Homewood Live Cam

Virginia City, a popular Reno-Tahoe day trip, is the liveliest ghost town in the West. Born of the Comstock silver bonanza of 1859, Virginia City's riches built San Francisco and financed the Union during the Civil War.

Today visitors can experience the excitement of the rowdy boomtown which lured powerful bankers and humble miners, sophisticated courtesans and common harlots, and even a journalist named Samuel Clemens who later became known by his pen name, Mark Twain.

Two tours, the Virginia and Truckee Railroad steam train and the Virginia City Tours trolley ride, provide an informative introduction to Virginia City's vibrant history. The mine tours take visitors beneath the streets for a brief examination of the more than 750 miles of tunnels where miners worked in temperatures in excess of 120 degrees. Several museums exhibit mining artifacts, gambling devices, mementos of the red light districts and writings of Mark Twain.

Mark Twain had once said that "out of the public school grows the greatness of a nation." Perhaps the inspiration for this observation was the Fourth Ward School, which journalists in 1876 called the pride and glory of the Comstock in tribute to its advanced architectural features. The building now houses an exhibit of the history and culture that embodied the spirit of the Old West.

Other historic attractions include the mansions where the rich and powerful bonanza kinqs resided. A tour of the Mackay Mansion, Savage Mansion and the Castle offers a glimpse into the opulence of the era: Oriental rugs, Italian marble, linen lace from Brussels, Czechoslovakian rock crystal and, of course, table settings created from the silver mined beneath the homes.

The lapidary, antique, jewelry and dozens of other gift and souvenir shops on "C" Street, the main street, are filled with treasures for visitors who want to take a reminder of Virginia City home with them.

The honky-tonk piano sound beckons thirsty visitors into the saloons which dispense drinks as well as a dose of history. During its heyday, Virginia City was dubbed "the drinkin'est town in the West," a reputation established by the drunken miner who named the town.

Today, the grand mahogany bars, crystal chandeliers, artwork and antiques are reminiscent of an elegance which survived in a town whose hallmark was crudity.

The ghost town is always lively, but especially so during the annual International Camel Races in September. The most popular event of the year, the races originated after a fictitious report of such an event appeared in the local paper.

A trip to Virginia City should end with a visit to the cemeteries on the edge of town. The stories behind the crumbling headstones tell of the hardships and danger which characterized the lives of early Virginia City residents: women who died in childbirth and men killed in duels and barroom brawls. For the reputable and the disreputed alike, the cemeteries preserve the peace and respect granted to those who created the legacy of Virginia City.

Reno's Stadium Designed To "Bowl You Over"

From the moment a gigantic glass revolving door reveals the 56-foot-high foyer ceiling, marble floor and hundreds of silk Forest Ferns, Cordilyne and English Ivy cascading from planters on every level -- it's clear the National Bowling Stadium in Reno is exceptional. You can choose between sleek glass elevators, or escalators to whisk you to upper floors where you'll get your first glimpse of the dahlia and royal blue carpeting, lush, padded banquettes and comfortable chairs. "Make no mistake about it, this is a bowling stadium" said Reg Pearson, director of the new facility. "One look will tell you it's state-of-the art."

The 80 championship lanes feature the latest technology available. The 44-foothigh ceiling over the tournament level creates an ethereal atmosphere. The 450-foot-long high-tech video scoring system and a video wall 16-feet high and 16-feet wide are capable of instant replays and can feature sponsor messages between games. Screens, eight feet high and 11-feet-wide over each pair of lanes are controlled by computer and can be joined to show one continuous image of unbelievable quality from one end of the stadium to the other. It's the longest video display system in the world.

Immense florescent tubes in hues from mauve to blue, at each end of the tournament floor, provide a complementary tone. A theater housed in the dome atop the National Bowling Stadium features a specially produced film on a huge screen. The presentation is designed to introduce visitors to the special events and attractions the Reno and Lake Tahoe area has to offer. Ruby's diner, a 1940s-themed restaurant, will provide full meals on the first floor of the stadium and snack items and cocktails at concession stands on the tournament level.

The Stadium Sports Shop, equipped with a fully functioning bowling lane for private lessons. A camera is mounted above the lane to track the ball for instant replay. The shop features a variety of National Bowling Stadium merchandise.

Even the building's exterior is aesthetically pleasing. The three-level parking garage is tiered and landscaped with its foliage illuminated. Thousands of feet of fiber optic lighting on the exterior of the domed theater will wash the dome with changing colors from top to bottom.