.......as part of the USA trip (see Part 1 and the Grand Canyon photos) Las Vegas and Virginia Beach were the two locations we visited for June 2009. Wanting to base ourselves in Vegas for the Grand Canyon, it also meant the chance for me to re-visit Vegas and for Valeria to experience it for the 1st time.
Vegas is excellent for a few days and there are some excellent things to see with the themed hotels and other attractions. One of the attractions many people fail to visit but which is very interesting is the Atomic Testing Museum (see photo below left). In the ‘50s the Nevada desert near Las Vegas used to be a site to test atomic explosions. Atomic bombs were tested in the desert on the surface and people from Las Vegas could see the explosions in the distance. Far from deterring tourism, this fact even boosted it and they even invented a cocktail called the ‘Atomic Cocktail’. On the right, Valeria with the flamingos, in the Flamingo Casino and hotel, one of the oldest on the strip.
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All photos by Valeria Lo Iacono & Paul Symonds - 2009
Below Paul at the slot machines, gambling away some free tokens we got from our hotel and, on the right, the Venetian, one of the famous themed casinos/hotels, built during the ‘90s. As tacky as they are, these hotels are actually well made, so much so that Valeria almost felt as though she was back home in Italy (but without the mad drivers on the road).
One of the great things many cheapskates such as Valeria and get to enjoy in a place such as Vegas, is the free drinks (including cocktails) which the waitress give to you if you are sat at a machine. Making our free coupons last for an hour or so and enjoying the free drinks (whilst giving a reasonable tip), Vegas will perhaps be glad to see the back of us :) The city would go bankrupt if they'd relied on people like us.
Facilities in Vegas are excellent - below one of the hotel pool areas and also the fountains of Caesar’s Palace.
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Staying with the themed hotels in Vegas, MGM on the left below, and on the right, one of the shopping areas adjoining Caesar’s Palace. With ‘trompe l’oeil’ ceilings that look like real sky (maybe not so much in the photo, but when you are there, it really gives you the illusion of being outdoors and played with the senses).
Many people when they visit Vegas forget to see the Downtown area. Fremont Street in Downtown Las Vegas is the oldest part of the city and the place where the original and oldest casinos are. This area become more run down when the new casinos opened on Las Vegas Strip but in the 1990s the authorities started investing in this older area and what is commonly known as the Fremont Street Experience was created. Fremont street is covered by a ceiling which at night turns into one huge video screen as shown below.
Below (left) in a jungle themed shop and (right) in a restaurant in Harrah’s Hotel, where we were staying. The restaurant named ‘I love this bar & Grill’ after a song titled ‘I love this bar’ by Toby Keith (a Country and Western singer who we have never heard of before but whose memorabilia is plastered throughout the place). The great thing about Toby's is the jam jar pot style beer glasses as shown below.
After 5 days in Las Vegas we headed to Virginia Beach and the coast. With one of the best boardwalks I've come across on my travels and a beach to match it was time to relax with some quality seafood, sun, sand and catch up with old friends.
One activity worth trying and which certainly is fun was going out on the Dolphin Watch boat off the coast of Virginia Beach. Unfortunately I didn't catch any so there were NO dolphin burgers that night.
Finally and after almost 10 years it was excellent to catch up with old friends Majid and Mustafa. Below in our old haunt 'Harpoon Larry's and from the left: Paul, Valeria, Majid 'Easy Fish' Tabibi and Mustafa Bouadi from Morocco (catch you in Morocco at Xmas).
You can learn more about Las Vegas travel and Las Vegas holiday rentals online through my Vegas website.
Do not forget this month the Grand Canyon photos and the Glastonbury 2009 images.
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