Have safely arrived in Boston, MA, and what a lovely first impression (well, second impression as I’ve been to Boston before) this is.
Category: United States
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United States – Nevada – Las Vegas – Paradise Buffet
Located in the Fremont Casino is the all you can eat food option that is Paradise Buffet. These photos are from when I was there in January 2017, although the prices don’t seem to have changed much since then, it works out at around €8 not including the tip. This includes unlimited soft drinks, which are replaced at the table by the server at a formidable pace and always before I’d finished the previous one.
There are eight counters of different foods of various kinds and the choices do seem a little endless…..
And in no particular order, the photos of what I decided to eat during this visit. The tacos were one of my favourite elements, the desserts are slightly, well, unhealthy, but they looked so tempting. There’s technically a 90-minute limit in the restaurant, but during my two or three visits there they’ve never enforced that.
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American Airlines (Las Vegas to Chicago)
This flight was on 18 January 2017 and I flew with American Airlines from Las Vegas McCarran to Chicago O’Hare. I was randomly allocated a window seat, seat 23F and the above photo is of the aircraft when we had arrived into Chicago.
Goodbye to Las Vegas…..
As far as flights go, the view on this one was far better than I had expected because clouds weren’t in the way. Although there was some cloud cover towards the end of the flight, I was able to look out onto the varied terrain of the United States for most of the journey.
There’s a free snack and drink, and I can rarely resist Dr. Pepper when in the United States…. Not sure why American Airlines selected such a European snack though.
There was in-flight entertainment, which for some reason I hadn’t expected on this flight.
Flying into Chicago and over Lake Michigan.
This was a much better flight than I had expected and it was my first internal journey with American Airlines, as I’d only flown with them long-haul. Service was efficienct and polite, with the cabin being clean and comfortable. The views were also a highlight I hadn’t anticipated and the in-flight entertainment was another welcome distraction.
The flight cost £65 which I didn’t think was too bad, although I’ve since realised that I can get better value by using my Avios balance. Using American Airlines also gives me the advantage of my Oneworld card, so I may as well as remain loyal to that scheme.
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United States – Nevada – Las Vegas – White Castle
When I visited White Castle in January 2017 they had been open for a couple of years in this prominent Las Vegas strip location. But their move here was significant, it’s not a west coast company and this was their first opening in a new state for nearly 60 years.
I like White Castle and their products, they’re also one of the pioneering fast food companies in the United States and were crucial in the evolution of the hamburger. They sell sliders with customers getting four in a standard meal, along with the crinkle cut fries. Looking at the current prices across the United States, customers can get 20 sliders for $10, something which sounds tempting even as I type this….
The usual United States policy of unlimited refills applies here to sodas.
And the food, with everything being served in its own cardboard protective packaging, which isn’t perhaps ideal for the environment. The buns and burgers are quite soft, but the onion adds a little texture and the meat is flavoursome. The crinkle cut fries, which the restaurant proudly announces have been served like this for nearly 100 years, are crispy and appropriately salted (for my tastes anyway). The environment is clean and comfortable and there’s a reasonable amount of seating.
The service was exceptional, with the staff members being engaging and friendly. I remember the server introducing herself, a ridiculous level of engagement for a fast food restaurant when compared even to mid level casual dining restaurants in the UK. Service was fast paced and I’m now making myself miss White Castle…..
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United States – Los Angeles to Las Vegas – Megabus
Earlier this week I booked a trip from Las Vegas to Los Angeles on Megabus which cost the grand sum of $1 for the journey, which takes just under six hours. It’s a trip I’ve taken a few times, and the photos in this post are from when I did the journey in January 2017.
The journey starts at the Patsaouras Transit Plaza behind Union Station in Los Angeles and ends at the South Strip Transfer Terminal in Las Vegas. The coaches on this route are clean, modern, have power and are at an appropriate nicely chilled temperature. There is also wi-fi, although this inevitably starts to cut out in the more desert areas.
Unfortunately the Megabus service in the UK is a distant second best to the service offered by the west coast US Megabus service. The staff operate a system where passengers can get there early and pick up a card with a number on it, which is the boarding order. This is an excellent idea as it means the passengers can go and find somewhere else to sit or get food rather than feeling the need to hover by the bus. There’s also the option on the web-site of buying a premium seat to board early (those passengers get a different card), but I didn’t feel the need to board that early.
I do much prefer train journeys to bus journeys, but this is a glorious little bus trip, through the scenery of the California and Nevada deserts and mountains. For $1 it is of course exceptional value for money and it’s always a delight to arrive into Las Vegas.
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United States – Missouri – St. Louis – One Day Three Nations
Three Flags Day was when on 9 and 10 March 1804 Spain gave Louisiana to France, who then gave the entire territory to the United States. What became known as the Louisiana Purchase took place in St. Louis. The Spanish flag was taken down on 9 March, the French flag flew for one day and then the US flag was raised. Very symbolic.
Above is the site of the ceremony to mark the near doubling of United States territory. It was certainly an incredible piece of negotiation, the intention had been to acquire New Orleans from the French for around $10 million and instead they got 530 million acres for $15 million. Bargain.
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United States – Missouri – St. Louis – Gateway Arch
I didn’t get chance to visit the observation deck as it was closed during the time that I was in St. Louis, but this is the tallest arch in the world and the structure with the most stainless steel. The arch was built between 1963 and 1965 but the whole structure looks much more modern to me, so there must have been a lot of innovation involved with the whole project.
The arch is so large it isn’t the easiest to take photos off…. It stands 192 metres tall, which is only around 40 metres shorter than Canary Wharf. As well as being 192 metres tall, it’s also 192 metres wide, otherwise I guess it might fall down…..
The arch and the Old Cathedral, the oldest building remaining on the waterfront.
The arch in the morning as the sun was rising.
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United States – Missouri – St. Louis – St. Louis Zoo
Unfortunately the mists of time have rather made me forget much of this visit to St. Louis Zoo from two years ago, but judging by the number of photos I clearly had a marvellous time. I do recall it not being particularly busy during my visit in January 2017, but it was a clean environment.
Anyway, what do exist are a lot of photos, and here are some of them…..
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United States – Missouri – St. Louis – Boathouse
Between my visits to St. Louis Zoo and the Missouri History museum I decided that an interesting food option was the Boathouse restaurant. The zoo, museum and restaurant, amongst much else, are all located within the Forest Park which is towards the west of the city.
Visiting in January inevitably meant that there wasn’t a chance to sit outside in the warm gazing over the lake, but instead it meant sitting inside near to the fire.
And here is the wood burning fire….
The food was fish and chips, and as usual the Americans do this rather well. The meal is, or at least was since I was there back in 2017, one of the specialities of the restaurant and although the presentation isn’t particularly noteworthy, it tasted of a decent quality. There was a crispiness to the batter and the portion size of tartare sauce was sufficiently generous.
The reviews of this location on-line are a bit mixed, although it’s towards the better end of reviews overall for the city, but it was a warm and comfortable place to stay for a while. Service was attentive and polite, with the restaurant being busier than I had expected in January.
