Visiting with the McClellans 3 '09

We arrived in San Diego in time for Bruce to Join David and Ryan at Ryans Cub Scout Meeting

David is the pack leader and  he is helping the boys prepare for the box car derby.

The next morning they had a special treat for us.... a St Paddys Day celebration at Balboa Park.

It started with a military parade,

that morphed into marching  bands,

then the fire department  came along with their antique trucks and sirens screaming

And of course the local police department had to get in the act with their paddy wagon.

There were other smaller parades all around, like this band of rogues  going through the picnic area.

 or Irish gypsies camped out on the lawn.

Ryan loved exploring their tent

Dylan got his face painted

Both the boys scarffed down icecream

while Laura and I tried on hats.

 There's so much to see and do in Balboa Park it is hard to know where to begin

 but eventually we wound up near the conservatory.

By that time everyone was feeling a bit tired

 

Even Bruce was dragging his heels

Time to go home

Las Vegas to Sand Diego 3 '09

The next morning we bid Sam and Marty, "Adieu",   and  headed off towards San Diego CA via the scenic route.    We followed Highway 93 which parallels the shoreline of Lake Mead,until it reaches Boulder City , where it turns and crosses the Hoover Dam.

 The Hoover dam is the gateway to all the water that is needed to feed Southern California and Arizona.

shortly after  the 911  terrorist attack construction began on a new  bridge which is removes automobile traffic from the top of the dam..

 The new bridge is nearly completed and we may be  in one of the last vehicles to ever be allowed to drive across the dam 

 

Continuing to folw the Colorado River Downstream

We cam to Lake Havasu

We couldn't have timed it better.  The whole desert was awash with a glorious  spring wildflower bloom.

 Further on we came to Glamis CA which brought back fond memories for Bruce dunebuggy camping trips with his sons when they were boys.

Our Anniversary 3 '09

We celebrated our anniversary with dinner at  the  Eiffel Tower Restaurant in Paris Paris

 Its our favorite restaurant in Las Vegas.  The food view is terrific and the food out of this world.

Afterwards we went though the Bellagio atrium.

It smells so good in there with all the flowers

Hiking the Red Rocks with Sam and Marty 3 '09

The next morning we loaded Sam, Marty and their bad boys into our Rav  for a hike in some of the Red Rock Country that surrounds Las Vegas

Most of our experience with the Red Rocks had been in the Nevada State Parks, but Sam and Marty knew of some less popular area which started out  simple enough but quickly turned into some rugged dirt trails.

Which went up

 and up

and up!

The views were spectacular

 In all directions

 Definitely  worth the climb!

Bruce  is a big fan of deserts so he was really enjoying the outing..

Visiting with Marty and Sam at LOLV 3 '09

 From Death Valley we headed to Sam and Marty's new house in the Lakes of Las Vegas

This is the first time we have seen them since have moved in, and we had a really nice visit with them.  Bruce and Marty played several games of Wii golf.

Right after purchasing in this lovely golf community, the Lakes of Las Vegas property management announced that it was closing two of the three courses.  The local TV station interviewed Sam about her concerns about being a resident in a  high end golf community without a golf course.

Afterwards we took a long walking tour of the grounds

 It's a beautiful PGA course  with some challenging tee off s

The challenge is getting up the mountain to the green .  Even in a cart it is a difficult climb.  Then just try to keep your eyes onto where you are driving.The view is fantastic.

There is also the problem of sharing the course with the wildlife,

or finding your ball if it lands out of bounds.

 Eventually the climbing got to be a bit much for us senior citizens so Sam rescued us with their ATV.  Nice Toy, guys!

Later that afternoon er took a walk around the lake which gives the Lakes of Las Vegas community its named.

 The community has p[reserved some surprisingly nice wilderness areas for hiking

Combined with some very urban amenities

Like a Ritz Carlton surrounded by designer shops in a Venetian like village