Vegas Part II

I'm pleased to say that I did accomplish one of my goals while there, getting my picture taken with a showgirl. This was at one of the entrances to Harrah's. At one of the other entrances were a couple Chippendales but I declined to get a picture with them. Sure it would have been funny, but not funny enough. I also wanted to get my picture taken with some random woman in front of a wedding chapel, but every one I walked by was deserted. I thought that would be amusing, but no dice. I did see one beautiful woman in a wedding gown getting photos taken in the Wynn, and since there was no groom in site, for a brief moment I considered asking her for a picture but quickly reconsidered. I didn't want to spoil anyone's actual wedding.



One other interesting, or perhaps not so interesting thing I noticed about Vegas is the prevalence of jaywalking. I can't believe people people don't get hit all the time. So many drunk, impatient, or just plain stupid people just step right out into the road without looking or waiting for the signal that I thought for sure some of them would become hood ornaments. It was an interesting study in group dynamics - several people would be standing on the corner waiting for the light to change, but as soon as one idiot started going, a bunch more would follow like lemmings, many of them nearly avoiding getting run over as well. I guess I shouldn't be surprised by that though since there are sheep in every city in this country just standing around waiting for somebody to follow, even if it is a moron.

Enough about that though. I have to say what impressed me most was the sheer size and spectacle of some of the hotels. The New York New York was pretty cool - like being on some New York side streets as far as I know. I enjoyed getting a bite to eat there at the ESPNZone restaurant while watching sports. The Bellagio was one of the most opulent places I've ever been, and the fountains out front were captivating. They were even more amazing from atop the Eiffel Tower across the street at the Paris. It is only about 2/3 scale, but the view is still amazing. Caesar's Palace was my favorite though. I could wander through there for hours. The level of detail is unbelievable - statues, and ornate carvings everywhere. The Venetian was pretty fantastic as well. Street performers and gondola rides aren't to be missed.

As much as I love Egyptology, I was really looking forward to seeing the Luxor, but unfortunately it was a little disappointing. There are some cool faux artifacts, but you can see pretty much everything of interest in 10 or 15 minutes. Treasure Island was disappointing as well. It looks pretty cool from the outside, but there isn't anything worth seeing inside.

One thing I still can't understand is how there are so many run down, flea bag motels off the strip. When you can get a cheap room in one of the hotels on the strip, why would anyone stay in one of those dumps? Somebody must because there are dozens of them. One of these days I'll get around to downloading my pictures and posting them.