Vegas: Voodoo Zipline at the Rio

 When it comes time to celebrate yet another successful revolution around the sun survived, I like to do things that might instinctively run contrary to that continuous survival, like jumping off of tall buildings while strapped into a rather minimal-seeming-is-this-really-safe-I-mean-how-is-this-even-legal-harness. Many moons ago, I celebrated a birthday by jumping off of the Stratosphere tower and braving their Sky Jump, so it seemed only appropriate to carry on this tradition by jumping off yet another tall building in the city of Las Vegas! For this round, we went to the Rio for their Voodoo Zipline. There also happened to be a Groupon available at the time that let us do the ride and purchase the video package at a pretty good discount, so there were even fewer excuses available to try to justify a way out at the last minute. On the day of, we were concerned about the wind levels, but to our surprise, the ride was still going and seats were available, so it was time to bite the bullet and go for it!

The ride itself is pretty short, but leading up to it you get some spectacular views of the Las Vegas strip to enjoy. I squeezed in as many photos as I comfortably could before we were being beckoned onward, either to get in line for our date with destiny or escorted towards the elevators to go back to the hotel. We were a bit disappointed by not getting a chance to see our ride photos, as a group of girls who'd missed their own viewing chance decided to just go ahead and jump in front of us in line. We decided to try to take some photos while we waited, but then a ride hostess was by our side politely-yet-firmly informing us we needed to keep moving. A shame, I guess...if I had wanted to be brattier, or more assertive, we probably could have done the same as the girls who cut us and commandeered a chance at viewing the photos, but I didn't want to keep that shit-cycle rolling. It's a domino effect, you see? Because we were inconvenienced by their lack of consideration, we would have had to inconvenience others, and it just wasn't worth it to us to further perpetuate that nonsense. We mosied onward and went on to have an excellent meal at Ichiza just up the road. While it might seem a bit of complaining snuck in here, because seriously, fuck those girls, I really had an enjoyable time riding the barely-secured seats of the zip line and I'm glad we went!  

Hong Kong Day 5- The Peak

Hong Kong is famous for a lot of things, but one of the most notable is the amazing views of the city's world class architecture. Whether you're viewing Victoria Harbor from Tsim Sha Tsui in Mongkok, the square in Wan Chai on the Hong Kong side, or from atop the highest peak in the city- named, unironically, The Peak, it's a beautiful city and exquisite evening light show spectacle to feast your eyes upon. 

Typically, for those eager to reach the Peak and view the city from on high, the cable cars are the option du jour. This also means that the line for the cable cars is extremely long and not everyone is guaranteed to make it to their destination prior to the light show. Being the impatient lout I am, I bypassed this method of gaining altitude in favor of taking a city bus. Not only was the bus much cheaper, but the experience of winding alongside the narrow mountain roads in a rickety old passenger van (seriously, it seemed like a basic cargo van converted to hold seats instead of equipment) that careens around corners precariously was something to be had. Not an experience I'd necessarily recommend for those with weaker stomachs, but I managed to survive the experience well enough despite having eaten ample of the culinary goodies available throughout the area. My stomach is a brute, to be fair, and I've stuffed some questionable things down my gullet to no ill effect. But I digress.  

Once you actually arrive to the mountain's summit, you'll find a large... mall. Typically I'm not especially enthused by shopping, especially in a mall environment, unless it's some grand outdoor market or something with cultural value (I mean, sorry to say but a mall is a mall is a mall, as far as I'm concerned, whether it be in Tokyo, Osaka, Hong Kong, L.A., Seoul, or Vegas...). Sure, there have been some outliers like the time Antho and I happened upon the Sherman Oaks Galleria, aka the mall where scenes from Terminator were filmed in L.A., but we didn't go shopping. Is it weird that as a female I don't find clothes shopping an especially thrilling activity? Perhaps because I'm tall and have a hard time finding attire that fits me well (either due to weight fluctuations or my broad shoulders & broad hips/big bum) shopping for clothes has always been riddled with difficulties and challenges to me sense of self. Leggings and tunics have been a life saver (as has Uniglo while living in Asia). So, suffice to say, I didn't spend an exorbitant amount of time perusing the shops prior to the light show. After the show, however, I did stumble upon a rose blush pleated skirt that I really loved and ended up taking home with me. I found a surprisingly large amount of clothes in Hong Kong that fit me well, perhaps because of their long time as an international hub and catering to giant westerners such as myself. 

There were also some anime exhibits around the mall that were fun to see, and a lovely tea shop that I popped into. Many souvenir shops were scattered about, naturally, given the tourist destination nature of the locale.  

More photos after the cut!

Japan: 19th floor tea over Tsukiji

After exploring the markets for several hours, Yuka and I escorted her mother to the hospital she was visiting for medical treatments. There was still a bit of time before her appointment, so we nipped up to the 19th floor of the hospital to have afternoon tea in their restaurant. Once seated we were greeted with a fantastic view of the city below, including the famous Tsukiji fish market complex and even a helipad!

Lombard Street, San Francisco

Lombard street is one very wibbly wobbly road, zigzagging it's way up a steep hill. It's a one way road, so if you hope to test your driving along it's curves be sure to approach from the right side!

Having just visited Coit tower, we walked to Lombard relatively quickly while still enjoying the sights along the way.