The Eastern Rosella (Platycercus eximius)

On 08/08/2011 Connie and I stopped in at the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens to take in their summer exhibit entitled, “2011 Summer Garden”. Between the fountains, the glass flower art on the ceiling in the lobby, and the gardens, you've got yourself nearly an hour of breathtaking beauty. This year the aviary at the back of the exhibit was filled with more than two dozen parrots, Eastern Rosellas like the one above on one side and the Rainbow Lorikeets  on the other.

Description: The Eastern Rosella (Genus: Platycercus; Species: eximius), is also known as: Rosella, Rosella Parrot or Parakeet, Red Rosella, Common Rosella, White-cheeked Rosella, Red-headed Rosella, and the Golden-mantled Rosella or Parakeet. The average adult is 11.7 inches long and weighs between 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 ounces. The has a red head and breast; white cheeks; yellow lower breast; pale green abdomen; red under tail coverts; black back with green spotting; blue outer wing coverts; pale green rump and a white bill. Colorization of the female is similar, but the head and breast paler in color; under wing stripe is pale colored with green/yellow spotting on back. They have a sharp call when in flight; a three syllable whistle on an ascending scale while perched, and at times metallic and piping notes when at rest. They have a shrill screech when startled and a soft chattering or babbling while feeding. The love to eat seeds and fruit and usually hold food in their feet when eating.

In addition to the ‘dancing’ fountains, huge liberty bell topped with a giant American Eagle and a sky filled with a wide variety of colorful hot air balloons and the bird aviary, one cannot escape the many beautiful flowers, both within the exhibit itself (below) and behind the registration desk (above).

Our Friend, James Herring

Jim and his wife Pat bought a retirement home here in Vegas a couple of years ago. Sadly, shortly after their purchase, his wife passed away very suddenly. Having not retired yet, he makes a trek here 3-4 times a year and we always get together for some dinning out, site-seeing, some pool-side recreation, or just plan wine and conversation. I check on the house now and then while he is away to make sure everything is alright. Not sure what the relationship is, his daughter, Christina is married to my sister’s son Christian, however, we have become good friends over the past two years and look forward to his quarterly visits.

The Bellagio Botanical Garden

Just a few of the many beautiful flowers that adorned the Bellagio’s botanical garden summer exhibit entitled, “2011 Summer Garden”. Click here to see more pictures of the exhibit and another of the beautiful parrots that were inside the aviary … Rainbow Lorikeet

Grand Canyon Railway

On 03/10/2009 we road the Grand Canyon Railway to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Expecting it to be more like Las Vegas weather, we were surprised when we woke up to a snow squall and that it turned out to be a rather cold, windy and blustery day. Out our window, and from the viewing platform at the rear, we got to see a variety of different landscapes, from Ponderosa pine forests down to the open and dry high desert. The train then rose back into the forest as it got closer to the canyon. There is more than a 1,500 foot change in elevation along the way. In the grand tradition of elegance and extraordinary comfort, we road the most exclusive seats on the train - inside the Luxury Parlor Car. Thanks to lounge-style comforts including a private bar and access to the open-air rear platform the exclusive service in this car provides fresh fruit, pastries, coffee and juice during the morning, finger snacks on the return trip along with a champagne toast and drinks of your choice at any time. The 4-1/2 round trip train ride made for a very enjoyable day.

Description: the Grand Canyon Railway made its first journey to the South Rim in 1901, long before Arizona was dubbed the "Grand Canyon State." With the arrival of the train, people could get to the legendary canyon with ease and comfort. All supplies used in the construction of Grand Canyon Village came to Northern Arizona aboard the train. The train also brought all water to the Grand Canyon until 1926. Supplies were not the only things carried in trains. Ranching and lumber were the primary industries of the early 1900s. Ranchers and lumberjacks contracted with the Grand Canyon Railway to transport their stock. The Railway shared the countryside with its neighbors forming a unique bond. Cowboys, lumberjacks and shepherds alike felt a little better and closer to civilization just being able to hear the train or see its lights off in the distance.The train stopped running in 1968, giving way to the popularity of automobile travel. But like any legend it refused to die. As fate would have it, Grand Canyon Railway was reborn in 1989 when entrepreneurs brought the Grand Canyon's train back to life. Leaving from Williams Arizona, Grand Canyon Railway departs daily at 9:30 a.m. The train travels almost due north to the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, arriving at 11:45 a.m.. The trip measures 65 miles and takes 2 hours and 15 minutes each way, 45 minutes faster than in 1901 when the train made its first trip. The train departs Grand Canyon Depot at 3:30 p.m. returning to Williams Depot at 5:45 p.m.

Cold Creek, Nevada - Early Spring

A view of the town of Cold Creek, Nevada. This picture was shot 03/24/2011 on a daytrip with the rock hounds from the Heritage Park Senior Facility. I used a the "tilt-Shift" effect on this picture to enhance the houses in the picture. The fact that It had snowed for several hours the night before our visit, added a nice "wintertime"  look, one we don't often get to see living in Las Vegas.

Blue Agapanthus (Agapanthus praecox)

08/08/2011 – I captured these pictures at the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens summer exhibit entitled, “2011 Summer Garden”, inside the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Description: Agapanthus (The genus name agapanthus means flower of love which is derived from the Greek word ‘agape’, meaning love, and ‘anthos’, meaning flower), commonly called African Lily, African Blue Lily, Blue Lily, Lily of the Nile, and Flower of Love. Agapanthus is a genus of herbaceous perennials that mostly bloom in summer. Its leaves are basal and curved, linear, and up to 24 inches long. They are arranged in two rows. The inflorescence is a pseudo-umbel subtended by two large bracts at the apex of a long, erect scape, up to 6 feet tall. They have a 8 inch globular flower head with funnel-shaped flowers, in hues of blue to purple, shading to white.

The Ferris Wheel

08/08/2011 – I captured these pictures of the 40-foot tall 1922 Ferris wheel  at the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens summer exhibit entitled, “2011 Summer Garden”, inside the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Please note that I have created a “new” category for these types of photos entitled, “Diptychs”, where I hope to be adding many more in the future.

Mosaic Marble Floors at the Bellagio Conservatory

08/08/2011 – I captured these pictures at the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens summer exhibit entitled, “2011 Summer Garden”, inside the Bellagio Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. One has to go early in the morning to get these pictures without several hundred visitors walking around. Technically, this is a type of polyptych, the term for all multi-panel works. A polyptych (Greek: polu- "many" and ptychē "fold") generally refers to a painting (usually a panel painting) which is divided into multiple sections, or panels. In recent times the term and concept has been added to the field of photography.

Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus)

On 08/08/2011 Connie and I stopped in at the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens to take in their summer exhibit entitled, “2011 Summer Garden”. Changing four times a year, with the seasons, this is one of the best “free” things in Vegas. Between the fountains, the glass flower art on the ceiling in the lobby, and the gardens, you've got yourself nearly an hour of breathtaking beauty. Having gone early in the morning this time, it was much less crowded than normal and as a result, much more enjoyable. This year the aviary at the back of the exhibit was filled with more than two dozen parrots, Rainbow Lorikeets like the two above on one side and Eastern Rosellas on the other.

Description: The Rainbow Lorikeet (Genus: Trichoglossus; Species: haematodus), sometimes called Lories, is a species of Australasian parrot found in Australia, eastern Indonesia (Maluku and Western New Guinea), Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. In Australia, it is common along the eastern seaboard, from Queensland to South Australia and northwest Tasmania. Its habitat is rainforest, coastal bush and woodland areas. This small to medium sized parrot averages 10 inches in length and weighs between 3.5 and 5.5 oz. Both adults have a brown/black head with lilac/blue streaks on face; collar yellow/green; red breast banded with blue/black; dark green abdomen; green/yellow thighs to undertail coverts; green upperparts and tail; orange underwing coverts; yellow, and a wide band under the wing. Their bill is a orange/red and the eyes are a dark orange. They have a very clownish personality and are also known as being a honey-eater. They love to eat nectar's and soft fruit such as cantaloupe and grapes. Their call is a series of repeated notes, sharp, rolling while in flight; shrill chattering while feeding and soft notes when at rest.

The entrance to this summer’s exhibit, a playful carnival and patriotic displays of Stars and Stripes, was filled with ‘dancing’ fountains in front of an over-scale replica of the Liberty Bell topped with a giant American bald eagle made from coconut chips, magnolia leaves and chopped strawflowers. On the right was a moving 11-foot-tall carousel; on the left was a 40-foot 1942 full-scale Ferris wheel. Just steps away was a stone-based rustic greenhouse containing 30 live birds (lorikeets and rosellas). Looking up at the 60-foot ceiling, the sky was filled with a wide variety of colorful hot air balloons. One can spend nearly an hour admiring the exhibits and taking in all of the beautiful flowers. It can be a very tranquil experience.

Sunrise at Hoover Dam

While recently putting together a Daytrip post and slideshow for this site on the Mike O'Callaghan – Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge at Hoover Dam, I came across this photo that I captured on a picture taking jaunt to the Hoover Dam with my cousin Johnny back on 04/02/2011. It was taken from the World War II vintage gun emplacement (pillbox or bunker) that sits on a hillside above the dam on the Arizona side of Lake Mead. It was built by a military police battalion soon after the 1942 attack on Pearl Harbor. The dam was considered to be a primary military target as it was a significant source of electrical power for the defense industries. Of the several structures that were built during this period this is the only one to survive. It has six gun ports, is 25 feet long, constructed of steel and concrete and covered with indigenous rock to serve as camouflage. Capturing the smooth, graceful lines of the bridge against the surrounding rugged landscape, I thought it was worthy of being singled out. [click to view full-screen]