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Published: June 16th 2010
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Hoover Dam
This is the river/lake side of the dam, before getting onto the actual dam itself. April 19--After leaving the Grand Canyon I took the highway toward Hoover Dam. As many of you may know, they are building a new bridge over the river and it is supposed to be finished later on this year. It looked to me like they may be on schedule. It is an engineering wonder, just like the dam itself! I drove across the dam and am glad I had the chance. I don't know if once the new bridge is open if people will be allowed to drive on the dam or not. As you will see from the pictures, the new bridge is high. I don't know what people are going to do that have a fear of high bridges--take the long way around, I guess.
I had two major disappointments while here. I did not get to see the southern, famous view of the dam which shows its height. All the access roads were blocked due to the construction. I also wanted to take a helicopter tour over the dam, the gorge and the lake, but missed the last ride by minutes. The wind had picked up and they canceled any more rides for the day. Darn!!!
Dam Driving
Driving on the Hoover Dam. Driving on, I found Nellis Air Force Base just outside of Las Vegas. I planned to stay three nights at the family camp on base in order to have two days to see Vegas. The base is huge. I got lost on it twice. The RV park is very nice, though.
April 20—I didn't want to drive the RV around Vegas and try and find parking, so I decided to take the city bus in from the base. I didn't realize just how far out the base was! It was a two hour bus ride downtown!
I must say Las Vegas is everything everyone says it is. Lights, color, energy, action, people and noise. Lots of noise!! Every casino, store and cafe has loud music spilling out into the streets. Add to that, the noise of traffic-- lots of it-- and the voices of people talking, shouting, laughing etc. My ears felt assaulted and I'm half deaf!!
I rode the bus all the way to the end of the most glamorous part of the Strip, to the Mandalay and Luxor Casinos and hotels and started walking back. I don't know how many miles I walked, but at
least three if not more. Especially as I took side trips through several of the hotels to see the inside. As usual, I met some of the nicest people, especially on the bus. One lady gave me her Eiffel Tower ticket saying she decided she didn't like heights. (Guess she'll never visit the Grand Canyon or drive the new bridge at Hoover Dam, lol)
Since I like just about anything Egyptian, I admired the exterior design of the Luxor hotel and, naturally, took a lot of photos. The Egyptian statues fit right in with the palm trees and desert area of the area. I was disappointed on the interior, however. They didn't have much of an Egyptian look there—just a big hotel lobby and lots of slots. (I lost $2.00.)
Everybody I talked to said to be sure to see the Bellagio. I heartily agree. I think it is the most beautiful hotel in the city—both inside and out. The interior is not only luxurious looking but filled with flowers—both artificial and real. They are on the walls, the ceiling, arrangements on every table and desk. In the huge atrium there are more flowers of every color and
Under the New Bridge
Taken from the window of the RV. The angle across the upper right corner is the overhang on the RV. Talk about a high bridge!! variety. It is simply breathtaking. In front of the hotel is a small lake with many fountains. I got to see them “play” in time to music only briefly. I had also heard they put on a colored light show at night. Unfortunately, the wind was so bad this afternoon, they had to turn the fountains off. Caesar's Palace was beautiful with a decidedly Greek/Italian look with lots of beautiful statues. I loved the New York-New York exterior. I felt like I was there!
The Venetian was another favorite of mine. There is a canal which starts outside the hotel and runs through it. One can take a gondola ride and even have the gondolier sing while s/he poles along. I spent almost an hour in one area of the hotel listening to several singers do a scene from an opera. They were dressed in gorgeous, colorful medieval costumes and did an excellent job! I did not recognize the opera, though. Paris Las Vegas was also great. The Eiffel Tower base take up a large area of the middle of the hotel. I was so ready to take a ride to the top, but the heavy winds of the
Luxor
The pyramid and replical of Tutenkaman at the Luxor Hotel and Casino. day spoiled my plans again. Ditto the pirate show usually scheduled in the evenings at Treasure Island. I consoled myself by having a French cooked meal at the Paris.
Most of the casinos also have many shops, most of them very expensive. I took some pictures of some of the shops like Prada and Tiffany's. You can buy anything you want in Las Vegas.
I stayed until early evening so I could see all the lights. I stood on one of several walkway bridges across the busy street and watched them as they came on. It was a dazzling sight, especially the Eiffel Tower. There were so many different casinos I could have gone into, but by night time I was pretty tired. I decided to take a cab back to the base, rather than ride the bus at night. It was expensive, but worth it. I was exhausted from walking, sightseeing and all the noise. I loved seeing Las Vegas, but sure wouldn't want to live there.
April 21—I elected not to go back into the city. Today is one of the few times in my travels I wished for a car. There were other things
Excalibur Casino
They do the Medieval shows in this hotel. I would like to have seen. I would have splurged to see a Follies Begiere show. (I know I spelled that wrong, couldn't find it in the dictionary!), visit the Liberace Museum, the Shark Reef at the Mandalay, etc., etc. Las Vegas is definitely more than a one day stop. However, I didn't want to face the noise and the crowds again, or the long bus ride, so I just stayed at the base and did housekeeping things, like laundry. Besides, the wind was still blowing up a storm, so the fountains and the Eiffel Tower were still out.
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Kathy
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Vegas
Martha, I have to tell you, I now want to go to Vegas. Your description of everything there is to see and do did it for me! Love the pics too. Hope you are still enjoying your trip.