Las Vegas

I just got back from Bangalore on the 22nd December and was still having jet lag. Was unsure if I should drive to a far off place or just relax during the vacation. Friends from Intel asked me to join them for Las Vegas & Grand Canyon during Christmas vacation. I took a Nissan x-terra and drove it down overnight from Folsom. So here I was in Las Vegas in Christmas 2005. It doesn't take much time to figure out why is Las Vegas the hottest tourist destination in the world. I read somewhere spending Christmas in Las Vegas is like spending Halloween at the Vatican. But that, of course is part of the appeal. Of late Las Vegas has become the Entertainment Capital of the World. As we come out on Las Vegas Blvd 'The Strip', I'm amazed at how crowded the place is. It is not a usual throng though. Not as many college kids. Not as many children. The people I see outside the window as we drive down Las Vegas Blvd are regulars. We have returned like lemmings to the village of the lost souls.

Las Vegas is situated in the vast Mojave Desert. To start a casino in this desert was an idea of celebrity gangster Benjamin ‘Bugsy’ Siegel. In 1940s Nevada was the only state where Gambling was considered legal. Also it’s proximity to Los Angeles must have been another reason why Bugsy chose this place over others. He realized his lifetime dream of a casino hotel ‘Flamingo’ which claims to be the oldest casino in Las Vegas. Since then there have been many casinos built around the Las Vegas Boulevard commonly known as ‘Strip’. We stayed in Vegas for three nights and when we were leaving we felt so much remains unexplored, unseen. You experience Venice, Rome, Paris, Egypt, Greece, and Arabia all in the stretch of two miles.

In Las Vegas you get to see that nationalism and provincial borders have become immaterial. Americans are the minority here. At dinner you will notice German being spoken at a table to your left, Spanish behind you, French and Japanese everywhere else. You look out over the crowd and realize that wars are fought because the world's wealth is so poorly dispersed. With bounty of riches in their pockets, Germans eat breakfast next to Jews, Chinese next to Mexicans. You get two different experiences during the day and neon-infused night. As we stayed there all over the weekend we got to enjoy the both. You can’t miss the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas. The nearly 1100-foot behemoth can be seen from anywhere in Sin City.

In a city celebrated to hold the outrageous, it's still crazy to learn there are thrill rides atop the tower. Even more daring than the people who thought of introducing the rides on top of the tower: the nuts (someone like me …) who ride them. None of the four rides would be mostly striking if they were planted on the earth, but at more than 1000 feet above the famous strip, they're all beyond savage. In fact two of them may just be the most breathtaking, if not frightening, rides on the earth. It's all about psychosomatic quivers, and these rides give acrophobia a whole new gist. When the Scream totters over the rim of the Stratosphere, or when Insanity hangs loosely, revs above the Strip and tilts its cars down as if to throw out its riders, mental thrills just don't get a lot more extreme. The Big Shot is a typical drop tower ride, but when you're freefalling 1000 feet in the space, you’re very likely to get the goose bumps. For those too fastidious to brave the attractions, just riding the top of the tower is an exploration. It was a day well spent enjoying the wild rides.

It’s dusky and we are ready to experience the city soaked in neon lights. As we pull up to the MGM Grand, I hear a cop shouting "Hey buddy is it Christmas Eve?". It is a justifiable question as during our drive and then walk on the strip I have not seen a single Santa. There are no twinkle lights strung across Las Vegas Blvd. The place looks the same as it does on the other days of the year. The Vegas casino resorts have always put you in a different world of mesmerizing neon and extravagant adornment. Its astounding architecture, the mesmerizing entertainment of the world-famous Blue Man Group, gondola rides along the half-mile canal make Venetian the most elegant casino in Las Vegas.

Inspired by the grandeur of Venice, the Venetian treats you to an unparalleled array of amenities and attractions. You have gondolas and canals inside casino. This breathtaking mega-resort combines the latest technology and the venerable art and culture of the European jewel: Venice. The Venetian's take on this world-renowned city and the Italian eleganza is a must-see. Coming to this resort is as close as you'll come to visiting Venice itself. I was surprised by the visitors taking pictures of the ceiling as if they were in The Sistine Chapel. Some detailed, exquisite frescoes cover the arched ceiling. Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel is in the Palace of the Vatican, the official residence of the Roman Catholic Pope in the Vatican City. Just a few yards from Venetian, stands this royal casino.. Bellagio. As you enter you witness the true European elegance. The Fountains of Bellagio was the most mesmerizing experience in Las Vegas. On a huge lake in front of the casino you witness a splendid ballet of dancing fountains choreographed to melody and illuminations. Few minutes from Bellagio, the Mirage casino is famous for it’s colossal volcano show. Set on a three-acre lagoon, the Mirage Volcano is a splendid display of more than few thousand lights mechanized to simulate erupting lava. The volcano is fifty feet high and erupts much higher into the air.

Each and every square inch in Las Vegas is so picturesque you tend to snap anything you see. After this we got to know about the Pirates Show at the adjacent Treasure Island. Visitors simply got awed by the excitement and allure in this spectacular action-musical show. From audacious swordplay to high-diving acrobatics and eye-popping pyrotechnics, the show was full of countless thrills. Having seen these extravagant, nerve-wrecking displays we made our way to Caesar Palace Colosseum and to our surprise there was Celine Dion’s show ‘A New Day’ which turned out to be an extravaganza of music and magnificent special effects. The show boasts of the largest indoor LED screen, beautiful thespian lighting and stunning surround sound. By the time show ended I was too tired of having fun.

Hotel Luxor’s enormous pyramid is a miracle of construction, and has become a distinguishing signpost in the city of lights. Rising around 400 feet into the desert sky and proclaimed to be the world's brightest beam of light, Luxor guides visitors across the desert toward Las Vegas from miles away. While driving to Las Vegas we could see this light as far from 80 miles. There are many more theme-based casino resorts like Aladin, Monte Carlo, New York New York, MGM, Circus Circus, Mandalay Bay, Wynn, Stardust and Excalibur. Each of them is equally brilliant and unique. All I can say is once in Vegas you feel like staying there forever. In Las Vegas one can’t go back without trying a shot at dice and cards. And even though I'm a firm believer in luck, I'm not really much of a gambler. I wish to write more about other casinos and fabulous shows but that will make my blog difficult to read in one sitting. It can be described only in so many words; beyond that, experience has to take over.