After 5 nights in a Vegas hotel, we have finally had enough of room service, housekeeping and electronic key cards. We are eager to get on the road to finally do some exploring. The kids had a blast playing and swimming with their friends and we parted ways shortly after a late breakfast. This is probably the last time we will see them this year but we were excited to get the show on the road.
The day has finally come for us to leave California. We have been ‘free-loading’ at Marlene’s parents’ house since we sold and moved away from our last home. Almost 40 days later, we have tied up all loose ends and prepared one last BBQ before heading out.
Our southwest 2011 trip has come to an end and today we are headed back home. This trip has been fun but much too short at only 2 weeks. It is probably also going to be one of our last trips until next year so we are savoring every last moment we have.
As a kid in Las Vegas, there isn’t a whole lot to do. After all, it is Sin City. Pretty much the opposite of what you want to teach your kids. If there is one place on the strip to take your kids, it is Circus Circus.
Last night after our feast at a Vegas buffet, we searched long and hard and finally found an RV friendly casino to overnight park. It wasn’t exactly on the strip but just a few blocks away we found ourselves in the parking lot of the Orleans sleeping next to a bunch of 18 wheelers.
Prescott has been a great little detour for us. We got a great camping spot with a solid wifi connection so we got a bunch of work done. We got full hook ups so we can take long showers, run the heat pump and charge up our batteries. We are mostly glad that we missed all that bad weather we were suppose to have gotten in Flagstaff.
We had been anticipating rain today but it never did materialize. It was the reason why we rushed up to Jerome yesterday but today turned out to be a bright day with crispy fresh air. My favorite kind.
We drove through some of the heaviest rain we have ever encountered on any of our trips yesterday from Gallup to Flagstaff. It was comparable to last year when we were in Memphis driving from Graceland to Beale Street. Except we were pulling the Airstream on that drive.
This morning again we woke up to a sky full of balloons. You’d think we’d get use to this after 4 days with them floating practically constantly in the sky but no, they are still breathtakingly amazing to see.
Today is our last full day at the Balloon Fiesta and we woke up to an amazing surprise. Since we saw the balloons at the fields yesterday morning, we didn’t know how we would see them from the campsites. After rolling up our window shades, we saw hundreds of balloons in flight headed in our direction.
Our first night at the Balloon Fiesta campground was pretty pleasant. Except now Ava insists on sleeping on the bed with Marlene while I sleep on the converted gaucho seat because she claims to be too scared. I call BS, the bed is much more comfortable.
Our second night straight camping in Walmart got us just to the edge of town in Albuquerque. At long last, we made it to the balloon fiesta! Well, almost, we are headed to the RV camping area this morning that is a short 15 miles away.
