Lake Tahoe California

Wednesday morning we left Las Vegas and caught a flight for Reno Nevada. There are no commercial airports in Lake Tahoe so you must fly into Reno and rent a car to get there. The ride is about 1 hour from the airport. It was a very scenic ride once you got into the mountain area. We stopped at  Peg's in Carson City for breakfast. It had be recommended and did not disappoint. The omelets and pancakes were awesome. Carson City is about halfway between Reno and South Lake Tahoe. We were staying at the Heavenly Inn, a quaint little place right in the heart of South Lake Tahoe. The first thing we notices was that the town was very quite. It was clearly the off season. All the summer visitors were gone, there were no boats on the lake and all the ski resorts were still closed. The only things happening were a few Halloween gigs at a couple of the casinos.

The folks at the Heavenly Inn were quite helpful. The gal at the front desk gave me a map and pointers on where to go and park for some good hiking and views of the Lake. That afternoon Maureen rested and  I went for a drive part of the way around the lake. It's really beautiful and peaceful.
Our friend Lynn ( The Manager) arrived the next day and gave us an awesome tip for breakfast. One of the casinos around the corner had a $5 breakfast. We gave it a try and it was quite good. In fact we wound up eating there every morning of our stay. There are plenty of things to do within walking distance of the Heavenly Inn. There;s a small beach and picnic area. Right at the top of the road is shopping center with a bunch of shops, stores and restaurants. We went to happy hour Thursday evening. There were a couple guys playing music outside. It was quite nice. Friday, was our day to drive around the lake. Lynn had hooked us up with a CD guided tour that we could play in the car while we drove. It's lie a 70 mile drive completely around the lake. There were numerous places to stop along the way get out hike a little and take some photos. My dear wife was dealing with some pretty serious back issues so we limited our hiking on this trip.
We went out to dinner with Lynn Thursday and Friday night. I would love to go here sometime when the snow is there adn all the ski resorts are open.

Jenna turns 21 in Las Vegas

There was a convention in Las Vegas Nevada I was attending for work. It was right around the time when our youngest daughter was turning 21. Naturally, Jenna came up with the idea of going to Vegas for her 21st birthday. So her and a couple friends along with her brother Jack went to Las Vegas a couple days before we arrived. They go there Thursday and began the 4 day party. I purchased a party bus for them off Groupon for Friday night. Then we arrived on Saturday. This picture was taken right across the street from Mandalay Bay where the tragic concert shooting had taken place only 3 weeks prior to our trip. Someone had opened fire from the hotel on concertgoers and killed 58 and wounded 850. It was the most horrific mass killing in US history. Anyway the memorial around the Las Vegas sign was truly a moving experience. Walking around and seeing the tributes to each of those whom had lost there lives. You could see their faces and families. I didn't really get to spend much time with the younger folks. We went to old vegas one night. I taught Jenna to play blackjack. She does real well playing these days. Math major I guess.