January 1, 2003 - Happy New Year! I have lots of ambitions for the new year. In addition to wanting to travel a lot I also hope to improve my looks, imagine, and attitude, and maybe figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life (or at least the next few years). I'm hoping my traveling will help me figure out where I want to live and want to do, and that if I get some exercise or eat less while sitting at my desk at work I might lose a few pounds. My mom and I started the day off really early by checking out of our hotel and driving to Pasadena for the Tournament of Roses Parade. This is the super bowl of parades. There were more than 105 things in the parade (marching bands, people on horses, floats, and other stuff). It lasted for 2 hours. I can't believe people start camping out along the parade route more than a day in advance to get a good spot. Instead of this I had bought tickets about 2 months prior so that I could have a guaranteed spot. They were ! a little pricey ($40 each) but worth the savings of hassle. The parade marched on down the street and we headed to Las Vegas for the nite. Our hotel is Circus Circus. This place is totally a kids attraction. There are kids running rampant throughout the hotel. Mental note: Stay at the Venetian next time. I finished up the nite taking a drive up to Freemont Street to see the "Freemont Street Experience". There is a overhang covering a good portion of 2 or 3 blocks of street with multicolored lights that are programmed in a amazing sequence that synchronizes to music. The show was very impressive. Getting to Freemont Street takes you through the worst part (that I had seen) of Las Vegas. There are lots of $29 marriage chapels, strip clubs, alcohol stores, small casinos and whatnot. Following the show I drove up towards Mandalay Bay and toured it along with The Luxor and the Excalibur, stopping to take pictures of MGM Grand and New York, New York.