Viva La Vegas!

Driving through death valley made us feel like real travellers, it was 40c and as we got out to take photos we felt the relentless sun beating down on us. The record temperature and second hotness place on earth was when it reached 56c - glad we weren't there on that day! We drove 5 hours to 
Las Vegas but never got bored of the desert views and just as Vegas popped out from behind the mountains we all screamed with excitement :) Us girls had to make a quick pitstop to get nice shoes for the evening but we only had 20 minutes before the traffic built up so we all ran in and within 10 minutes I had some brown stilettos which were only $20 bargain! 

We began to approach the start of Las Vegas Boulevard as we sung to Elvis- Viva Las Vegas! It was absolutely incredible - I had no idea which way to look from the hotels, to the huge fountains, to the Eiffel tower, to New York skyline, to street performers! Adam gave us a fantastic commentary on all the Casinos and hotels - we stayed at the Stratosphere which is the tallest building in Las Vegas and had 2 rides on the top of it plus a bungee which we didn't attempt :) we all freshened up and for the full American experience we began the night by having dinner at hooters :) not only was the service great but the food delicious, Chris said that it was the best burger he ever had! We then went to old Vegas and saw the Golden Nugget, the Cowboy in lights and then a Queen megamix show which was shown on the roof which covered the whole street. We all danced up the street and had photos taken with Ozzy then went to the Bellagio to watch the fountain show - simply beautiful! We had a walk inside the Bellagio where there were vast flower displays, a Rolex shop and a windmill! To have a dance and get the party really started we went to Coyote Ugly and us girls all danced on the bar but in a very classy fashion :) then on to the gambling in the Luxor, we started playing on the blackjack tables but our money went fast so we switched to the slot machines and on one occasion Chris won $150! By 4am the heels finally came off and we got a taxi back to the hotel, Jo and Derrel on the other hand played poker until 6am. The whole night including dinner, the drinks and gambling only cost $70 woohoo. We loved Vegas! There was so much to do, 18 hours wasn't long enough!

We drove down route 66 on our way to the Grand Canyon, made a stop to have a burger and fries and of course took photos of the Route 66 sign :) we set up camp and went to the Grand Canyon - awestruck! We all had a walk into the canyon then back up around the south rim and ate pizza whilst the sun set. There is a funny story though which at the time was frightful!! I was trying to take a photo of the group as they looked out but I dropped it and it rolled down, fell off numerous rocks and over the edge! I believe I shouted something along the lines of oh dear, i was gutted and so sad to loose all our photos. The boys all felt optimistic that someone could climb down and get it whereas us girls disagreed. Other people were laughing in the back ground as Chris slowly began to climb down, I couldn't watch! He grabbed the camera but as he began to climb back he stumbled back ahhhhh I screamed at the other boys to pull him up. Eventually Chris scrapped back up with the boys pulling his arms up, we all burst out laughing as Chris stood up and handed me back the camera haha the rest of the night we felt rather jittery. Literally an hour before we all read a sign about the number of deaths because people underestimate how unstable the ground is - Chris thought it was exhilarating not how I would describe it. Linda I know you will want to give him a slap when we get back, don't worry ive already done it :)

We all had a few drinkypoos around the fire and told funny stories. Next morning had another walk around the Canyon and drove to Lake Havaseau. As we arrived early afternoon we had plenty of time to play games in the sun, swim in the lake and have burritos. Despite it being 40c the lake was freezing, all the boys swam out to the island but the current was far to strong for the girls. Claire and I only swam out 5 meters and laughed/screamed as we were being pulled downstream. After a few more drinks we all fell asleep under the stars watching the shooting stars. Perfect last night camping together.

It is our last full day together so were heading to L.A. and do a bit of sightseeing then see a baseball game tonight. We're all so sad that its nearly over, the group have gelled so well and it's been a real adventure. Hope all are well at home, just over two weeks to go!

Love to all, Love Jess and Chris xxx