Las Vegas…the home of gambling, nightlife and buffets. Before heading to Manitoba for our annual visit, Dave and I had a 10 day detour planned that involved seeing two of our good friends get married in Sin City. Vegas was quite a change from the usual travelling we do (everyone speaks English there, for one…), so I thought it would be fun to write about our experiences.
Dave and I arrived in Vegas on a hot summer afternoon. I suppose that is a little repetitive, because “Vegas” and “hot” are fairly synonymous! The temperature was averaging around 40-45 degrees Celsius while we were there, with 5-10% humidity! My hair wouldn’t curl, my lips were so chapped they were bleeding and I was pounding back water like it was going out of style. Vegas took some getting used to…
Luckily for me, Dave had a lot of work to do so we were able to stay inside (with the AC on!) until about 5pm every day. I don’t handle heat well, so I was more than happy to spend the time indoors, prepping for next semester. As the afternoon came to a close, we’d leave our apartment and head out to see the sights…and the lights!
Las Vegas….home of Heat, Sights and Lights!
Neither Dave or I are really into gambling (I hate seeing my money disappear without at least making an awesome memory…), but we still spent our fair share of time in the casinos. They are far more spectacular than I expected them to be, and I have to admit, I enjoyed them much more than I thought I would. The architecture at Caesar’s Palace was out of this world, and the canals along the Venetian were gorgeous.
And of course, no trip to Vegas is complete without a stop by the Belagio (and its fountains!). We stopped by the fountains a few times. They’re just so beautiful! The hotel is also quite nice, although we didn’t spend a tonne of time going through it.
We did spend a bit of time in New York New York (yes…twice), but not so much for the casino as for for the show we saw there…
Las Vegas: home of Show girls, Show-offs and Shows!
With so many different shows to see in Vegas, it’s nearly impossible to choose just one! Celine Dion, Brittany Spears and Donny and Marie Osmond all have permanent residencies there, and there are countless other musical performances coming and going out of Vegas in any given month. While we were there we saw ads for everyone from the Backstreet Boys, to Elton John, to Mariah Carey.
And if music isn’t what you’re into, you can see comedians, magicians, dancers and so much more! Blue Man Group is a popular show, and David Copperfield tickets sell for big bucks! There are also exhibits to see, such as Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum, The Bodies Exhibit and a sort of museum full of artifacts from the Titanic.
Of course, you can’t talk about Vegas without bringing up one particular group of performers that defy gravity and wow audiences all over the world. Cirque de Soleil has 6 shows that run in Vegas daily. Dave and I always loved going to see Cirque when they came through Winnipeg when we lived in Manitoba, so I got smart and bought him tickets to a show for his birthday! There were so many to choose from, but ultimately, I chose Zumanity, because it was the most ‘Vegasy’ of the shows we could have seen. Cirque did not let us down. We loved the show and wished we’d had the time (and money!) to have seen Ka or O as well. Maybe the opportunity will arise some time in the future. I sure hope so!
Freemont is also a great stop if you want a fun time. There are free concerts there all the time. The night we arrived, Anne Wilson was performing, but we missed it because Jet Lag sucks. The night we were down on Freemont, Good Charlotte was playing. There are plenty of other things to do on Freemont as well. You can stop and take photos with buskers, see contortionists and even zipline above the historic road!
There you have it: Vegas: Home of bright lights, a surplus of shows and hellish heat. We had a great time during our week there, and our road trip was even better! Stay tuned for more on that!