 If you make the trip to one of the world's most colorful cities, Las Vegas, make sure to rent a car for a day and explore one of these amazing places off the strip. In addition to these places written about before, there are TWO more MUST see places just a few hours drive from the lights and glitz.   First one being Nevada's largest ghost town of Rhyolite, near the eastern edge of Death Valley. Once upon a time, in 1904, Rhyolite got its start as a bustling mining town with a population of over 10,000. A train station, post office, school, saloons, and a bank once occupied the space until the financial panic of 1907. The crisis took its toll and abruptly seized the town's short-lived prosperity with businesses shutting down and taking most of the population with them. Today, what still remains are concrete remnants and a bittersweet reminder of what many small towns currently face across the U.S. with the continuing shift in our global economy.  Cook Bank: One of the most impressive ruins is Cook Bank. Built in 1908, the three-story building, which housed the post office in the basement cost $90,000 to build (equivalent to $2,360,000 in 2015). Impressive for its time, the building had electric lights, steam heating, and marble floors. Overbury Ruins: Erected in 1907, the once standing business building cost $45,000 to build.      LV & T Depot: Las Vegas & Tonopah depot is one of the few complete buildings left standing, erected in 1909 and privately owned by the Bureau of Land Management. There were a total of three railroads that served the town. The LV&T sent the first passenger train into Rhyolite in 1906. Later the T&T Railroad would pass through the outskirts of town. There are currently plans to restore the Depot as the ruins are currently fenced off.    Kelly Bottle House: The one building still standing today is a once saloon owner Tom Kelly's Bottle House erected in 1906 and made from 10,000 beer bottles. The three room bottle house was built with the intention to raffle it off. The house served as a family residence for many years. The house was restored in 1925 by Paramount pictures for filming purposes.     After walking around the ruins in the scorching desert heat, we decided to stop by Mel's Diner in Beatty, NV for the most delicious and much needed chocolate milkshake to tame the hangry monster.   For the second MUST see Nevada destination, check out the next posting on one fiery touristy spot just an hour away from the Las Vegas Strip…
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