Albuquerque, NM, and Las Vegas, NV, Trip Preview
October 4-14, 2017
It's time for Reagan to travel again. After successful cataract surgery and healing plus staying home August and September, I am ready to travel. Thanks to Tom and Nancy Anderson inviting me to visit with them in Albuquerque for the 2017 International Balloon Fiesta. I depart one week from today, Wednesday, October 4, to spend five nights in Albuquerque and four nights in Las Vegas returning home Saturday, October 14. Oh, yes, I will be traveling on Amtrak's Southwest Chief Chicago to Albuquerque. Here is a brief preview of my itinerary.
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| Balloon Glow at the Fiesta |
Thursday, October 5 - Arrive late afternoon in Albuquerque, NM, if on time. Tom will meet me and transport me to the Hyatt Hotel where I will stay five nights.
Friday, October 6 - Monday, October 9 - Tom has planned activities for each day I am in Albuquerque attending some of the Balloon Fiesta activities, sightseeing, and some friendship time including going to the theater Sunday afternoon. Since Tom has to work, I will be traveling on New Mexico's commuter Rail Runner train on Friday to Santa Fe, NM, to explore on my own and meet the Andersons on the way back for dinner. By the way, I met the Andersons while riding the Durango and Silverton Railroad in Colorado in 2012. Tom is from Arkansas and a graduate of Arkansas State while I am from Louisiana and a graduate of Louisiana Tech University. In the early 1960's our schools were both in the Gulf States Conference for sports. Also, Tom is a veteran of the U.S. Navy while Nancy is a nurse. I am very excited and so looking forward to renewing our friendship and participating in all the activities Tom has planned for my visit.
Tuesday, October 10 - Friday, October 13 - Early Tuesday morning Tom will pick me up at the Hyatt and drive me to Albuquerque Airport for my Southwest Airlines flight to Las Vegas, NV. On arrival I will travel to Caesar's Palace Hotel to stay for four nights. While I enjoy all the sights and seeing all the hotels, my main activity while in Vegas will be to attend some of the great shows. I already have tickets and will be attending:
- Tuesday - Circus 1909 -The Golden Age of Circus at the Paris Hotel
- Wednesday -Tournament of Kings at the Excalibur Hotel
- Thursday - Cirque du Soleil "O" at the Belagio Hotel (My favorite Las Vegas Show)
- Friday - Criss Angel MINDFREAK LIVE! at Luxor Hotel
Saturday, October 14 - Flying American Airlines Las Vegas to Nashville via Los Angeles - a very close connection in LAX with only 50 minutes scheduled for the connection.
Blog Posts - I plan to post one or two photos each day on a short blog post either via my Iphone or my laptop from the hotel at night. After returning home, I'll post a blog post when I have updated Reagan's Photo Galleries with all the photos.
Remaining 2017 Travel Plans
December 4-17 Amtrak California Zephyr Trip -- Will fly Southwest Airlines to New Orleans for four days and then ride Amtrak's City of New Orleans and California Zephyr from New Orleans through Chicago to Reno, Nevada. After three days in Reno, I'll return on Amtrak California Zephyr to Chicago for one night and then fly home on American Airlines. Best thing is using Airline miles and Amtrak points for most expenses and good amount of train time(five nights).
2018 Travel Plans
I have done some "day dreaming" about 2018 but have not made any decisions about 2018 travel pending completion of the cataract surgeries and allowing my budget to catch up. One good possible trip in April is Amtrak trip New Orleans to Seattle and on up to Vancouver, Canada, for a four night Via Rail Canadian trip Vancouver to Toronto.
You can click on any of the small photos in this blog to open a full size photo.
All my photos are available to view on Reagan's Photo Galleries website.
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