorite thing of the entire Strip experience, was getting to see the magical Bellagio Fountains. I have been amazed by them, seeing them on different shows about travel, engineering, and the wonders of water. I was impressed by my hotel and all the attractions of Vegas, but when you reach the part of the Strip where the Bellagio is you are quickly reminded that not everyone comes as a budget traveler lol! In the summer, the shows run every 15 minutes, and I was able to catch on of the longer performances, "Luck be a Lady" by Frank Sinatra. You can see my YouTube video of it below:

Well folks, I still have a few more entries for Nevada, and soon I'll be off to OOOOOOOOOklahoma! (Just bought my plane ticket this morning!

As always, thank you for reading my blog, and I'll see you on the next adventure!

Frankly, My Dear, You Give A Dam

Before I begin my post, I wanted to send a special congratulations to Miss Nevada for winning the 2014 Miss America pageant! My prior entry about Miss America contestants was really popular so I figured you all would enjoy that link. If you would like to learn more about the other contestants, you can read about them here. How fitting that she won right in the middle of my posts about her home state!

Speaking of Nevada, the very first excursion I booked was for the Hoover Dam using a Groupon from the Hoover Dam Tour Company. 

My sister and I were picked up at our hotel at 9:20 am and we made a few stops at other hotels to pick up other tourists. We were transported to what looked like a huge bus depot, where we boarded a coach bus to take the drive out to the Dam. On the way out, our driver told us a few stories about the housing boom and bust that had recently happened, as well as some tidbits about the Vegas economy (and thanking tourists such as ourselves for being such a large chunk of it). There was a documentary playing about the construction of the Dam, but I think I was the only person that was actually paying attention to it. 

A view from our drive

After about 20 minutes or so we made our first stop at Lake Mead- a man-made lake created by the Dam that is a popular tourist attraction in its own right. Everyone got out and took pictures, and the driver got some sort desert critters that looked like squirrels without tails to come up to the area we parked in by feeding them peanuts. I didn't get any good pics or video of them-- they were really hard to see due to their sandy colored fur.

Lake Mead

Yours truly at Lake Mead...pardon the squinty look
It was SUPER hot and sunny that day

We stayed there maybe 10 minutes, and headed on to the Dam. We went through security screenings very similar to an airport before we were truly inside of the Visitor's Center (TIP: Outside food and drinks are not permitted. Only bottled water!) There, we watched another movie about the making of the Dam (this one was maybe 10 or 15 minutes long) and then were lined up to be split into groups to enter the Power Plant. We got to see all sorts of inner workings there, but as we just had the general tour, we weren't permitted to get up close and personal with the machinery. 

Power Generators inside the Dam

Tour guide explaining how the water in the Dam works and is diverted

One of the Large water diversion pipes

After you left the Power Plant, there was a mini museum dedicated the history and construction of the Dam. It gave insights into how the public felt about the construction, what engineering and financial hurdles the project managers faced, as well as what the lives of the workers were like. There was a replica of one of the generators you could walk through, and then a part that talked about all the accolades the Dam has won as well as how it has affected the region's economics and ecology. I especially liked that they highlighted the role African Americans played in the construction of the Dam.

Display about workers in the museum portion

Photo of some of the African Americans that worked on the Dam

But, most people come to the Hoover Dam to take pictures of the Dam itself. There are two observation areas once you get outside, as well as the original Visitor's Center and a few cool statues dedicated to a lot of things related to the Dam. We stayed out there a total of maybe 20 minutes. It was SUPER hot (over 100 degrees) and really bright out, so all that light reflecting off of the light colored Dam was a bit blinding. I got a few shots of the Dam, the Colorado River, and the statues though. (Didn't want to disappoint my readers!) The original Visitor Center has a 10 minute movie you can watch, but we had to get back to our bus by then and didn't have time to stay.

The Hoover Dam

The view down

Colorado River and the Mike O'Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge

Statues near the Dam

After we boarded the bus again, we were shuttled off to Ethel M Chocolates where because we ran over at the Dam, we only got to tour for about 20 minutes. From there, we were all dropped off at our respective hotels. 

I enjoyed my trip to the Hoover Dam. It's one of those American Icons that you hear about, and I was glad to check it off of my list.

I've got a few more entries to go for Nevada, and then my next "new" state won't happen until July-- when I venture off into Oklahoma! In the meantime you can look at the rest of my Nevada photos on my Facebook page.

As always, thank you for reading, and we'll see you on the next adventure!

A Sweet Goodbye

One of the first excursions I planned (read: told my sister I was going to do whether she wanted to come along or not) was a trip to the Hoover Dam. That post is coming (in fact it will most likely be my next blog entry) but this is going to be about how our Hoover Dam tour ended- with a factory tour of Ethel M Chocolates.

How someone thought making chocolate (a substance that easily melts) in the desert (a place that is generally super hot) was a good idea, I'll never know, but it has proven to be a pretty smart business idea. In case you were wondering, the "M" in Ethel M stands for Mars...like Mars, Inc. As in, the company that makes some of the most famous candy in the world: M&Ms among many other favorites. Ethel was the mother of the founders of the company, and Ethel M chocolates began when one of them decided it was a good time to retire....and start another chocolate company.

And he named it after his mother :)

The factory "tour" is in actuality a long hallway with windows that let you look onto the production facility. Seeing as I went on a Sunday afternoon, there wasn't very much activity going on. Only a few workers doing what looked like maintenance work.

Wonka's Factory it was not.
Image from www.notcoming.com

The good news is they had signs posted along the hallway that described what each section would have been doing if production had been going on. At the end of the hallway was a very nice woman with free chocolate samples. You could choose between white, milk, and dark chocolate (I chose dark, in case you were interested, though I haven't met a chocolate I didn't like yet!)

The Empty Factory

FREE CHOCOLATE!!!

Of course, after the hallway you turn into the gift shop, which is nothing but (expensive!) treats for you to take home. There was a man giving out samples of Chocolate Pecan Brittle...delicious! My sister and I each got ice cream (her flavor was Bananas Foster, I stuck with a plain Chocolate) and browsed the offerings. We didn't buy anything, partly because we'd only had 20 minutes to see the entire place thanks to our Dam tour running over, and partly because we were both concerned our candy would melt before we got back to our hotel room (it was over 100 degrees that day).

Our ice cream

Had we had more time, I would have loved to have strolled along the cactus garden that is also on the site. A few people on Tripadvisor said it was worth a few minutes of your time to see the beautiful desert gardens. Alas, 'twas not meant to be. For such a short (and completely unrelated) add on to a much larger tour, I really enjoyed myself at Ethel M. The candy was delicious, and I highly recommend you take some home with you if you think you can get it back un-melted (you can also order some things on their website and have it shipped directly to you).

I have plenty more Nevada entries to bring you all, so stay tuned. Make sure you check out the rest of my Facebook pictures (and hit that like button!) Thank you for reading my blog, and as always, I'll see you on the next adventure!

Little Red Corvette (And More)

I have professed to be the Queen of Public Transportation many times on this blog. That was largely due to the fact that I didn't have a driver's license until very recently (as in less than a month). Since I started taking lessons (in the middle of the polar vortex!) I've become slightly more interested in cars. I say slightly because other than super old cars that are cool for the fact that they ARE super old, I'm not the girl who gets excited about seeing a BMW or Corvette or Mercedes (in fact, thanks to a jerk I was seeing at one point, I actually kind of HATE Mercedes vehicles now...but I digress.) To me, I couldn't drive them, and even if I could, I couldn't afford to fix them if I accidentally messed them up, so, meh.

While I'm still getting comfortable in Hondas and Fords, I have started to at least educate myself on different car brands so that whenever I go in to purchase my first vehicle (which will NOT be a luxury car), I'll have some background information. I give this whole story to prep you for what was probably the shortest excursion during my time in Vegas: a visit to the Las Vegas Car Museum.

First car I saw in the "Museum"

Now, knowing that cars really aren't a big deal to me, understand that I DO respect the engineering and artistry it takes to make a vehicle. My sister and I had a Groupon where we got in for $10 ($5 each) so the price was wonderful. If you are a car nerd (and I know many people are) you'll like this place. There were all sorts of fancy, expensive cars around that made you afraid to breathe around them for fear your breath would scratch their finishes. I'll just leave you with some pics so you get the gist of what I saw:

So, I went, I saw, and was not disappointed, but didn't leave with that "wow!" feeling I get after finishing an excursion. Two things I think anyone visiting should know:

1. First and foremost, the LVCM is inside of the Dal Toro Restaurant which is inside the Palazzo. Maybe this place is new (or only recently promoted as a museum) but on the street no one even knew it existed when we were asking for directions. While we didn't eat at Dal Toro, it was a beautiful restaurant, and looked like it served great Italian food.

2. Calling this place a museum is a bit of a stretch. Yes, they have a collection of really fancy cars. But there were no signs or anything to let me know what I was looking at or why it was special other than it looked cool. The back wall of the place is actually a gate to a garage, and we heard plenty of engines vrooming while we took our photographs. In actuality, this place is also known as Celebrity Cars Las Vegas, which rents and sells these vehicles to the rich and famous. I'm guessing what they are calling a museum is actually a showroom for clientele to pick from, and they've opened it up to the "regular" public by calling it a museum. None of the cars on the museum site were there when I went to visit, which further makes me think this is more showroom than anything else.

And you know, that's fine. For $5 I'm certainly not complaining, but it would have been nice to actually learn a little bit about the cars, be it by an employee standing around telling us (we were the only people there), or by having a booklet or something available for those of us not there to transact. If you have a spare 30 minutes and want to see some cool looking cars (especially if you already know a little about them), then go for it. The air conditioning as a break from the 100 degree weather alone was worth my money! But if you are looking for an in-depth look at the history and story behind these fancy machines, I'd keep going.

More Nevada posts to come! You can look at all of my Nevada photos (including for outings I haven't officially blogged about yet) on my Facebook page. I have a few photos and a video on my digital camera I need to upload- one of these days I'll remember to bring the cord with me so I can do so!

As always, thank you all for reading, and I'll see you on the next adventure!

They Keep The Lights On

When you think of Las Vegas, what comes to mind? Gambling and casinos? Nearly naked women and sinful nights? Quickie marriages (and divorces)? Perhaps. Myself, I always think about the lights. There's only one place that can even dream of coming close to being as bright and lit up as Vegas (that would be Times Square in NYC), and even that has nothing on the decades of art, science, engineering, and marketing that have grown into the iconic Las Vegas neon signs.

It's even brighter in person
Image from http://www.condominiumcentral.net/

But, what happens when these signs get old? Or a casino is demolished or renamed or rebranded?

Enter the only museum in America (if not the world) dedicated to the preservation of neon signs, The Neon Museum. Filled with the relics of by-gone Vegas businesses and eras, a tour here is like walking back through time. Many of the signs are in the process of being restored and refurbished but there are lots that are waiting their turn, giving visitors a close peek at the artistry and thought put into each sign.

To get here, my sister and I took the Deuce Bus to Stewart and 4th Street, then walked maybe 3 or 4 blocks to the Neon Museum. We were in a bit of a hurry (we were trying to squeeze this in literally a few hours before we were to fly back to Pennsylvania), but caught a 9:30am tour. Let me go on the record and say that at first I was grumpy that there were such odd tour times (a few in the morning, and a few in the evening- and that's it!) but having gone on the tour, I fully understand why. See, The Neon Museum is all outdoors-- in a desert. So halfway through our 9:30 am tour it was already near 100 degrees outside surrounded by huge metal and glass signs with little shade to be had. A tour at high noon would probably kill someone from the sun exposure!

The gift shop/ lobby of the Neon Museum....that's the only "inside" part you'll get

Pieces of the Moulin Rouge, Stardust, Lady Luck and others- that's all metal and a real sun folks.
It was HOT!!!

At night, the tour is a bit more expensive ($25 versus $18 in the day), but they offer a bevy of discounts for Nevada residents, museum professionals, students, etc. I wish we could have seen the tour at night, when the signs are lit up and you can get a taste of them in their former glory!

Part of the original Stardust sign- the rest is scattered around the museum

It sure FELT like the Sahara out there!

This museum is pretty new (only an official museum for about a year and a half now although the collection of the signs goes back for decades) and I am excited to see where they will go from here. They have a fundraiser going to raise funds to restore some of the more damaged signs (donate friends!), and they have a cool gift shop with lots of pop art-ish items, books, and art pieces. While actual signs themselves are not for sale (or the components of them), walking through the Boneyard (the exhibition space) gave me a feeling of ownership of these beautiful artifacts. What I loved most? That many of the signs and hotels of early Vegas were designed by women and African Americans such as Betty Willis who designed the most famous signs of the Strip including the "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign (more on THAT in another post) and signs for the Stardust and Moulin Rouge, and Paul Revere Williams, the first documented African-American member and Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

Well friends, this is one of many entries I'll have for Nevada. I truly loved this museum, and hope that my lovely readers will support them on their fundraising effort! While I get the rest of these entries typed, feel free to peruse the rest of my Nevada (and other state) photos on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, and I'll see you on the next adventure!