What happens in Vegas...

Las Vegas is exactly what it looks like in the movies. I wouldn't wanna live there, but it was great fun for five nights. It's probably the only place we visited that seemed better for having the Spring Break crowds. Though unfortunately that meant there weren't any of the $25 hotel rooms Vegas is known for.

We found a cheap place at the northern end of The Strip, right next to three wedding chapels and classy joints like "Precious Slut III" (I'm still not sure what they do there). Ok, so our place may have been a dive. But it was close to where we wanted to be, and we knew what we were in for before we arrived, so it was fine. (Well, except for the free internet which never seemed to be working and is the reason this blog got a few days behind).

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but here are some highlights:

- The endless supply of free cocktails. We could have three in the time it took us to lose a dollar on 1c Blackjack.
- The Forum Shops, where it's always daytime.
- The Fountains at The Bellagio

- The ridiculous displays of excess as each casino tries to get the winning edge on luxury

This is a famous painting recreated with real flowers at the Bellagio. There's so much stuff like this around that it's barely even notable!

The waterfall outside the Wynn. It has a nightclub, Tryst, behind it.

- Going up the Stratosphere and the Eiffel Tower

View of The Strip from the Stratosphere.

- Madame Tussauds on the day Elizabeth Taylor died

- The rooftop club at Rio
- The indoor theme park at Circus Circus
- The American Idol pokie machine where we doubled our money.
- Cheap food

These nachos were $5!

And some lowlights:

- Dropping Paul off at an art gallery for three hours that turned out to be closed. (with a website that bad it's no wonder!)
- A Power Pass we had loved in Hawaii that turned out to be a total waste of money in Vegas; the land of the free lunch
- A failing comedian/magician in an oversized suit who seemed incapable of anything but rope and card tricks (but then, you have to see one of those in Vegas, right?)
- Seeing people gamble their lives away while corporations (the gangsters of the 21st century) profit off it.

We loved Vegas, but were definitely ready to leave at the end.


AA