Bright Lights of Las Vegas

Culture Shock! It's the only way I can think of to explain what it felt like to go from a gold camp in the Mojave Desert where the only light after sunset came from the stars in the heavens above to Las Vegas. In the desert, it was essentially dark. It was quiet. It was peaceful. But Las Vegas? It is bright, maybe brighter at night than it is during the day. It is loud. It is busy with the hustle and bustle of people and cabs and come-ons and airplanes that, despite any talk of a poor economy make non-stop landings and take-offs from the airfield not too far off The Strip. It is exciting. Stimulating. Awe-inspiring. A tribute to the excesses of mankind. An over the top look at the wild side of the world that has nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with what is truly wild and natural. Still, I am glad to have seen this. Once! And I guess I should acknowledge that I have probably logged more miles walking up and down the strip, taking pictures and looking aghast at the sights than any other "hike" I have ever made. There isn't the Grace- but it is an Amazing place. A slow Sunday night here has the tendency to make New Year's Eve in Times Square seem like "Time Out."

A couple comments in review if you will permit it:

We got a seat with only a short wait at the Rainforest Cafe at MGM Grand. We have never been able to wait the wait in any other city to give it a try. It was OK. Which after all the hype makes it a bummer. It wasn't bad. It just wasn't all that good. And for sure it wasn't great. Oh well. Been there, done that. Every time I make a comment about "food" on the road and on the blog, my dad thinks I eat more than I do anything else. Wrong! And I'm nothing of a food critic. But I eat three a day like the rest of you, so if I lay out good money for something cooked other than by my "honey", who is a consistently good provider of three squares a day that are fun to eat, than I'm gonna have something to say about it- end of report!

The Trump Tower, whether you love or loathe "The Donald", is simply amazing. It's like the tallest, most magnificent gold nugget ever! It shines and shimmers in even the slightest amount of sunlight and sends shimmers and shivers up and down the strip. It towers over everything, and seeing that alone was worth the price of admission. Maybe I'll try out for The Apprentice next time around!

We wandered into a few casinos if for no other reason than to see the splendor and opulence that they put inside to match or exceed what they built outside. My fishing pal, Who I love dearly, Captain "Lucky" Larry, from Cape Coral, FL, will never understand this, but I never placed a single bet. A) I didn't want to lose anything. And B) I don't have a clue how to play those games. And C) The stock market, which I DO understand, is scary enough! And D) I'm already losing money in the things I do understand. Larry would have made a bet. Larry would have won. It's just what he does. You go, Cap! I'm pulling out of this town with a no win, no loss record......and that suits me just fine.

I can't remember if I ever really liked Donnie and Marie or not, but I don't think I did. Not a whole lot anyhow. But they are the clear winners in Vegas. They are not on the electronic and neon sign boards (that can be changed at the moment's notice) - they are flat out painted on the biggest buildings in town from top to bottom. If Marie were to lose 15 pounds on Slim Fast, the building would get smaller too! It would take a wrecking ball to eliminate them. What ever happened to Wayne Newton? Dancing With The Stars finished him or what??? Volare! Oh Oh.

The Volcano Eruption at the Mirage was probably my favorite "thing" on the Strip. Coming from a guy who survived nine full blown hurricanes, two of them Cat 5, some nearby twisters in the Plains, and Lord knows how many mega snow storms in New England, this is probably a strange choice, but I knew this one would come on at 8:00 PM and be over and done with 15 minutes later .....and that me and my woman and my camera would all be OK when we jumped back in a cab to the Oasis RV Resort that we started the evening from!!!

If a picture is worth a thousand words, a slide show must be worth a million, and it's the only way we can really share what we saw: IN LAS VEGAS....