Today was their first free day of the whole holiday! No early start, no bags to have ready, no departure time and no optionals to be ready for! What would they do?
Well, first on the list was a lie in! But this was more difficult due to the fact they are up early every day so they waken about the normal time and doze!
Second: go to the pool! Not A's first choice but L was determined to try and get some sun...even though we would not have long and despite the high temperatures! So, off they went! The pool was on the second floor and American pools are are just like European - you have to be there early to get your towel down to book your place! However, this is a pool with a difference! There are 'beds' round the pool that are reserved foraging customers! Double beds! Well, there were no takers at all n the time we were there! Also there were 'gazebos' you could hire that had plush chairs and loungers and also had their own flat screen TV mounted on the wall! And then there was the blonde in the bikini who was the waitress going round getting drinks for the sunbathers who could not manage to go the 5m to the bar to get their own drink!
The pool was crowded with people of all shapes, sizes, colours and language! You could see the ones who thought they were the 'beautiful ones' who strutted round looking cool! Then there were the ones who should know better and NOT dare to venture out in a bikini or swimsuit or trunks! Anyway, after an hour or so and a while in the pool they went off to get ready to go out into the jungle of Vegas!
Today's itinerary was: Visit the Parisian Hotel and go up the Eiffel Tower, go to Caesar's Palace, go to the Mirage Hotel, revisit The Bellagio to buy something Linda had seen in one of their elegant shops, go to Fashion World to try to get a wifi signal and then go to Downtown Vegas to The Freemont Street Experience and...oh yes....go for an all you can eat buffet in our hotel! Simples!
They headed to the Fashion Mall to try and get a wifi signal at the food court. They had a crepes and a drink..but struggled to get a good signal! On the way in there they had met the couple who elaborated their 25th anniversary yesterday and we heard about their day rafting down the Colorado River from the Hoover Dam and then going to The Rat Pack at night! We had slid a card under their door the night before and were thrilled to have got a card on the day! Having eaten and given up on the wifi hunt A suddenly thought they should go to the Apple Store in the mall as they would get a signal there! They did but could not get hold of Kelsey! They spoke to Lauren for a while..but I don't think she asked if they were having fun! But they told her they were anyway!
By the time they got back to the Hotel to drop off the iPad they decided to go for their buffet. This is the signature offering of the hotels and casinos! All you can eat and drink buffets for a reasonable price - so that you will hopefully spend money in the casino and also so you do not have to leave the casino to look for food or other attractions! As they had been to The Legends concert the night before they had got a discount on the price of the buffet! The buffets run all day but are priced differently according to the time of day! The breakfast one runs from midnight (!!!!!) to about 10am, then the lunch one runs from then till about 3pm and the it is dinner from 3pm on till about midnight!
It is NO wonder America has such an obesity problem! They encourage people to go on holiday and sit in darkened rooms gambling for a week or two while drinking cheap alcohol and eating excessive amounts while doing no exercise! The buffet was amazing! Now the Harrahs buffet is nothing special compared to some of the others hotels! They went in and paid their money and were shown to a table! The waitress came with your chosen drink, in this case soft drinks (but for an additional $10 you could drink as much beer or wine as you liked!) and you set off to the buffet to start your feast! L started with some salad! Then it was the man course! You could choose from the meat section, the seafood section, the Chinese section, the Italian section and the salad bar! Then if you wished you could back and fill up once again! In the meantime you could be plied with soft drinks or alcohol as you go! Then there were the desserts. The array of pies, cakes, pastries, cookies, ice cream and a huge selection of exotic looking dishes meant you could literally kill yourself with an overdose of sugar! They both enjoyed their buffet and left feeling totally stuffed but in fact they had been very restrained co pared to some of the people they saw with plates overflowing with food. The waste must be extraordinary and when you know there are so many who go without proper food everyday it was quite depressing in a way.
They headed off and bumped in to one of the couples on the tour in the casino! Well, it took 30 minutes to exchange all the news and stories of the previous two days! They were in the casino while their daughter who is under 21 was showering! They had just returned from their helicopter trip! They went from Vegas to Lake Mead, across Hoover Dam and on to the Grand Canyon before landing in the canyon for champagne and a snack before returning back to Vegas and flying along the Strip. 90 minutes in the chopper - a real experience for them!
So, they headed for Paris and goth heir tickets to group the tower. Luckily it was quiet at this time and they got right through! The tower is about half the size of the original tower in Paris and the fact that the tower is built into the casino and is located right next to the Arc De Triumph (??) made it very interesting. We got into the lift and travelled up to the viewing deck! They got a great view of the Strip and the rest of the city and the surrounding mountains in the desert! You also got an idea of how close the main airport is to the Strip! It literally is about half a mile denied the strip! They took photos and video but because of the wire mesh it was difficult to get a photo of me up there with an interesting background! But I enjoyed the view..but was worried looking through the small peepholes incase I tumbled to the ground below!
Then it was off to The Bellagio! They had been there before but L had seen a very nice bowl in one of their exclusive shops that we were going to buy with some money we had been given to get a present when we were away! So, not only did we get the bowl, but L got to spend Theresa of the day with her exclusive 'Bellagio' bag on display as we went!
Next it was Caesar's Palace! Now this hotel is VAST! It is one of the biggest hotels on the strip and looks like a building from Ancient Rome that you would see in an Asterix book! Again everything was vast and the paintings and sculptures were very classical! L was also taken with the escalator that went down from the higher levels in a spiral! Then we hit the casino area! As ever the machines and tables stretched far into the distance in each direction! They had to walk from one side to the other to get out and on to the next one! So A counted the steps he took just to cut through the middle of the casino! From side to side it was 300 steps!
Now the plan was to go to Downtown Vegas to visit the Freemont Street Experience! This is a little more raw than The Strip but they were told it was well worth a visit? It is too far to walk so they have to take the Deuce Bus! However, it shows you how you fall in to old habits! They eventually get to a stop and stand for a couple of minutes before realising they were n the wrong side of the road! Because they knew they needed to go in the direction they were facing they forgot of course that the vehicles wereon the wrong side of the road. Just habit!
Anyway, they got a bus and got off ate of the last stops! Downtown is a little more 'shabby' than The Strip and the casinos are a little more ' oldy worldish' ' and for the first time in the trip they felt a little bit more cautious! This area is a bit more raw and there were signs of a more 'adult' type entertainment here! Also this was the venue for the worlds largest video presentation screen. A whole street, some 200-300 metres long was covered over with a curved canopy and when evening falls this suddenly becomes a huge screen which bombards the visitors with adverts, information and videos! It was certainly very impressive and eye catching! Added to this was the selection of casinos, shops, street artists and street entertainers! Every sense was bombarded with competing noise and visual mages and there was a very diverse crowd of people to view!
A and L finally succumbed to the temptation of gambling! L needed a seat as it was so hot! So they went in to a casino to get a seat and she played the slot machines! Yes....she put her DOLLAR bill in the machine and played till the credit ran out! In act she cashed in her winnings and has a credit note for all of 19 cents! They decided to keep it as a souvenir instead of going up and asking for the 19 cents! A also had a go in The Golden Nugget casino but he was not quite so lucky with his dollar. But, you win some and you loose some! But in Vegas we think you certainly loose more than you win!
Anyway, they carried on down through the experience! People were crossing their heads constantly on a death slide that ran right along the street. It was 30 or 40 feet in the air but just under the huge canopy that ran along the street with the light show and video presentations! I wanted a shot but there were no other volunteers!
However, the highlight of my night was getting my photo taken with a couple of locals! Up and down the street there were a large number of people dressed in a variety of different costumes for people to have their photos taken with! There were super heroes, muscle men, drag artists, characters from films such as Buzz and Woody or Mickey and Mini Mouse! However, there were some more risqué ones also! They steered clear of the, but there were tow rather nice 'Las Vegas Showgirls'! Well, this was a challenge I could not pass up! Nice again I got A Togo up and ask if I could have my photo taken with the lovely girls! They rooks shine to me and though I was very cute and were delighted to have their photo taken! However, the $5 donation also seemed to help. But, whatnot care! I have my photo with these lovely local ladies! One of the great things about travelling is getting to know the people in the places you visit and I feel that in this situation I proved to be a great ambassador for Scotland! Oh....and they were very cute as well!!
After this they got the bus back to The Strip and had time to visit one more hotel They had not seen yet inside! This was The Mirage and again it was very plush inside! However, the draw to this one was the fish tank in the hotel reception! When I say fish tank, I mean aquarium! The tank was about 40 metres LNG and went from the floor to the ceiling and had thousands of tropical fish swimming in the crystal clear water!
Well, that was enough for them and me and they went back to their room! It was time to get packed up nice again for the off tomorrow! A break of three nights from constant travelling had been great! And three night is Vegas had been an experience! But, they really feel they have had enough here and want to get. The road again. Vegas is everything you are told and expect t to be! Loud! Bright. Brash! Indulgent! Exuberant! Over the top! But, it is interesting and you would never go a minute without seeing something extraordinary or amazing or down right odd or curious.
Would they like to live there? Definitely not!
Would they like to spend longer there? No!
Would they go back again? Probably not!
Would they like to have missed Vegas out of the trip? Certainly not! It has been great fun, tiring, exhilerating and expensive! However, being the typical Aberdonians they are they spent three days in the gambling capital of the world and gambled exactly $2! Oh, and with the credit slip for 19 cents it was really only $1.81!
As they were told on arrival by the tour guide - coming to Vegas to gamble is like taking money and slowly flushing it down the toilet bit by bit!
Well, they have been there, gambled and are ready to move on!
I will update the blog with a selection of photos when we get to Mammoth! Oh, and I will certainly nclude the one of me with the lovely two local girls I met while out in Freemont Street!
Ted!
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