Hi!

Well. . .here I am in San Francisco and I have finally found the internet. This week has been unforgettable. Probably the most surreal in my life. Vegas is something else. It is absolutely ridicoulous and there is no point to any of it but it is a lot of fun. When I got to the airport, there were bling bling rappers (looking quite miserable) walking around with their big big bodyguards and on the sign showing where buses, taxis etc are, there is also a sign for picking up your limos. Took ages to find my bag, the baggage carousel and planes are hidden down in the basement behind hundreds and hundreds of slot machines! It is the same in all the hotels. All the attractions, shops etc are within the hotels but to enter the resorts, you have to go through all their slot machines and poker tables. The hotels all have themes and stuff and unless you are gonna gamble, once you've paid accomodation. You actually don't need much money to have a good time in Vegas, loads of free stuff going on. The hotels have like their own white tigers and lion cubs. Then there is little Venice in the Venetian. More Venice then Venice in places. There are hundreds and hundreds of lights and the Monte Carlo hotel had a power cut one night. Apparently, this is becoming a bit of a regular occurence on the strip. People could not check out or get their planes or anything. Also went in to Arizonia to the south rim of the Grand Canyon. So many colours and some of the rock is 2 billion years old. The canyon is 248 miles big. Yet until about 150 years ago, the only people who had seen it or knew it existed was the Indians. I mean, how can you miss it?! Also got some pics of the hover dam at night. Had to have security check cos dam supplies lots of states with water and power etc.

The lady who done grand canyon tour was the first lady bus driver New York ever had in 1972 and I have never met anyone like her in my life. The whole trip was one big laugh, she called herself the Latin from Manhatten!

On the way back from the Grand Canyon. Had one of those 'soft'  moments you never gonna forget. There was lightening and thunder in one direction out of the window and the mandatory dust devils (spirals of dust which spin upwards creating a tornado effect) then look out the front and there is a orangey-pink sunset.

Anyway on my last stop now. Have been here a day already and SF really coo' (but very cold, it reached a 100 in Vegas. About 63/65 here which I think about the same as London or maybe even colder). Lots of seaside stuff (it has the only marine national park in the US) and hills. Reminds me a lot of Melbourne, has a very distinct identity of it's own. I thought it would be very mainstream compared to Vegas and LA but SF itself, is very quirky. Lots of strange stuff. There is one building on the way to the airport with chairs and tables stuck to the walls so it looks like somebody is throwing them all out the window in rage. 

Anyway got to go.

Will see you all soonish now.

Sam xxxxxxxxxxxx 

Am going to Monteray and Carmel tomorrow further down the coast between here and LA.