Las Vegas – Day One

Wow.

Just wow.

I’ve seen Las Vegas on TV and in the movies, but nothing prepares you for it in person. It’s kinda like the polar opposite of the Grand Canyon.

We left Flagstaff early yesterday and had a nice drive over. Driving over the Hoover Dam was amazing; we didn’t stop but I got a few pictures (just not of the dam itself.) It boggles the mind and really filled me with a little old fashioned American Pride. See what we can accomplish when we work together for a common goal? This one construct not only helped the economy at the time but has allowed many peoples the opportunity to live in areas out here that were much less hospitable and generates continual income as a tourist attraction. Neat!

Now, the other thing we get when we all ‘work together’ is what Las Vegas is all about. Sin City is an appropriate nickname on several levels. First off, Indi and I got waylaid by some timeshare folks right in the door of the hotel. Dubiously disguised as hotel employees, they fast talked us into some $40 commitment to a presentation. I’ve been to one of these before, in Tulsa. Indi was great, though; as soon as we talked through what happened to us she got our money back…by talking another couple into signing up. Crazy one, that girl. But no harm, no foul. Lesson learned.

We spent the majority of the rest of the day tourist walking. So many fantastic buildings and amazing sights it’s difficult to summarize. I took some pictures, but many of them didn’t turn out like I wanted them to. We got about halfway down the strip before we cabbed back to the hotel. We did manage to see the fountains at Bellagio (wonderful!) the volcano at the Mirage (neat-o) and the Pirate show at Treasure Island (lame). I crashed about 1 AM (I have little interest in gambling) but the others played away till 3:30 or so.

This morning, I got up and wandered around our hotel. The Stratosphere tower is magnificent and has a breathtaking view but aside from that I’m not happy. The service isn’t that great and NO ONE knows what’s going on. A waiter today told me that Goldman Sachs bought it out a few months ago and everything is in the process of changing; as an example, all restaurant menus change totally on Saturday. Whee. So I guess it’s not really their fault.

Today is more restful; we did a LOT of walking yesterday. I still want to sightsee but I may be alone in that venture. I’ll be sure to upload any cool pics on Flickr as always.