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Published: April 29th 2017
Having had a traditional ( but lovely!) family holiday in Orlando last year we decided to go for another big adventure across the states this year. With a view to covering larger distances and also to keep some variety in the mix, this year we are traveling by internal flights and rail and not driving at all.
Owing to various political factors too numerous ( and not worthy of spoiling my holiday by winding me up!) to mention we estimate the original cost has risen by at least 20% but once committed to the adventure there's no turning back!
In recent discussions we haven't quite been able to recall why we chose to visit Vegas. I suspect iconic status was a big factor. 10 hours into our flight looking out at daylight when my body thought it was about 2 AM and I was seriously questioning our decision! Right then, as if by magic, the clouds cleared and we were treated to the most amazing panoramic view of the mountainous desert north of Vegas. I have never seen such an expanse of land without sign of life. The sun was starting to set and the light across the ridges and valleys was amazing. It almost looked like how I would imagine Mars to look. Just stunning. I was hopeful of a view of the Hoover Dam but we flew directly over it so sadly that wasn't to be. Then, in the distance, was the mass of humanity that is Vegas. As we taxi'd towards arrivals we could see the towering hotels on the strip - all lighting up as daylight faded.
Shattered from our journey but fuelled with adrenaline we took the short ride to our hotel. As I looked out of the window at the distant hills and not so distant neon lights I was struck but the fact that, in the immortal words of The Kaiser Chiefs, I've never been so far away from home!
Las Vegas is genuinely unlike anywhere I have ever been before. Anyone who was kind enough to read about our travels 2 years ago may recall my ramblings about Pigeon Forge in Virginia, a mini strip of neon in the foothills of the beautiful Smokey Mountains. Vegas relegates that to a village high street. We are on the 37th floor of our hotel New York New York, outside of which stands a 3rd scale model of the Statue of Liberty. This in itself sits between an enormous neon sign advertising the Hershy store ( with its own rather impressive chocolate Statue of Liberty) and an Irish bar.
We have now visited most of the more notable hotels on the strip. At each you a greeted by a large floor of slot machines before getting to the gaming tables before finally reaching reception. The noise of the machines is the second thing to hit you. The first thing is the smell is smoke. In just a few years we have become totally unused to the smell of smoke inside communal establishments. Even former smokers like ourselves. It's quite a shock. A friend of mine had warned me before I came but I hadn't realised quite how strongly it would hit me.
Our favourite hotel by far is The Venetian. Outside is the Rialto Bridge and the tower at St Marks. Inside, once past the inevitable casino, is an oasis of calm. A canal flows through small streets of shops housing VERY expensive designer outlets. I know they're expensive because nothing had any price tags on it. For a price ( $129) you can hire a private gondola who will serenade you as he/she paddles you around. For a lower price you can gondola-share. It's all very ambiently lit and the atmosphere is lovely but in case you're wondering no - we didn't indulge!
Also impressive was the musical fountain show at The Belagio. Beautifully choreographed I gave up trying to capture it on film and adopted the more traditional approach of simply watching it!
Vegas is very much a city of 2 halves. There is a LOT of money here. High end designer shops and celebrity chef restaurants predominate the strip with limos a plenty on the road at all times. That I was prepared for. What I wasn't, rather naively I suspect, prepared for was the amount of abject poverty. The homeless are here in abundance, often with issues relating to alcohol evident as well. We heard a shocking story about many of them sleeping in the drainage areas beneath the streets. Vegas can be subject to flash floods and, in the past, many have drowned as a result. It's a stirring sight amongst all the excesses and one that doesn't sit particularly easily with either of us.
I can't sit here in Vegas without talking about the gambling - just wouldn't be right! Now neither of us are big on betting so the casinos aren't a huge draw to us. I admit to finding the gaming tables a bit intimidating even, but the slot machines, well they're a different matter! Each hotel must have at least 100 of these machines in their lobby. They come in many designs - you can play games themed on TV shows and movies from Games of Thrones to Ellen! You can also play poker and roulette etc purely electronically. My favourites are the ones like the old fashioned fruit machines with the cherries, bars and 7s. You can play for 25c at a time and a fiver lasts for ages if you play like I do. You can take out your cash at any time (in the form of a voucher) and play on a different machine with it. There are people here spending a lot of money on these machines and there is something very sad about the sight of someone sat unsmiling repeatedly pushing buttons at 8 AM, but these two guests are having great fun eking out our allocated budget in a very non-Vegas way!
Our sponsor is enjoying a well-earned rest right now. We've walked miles in the brief time we've been here already and Vegas is certainly quite a tiring place to visit! He promises his usual contribution before we leave this incredible city so with that note I thank you if you have taken the time to read all of this and will be back with more in the next couple of days.
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Andrew Smith
non-member comment
Ongi Ibili - travel well.
Good to hear that you’re on your travels again. I’m looking forward to the British insights into the United States of Trump. Whilst I love the literature and the music of the United States I’m quite content to stay in Euskal Herria and enjoy a vicarious trip. In reality I’d find it all too too scary! Give me the lambs gambolling not the sheep gambling... You describe Las Vegas as a city of two halves, the very rich and the abjectly poor. My guess is that you’ll see a lot of that but it’s not a situation unique to America. All the developed capitalist countries seem to have such divides. What a good idea travelling by air and rail - my guess is that you’ll meet lots of people that way; let’s hear what they have to say... Best wishes for the 2017 adventure, Drew