Meryl & Harold Road Trip - What stays in Vegas

Well, some of you may have noticed it has been a couple of days (nights) since our last blog. We busted our horns driving 13 hours on Thursday so we only had a 5 hour drive on Friday to reach LAS VEGAS. And after checking in to the Excelsior (don't do it), we found there is a $13.95 charge to connect to the secure internet. Being extremely cheap, I decide you would just have to wait to read about our further adventures.

After checking in, Meryl's stomach started acting up. We decide to try a buffet in the hotel for dinner. It turned out the only thing Meryl was able to eat was Apple Pie and Vanilla Ice Cream, go figure. $15.99 for dessert (notice a pattern). We walked around the casino for a bit and decided it was like being in Disney World on Steroids.

Saturday morning Meryl is reading this Entertainment Magizine and sees that Earth, Wind & Fire are playing at the Hilton that night. She then recalls her former coworker, Darryl, was supposed to go with them as their road manager. So she finds his phone number and when he answers asked him where he was. "Vegas," he replied. "Me too," she says. Turns out he could have gotten us front row seats BUT I had already purchased 2 tickets for Penn & Teller for that night.

So what the heck, we'll meet up with him after the show. The Penn & Teller show is at the Rio, so we decide to go there for dinner so we can pick up our tickets 1 hour before the show starts at 9:00. Meryl's stomach still beibg a bit squeamish, we go to the All American Cafe at the Rio for a $9.95 Burger. While we are waiting, we go through the casino and they have a show in the middle of it. Blaring music male dancers with no shirts, female dancers in skimpy costumes, and Mardi Gras floats moving along tracks from the ceiling.

Penn & Teller put on a great show. A lot of laughs, magic tricks, and some pointed observations. And they take pictures with any and all as the audience leaves. We then go over to the Hilton and meet up with Darryl around 11:30. All the shows have ended so we go to a Deli/Diner for some desserts. Next thing we know its 1:30 am. Those of you who know Meryl know this is way past her bed time.

As we are heading up to our room, one of the guards mentions to us that Sunday morning check out at 11:00am is a mad house. And leads to a huge amount of traffic on I15 headind south to California. So with this in mind we get up aand check out by 8:00am. We get on the road, and there is some traffic but we are traveling across the Mojave at the 75MPH speed limit, which is sweet. We made it to our next and last Holiday Inn in Corona California. And here we shall stay for the rest of the week.

Oh, and by now you should have figured out that what stays in Vegas is your money. We played a couple of slots. Quarters, Nickels, and even Penny. And I won. I even have a pay-out ticket to prove that I, Harold the cheap, won 4 cents on a penny slot.

Road Trip - We're Not In Kansas Anymore

So, last night we checked into a HOLIDAY INN across the road from Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Kansas City Chiefs. Who knew it was not in Kansas but in Missouri. Anyway, Meryl and I decided we would add a couple of hours and miles to today's drive. We figured we would drive through Denver and head on down to Grand Junction Colorado.

So we hit the rode at 7AM and headed west on I70. It was 15-20 minutes we were in Kansas, and began our big trek. Seven(7) hours later we were crossing into Colorado. Kansas you may have heard is flat. That does not tell you the truth. The eastern end of the state has some rolling hills, but by the time you are mid-way you realize the only time you are climbing any type of grade, it is for an over pass. I mean it was flat!

And another thing, it seems in the middle of these farms and cattle ranchs, at every cross roads about every 10-15 miles, there is an Adult Book store. And in the field behind each of these stores there is a billboard with a Bible quote about the evils of porn. As we were driving past one of these stores, the truck driver in front of us nearly ran off the road as he read they give a special discount to truckers with a certain type of license.

Anyway, we finally crossed over into Colorado. which is just as flat as Kansas on its eastern border. it then became rolling hills, which is what it was as we drove into Denver. Meryl was driving at that point. We had decided to switch every 2 hours, which was working pretty good. Then Meryl decided to drive through Denver. I think the 75 MPH Speed Limit had something to do with this.

WELL, the western side of Denver is right into the Rocky Mountains. She did pretty godd until we came to a down grade that had warnings for the trucker to put it into their lowest gear, that the grade was 7%, and winding. And we are in a rain storm at this point. About midway down I heard Meryl saying "oh, S**t!" As if answering her prayer an exit appeared and we were off the hill. At the traffic light at the bottom of the exit she asked me which way to turn, and I replied "I don't know. I've never been here before." Lucky, my door was locked because Ithink she would have left me there if she could have.

We changed positions and I took over the driving for the rest of the trip. All I can was is that I70 from Denver to Grand Junction is possibly the most beautiful road I have driven on. The roadway hugs the sides of canyons formed by a creek, then the Eagle River and then the Colorado. Denver is known as the Mile High City at 5,340 feet above sea level. The roadway climbed to 11,300 feet where we went through a tunnel and then began decending a 6% downgrade, without the rain this time. Beautiful.

Meryl & Harold Take a Road Trip - Part Deux

Ok sooo to set the record striaight I read the stupid map...I gave Harold the name and exit to get off ONCE. Those of you that know Harold well , know that if yiou tell hi something more than once he tends to get a little testy...so I thought I was done and did go into my world.

Heres day two: We got up very early to get a jump on the day.I went to go take a shower and there was no hot water. To say the least I was not very happy and.............upon checking out voiced my concern about the lack of hot water. Moral those who complain necley don't get chrged for the night. ( Harold was vwerrrrry happy about that)

Our mission was to get to Kansas City. We left columbus around 7am ( Oh almost forgot I only had a 1/2 cup of coffee)

This part are for my two favorite ladies in Dayton Ohio. Harold said that we wouldn't be near Dayton. Guess what he was WRONG this morning we drove past Dayton. He feels very bad we would have loved to have dinner with you two. Hope all is well and that you love being home.

On with the story: Harold started driving, so,, around 10 I started whining coffee (thank goodness we needed to get gas so we stopped and again I was very Happy. I then took over driving we drove from Ohio thru West Virgina (speed Limit 75 miles an hour Yippeee, Indiana, Illionois, Missouri ONLY PROBLEM IS THE STATES KEPT CHANGING SPEED LIMITS. BUT THEY DIDN'T GET ME, I PAID ATTENTION!!! I got to drive on Route 66 how cool is that, then over the Mississippi River. It was really pretty uneventful. We are really having a good time and I can't believe we are getting the opportunity to drive cross country. We haven't even tried to drive off leaving one of us at the rest stop. So I think all in all we are getting along pretty good.

We arrived in Kansas. the hotel is right across the street from The Kansas City Chiefs football Stadium.We will be hitting the road again in the morning. I think Colorado is the next stop....but I have to check with my tour director.

Meryl,

Meryl & Harold Take a Road Trip - In the Beginning

So, many of you know Elyse is enrolled in Grad School in California. Why you ask? Because she did not enough money to return to New Zealand, and California was as far away from us that she can go, without leaving the continental U.S. So I volunteered to drive her car, with all her worldly goods out to California, rather than having her make the drive by herself. But Meryl would not let me go by myself, She was afraid I would just buy a couple of bucket of KFC and drive straight through, as if. Anyway that is how Meryl and I came to be driving across the country, together, , , for a week, , , so we can be at the airport in Ontario CA when Eylse lands.

So today, August 21st, we left Middlesex at 7:00 AM. The middle of August is called the "Dog Days" because it is Hot and Humid. Except it was 58 degrees this morning and raining. As we drove through the mountains in Pennsylvania the clouds were so low we were above the rain and it was falling up!

So I am driving the first leg of the trip, and Meryl is so proud og herself because she has finally figured out how to read a road map. True it was a AAA Road Trip Map but she was reading it. And she knew what highway we were on, and which one we were looking for, and even knew the exit number. real good right. Except she took a side triop to "Meryl's World." You that place where the bunny rabbits all sit at the side of the road sign to you as you go by. So that is where Meryl was when I asked "What was the exit number again." She start fumbling with the papers and turns and points out the side window and says "That one."

Meryl of course denies this version of the events and will have her chance to tell her side of the story later. More to follow. - Harold