Notes from the ‘Chop

I went to Cisco LIVE this year to support my company and learn a bit more about the business.

It’s always an adventure to get out of the cubicle and into the crowd. I got to talk to and goof around with a lot of Cisco-certified folks, and they’re all a blast.

Of course, being surrounded by fun at the end of the day is always a bonus, right? A few of us were dismissed a little early one evening to go check out the World of Solution exhibition hall.

Marilyn Monroe told me that I could totally pull off her look. Maybe I shall someday… Halloween is a-comin’.

While Casey got addicted to Splinter Cell…

Tiffany and I went to the store’s photo booth.

Booth babes. It’s too bad Tiffany hammed it up behind them, so the girls probably thought I was giggling at them. I’m sure they’re over it. (They’re probably not over it.)

I took this photo before the signs to “not sit on the letters” appeared. Sorry, but it’s a good photo op!

The next night we hung out with some Cisco authors. They’re only ridiculously smart, no big deal…

One of them wanted to practice with my D-SLR, so I let him. I supervised the whole time.

Group shot! My awesome coworkers and me.

And what’s a conference without a crazy theme party?

Side note: it was completely awesome.

Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra was like being inside a Rock Band game.

Standing next to this gal did not help my self-esteem, but it was still cool to see her up close. So much bling!

Blues Brothers!

And Elvis! Cisco brought all of the sightseeing to its attendees, which I can appreciate.

And Smash Mouth, but this is when we pooped out.

Okay, one last photo op…

And, somehow, our last day of work came and went so quickly. It was a blast. I’d easily do it all over again!

on my last full day in vegas, i parked myself in front of the wave pool for a good chunk of the morning. i meant to go back later with a real camera (i had only brought my cell phone and postcards to write) but wore myself out thoroughly later in the day.

those cushy red chairs cost extra.

i ate a very expensive burger for lunch. i’m worth it. sweet potato french fries were worth it, too.

a stroll through the luxor…

a brief moment at the excalibur…

i confess: i was headed back to the mgm grand for the lion habitat. i’m a crazy cat lady, after all.

tongue sticking out! kitties are funny.

the sex and the city slot machines are located right outside of the restrooms. just a little tip from me to you.

meow meow meow i don’t think i took enough photos of lions.

“oh, man, it’s still daylight outside?” it’s true that time doesn’t really exist in vegas.

mario brothers! i totally didn’t tip you guys enough.

i don’t remember when i started to get really tired. i think i was inside the bellagio. walking around the strip is really hard after a week when it’s really hot and you’ve been eating way too well.

i watched the fountain show again.

i walked inside to turn around and head back to mandalay bay. but, oh! balloons! my next action item as a tourist was to attend a hot air balloon festival. (another post about that coming soon!)

i also meant to find the dale chihuly glass but i’ll have to do that another day. i was so tired; i had to sit down for a rest after the bellagio turned out to be 15 miles long. at some point, i hopped a monorail to aria and then detoured through the monte carlo, but all i wanted to do was get back to my hotel so i didn’t take any photos of this tiny, tiring adventure.

i think i should’ve stopped and had dinner here (nine fine irishmen), but i had a pretty awesome dinner back at the border grill. so it all evens out. next time!

see those tiny people just off center in this photo? that’s the backstreet boys. no big deal. (my inner groupie was dying to be standing in the puddle with the rest of those girls, but i had a chair and a margarita… and no ticket. so, you know.)

ah, border grill. your ceviche was so delicious!

too bad i didn’t have my long lens. i should maybe start traveling with that.

i only spent about $15 at the slots in las vegas, and mostly i was just hanging out, waiting for a waitress to happen by.

by the end of this day, i was so exhausted and ready to go home the next morning. ’til next time, vegas!

after my incident in the desert, i took a wrong turn (or, rather, missed the right turn) and ended up with a scenic drive down the strip in las vegas. not that i had any energy for it, but i took advantage of the situation by snapping photos when i was stopped. which was pretty often. traffic is pretty bad on the strip.

i didn’t start taking photos until i was way past the stratosphere, but i still had a glimpse in my side mirror.

anything i know about vegas, i learned from a movie.

i wonder how the osmonds feel about having their faces almost as tall as this building.

and, finally, i had returned to the security of a cell phone charger and a bed. later in the evening i joined coworkers at aureole before retiring for the evening.

we got to see someone – a “wine angel steward” – fetch a bottle of wine from about halfway up the column.

in the morning i joined a couple coworkers and rapid world cup fans down at the sports book. biggest. tv. ever.

he’s a german. totally awesome mullet. (and i think he was serious? i’m not, though.)

i went to happy hour at china grill a couple times. i was very pleased with their price for sushi.

elephants everywhere!

i also fell in love with the border grill. great chips and salsa and delicious margaritas! the ceviche was also really tasty after the day i spent walking the strip – really cooled me down.

oh, and the patio had a really great view over the pools.

how many photos is that so far? I guess let’s keep going, i’ve got a ridiculous amount more to share but the organization might be weird.

to do for next time: ride the roller coaster at new york new york.

another to do for someday: go to real new york.

i love a good lens flare!

mgm grand was the destination on the evening these photos were taken.

remember when david copperfield did those specials on tv before all sorts of other wacky magicians came along? i loved those shows, especially when you would get to “interact” with him during the card tricks made for viewers at home.

this photo was taken on my way back to mandalay bay. i skipped a whole bunch because the event at the mgm was the attendee appreciation party for cisco live, details of which i’m saving for another post. onward!

rumjungle. i shoulda gone back for more, but got distracted.

my coworkers and i made a special trip to paris.

we ate ridiculously well at mon ami gabi. steak roquefort: oh, my.

and, with the bellagio right across the street, we had to take in the fountains after dinner.

and now i need to take a break because i took about five million photos on my last day, which was entirely on my own. so! stay tuned.

i went to las vegas at the end of june.

it was neat to take photos while flying over lake mead and the hoover dam – those were on my agenda later in the day.

why didn’t i expect gambling as soon as i got off the plane? it was quite surprising.

my taxi driver was not really amused by my excitement at finally visiting vegas.

i was in vegas to support my company at cisco live, but i gave myself a day before and a day after for exploration and adventure. so, forget i mentioned this for now – let’s head out to arizona!

i was all enchanted with the desert and it’s crazy geology for a moment.

stopped for lunch and a shandy at the boulder dam brewing company in boulder city before getting to hoover. on my little google map i saw the “boulder dam museum” and asked my waitress where the boulder dam was. did you know the hoover dam used to be called the boulder dam? news to me. apparently i should do more research before getting into tourism.

anyway, both the beer and empty patio were very nice. i guess the nevada/arizona summer chases residents inside similar to minnesota winters. i’m down with that; more sun for me!

after eating, i went to explore the town a little. and by “the town” i mean the neighboring two blocks.

mirage?

there was an entrance fee for the lake mead recreation area, so i settled for the visitor’s center. so many cacti!

this rattlesnake warning sign spooked me a little bit. this is where my adventure may have started its downturn.

for scale, you know.

this is probably the second scariest bridge i’ve ever encountered. golden gate still takes #1, but i actually drove over that one. maybe if i drove across this new bridge someday it would take the cake.

i could’ve used a copilot to take photos for me.

arizona!

i was running out of energy, so i didn’t go down and walk across the dam. it would’ve been cool to have photos of the “nevada time” and “arizona time” clocks, but i guess i’ll have to prepare better for my next trip out. though would i really go back? i don’t know.

the water was really low.

proof that i was there and also a really bad photo. it was so hot! ugh.

i didn’t see a single big-horn sheep and that is really disappointing.

“fortification hill” was the area i was really seeking. off the beaten path and all.

i thought the end of the road would take me to more of a “scenic overlook” situation, but i found a mouth into lake mead instead. way awesome! i wish i had brought my bathing suit and floaty tube, i totally would’ve hung out longer.

this is my computer’s wallpaper at work.

on my way out of this area, i got a flat tire. which was horrifying for me since i was basically alone in the desert, it was the hottest time of the day, my cellphone had long since died (and i meant to get a car charger!), and i was running out of water. i made the decision that i had to continue driving to the main road because there was no way i would be stopping in the middle of nowhere. and i was freaked out the whole time – the rental wasn’t mine, after all.

holy crap. thankfully i made it to the main road and stood out, trying to flag someone down to help me. an old pickup pulled over, and my new favorite arizona residents, aaron and elizabeth, came to my rescue. elizabeth and i talked about our tragedies of the day (my flat tire, and earlier during their road trip their engine had given out). aaron replaced my tire with the spare. i’m so grateful that they felt they should “pay it forward” since someone had come to their rescue earlier. i wish i had gotten their address so i could’ve sent them a thank you gift. guys, if you’re out there: you’re so friggin’ awesome.

after they fixed me up and we both decided to get back on the road to vegas, i decided i was so done with my road trip. i had planned to take a different route back into vegas just to change it up a little, so maybe next time… if i ever do this sort of thing again.

The Northeast Minneapolis parade was pretty fun last year, but this year I could barely take it. Was it the hottest day of the whole summer? Quite possibly. I went over to visit the neighbors and tried then to hang out and watch with them, but barely made it a half hour. Oh, well.

I tried to distract myself from the heat by taking photos, but that only lasted so long.

The best float: I ♥ Northeast.

I had no idea there was a Mandarin Chinese immersion school nearby – so cool!

Hey, it’s the mayor, R.T. Rybak. I think he must’ve run down the whole of Central Avenue which is just incredible to me. Because it was so hot. You know.

Clever marketing.

Sometimes it is very nice when people pose for me. Candids are not always that easy, especially when there are a million other people around. So, thank you, lady on stilts, for pausing for my camera.