USA

I think, it is good that we rented for the first three days an apartment in the outskirts of Las Vegas. There it was calm, empty of people, and there was a possibility to get a little used, to acclimatise. We were to move in three days to the centre of the city, to the hotel Venetia. I write frankly, I do not feel joy living in a hotel. Autonomous living in an apartment room suits me better. But my Norwegian husband holds to his rules when travelling, and that is — booking a hotel room, obligatory breakfast only in the hotel, lunch in a restaurant. Of course, he always, before ordering a hotel or any tickets, «consults» with me, but does not stress prices and does not talk about money or coming expenses. He proposes — I choose. ...

We got out of town by taxi quickly, in about 20 minutes. They drove us right to the gates, which were closed. They opened for us automatically, after we said that the places were booked. The girl at reception kindly explained on which side our room-apartment was, but did not accompany us. We went out into the darkness, but found it quickly. Identical two-storey buildings, in each building 4 apartments. ...

After the Irish breakfast (I ate only the scrambled eggs, a little piece of bread and butter, and the sausages fried to blackness and a piece of black pudding I gave to my husband). We returned to our hotel-apartment and I decided to go to the pool. If I get into a pool, I swim and try to swim at least some distance possible for my strength, i.e. I do not sit in the pool — I swam — I got out. Well then I swam and got out, I stand over the pool and think: «Well you, Ira, of course, are quite a piece of work»! An adventuress! Such pools in Europe are like puddles after a downpour! You had to fly by 3 planes, and back still 4 await the return, in order to swim in a pool. ...

Morning, 20 May, 2025. We gathered, went to the local airport in the city of Kristiansand, for the morning local flight at 8.30. The flight to Oslo — 1 hour. I like our local airport. Calm, without fuss, and on the airfield you can see only a couple of planes. I was surprised by one airport employee — a grandma, years toward 80, she came up to us, asked if help was needed with checking in baggage through the machine (we at that time were standing in the queue). And so quickly she helped us check in. I, of course, was very impressed by her age! I think I am the only such «observant» one. Well that is how in Norway they do not use the word «old». Instead of old there is the word «of age». ...

„It was in the evening ….” An ordinary family idyll — each looking into their iPad — wow…. and suddenly the husband spoke, naturally in Norwegian: «And shouldn’t we go, my soul, to Las Vegas?» (you understand yourselves, I make a free translation into my native language, adding tender words of which the Norwegian husband has no notion, because there are no such words in the Norwegian language). «A bit far,» I said, and in the brains «it started knocking Las Vegas = Casino». The husband continued voicing his thought: «Here I found inexpensive tickets, and it isn’t a long flight, shall I order?» I agree. (I have already written that in my soul I am a homebody.) You have to talk yourself into it approximately like this: «Little Red Riding Hood, agree, how old are you? And what have you got there, ahead?» And my husband knooows my homebody thoughts and pronounces: «Well, and when else, if not now, while there is strength?» ...