Literally, we did do these things. And we both agreed that the unplanned Valley of Fire side trip, which is a Nevada state park about an hour north of the city, was a favorite. Though I guess you can see some of the metaphorical possibilities, no?
We finally did get to see Las Vegas in the final few days of our trip out here–lucking out on the return of sunny, temperate weather. Besides a morning of hearing a timeshare sales pitch (quite the experience) and some hours of school work, three days was about right.
Bellagio Fountains
Vegas and the Las Vegas Boulevard (the Strip) is different than the city in the day. Great to see the Bellagio fountains in the evening and to have a bite to eat and a drink under the Eiffel Tower of the Paris casino. A lot smokier than I thought it’d be though (with the indoor casinos being pretty cigarette-user heavy) and a bit sadder with the sidewalks in different areas of the Strip liberally littered with ads and playing-sized cards of women–with text promising that you, too, could have a guest in your room in under 20 minutes.
Casinos in Evening
The MGM Grand
During the day? A bit lighter. Seeing some of the insides of the mega-resorts (the lion cubs at the MGM and such) and walking in and out of stores. A quick trip north on the Strip to see the Gold and Silver Pawn shop from the Pawn Stars TV show. A later drive to see the Fremont Street Experience (which was basically a street of smaller casinos with some street concert areas, little souvenir stores and a canopy projection screen that extended a few street blocks).
Messing at the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop
Fremont Sreet Experience
And how about the serendipitous trip to the Valley of Fire state park? We were aiming for the closer Red Rock Canyon but somehow or another, we drove out a bit too long in the opposite direction. It couldn’t have turned out better. A compensatory stop at a reservation gas station for some hot dogs. A bit of hiking and rock scrambling. Tucking ourselves into sandstone caves and petroglyph spotting. The landscape just invites you in.
Driving into Valley of Fire State Park
Exploring the Beehives
Window Through Sandstone Cave to Desert
Petroglyphs of the Anasazi
And a final evening in the city. We did blow through $100 of the promotional chips that we got from sitting through the sales pitch the previous day. It took all of two minutes. No joke. Kind of pathetic and laughable at the same time. We had much better luck with doing some blackjack on our own dime at another table. Lucking out with a friendly and extremely helpful table dealer at the Flamingo who pretty much told us when to hold, when to double-down and all those other mysteries. We came out positive about $30, thank you very much. And with a classic prime rib dinner end at a throwback red-plushed and low-lighted steakhouse tucked in the Bill’s Gamblin’ Hall & Saloon casino next door? Perfect.
Vegas, Day and Night, and A Trip to the Valley Of Fire
Literally, we did do these things. And we both agreed that the unplanned Valley of Fire side trip, which is a Nevada state park about an hour north of the city, was a favorite. Though I guess you can see some of the metaphorical possibilities, no?
We finally did get to see Las Vegas in the final few days of our trip out here–lucking out on the return of sunny, temperate weather. Besides a morning of hearing a timeshare sales pitch (quite the experience) and some hours of school work, three days was about right.
Bellagio Fountains
Vegas and the Las Vegas Boulevard (the Strip) is different than the city in the day. Great to see the Bellagio fountains in the evening and to have a bite to eat and a drink under the Eiffel Tower of the Paris casino. A lot smokier than I thought it’d be though (with the indoor casinos being pretty cigarette-user heavy) and a bit sadder with the sidewalks in different areas of the Strip liberally littered with ads and playing-sized cards of women–with text promising that you, too, could have a guest in your room in under 20 minutes.
Casinos in Evening
The MGM Grand
During the day? A bit lighter. Seeing some of the insides of the mega-resorts (the lion cubs at the MGM and such) and walking in and out of stores. A quick trip north on the Strip to see the Gold and Silver Pawn shop from the Pawn Stars TV show. A later drive to see the Fremont Street Experience (which was basically a street of smaller casinos with some street concert areas, little souvenir stores and a canopy projection screen that extended a few street blocks).
Messing at the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop
Fremont Sreet Experience
And how about the serendipitous trip to the Valley of Fire state park? We were aiming for the closer Red Rock Canyon but somehow or another, we drove out a bit too long in the opposite direction. It couldn’t have turned out better. A compensatory stop at a reservation gas station for some hot dogs. A bit of hiking and rock scrambling. Tucking ourselves into sandstone caves and petroglyph spotting. The landscape just invites you in.
Driving into Valley of Fire State Park
Exploring the Beehives
Window Through Sandstone Cave to Desert
Petroglyphs of the Anasazi
And a final evening in the city. We did blow through $100 of the promotional chips that we got from sitting through the sales pitch the previous day. It took all of two minutes. No joke. Kind of pathetic and laughable at the same time. We had much better luck with doing some blackjack on our own dime at another table. Lucking out with a friendly and extremely helpful table dealer at the Flamingo who pretty much told us when to hold, when to double-down and all those other mysteries. We came out positive about $30, thank you very much. And with a classic prime rib dinner end at a throwback red-plushed and low-lighted steakhouse tucked in the Bill’s Gamblin’ Hall & Saloon casino next door? Perfect.