USA – Las Vegas; The City that never sleeps (7)

This is my last e-series of my trip to Las Vegas and covered LV and Grand Canyon within 36 hours literally. This excluded the travelling time from and to San Francisco by bus.

My walk was coming to the end as I am heading back to the interstate bus station which is near the Fremont Hotel and Casino. As I head back to that direction (on foot), passed one oldest Casino and hotel in LV. It was the 2nd Hotel and Casino to be opened on the LV Strip. (and closed in 2007) Guess this picture is just a memory.

Supercars for hire. Anyone?

Circus Circus Hotel & Casino. I didn’t know that they even have a RV park in it.

Stratosphere Hotel and Casino has the the tallest freestanding observation tower in the United States and also 4 thrill rides at the top of the tower. From where I was, I could see the rides that was actually protruding out of the tower!! Damn! Anyone tried the rides up there?

mmmm… can’t remember this? Anyone knows this?

Anyway.. back at Fremont Hotel and Casino and taking a last detour before catching my bus back to San Francisco.

At the Fremont Street Experience lane…. This place is a crow puller especially at night with light show.

So.. that’s it for this e-series. Hope you enjoyed my e-trip. What the next series you may be asking? Well… if you want to know, then follow me and you will find out. =)

USA – Spectacular view of Grand Canyon (1)

Hi there!! Glad that you are back with me. Well, this trip not a new one but was done way back in 2007 (that’s like 8 years ago). In fact I finally got to continue this new series on my USA series which I started sharing back in 2013 (2 yrs lag). Hope you all dun mind. =)

This one highlights my trip to West Coast of US which is to see the Grand Canyon aside from  visiting San Francisco, Lake Tahoe and Yosemite National Park.

A matter of fact it was a last minute trip. I only arranged for my bus  ticket and accommodation in Las Vegas  (I will be posting this trip too in coming post) and head off to Grand Canyon day trip like 2 days before. It was my 1st time taking  the infamous Greyhound bus from San Jose, CA. It was a 14hr ride with a transfer at Los Angeles before heading to Las Vegas.

My journey started at 2pm from San Jose and passing through the ranges and valleys heading to LA.

Arrived in LA at 9pm where I had to wait for another hour for my connecting bus, and arriving in Las Vegas at 4am and boy, was I surprise to see that the city is still lighted up with neon lights and people walking on the street and casinos in the wee hours.

Below is the Fremont Hotel & Casino

and this is the Fremont Street Experience or FSE. What is this famous for? Well.. follow me on the next posting on Las Vegas and you will know. =)

At 5am, the day tour bus picked me at for my tour at one of the motel for my Grand Canyon trip;  a 5 hour trip ride. There were 2 types of tour; south rim tour  and west rim tour which include Grand Canyon Skywalk, a glass bridge that suspends 4,000 feet above the Grand Canyon floor. Eventually I took the South rim tour as I was more into sight seeing.

First stop was at Hoover Dam, which is also known as Boulder Dam. It is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the US states of Arizona and Nevada.  It was more of a stop, shoot and continue here. Did not manage to get to go for a real tour on the hoover dam. Maybe next time. =)

High tension wires all around the area of Hoover Dam.

Shot from the other side of the dam

It was a 30 min stop before we continue our journey. Stay with me and enjoy the coming post.

USA – Yosemite National Park in the summer… (1)

This posting is on my trip to one of the famous national park in USA; Yosemite National Park when I was in San Francisco. If you have missed my earlier posting series on San Francisco and Lake Tahoe, you can just click here; USA – San Francisco Bay Area on a Self bicycle tour & USA – A day drive to Lake Tahoe, California

Yosemite National Park is spanning eastern portions of Mariposa, Tuolumne and Madera counties in the central eastern portion of the state of California. The park covers an area of 3,080.74 km² and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain. The park is internationally recognized for its spectacular granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, Giant Sequoia groves, and biological diversity. Yosemite was designated a World Heritage Site in 1984.

We left early in the morning to Yosemite. It was summer time which was the busiest time as lot of tourist and locals will heading there for their summer holiday. The drive there took us about 4 to 5 hours.

My breakfast along the way at one the stop as cafe along the highway (cant remember the name though but I remembered the food well. LOL!!) . Looks yummy and it was also my 1st typical American breakfast; bacons, scrambled eggs, potatoes fried with paprika and toast. (yum yum!!)

Along the way, we saw this shop that offered sightseeing tours in Yosemite National Park. Cute jeep though. =)

Entering the Yosemite National Park, we were greeted by the Wawona Hotel. It is one of the oldest mountain resort hotels in California, with a classic of Victorian era resort design. Built in 1876 to serve tourists visiting the nearby Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias.

A magnificent view on the way up to Glacier Point to view Half Dome.

Half Dome is a granite dome in Yosemite National Park, located in northeastern Mariposa County, California, at the eastern end of Yosemite Valley. It is possibly Yosemite’s most familiar rock formation. The granite crest rises more than 1,444 m above the valley floor.

A photo from high point looking down to the valley.

Like what you see? Well, if you do follow me on my summer trail in Yosemite National Park.

USA – San Francisco Bay Area on a Self bicycle tour (2)

Continuation on my cycling trip at the bay area. From the pier 39 to the base of Golden Gate Bridge was a nice 6.7km ride along the coastal bike lane. Beautiful sight and flat easy right (for that moment. LOL!!)

but…if anyone who had gone to San Francisco, they will know that they are famous for their hills.

Lombard Street is an east–west street in San Francisco, California; famous for having a steep, one-block section that consists of eight tight hairpin turns. Nope.. I did not (even) try cycling down this!! haha….

Along the way, I stopped at the museum on a hill. It was the Cable Car Museum.

The Cable Car Museum is a free museum in the Nob Hill neighborhood of San Francisco, California.Located in the historic Washington/Mason cable car barn and powerhouse, the museum deck overlooks the huge engines and winding wheels that pull the cables. Lots of history on the cable car in San Francisco.

Wow!! Imagine cycling up this road. I did it but only like for a very short distance. Even pushing my bike was a heavy task. Lol!! Coming down was another thing but better be sure the bicycle brakes are working well else…..

The Transamerica Pyramid is the tallest building in San Francisco.

This was where the cable car will make a turn before heading back. You heard me correctly; a 180 degree turn. I stayed and watch the whole process. Very interesting.

Cute little cars for rent.

Along the way, I stopped by this little cute bakery shop and also it sells other stuff too.

San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge – heading back to Caltrain station.

Caltrain back home to San Jose.

Well… that’s it for my bicycle day trip. Wanna know where is the next place I am visiting in California? If yes, then follow me on my next posting. =)

 

 

USA – San Francisco Bay Area on a Self bicycle tour (1)

This is one of my personal trips to USA way back in mid 2007. During this trip, I visited a couple of places nearby which was within driving distance or within a day trip except for LasVegas where I stayed for a night. Anyway that’s another posting. 😊

Took a flight via Taipei, Taiwan before reaching SFO. Saw this colourful lantern decorations in the Taoyuan International Airport.

A long flight; 4 hours flight to Taiwan then a connecting 12 hours flight to San Francisco Airport.

A shot outside my window before the plane landed a SFO.

For my posting here, I will share my day trip on self bicycle tour around the Bay Area in San Francisco. Arrived at the Bay Area in late morning a day after I landed the day before. I took the Caltrain all the way to the San Francisco station.

First place I passed was the AT&T. It is a ballpark used for Major League Baseball, located in the South of Market neighborhood of San Francisco. It has served as the home of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball since 2000.

Unmanned newpaper stands on the roadside.

I walked along the pier and managed to rent a bicycle to get around. By foot, I know I would not cover or get far.

Yacht Club at the San Francisco Bay Area.

Cycled along the cycling path passing under the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge until I reached Pier 39. Lots of shops here and nice to walk around.

Lots of fridge magnet to choose from…..

…more selection.

Cute sign which I saw at Pier 39…..

More pictures to come. Stay tune…..