Las Vegas Trip Report, July 30 - August 2, 2000 -- Day Three Part 1
Originally posted to the alt.vacation.las-vegas newsgroup on August 16, 2000

DAY THREE: Our last full day was begun by going over to Budget to pick up a car, and then heading on over to Hoover Dam. On the way we took a nice leisurely drive through Boulder City. [A tip for future Hoover Dam visitors reading this: leave *all bags of any kind* in your car before you head down to the visitor's center. They don't allow for any exceptions to this rule (printed on the back of your parking ticket stub), and let me tell you, it ain't pleasant to walk back to your car in 110 degree heat to drop off your damn fanny pack!] We went for the regular $8 tour, and I have to say, I was very underwhelmed. If I was ever to do it again, I would do the hard hat tour, especially after what I've read here. The regular tour just has 3 stops, and while the tour guide was very informative and it is impressive to look at the turbines inside or view the dam from the bottom up, it didn't seem to be *that* much more impressive than if I had just walked around on my own up top.

Upon returning to Vegas, I took Naoko over to the Peppermill for a late breakfast. I'd been there before, and remembered well the soothing shade of the place. There's just something cool and refreshing about those fake trees and drawn window blinds, especially after the 115 degree heat outside. There's also something refreshing about the waitresses who's outfits and hairdo's seem stuck in some other time, if only to remind you you're not in hip San Francisco anymore. I promised Naoko that after lunch I'd walk her over across the parking lot to the Riviera so that she could have her picture taken in front of one of Western Civilization's great sculptural masterpieces, the Crazy Girls and their fabulous bronzed asses. She was only slightly amused. It was hard for me to stand there and pose for her point and shoot with all the passersby, until one dude shouted over, "Oh come on, grab hold of a tush, you know you want to!"

We went back to the HR hotel for yet another session at the pool, this one about 3 1/2 hours long, knowing it would be our last since we were checking out early the next morning. There's not much more to add to that other than to say there are few things that sum up "vacation" more than sipping a strawberry daiquiri served up by a collegiate blonde in a bright orange bikini, all the while sun-tanning on a floating raft in the pool. After getting completely fried, we decided to forgo our usual afternoon nap since we had to run some errands in preparation for our drive to LA the next morning.