Road trip!

From Palm Springs, we had to head back to Las Vegas and our return flight to the grey and soggy UK. We decided to break the journey overnight, allowing us to a) sleep in at our lovely PS hotel, b) make the ever-vital trip to Best Buy in Palm Desert, and c) cross the empty Nevada desert without worrying about whether we were going to get to the airport in time. And boy, was it empty! I always thought Norfolk was remote -- particularly when driving up the A11 to Norwich in thick fog -- but Nevada is really empty. On the I-10, billboards proudly proclaimed the nearest McDonalds, just 60 miles away in Blythe. General Patton did desert training for US troops in WWII here. And on the 95, you really appreciate cruise control. Mile after mile of undulating straight road, stretching out to the horizon, broken only by weird plants and a rest stop with giant chickens on its roof.





Finding a place to stay mid-way between Palm Springs and Las Vegas? Not so easy. Blythe and Needles were both ... less than attractive. We opted in the end for Loughlin (pronounced LOFF-lin), a casino town on the Colorado River just inside Nevada. A woman at the Movie Colony Hotel had told us that it was what Vegas used ot be like -- "pure" gambling, dirt-cheap hotels, no pretensions. And she was right. We decided to stay at the Colorado Belle, a hotel shaped like a Mississippi paddle boat and a bargain at a mere 60 bucks (including tax) per night. Unlike in Vegas, we also got access to a gym and pool and had coffee-making facilities in our room. Best of all, it had both a micro-brewery and a Krispy Kreme doughnut concession in the hotel. Breakfast? Sorted! In preparation, we hit the gym shortly after arrival, then showered and changed, and wandering through the main casino. It was sparkly and noisy, just what I had been expecting of Vegas.





Not sure that it's necessarily worth making a 40-mile round-trip detour from the 95 (although the 163 to it was a great road), and it won't win any prizes for "most attractive city" but it was a good night and considerably more enjoyable than Vegas. Unpretentious, entertaining fun. Plus, sixty bucks! And doughnuts!!