2001

That year, we set our sights westward—for one last, unforgettable adventure across the U.S.

During a long weekend, our family and our friends Jose’s family drove to Newark Airport. We parked our car and flew to Las Vegas. After landing, we hired a car and went straight to the famous Las Vegas Strip. We checked into the top floor of a luxurious hotel, and marveled at the dazzling skyline of the brightest city on Earth.

The next morning, we visited the Hoover Dam. Two of my wife’s classmates, Sushi and Thiagu, joined us. We toured the dam and its power plant. Straddling two time zones—Pacific and Mountain—Hoover Dam is considered one of the top 10 construction achievements of the 20th century. It attracts over a million visitors annually.

We walked through original diversion tunnels, stood atop a 30-foot pipe, and felt the rumble of the Colorado River surging beneath us. A highlight was the observation deck overlooking the dam, the river, and Lake Mead.

That evening, we returned to the Las Vegas Strip. We strolled along the Boulevard and spent hours in the casinos—winning a few cents and losing a few dollars. Las Vegas, the “Entertainment Capital of the World”, is home to the greatest concentration of casinos, hotels, and resorts.

The following day, we drove to the Grand Canyon. My wife fearlessly drove at 120 mph through the open desert, with wind rushing past and the scent of the earth in the air.

We arrived at the Grand Canyon around 4 PM. The view was staggering. Though we had all seen it in textbooks, films, and on TV, nothing prepared us for the actual scale of the vast chasm. The exposed rock layers told a story that stretched back millions of years—a silent, monumental record of time.