Bill and Carol Visit Las Vegas

On March 8 Bill and Carol flew to Las Vegas for a week's visit. A nice five hour flight from Philadelphia on US Air. We walked off the plane into the airport and were immediately faced with rows of slot machines. This is a great thing, especially when waiting for a flight to board.
We stayed at Planet Hollywood. We had a nice room on the 37th floor with a great view of the Bellagio and the water fountain show, which was right across the street, and the Eiffel Tower was next door.
Neither of us are into the casinos and games of chance as we have proven over and over again that we never win anything, but Bill did win $100 on a $1 slot machine and $3.00 on the penny slot machines. As usual we managed to lose all of that and pretty much broke even for the trip.
Las Vegas has lots of shows, however, and we took in at least one every night. In the afternoons we walked around to other hotel/casinos and took in the different themes each had, visited lots of shops, and did things tourists do.
It surprised us how far apart the hotels are. On the map they look like they are right next to each other but each hotel's property is about two blocks wide and there are smaller shops between many of the hotels, so it is a real walk to get from one to another. Once inside the hotels you can walk for a half mile or more just in the shopping areas.
We were both pleasantly surprised at how well behaved the crowds of people were. There were lots of young folks there and they were having a good time, but we did not see any problems at any time. The crowds probably tripled in size on Friday, Saturday and Sunday but and were having fun but without causing problems.
We were also pleasantly surprised to see how much there was for young kids to do. Every hotel had some kind of show, aquarium, rides, eating places, etc., that were there with kids in mind. It is much more of a family town than one might think.
We had another five hour flight back to Philly, had a great view of the Grand Canyon as we left Las Vegas.
It was a great trip and we had lots of fun.

Carol likes to dress up when we go out.

Introduction

While on vacation in July 2010, my wife Carol and I learned that there were opportunities to become seasonal workers in Alaska. We (well, Bill, for sure) had fallen love with everything about the state so, when we returned home, I began researching seasonal working opportunities in Alaska. I found that there were, in fact, many companies in Alaska that hired staff for the summer tourist season.
Well, almost overnight I became obsessed with the idea of spending a summer in Alaska working for one of the companies in the hospitality/tourism industry. Since we already knew a little about Princess Tours (a part of Princess Cruise Lines) from our recent vacation, I concentrated my job search on jobs at the lodges and transportation facilities they operate. I decided the most interesting job I could do was that of bus driver/tour guide for the Princess Tours Transportation Division.
Carol, although not as fanatical about this idea as I was, did show interest in coming to Alaska with me and working for Princess as well.
In early November I submitted an application for the driver/guide position. The bus driver positions were some of the first to be available because there is extensive training involved which would begin as early as February. Just in case I applied for several other positions at the lodges. I applied for front desk clerk, guest services agent, laundry driver and lead RV park attendant.
I received notice that Princess had received my application and that someone would be in touch to schedule a telephone interview after the holidays. Time began to slow down.
While doing research on the internet, I found a wonderful social networking site called My Coolworks. There are several thousand members all interested in working as seasonal employees in the national parks, guest ranches, ski resorts in the US. A number of these folks were trying to get jobs in Alaska. Others were hoping to land jobs at Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Grand Canyon, and numerous other locations. We began talking in the My Coolworks chat room. We talked, joked, complained, shared past work experiences... and waited.
In early January I received an e-mail from Princess setting up a time for a telephone interview for a position as a shuttle bus/trolley driver. This was going to be a new experience for me. I had only been interviewed for jobs twice in my life, and never over the telephone. So, I returned to the internet and learned what questions might be asked, what telephone etiquette should be followed, what not to say. The interview came, two days later I received a letter of intent to hire.
This was too good to be true! I had gotten what I wanted, to spend the summer in Alaska with the opportunity to travel around and see more of this great state.
Meanwhile, in early January Carol submitted an application for jobs at the Princess lodges. In mid-February she had a telephone interview for a position as a gift shop clerk. However, for family reasons, she decided that she would wait and try to come to Alaska in mid-season.
My friends on the My Coolworks chat have all found jobs as well. One will be a part of the train crew on the Princess Tours train cars that operate between Fairbanks, Anchorage and Seward. One will be a Park Ranger for the National Park Service at Mesa Verde National Park and another will remain at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon where she has been working, but will be working alongside her son. Lots of other folks have gotten jobs in Grand Teton, Yellowstone and other parks.
So, I will fly to Fairbanks on April 3 to begin training for the Commercial Drivers License exams and to learn how to be a tour guide. On May 7, I will relocate to the Princess Lodge at the entrance to Denali National Park where I will drive buses and trolleys for the summer.
I intend to post narrative and photos on this site throughout the summer. If you are interested in following me on this adventure, check back periodically. It is going to be a blast!!!