Szilvia GombolaThe Strip - Las Vegas
June 2nd 2008 07:17
It was dusk when we flew into Las Vegas but already the neon lights from the casino lit up the sky as our plane came into land. We hopped into a cab to our hotel, it was dark by this time and I sat in the back of the cab staring open mouthed at the neon lights that lit up the casinos along “The Strip” (Las Vegas’ main drag). It is no wonder astronauts can see The Strip from space.
Obviously, the main activity in Vegas is gambling and people were gambling big money at the gaming tables; I stuck mainly to the slots so I could just put in 5c at the time. My one time at the Blackjack table was a bit of a disaster anyway because I could not keep my mouth shut. Instead of tapping the table for ‘yes’ and waving my hand for ‘no’, I kept saying ‘yes’, ‘no’ much to everyone else’s annoyance. (I can’t play poker either)
Once you have had enough of gambling or you have lost all your money, take a stroll through the other casinos. A number of the casinos are connected, either by tunnel underground or by walkways over the road. This was great for us it meant we did not have to go out in the stifling August heat too often. We started at Paris as it connected to Ballys Casino where we were staying. As we walked through the tunnel from Ballys to Paris the decor suddenly changed to give us a feeling of walking through the cobbled streets in France.
Also worth a look is the Venetian, with canals and bridges inside the casino it looks just like the real Venice. As I walked in, I heard a man singing opera, it sounded fantastic. I was surprised when it turned out to be a man steering a gondola along the canals serenading the couple sitting in front of him.
There are plenty of other spectacular sites such as the pyramid at the Luxor, the colosseum at Caesars Palace and the fountains at the Bellagio, made famous by the Ocean’s Eleven movie to name a few.
If thrills are more your thing, the New York New York casino which resembles Manhattan has a roller coaster which reaches speeds of 67km per hour as it twists and turns around the perimeter of the hotel.
If that’s not enough of a thrill head down to the Stratosphere. The tower is taller than the Eiffel Tower (the one in Paris France, not Paris Las Vegas) and at the top there are several white-knuckle rides to really get your heart racing. The Big Shot is located on the Stratospheres needle; this ride will shoot you up into the air and drop you at the force of zero Gs. The other ride is called the X-Scream that plunges the riders literally over the edge of the platform and dangles them 900 feet above the ground, do not try these rides if you have a pacemaker!
There is so much to do that it is difficult to tell you about them all here but allow yourself a couple of days to explore The Strip.
Obviously, the main activity in Vegas is gambling and people were gambling big money at the gaming tables; I stuck mainly to the slots so I could just put in 5c at the time. My one time at the Blackjack table was a bit of a disaster anyway because I could not keep my mouth shut. Instead of tapping the table for ‘yes’ and waving my hand for ‘no’, I kept saying ‘yes’, ‘no’ much to everyone else’s annoyance. (I can’t play poker either)
Also worth a look is the Venetian, with canals and bridges inside the casino it looks just like the real Venice. As I walked in, I heard a man singing opera, it sounded fantastic. I was surprised when it turned out to be a man steering a gondola along the canals serenading the couple sitting in front of him.
Venetian
man singing at Venetian
There are plenty of other spectacular sites such as the pyramid at the Luxor, the colosseum at Caesars Palace and the fountains at the Bellagio, made famous by the Ocean’s Eleven movie to name a few.
If thrills are more your thing, the New York New York casino which resembles Manhattan has a roller coaster which reaches speeds of 67km per hour as it twists and turns around the perimeter of the hotel.
Roller coaster at New York
If that’s not enough of a thrill head down to the Stratosphere. The tower is taller than the Eiffel Tower (the one in Paris France, not Paris Las Vegas) and at the top there are several white-knuckle rides to really get your heart racing. The Big Shot is located on the Stratospheres needle; this ride will shoot you up into the air and drop you at the force of zero Gs. The other ride is called the X-Scream that plunges the riders literally over the edge of the platform and dangles them 900 feet above the ground, do not try these rides if you have a pacemaker!
There is so much to do that it is difficult to tell you about them all here but allow yourself a couple of days to explore The Strip.
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