Chinese acrobats are some of the most incredible performers on Earth. I saw the Golden Dragon Acrobats perform in New York City a couple of years ago, and it just blew my mind. If you get a chance, run, don’t walk, to buy tickets to the performance.

Next to Normal is about manic depression, and while I wouldn’t have thought that a musical would be the best way to discuss such a serious subject, I thought it was a fantastic performance. The music was terrific, there were a couple of totally unexpected plot twists, and it was quite dark and funny to boot. I wish I’d managed to blog about this sooner, because it has already closed.

Jump on the other hand is for the kid in everyone. A Korean family in which every member is essentially a martial arts expert has to deal with two burglars. There’s very little dialogue – the story is told through action and mime, and every cast member is incredibly talented in martial arts, acrobatics, gymnastics, and/or dance. There are some great “special effects,” and it’s absolutely hilarious. If you like The Matrix, Jackie Chan, or the Three Stooges, you should see it. If you love all three, then you won’t want to miss this for the world.

There was dancing, there was singing, there was amazing trick roping, and there was some very funny audience participation. We had a blast – it was definitely one of the highlights of our entire trip.

We also drove back into New Mexico to visit Carlsbad Caverns, which was astonishing. Most of our pictures didn’t come out, and the ones that did don’t begin to do it justice – you really have to see it for yourself.

*Restaurant Cantina Viva Mexico
Pueblito Mexicano, avenida

Lincoln y Zempoala
Auza María Elena E.
C.P. 32310, Ciudad

Juárez
Chihuahua, Mexico
Tel: (656) 629-0156

The B+B owner had told us about a really cool bar in Henderson, so we went over there for a drink. It seems that people either love or hate the Catalan architect Antoní Gaudí. I love him, so it was a real treat to have a drink at the colorful Gaudí Bar.

After that we saw Lance Burton‘s magic show, which was a fun mix of magic, dance, and cheesy acting, and then had dinner with some friends. Stephanie and her husband Keith are dancers whom we met through my French site. Stephanie is a long-time subscriber and, to thank me, about six months ago she gave us tickets to see her perform in Stomp in New York. We met her afterwards for a drink. A few weeks later, she moved to Las Vegas to participate in the new show Stomp Out Loud, so when we decided to take this trip, I called her and we all got together for dinner.

And the petroglyphs are just so weird and cute and interesting. It was a bit cold that day, so we only went for a few short hikes (Petroglyph Canyon / Mouse’s Tank Trail and Atlatl Rock) – the rest of our time was in the car.

That night we saw O, Cirque du Soleil’s water performance. I had thought the tank would be on the stage, that the audience would be below sea level, so to speak, but in fact the pool was below stage. This was our third Cirque du Soleil performance, and as always it was very expensive, but well worth it.