The Beatles Love Cirque du Soleil

One night while staying in Las Vegas, we went to the strip for a nice steakhouse dinner and The Beatles Love Cirque du Soleil show.

The Mirage hotel:

The Mirage

The Mirage foyer:

The Mirage foyer

We were early, so played some slot machines, to make an offering to the gods of luck:

Willy Wonka slot machine

Willy Wonka slot machine

Slot machine

Slot machine

Slot machines

Slot machine

Slot machine

Slot machine

Slot machine

Then checked out a swag shop:

Swag shop

And The Beatles Shop:

The Beatles Shop

Then went to the Stack restaurant for dinner:

Stack restaurant

Martinis:

Martinis

Salads:

Salad

Salad

Steaks:

Steak

Steak

Adult tater tots:

Dessert

Desserts:

Dessert

Dessert

Professional photos:

David and Jenn

David and Jenn

Food and beverage:

Food and beverage

The Love show (they were okay with photos, a little unusually, so of course I took a bunch):

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

Love show

The Mirage:

The Mirage

Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort

We stayed at Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A large RV resort, just down the road from the Vegas Strip.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2023-03-13
  • Check out: 2023-03-20
  • 7 nights

Weather:

  • Mostly sunny, a couple days of drizzle, one day of nearby thunderstorms
  • High temps ranging between 63-72°F, lows around 41-54°F
  • Some wind

Noise:

  • Fairly loud freeway noise, though more like a background noise
  • No train noise
  • Airplane noise; in the flight path for the big airport

Site:

  • #108, pull-through, concrete
  • Needed to disconnect toad; parked behind coach
  • Level
  • Small site: about 55 feet long by about 25 feet wide
  • Concrete patio, picnic table, grass

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located
  • 55 PSI water, conveniently located
  • Fair sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe, 1 2-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 25 Mbps down, 5 Mbps up, 20 ms ping
  • AT&T: 22 Mbps down, 15 Mbps up, 44 ms ping
  • Verizon: 25-35 Mbps down, 8-16 Mbps up, 50 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

  • Garbage bins
  • Pools and hot tub
  • Restaurant

Our ranty review on Campground Reviews:

Large resort, near The Strip

This could have been so much better than it was, but the annoyances started early and kept adding on:

– Upon arrival, we had to wait for a long line of RVs to be checked in. When it was our turn, we found out why it took so long: they checked every rig for the “RVIA sticker”. I’ve never had that before and it was weird because our rig was originally bought in Canada so it had a different sticker than they were used to. Look, if you’re just looking to keep Schoolies and homemade conversions out of the park “for insurance reasons”, I get it, but when someone shows up in a pretty well-known make and model, just wave them through.

– Once you get inside the gate, you have to sign some paperwork and head inside to registration, which was incredibly slow even with four people on duty. Got through that process where I signed as much paperwork as when we sold or bought a house.

– On our way out the door we were accosted by a “Good Sam Rep” that had obviously been waiting for the tired and weary travelers to try to Shanghai them into a timeshare presentation without knowing what was going on. We were halfway through signing up for the seminar when we cottoned on to the shenanigans and walked out.

– Got to our “Premium Pull-through site” and it was quite a squeeze to fit the 40′ motorhome and tow vehicle on the pad. We had to unhook and park the truck diagonally across the pad to keep our bumpers out of the road, also being sure to avoid the lamp post, the garbage can, and the sprinkler heads.

– They have an extensive rule booklet, but nobody else seemed to read it and nobody in the park actually enforced the rules.

– Went to soak in the hot tub, which is a welcome perk after a day of driving, and despite being “adults only” there were many, many children jumping into it with no parents around.

– Wanted to partake in the café, but it was only open sporadically. The one time we did get in, though, the martinis were strong and the tater tots were amazing.

– When you leave the park and come back you have to sit in the long line of RVs checking in because there isn’t a separate line for checking in versus returning.

– On the other hand, it was a conveniently short drive to The Strip.

 We camped at Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort in a Motorhome.

Tip for Other Campers: Convenient to The Strip, but if you want a bit of nature and amazing scenery, Red Rock Canyon and Valley of Fire are each a decent day trip.

Interactive map:

Campground map:

Map

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

When one enters the park, they first need to check in with security, that hands over a registration form:

Security

Then one parks in one of the several registration lanes:

Registration lanes

And goes into the office:

Office

To the registration desk:

Registration

They really like their paperwork and inefficient procedures. Perhaps necessary with such a large park, but it didn’t seem very streamlined.

Swimming pools:

Swimming pools

Swimming pools

We used the hot tub, though despite all the signs about no kids in the hot tub, there were several that used it:

Hot tub

They have family and adult swimming pools; this is the family one, which nobody was using as it wasn’t heated — so of course all the kids were in the adults-only pool. Yay:

Swimming pool

A fairly large store:

Store

Always nice to have an on-site restaurant too; we had dinner there once (and were going to another couple of nights, but they were closed — having an onsite restaurant is well and good, but having it closed unexpectedly is almost worse than not having one, though I know lots of restaurants struggle with staffing nowadays):

Restaurant

Tasty martinis; yes, they had a full bar:

Martinis

Jenn’s sandwich and tots:

Sandwich and tots

My burger and lots of fries:

Burger and fries

Also nice when an RV park has a mail room; we got several packages delivered here:

Mail room

Outdoor game area:

Game area

Games

Bathrooms:

Bathrooms

Other RVs:

Other RVs

Other RVs

The elevated freeway was very near, resulting in a constant hum of noise:

Freeway

The big Las Vegas airport was also nearby, so planes would frequently fly over:

Plane

The entrance at night:

Entrance at night

A nice RV resort; not great, but good, and close to the Vegas attractions. We might stay here again, but would probably prefer to try another place, or go back to Lake Mead.

David’s lap desk

Living full-time in a 40-foot motorhome while continuing to work poses some challenges. One is simply where to work.

For those who don’t know, I am self-employed as a macOS and iOS app developer. My company is Dejal; I am the developer of Time Out for Mac, a popular break reminder tool, and Simon for Mac, a pro tool to monitor websites and servers for changes or failures, plus a couple of iOS apps. I also do macOS and iOS consulting, helping other people create great apps — currently SheetPlanner for Mac (and soon iPad), a powerful spreadsheet/planning tool, and NewsBlur for iPhone and iPad, a popular RSS reader.

When we were considering what kind of RV to buy, we considered toy-hauler fifth-wheel trailers, so we could convert the garage area into an office. Or a fiver or motorhome with bunks, that could be removed and converted into a tiny office; I quite liked the look of the Fleetwood Discovery LXE 44B, with the bunks at the rear.

Ultimately a dedicated office wasn’t deemed an essential feature. When we decided on a Tiffin Allegro Bus motorhome, one point in its favor was a pull-out keyboard tray at one of the dining seats.

But after we actually bought our coach, it turned out that the most convenient desk for me was a simple lap tray. (And we eventually removed that keyboard tray as part of making a liquor cupboard.)

I already had a lap desk that I had used for TV dinners in the homestead, and it works very well for a laptop, too. I can sit on our couch and work comfortably, or take it outside. I’m writing this sitting on a swing seat on a nice sunny day (in the shade of our awning):

David and lap desk

More often I use it while sitting on the couch, sometimes with Paladin’s assistance:

David and Paladin

To make it more portable, I have velcroed my MacBook Pro to the lap desk, using self-adhesive velcro dots. So it can be removed, but typically remains attached. It’s secure enough that I routinely carry the tray around by its handle, with the laptop hanging in space.

I also velcroed a portable solid state drive to the tray; it is my backup drive. And the tray has a slot where I can temporarily put my iPhone or another drive.

SSD

I find the built in keyboard, trackpad, and display of my laptop to be perfectly adequate for my needs. But when I want a little more screen space, I can attach a SideTrak Swivel 12.5” display, giving me plenty more room for reference material or an app I’m debugging.

SideTrak screen

The display is magnetically attached to a plate on the lid of the laptop:

SideTrak screen

So when not needed, it can be simply unplugged and pulled off:

SideTrak screen

This setup works really well for me, giving me the flexibility to work inside or out as the mood (and weather!) dictates.

Travel from Kingman, Arizona to Las Vegas, Nevada

We drove our coach 114 miles, about two hours of driving, from Kingman, Arizona to Las Vegas, Nevada.

Here’s the map route, heading northwest:

Vegas route

An interactive map, with our stops marked:

I-40:

I-40

Interesting rocks:

Interesting rocks

Rough road:

Rough road

Rough road

Interesting rocks:

Interesting rocks

Lake Mead National Recreation Area:

Lake Mead National Recreation Area

6% downgrade:

6% downgrade

Bridge:

Bridge

Hoover Dam and Lake Mead:

Hover Dam and Lake Mead

Hover Dam and Lake Mead

Entering Nevada:

Entering Nevada

Lake Mead:

Lake Mead

Artwork:

Artwork

Artwork

Artwork

Las Vegas:

Las Vegas

Our destination:

Our destination

Kingman, Arizona

After Grand Canyon West, we went back to Kingman, and had dinner at a classic Route 66 diner.

Welcome to Kingman:

Welcome to Kingman

Route 66 buildings in Kingman:

Kingman buildings

Kingman silo

Kingman buildings

A drive-through Route 66 sign:

Drive-through Route 66 sign

Kingman buildings

We had dinner at the Mr D’z Route 66 Diner:

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

Menus:

Menus

Special shakes:

Special shakes

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

Mr D'z Route 66 Diner

I had (with Jenn’s help) a lavish Chocolate Pot of Gold shake:

Chocolate Pot of Gold shake

Fries and burger with bacon, egg, hash browns:

Fries and burger with bacon, egg, hash browns

Fries and burger with bacon, egg, hash browns

French toast etc:

French toast etc

Route 66 truck:

Route 66 truck

Old police car outside the diner:

Old police car

I may have knocked a few years off my life with that shake and dinner, but it was tasty!

Grand Canyon West

We visited Grand Canyon West, a commercial operation of the Hualapai Tribal Nation.

On the way there, we enjoyed seeing lots of Joshua trees and snowy mountains:

Joshua trees and snowy mountain

Joshua trees and mountain

Joshua trees and snowy mountain

Road

The sign for Grand Canyon West:

Grand Canyon West

The main terminal; there is lots of parking, an airport, large heliport, and gift store here:

Main terminal

One catches buses to reach the other two areas:

Bus

The first stop is Eagle Point:

Eagle Point

Eagle Point

Do you see the eagle?

Eagle Point

A selfie:

Selfie

The main attraction of Grand Canyon West is the Skywalk, a horseshoe-shaped glass bridge that extends 70 feet out over the canyon:

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

We went to the restaurant for lunch first, which had a great view over the Skywalk:

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

No personal belongings allowed on the Skywalk:

No personal belongings allowed on the Skywalk

Line:

Line

We put our stuff in a locker:

Lockers

They have photographers on the Skywalk to take posed pictures:

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Some stock pics of the Skywalk that came with our photo downloads:

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

Skywalk

After we experienced the Skywalk, we headed outside and looked at some Native American tribal structure exhibits:

Native American tribal structures

Native American tribal structures

Native American tribal structures

Native American tribal structures

Native American tribal structures

Native American tribal structures

Native American tribal structures

Native American tribal structures

Then caught a bus to Guano Point:

Guano Point

Posing ravens:

Guano Point

Nice Grand Canyon views:

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Selfie

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

This point is named for a guano mine (harvesting bat droppings for fertilizer); there are still some ruins of a tram used for that operation:

Tram ruins

Tram ruins

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Tram ruins

Tram ruins

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Tram ruins

Selfie

Tram ruins

Tram ruins

Tram ruins

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Guano Point

Guano Point

Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Guano Point

Selfie

Raven

Raven

Raven

Ravens

A long line for the bus back to the terminal (it was much longer when we joined it):

Line for the bus

On the way back to Kingman, “Expect Cattle”:

"Expect Cattle"

Yep, cows were expected:

Cows

A fun experience, and a different perspective on the Grand Canyon.

Kingman KOA Journey

We stayed at Kingman KOA Journey in Kingman, Arizona. (Campground Reviews listing.)

We were going to stay somewhere else, but changed our plans due to our NIRVC stay, so this was a last-minute reservation.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2023-03-10
  • Check out: 2023-03-13
  • 3 nights

Weather:

  • Mostly sunny
  • High temps ranging between 64-66°F, lows around 41-49°F
  • Wind gusts to 28 MPH

Noise:

  • A little distant road noise, no train noise

Site:

  • #96, pull-through, gravel
  • Needed to disconnect toad; parked in front of coach
  • A little unlevel
  • Medium site: about 50 feet long by about 40 feet wide
  • Concrete patio site with patio table & chairs, fire pit, grill

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located
  • 45 PSI water, conveniently located
  • A little loose sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed); it had an underground leak that spilled onto the ground

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 12-16 Mbps down, 14-19 Mbps up, 40 ms ping
  • AT&T: 17-41 Mbps down, 12-23 Mbps up, 146 ms ping
  • Verizon: 5 Mbps down, 4 Mbps up, 50 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

  • Garbage dumpsters
  • Closed pool
  • Mini-golf

Our review on Campground Reviews:

A good place to stop between Phoenix & Vegas

This was a last-minute reservation as we had to change our plans between Phoenix & Vegas. The KOA website is always straightforward and convenient. The staff were nice and helpful, including guiding us to our spot. We had a nice end patio spot with a view of the mountains. There’s a small bit of noise from the interstate, but not too bad. Roads inside the park were a little tight on some of the corners. We camped at Kingman KOA Journey in a Motorhome.

Tip for Other Campers: Convenient day trip to Grand Canyon West and the Sky Walk.

Interactive map:

RV park map:

Map

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Patio:

Patio

The electrical pedestal was a bit strange, with the outlets on the side:

Electric pedistal

And the two 50 amp switches were not connected:

Electric pedistal

Sign:

Sign

Entrance:

Entrance

Office:

Office

Office

Office

Closed swimming pool:

Closed swimming pool

Mini golf:

Mini golf

Playground:

Playground

When we arrived we had to wait for this RV and Jeep to untoad, as they didn’t make the turn after the entrance:

Didn't make the turn

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Mobile homes for 55+ long-term residents:

Mobile homes

Mobile homes

Mountain views:

Mountains