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Guide to the Vegas Summerlin Area

Your Guide to the Vegas Summerlin Area

October 27, 2022 / / 0 Comments

Vegas is a city that never sleeps, with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reporting over 32 million visitors in the past year. Apart from the glitz and glamor of the most popular tourist areas, Vegas is also a place where you can find a peaceful oasis if you know where to look.

The Vegas Summerlin area is one of those spots, with quiet neighbourhoods and tranquil parks that offer a break from the hustle and bustle of the city. Today, we have compiled all the basics you need to know for your next visit to Summerlin:

Where is Summerlin?

Summerlin is a master-planned community in Las Vegas, Nevada. It has been steadily growing since it was founded in 1990. It is located in the southwestern part of the Las Vegas Valley and is just minutes away from Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area and the Spring Mountains. Summerlin is home to more than 150,000 residents and hosts many parks and recreation areas. It offers more than 33 miles of trails and a variety of activities for visitors from all over the world.

When is the best time to go to Summerlin?

The best time to visit the Vegas Summerlin area is during the months of April through October. During the summer months, temperatures in Las Vegas can soar above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, which can be quite warm. However, these months are also when you will find the most events taking place in Summerlin, such as the annual Summer Concert Series held from June to July. The shoulder months of spring and fall offer the most moderate weather and the lowest prices for hotels and activities.

What are the best places to visit in Summerlin?

1. Downtown Summerlin Shopping Center

Downtown Summerlin Shopping Center is located at the corner of Town Center Drive and Pavilion Center Drive in downtown Las Vegas. Here, you can shop from more than 30 designer boutiques and department stores. You can get fashion belts from Ed Hardy at Macy’s, clothes from Kenneth Cole at Nordstrom Rack, and shoes from Steve Madden at Dillard’s. After your shopping spree, you can also find a wide selection of restaurants for lunch or dinner.

2. Red Rock Resort

The Red Rock Resort is a Station Casinos-brand property in Summerlin, offering world-class luxury amenities such as large pools, spa treatments, and delectable dining options. It is also home to one of the most underrated poker rooms in Las Vegas, which mainly attracts a local crowd. The low-stakes games and tournaments here on the weekends are exciting because the players are primarily beginners, attracting those who want a feel of poker. It also offers other entertainment options, such as live concerts and shows.

3. Harlo’s Steakhouse and Bar

Harlo’s Steakhouse and Bar is a Summerlin staple serving delicious steak and seafood dishes with an eclectic twist. Their menu offers small plates like tuna tartare and fried calamari to main dishes like lamb chops and ribeye steak. They also have a great selection of wines by the glass or bottle. It’s no wonder why they’ve kept a steady reputation as one of Summerlin’s top restaurants.

4. Rampart Casino

The Rampart Casino is owned by the JW Marriott group, one of the world’s largest hotel chains. Located near Summerlin’s residential areas, this casino is popular among locals and Marriott members. It has over 1,445 slot machines, 70 table games, and a poker room. It also features a food court with more than ten different dining options that offer everything from pizza to Chinese cuisine. Rampart Casino opened in 2002 and has since become a hub for gaming and entertainment.

The Summerlin area offers a variety of options for those who want to enjoy their time outside the usual attractions in Las Vegas. The weather, the activities, and the location make it an ideal place to visit if you’re looking to find a short escape from the city on your next Vegas trip.

Music

African Musical Instruments

July 10, 2022 / / 0 Comments

Indigenous African musical and dance expressions are maintained by oral tradition. This is stylistically different from the music and dance of the Arabic cultures of North Africa and the western population of southern Africa.

Traditions give emphasis to singing being used as an avenue of communication. Many African languages are tone languages, that is, pitch and level determine to mean. The melodies and rhythms of the songs follow the intonations, contours and rhythms of the song texts.

To accompany the singing and dancing, the indigenous people of Africa have developed a variety of African musical instruments as set out below:

Drums

* The Moropa drum was found amongst the Pedi and the Shona

* The Ngoma drum originated in Uganda

* Traditional drums were hand carved from the trunks of old-growth hardwood trees

* They had rawhide heads held by hardwood pegs

* Hand percussion instruments

Claves

* This is a musical instrument of Africa are made of 2 turned rods of tempered Sneezewood

* It is played by striking one with the other to produce a click.

* These have a lower sound

* These musical instruments of Africa are made from hollow turned Kiaat wood and have a Meranti wood beater

* They produce a warm ‘thock’ sound

Tone Blocks

* This sounds like the traditional temple blocks

* It has a tempered Sneezewood sounding board on a tuned Kiaat sound box

* It’s supplied with a turned Sneezewood beater

Shakers

* These are woven and incorporate a hardboard disk

* They produce 2 distinctive and contrasting sounds

Nyanga Pan Pipes

* These are 4 instruments

* They were called Nyanga by the Nyunwe people

* Playing them involves blowing and singing interlocking rhythmic patterns while dancing intricate steps

Xhosa Uhadi Bows

o This requires a shift in western, musical perceptions

o The scale is built up from harmonic series which come from the overtones of 2 fundamental notes played on a single string

o The overtones are separated and made louder by changing the position of the instrument

o It looks like a bow with a gourd attached

These are only some of the African musical instruments. There are many more originating from various tribes. Among these are the Akadinda, or xylophone as it is known in Western society, the mucapata or thumb piano, whistles made by the Nuna people, the harp originating from the Zanda people, and the Kudu Horns. Africa has a rich and varied musical culture.

Climbing Tips

6 Simple Climbing Tips to Enhance your Climbing Skills

June 28, 2021 / / 0 Comments

Most people view climbing as an adventure when it is much more than that. To be successful at climbing and to do gravity-defying tasks, you need to view climbing as a form of art that needs to be practiced and perfected rather than just taking it as an adventure. For beginners who are just starting to learn climbing, here are a number of tips which can help you understand how to excel at climbing and can help you improve and enhance your climbing skills.

1. Focus on Technique Rather than Strength

Most climbers think that upper body strength especially your muscular strength matters the most in climbing and that if someone is powerful, climbing would come naturally. This isn’t exactly true. If you really want to master climbing then your focus should be on climbing techniques rather than strength as you will gain strength automatically when you will practice but you will never be able to learn climbing techniques if you will only focus on gaining strength.

2. Perfect the Basics

Many climbers think that once they have scaled a certain type of terrain once, they don’t need to do it again. And this is why many climbers fail at really excelling. If you want to enhance your climbing skills and want to be able to scale some high rocks, it’s important that you perfect your basics and learn your trade by climbing a certain rock a number of times. There is no point in moving to more difficult heights if you aren’t sure about your foot movement or hand positioning or grips etc on a rock that is lesser in height and has an easier terrain.

3. Analyze Your Situation before Making a Move

Climbing is not all about foot movement and grips, a lot of it is related with the brain too. You must take some time in analyzing the rock and the best course for climbing before making your first move. Once you will have analyzed the course and thought it all out, you will find climbing to be rather easy. It’s also important to keep a calm head when climbing so that if and when you aren’t able to follow your course, you are mentally prepared to reanalyze your situation and chart a new course from there on in.

4. Invest in High-Quality Shoes

Climbers feel that shoes which are comfortable for them are often good enough for climbing. While this may be true for indoor climbing but is far from the truth as far as rock climbing is concerned. If you want to be able to ensure that your foot movement is perfect and if you want to be able to use every part of your foot in order to help you gain balance and footholds, then you should be investing in a high-quality pair of shoes. The shoes don’t need to be too tight but shouldn’t be too loose either.

5. Try Balancing Yourself on Bad Footholds

When climbing indoors, it’s important that you give yourself targets on climbing over footholds which are poor so as to ensure that you gain the strength needed to be able to navigate poor footholds. Footholds which are rough and are difficult to stand on would help you use muscles which you wouldn’t have used before and using these muscles would at the end strengthen them further.

6. Don’t Stop at Each Hold

Many beginners start overanalyzing the route and over think when choosing the next foothold and the next handhold. You must understand that climbing is very similar to dancing as you have to continue to move consistently if you want to make progress. So, it’s important that you keep pushing yourself to move fluidly and to not stop at every possible hold. This doesn’t mean that you don’t stop at all however; you must rest after every few minutes and analyze your situation.

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