The title of this blog might seem odd; as Las Vegas is a city located on the mainland USA and is surrounded by the greater Mojave Desert. So why the 9th island? Well, you have to live in Hawaii to understand this local affinity for the city of Vegas. Every year, thousands of Hawaii residents flock to Las Vegas for their vacations. You might wonder why since Hawaiian residents already live in the best paradise islands of the world; where the world travels there for a vacation. Here are some facts: Over 400,000 Hawaiian-born residents (Natives and non-natives) reside and work in Las Vegas, second to only Honolulu, based on US census data. The Hotel California - or The Cal- which opened in 1975, is well known to cater to a large number of Hawaiian tourists.
They even serve local Hawaiian dishes - so one is never far away from the islands. These days, many local Hawaiians chose to move to Nevada for better pay and lower housing costs; a much better prospect for the future generations.
Las Vegas is known for it's neon glitzy lights.
But there's another part of the greater Vegas that many don't necessarily venture too. Around 600 million years ago, Las Vegas was underwater. As time went by (and we are talking about over 100 millions of years), calcium carbonate from the remains of shelled creatures piled up and compressed, eventually lithified into limestones that is 9,000 feet thick! Fast forward to 180 million years ago, the ocean dried up and what was left was an ocean of sand. These giant dunes covered much of the limestones, and eventually it too compressed and lithified into sandstones. These red sandstones can be seen from the air as one flies into Las Vegas. The Red Rock Canyon National Park is a majestic display of mountain building. Here, there are 2 primary faults that run through it: the Keystone Thrust Fault and the Wilson Cliffs Thrust Fault. During the years of mountain building, the older gray limestones were thrusted up between the fault lines, and lay exposed above the red sandstones. What's interesting is that as a result of this faulting, one can see older rocks sitting above younger rocks! Red Rock Canyon is a Mecca for rock climbers.
One thing that is constant about Las Vegas is change. For its one mile long strip, things are constantly being updated, with new hotels, new shows, new sights and sounds.
Day 1 - Arrival at Las Vegas, Nevada
Our flight from Kailua-Kona to LAX was with United on a 737 Max 9. The flight was less than 5 hours with one meal served.
Our layover in LA as relatively short, and the flight from LAX to LV was even shorter. Here's the video of the landing into Harry Reid International. It provided a great view of the deserts and nearby hills.
After settling into our accommodation, we went searching for some Malaysian food. We found one at Shanghai Plaza, where Chinatown is. The place was buzzing, but unfortunately, the dishes that we ordered didn't turn out to be what we expected. So our search continues for better Malaysian food(!)
After our fairly disappointing meals, we decided to drive east to Lake Las Vegas and then south past Lake Mead to the Hoover Dam. Here the landscape is a wide sky with flat waters and protruding hills. If we timed it right we just may get the red in the sand to reflect more.
The views of Lake Mead reflected the many shades of brown and red, against the blue water. We could see the incredible height of the old water line, and wondered if the lake would ever recover.
The area of Hoover dam also shows how low the water levels are. When we visited in the 1990s we could see the water just under the towers. Today its all the way to the bottom. There have been many changes here too. From the new bridge that spans the gorge, to the added security checks, additional parking lots and of course more tourists.
As the sun set, we made our way back to the Strip. Here we visited World Resorts to hunt for more Malaysian food. We had to try the Hainanese Chicken Rice from Boon Tong Kee. Unfortunately, the experience wasn't that great. Many of the customers were confused about how to order and pay. And there were many Mainland Chinese from China who were pretty oblivious to how rude their behavior was at the food court - no regard for personal space. The food itself was OK. Nothing incredible. In fact the sauce wasn't quite right and there was no soup with the rice. So I guess we need to keep looking.
To end the day we decided to take a walk along the Strip in search of the Sphere. There were lots of people out and about. It was a smorgasbord of sights and sounds. In all we did about 4 to 5 miles, and by then we were just beat. A great way to end the day!
Day 2 - Red Rock Canyon
Today we made for an early start, getting out of the house by 7:30 am. We found a 24 hour Pho restaurant called Pho Nga Bac Bac. Here we had the beef and chicken pho. We certainly noticed that the bean sprouts here have been cleaned and the roots completely picked off - which we wish the stores in Hawaii would do the same(!)
Soon we were on our way to Red Rock Canyon. Entry is achieved via an online reservation, and ours was at 9am. At the entrance we could already see the red rocks against the cream colored lime stone in the distance. It stood out against the mountainous background as we made our way along the scenic drive.
We parked at the Turtlehead Peak / Calico Tank parking lot. There were already a few folks ahead of us, and the parking lot was not yet full. We made our way up and across the dry river bed. Soon we were challenged with some steep and loose scrambles before making it to the saddle. Form there the last push up the back of the head to the peak wasn't as bad. In all this is a 4.5 mile hike in and out. At the top we could see the Las Vegas valley, the red rocks, and the wide open basin. In all it took us 4 hours and 17 minutes to complete. See video of the hike here.
We were completely knackered at the end of the hike. So we made our way back, picked up some Malaysian food from Penang Hawker and called it a very good day!
Day 3 - Christmas Day & A Visit To Death Valley National Park, CA
We woke up with some flurries and with the temperature dropping down to 35 F. We set off early this morning and headed west for Death Valley National Park. This is our first time visiting this park. We have been wanting to visit this park for a long time but the opportunity wasn't there and the weather was just too brutal. This time, it was just perfect. The traffic to the park via Pahrump was very light. I guess most have already arrived at their respective destinations since today is Christmas Day. On the way to the park we drove through Death Valley Junction. This place was totally deserted. It was hard to tell if it was deserted because it was Christmas or if it was just naturally this way. This place has been in decline since 1928. It also looks like the Peter Lik Gallery is now also closed.
Once we got to the park gate, we were greeted with more cars and camping caravans. Our first goal for the day was to visit Bad Water and to see the salt flats first hand. The parking area at Bad Water was full and many were braving the mushy salty ground. I read in the park's newsletter that extensive damage was done to the salt flats by illegal off-road drivers driving on the flats. It is sad that many of our parks are ruined by selfish people who puts themselves first without any respect for nature. We walked as far as our shoes allowed us to stay dry.
This area is 286 feet below sea level. It is the lowest, driest, and during the summer, the hottest place on Earth. The salt almost looks like ice, as the weather in the winter time is a cool 50-60 F.
We then went to drive along the Artist Drive, and to hike along the Artist Palette and the surrounding hillside. We walked to a dry "gulch", and from there it was interesting to see the colors of the surrounding area.
Post our visit to the national park, we found a Japanese restaurant called Ohjah in Pahrump. At first we were not sure if we'd find anything open, but lo and behold, this place was open and quite busy with folks looking for a Japanese Christmas meal! The food wasn't bad, it was just strange to have broccoli and carrots in the Udon soup(!)
As were were driving back along I-190, we managed to catch a glimpse of the moon over Charleston Peak. This was as the sun was setting and the moon rising. Great color across the landscape.
Day 4 - Boxing Day & A Visit To Valley Of Fire State Park
Today was a busy day at the malls as everyone was trying to either return gifts or do more shopping. It is this time of the year between Christmas and New Year's that Las Vegas is inundated by tourists who come here for the sights, sounds, and shopping! In trying to escape the busy city, I discovered a moon light hike over at the Valley Of Fire State Park after sunset. The park wasn't too far away so, we left for the park at around 2:30 pm and hoping to get to the park entrance before the sunset; which is around 4:30 pm. We made good time and got to the park during golden hour.
The geological features of the park were amazing to see - with rocks the shape of beehives, and every color from red, pink and brown. In many ways this felt like a mini version of Zion National Park.
We finally got to the trailhead in time to do the White Domes Trail. This is a very short just over one mile walk through the amazing rock formations. See the hike video here.
This park is the largest in Nevada; though small compared to Zion. However, it still packs a lot in its small smaller space. We'd definitely return to do more hiking here.
Day 5 - The Sphere
This is one of the latest attraction here in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip. It currently features the visual works of photographer Darren Aronofsky called Postcard from Earth. The outer visual display is called the Exosphere, which features 580,000 square feet of LEDs.
With the New Year's coming into full swing, the Strip is packed with people from all over the world! Las Vegas is within the top five best cities in the USA to celebrate New Year's Day. For reference, here is a link to Las Vegas visitors statistics.
At first we were thinking of having some Dim Sum for dinner in Chinatown. Upon arrival at the China Plaza, everything was packed! There were lines outside of every restaurant. So we decided to go across the street to try the Halal Guys instead. We ordered a platter and a sandwich; both of which were much larger than expected. It certainly was tasty, with the cuts of beef and chicken, laden on a nice bed of lettuce and tomato. Certainly a very filling meal for the night.
Day 6 - Relaxing Day
We found a nice Korean restaurant in Chinatown. This time, we went for an early dinner to avoid the massive dinner crowd. Our meal consisted of 3 types of BBQ beef - wagyu, ribeye, and sukiyaki. It was also accompanied by many small side dishes of vegetable, egg, soup, and pickled tofu. By the time we left, we both smelled just like the restaurant!
We then drove by Fremont Street where the art district is. The city did a good job revitalizing this area. The enclosed walkway has a huge visual display for the ceiling and folks can also take a zipline above the street.
The traffic on the Strip was crazy as usual. This time it was grid locked between Paris and Bellagio. The pedestrians were also grid locked on the side walk as they began to spill out onto the road! Its easy to see why Vegas receives 350K to 400K visitors a month.
Day 7 - Dim Sum and Sweet Tea!
We didn't do very much today as we looked for some dim sum as a spot called Yum Cha. They had a wide selection of foods, including noodles, rice plates and believe it or not Roti Canai too! Service was a bit slow as the workers were having their lunch break too.
Having had our fill we then took to roaming the surrounding neighborhoods of Anthem, Green Valley and Henderson. There were many houses and many still being built. This area reached the foot hills of Black Mountain to the south and Lake Las Vegas to the east. Much of it looked the same, suburb after suburb. There were also many shops, and eateries along the way. Not to mention the Raiders' new center along Raiders Parkway. We did stop for some interesting iced teas at a place called Sweet Tea. We tried their Happy Lychee and the Mangonada. Perhaps a little too sweet - sending the blood sugar pretty high...!
We called it an early night tonight as we prepared to head out in the wee morning to get to Zion for the sunrise.
Day 8 - Road Trip To Zion National Park, Utah
The day started early at about 2:30am. After grabbing a quick breakfast we made our way up north to Zion National Park at about 3:30am. The drive in the dark was uneventful and there weren't many vehicles on the road. Our plan was to arrive before the sunrise which was expected at 7:46am. The drive took about 3 hours, so we thought that we'd definitely make it in time with time to spare. However, as we approached Zion we saw that sky lighting up as the sun rose! It was 6:40am PST... Little did we realize that Zion was on Mountain Standard Time (MST) which is an hour ahead of PST! So we didn't get to watch the sun rise at the overlook, but it didn't matter anyway since there wasn't the usual golden rise as there were many clouds over the canyon at that time.
The park wasn't fill as yet, so we were very lucky to get the last parking spot at the trailhead. The hike itself was short and sweet. See video here.
This park is a demonstration of nature's amazing handling of geology. Everything here was larger than life, looming overhead with scale. There were many patterns made by nature, making the views intricate and interesting. These formations certainly stood out against the rest of the landscape as they were red, white and green.
We drove to the eastern gate and back. Got to see the Checkered Mesa, and visited Kolob Canyon. This western section of Zion also has impressive peaks and gulches. It is easy to see as we drove its scenic five-mile road.
Day 9 - New Year's Eve
As our trip begins to wind down, we decided to roam around some of the free tourist sites in Las Vegas. But before that we of course had to stop for breakfast! This time we were looking for a more authentic Vietnamese meal. So we found this place called Pho Thanh located off the beaten path from Chinatown. None of the servers spoke much english and we had to muddle through ordering in Vietnamese! At least they understood us for the Bun Bo Hue and Ca Gio. We managed to order Cafe Sua Da, but didn't quite make it for a glass of water with ice. We ended up with hot tea instead(!) In all the food was good, and the experience, different, to say the least.
In looking for a "free" attraction, we found this place called the Seven Magnificent Mountains just off I15 south of Las Vegas. Its an art installation by Ugo Rondinone against the Jean Dry Lakes. The dry lakes is exactly that, a dry lake bed which is just dry mud, that folks nowadays go to 4WD on. We could see the dust kicking up in the distance, as this is also where the Mint 400 Off-Road race is held.
The Seven Magnificent Mountains as stacks of large limestone rocks taken from the surrounding area, painted bright primary colors and stacked to form seven pillars. This stand out against the raw and monotonous desert landscape. What was even more surprising was the number of people who stopped by to visit the installation and post their Instagram pictures. These were families, couples, and touring groups. There was even a just married couple posing in the desert.
Looking away from the installation one was greeted by the lone Joshua Tree and the foreboding desert landscape with a few hills in the distance. It was a cool 55 degrees today, we wondered what it would be like in the height of summer at 120 degrees!
Right next door but closer to town was another place called Vegas Speed. Here folks can rent a super car to take around the speedway for 5 laps. There were a bunch of Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Corvettes.
Since we were going to be up all night tonight we wandered back to our house with a stop for a last Malaysian meal. Have to say that Penang Hawker's Hainan Chicken Rice and Nasi Lemak is the best in Las Vegas!
At approximately 11:15pm we made our way out to find a spot that we could photograph the fireworks. Las Vegas is just so flat that nothing close enough provides a good view. One probably has to be on building, but there aren't any tall buildings except on the Strip itself! So, we lucked out and made our way back towards the Strip on East Flamingo Road. Luckily, we found a spot that was open behind the Strip. We could see the Sphere and Resorts World in the far right distance, while we could see the top of the Cosmopolitan and Planet Hollywood LV Resort & Casino. Here we managed to catch the fireworks display!
Day 10 - Happy New Year!
We were up early to catch our flight back to Honolulu. The airport wasn’t too busy and those who were here this morning were pretty subdued and looked like walking zombies!
We took a last look at the LV airport with its fancy murals, glitzy welcome sign, slots and a busy Starbucks.
Flying out, we could say so long till next time as we watched our plane fly by the Strip on take-off.
Our flight to LA was pretty quick. There were nice views of the mountains and the sprawling city that is Los Angeles. We could see the Hollywood sign in the distance and several planes all coming into the busy airport. But it was nail biting as we landed and finally came to our gate at 8:32am, while our connecting plane was already boarding. We made a quick dash from Gate 83 to 75A. Thankfully, folks were still boarding by the time we arrived.
Our flight to Kailua Kona was also pretty smooth and uneventful. It was a full flight of returning residents and tourists. We had a full breakfast, and even won a 3rd place for figuring out the time we were exactly halfway between LA and Kailua-Kona!
The Last Word
So what did we learn about the 9th Island... Its certainly a place of contrasts. Its in a middle of nowhere, with barely enough water, and a flat bed of sand for as far as the eyes can see. There are no lawns here, just rock gardens. Yet there is this incredible manmade city of sorts - tall buildings rising out of the desert, with these exaggerated themes representing all parts of the world but in its extreme form. Take a look at Chinatown. Although still newly made, the buildings as exaggerated to look like a kitsch version of Chinese roofs and weird business names like Kungfu, Red Dragon, Tang Tang Tang, and even stranger yet Ping Pang Pong(!) We weren't sure if we should laugh or cry about it. This city has been able to capitalize on these exaggerated themes. And now it is certainly booming. Everywhere you look there are new suburbs being built. Sections after sections of new single family homes with a few leasing apartments in between. This is one sprawling city.
Now what was surprising was how much nature is actually very accessible from here. Nestled in a valley, it is surrounded by mountains. Not high mountains but decent hills at about six to seven thousand feet high. There are many state parks all within an hours drive. We were also able to visit two national parks - Death Valley and Zion; each about two and a half hours away. Even though the national parks has scale, we found that the State Parks have just as good natural offerings as well; if not better.
One thing that did stand out was how aggressive the drivers here are. These are folks with Nevada plates that tailgate, honk, and in general always seem in a great hurry to get somewhere. Just crossing the state lines to Arizona and Utah demonstrated that it was unique to just Nevada!