Salt Lake, Flagstaff, Las Vegas

Baxter and I spent the final three days of the trip in gorgeous and brand new locations for both of us.
We stayed the night in Salt Lake with some friends of Baxter who went to BC. Many thanks to the Gibbs Family for putting us up in their beautiful home! Some memories from Salt Lake: buying booze at the state-run liquor store, discussing Mormon culture, burning buns in the oven (literally, not figuratively), and trying our hands at making mojitos. Some late night Frisbee completed our night in Utah's capital city.
We awoke at 6:30 the next morning for our longest drive yet. Salt Lake to the Grand Canyon's South Rim took us about 9 hours. We made real solid time, and although the two lane highways make for interesting passes, we made the best of it. AMAZING mexican food on the border between Utah and Arizona, and the drive into the canyon couldn't have been more gorgeous. We got to the South Rim in the afternoon, and we were able to take some extensive (and awesome) photos. The Grand Canyon is very hard to describe, but the word I keep coming back to is: awesome. We had some interesting encounters with the Native Americans who own the gas stations and businesses surrounding the park. It was not surprising to be ignored other than at the cash register. Certainly understandable. I'll reflect more later on.
Our night in Flagstaff was a great time. We crashed with my cousin Jill who is a senior at NAU, and her roomies. Delicious dinner at "Bunhugger's" and a night at a townie karaoke bar, complete with cheap beer. Success!
The next day we slept in and left for Vegas around noon. I'm still not really sure how I feel about the next 12 hours, but here it goes: Baxter and I stayed at the Venetian, in honor of our Thanksgiving '07 Venice rendezvous. The Vegas Strip is a bizarre post-modern landscape of lights and international recreations. You've all seen it, or at least seen photos, but it struck me as Epcot on Ecstacy. We met a high school friend of mine and her fiance. They showed us around the strip, and gave us gambling tips. We parted with them around 1:15, and we proceeded to stay out until about 5:15. What FUN Vegas is. Roulette was very kind to Baxter, and we both enjoyed some quality video blackjack times. I'll hit the real blackjack tables next time. Neither of us spent much money gambling, but we had so much fun. Back to the hotel room at 5:30, and we passed out exhausted. The lavish room and surroundings really get to the core of Vegas, and perhaps what some would describe as the worst of our American lives. Come here and experience a life you desire, but will never achieve. Brush elbows with the rich and famous...or at least some other wanna-be rich and famous folks.
Our last day on the road was short, and uneventful, except for a quick stop in Vegas before the highway. We wandered into The Gun Store after coming across a coupon at a rest stop, and rented out some firearms to test on the range. I chose an AK-47 assault rifle, and Baxter chose a Glock 9mm Pistol. The experience was pretty revelatory for both of us, as neither had ever shot a weapon designed mainly to take kill people. (or at a target of a human silhouette) The indoor range made our weapons VERY loud, and the act of firing the AK made my eyes close, sort of like sneezing. We are both better for having done it, but I'll be glad if I never have to shoot a gun like that again.
The rest of the way to LA was smooth sailing, and we arrived in Glendale at the studio I work at around 4pm. I dropped off my guitar and amp, and chatted with my new bosses. Great guys, and excited to have me back. Work the next morning, 10am, violin session. Keep an eye (or RSS Feed) out for some final posts where I'll get all emotional, and philosophical-like. I'll also calculate gas mileage and costs. (!!!) So much love, thanks for reading!

The southwest treated us very well, and we had an excellent time.