Life as James knows it

Las Vagas, renowned resort city known primarily for gambling.  Entertainment a plenty along the strip, and whatever you want, I'm sure it can be bought. A little walk along the strip ... before making some new friends and gambling (and drinking) the evening away. Something remaining in the morning ....

Rachel, Nevada As the closest habitation to the Nellis Air Force Range and Area 51, Rachel enjoys a modest celebrity, particularly among aviation enthusiasts and UFO hunters The sole outlet at Rachel, Little A'Le Inn.  Grabbed a (very very ordinary) coffee for the road. This piece of road is perfectly straight for about 45 kms. Once I get around the corner and look back, you can see off in the distance an unnamed road that stretches as far as the eye can see (Groom Lake Road) ...... Drive far enough along, and .... Extraterrestrial alien being protection is taken pretty seriously!

Zion National Park A 590 square km park is Zion Canyon, which is 24 km long and up to 800 metres deep, cut through the reddish and tan-colored Navajo Sandstone by the North Fork of the Virgin River. Contemplating the remaining climb to Angles Landing (to the left).  Yes, this is the look of fear! Made the trek to Observation Point. Plenty of wildlife in the grounds lower down. Challenge ... Driving through Utah on a cool winter day, leaving Zion.

Navajo Nation's Monument Valley Park (Navajo: Tsé Biiʼ Ndzisgaii, meaning valley of the rocks) Driving towards Monument Valley, probably about 10 kms away.  This is the scenery when driving near the Utah / Arizona state border. Panaramic views ... A cold winters overcast day, still pretty awesome trekking around the park. .... and because the park is quite large (containing 27 kms dirt road), you can also drive to some of the further corners within.

One of America's most impressive road vistas is the scene one sees while travelling southwest on Highway US 163 in Utah.  This is the northern route through Utah to Monument Valley and was used as the location in the movie "Forrest Gump" were Forrest (Tom Hanks) ended his cross-country run. Selfie before crossing the state border to Arizona.  Looked like a good place to stop,.... especially after a long run.  :-)

Grand Canyon, approached by car and foot from the south rim.  Opposed to my helicopter ride in from Las Vegas . The Grand Canyon National Park is the United States' 15th oldest national park. Named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979, the park is located in Arizona. The park's central feature is the Grand Canyon, a gorge of the Colorado River.  The park covers 1,217,262 acres (4,926.08 km2) of unincorporated area in Coconino and Mohave counties.

Hoover Dam, Nevada (Clark County) Thought I might stop by on the way south to Arizona.  Hoover Dam, once known as Boulder Dam, is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, constructed between 1931 and 1936 (during the Great Depression) and bordering the states of Arizona and Nevada. Couple of selfies ...

Grizzlies v Blazers Court-side ..... an absolute thrill.  Blazers, est 1970 ... a good year for beginnings. Tidbit Food Farm and Garden A culinary diversity on full display, an absolute pioneering food cart pod on S.E. Division. Dr Jacks Pre-game, directly opposite Moda Centre.  Inspired by one of the most respected coaches in NBA history "Jack" Ramsay, who lead the Trail Blazers to the 1977 NBA Title, Dr. Jack's is a tribute to this esteemed Hall of Famer. Bucks v Blazers

Located within the Riviera Maya, which runs from south of Cancún to Tulum and the Sian Ka'an biosphere reserve is Playa del Carmen.  Once a small fishing town, it has now rapidly grown into a major tourist destination.  So fast has it grown, that the city infrastructure seems to be bursting in an attempt to cater for the daily influx of people.  Thankfully however, city planners have taken initiative and have begun making the town more pedestrian friendly. A 4 km foot and bicycle path will run the length of the town along 10th Avenue in Centro, along with two additional foot and bicycle paths which will connect two commercial corridors near Centro Maya in south Playa del Carmen and Col.  The construction is in full swing along 10th Avenue, and when complete, the transition to function as a major tourist destination will be evident. While everything is reasonably cheap in Player (in western dollar comparison), it's far more expensive than every other part of Mexico I'd v