Lee’s World
Las Vegas 2003
A long drive across the desert brought us to the oasis of Las Vegas. The town stands out across the plain for miles around - the sight of a glistening black pyramid, the Eiffel tower and the Stratosphere Tower.
We
stayed at Bally's Hotel, towards the
southern end of the famous Las Vegas Strip. It was an ideal location, right
opposite the Bellagio fountains, and across the road from Caesar's Palace.
Our rooms were on the 20th floor overlooking Caesar's Palace. When booking
hotel rooms in Las Vegas, make certain you know what
you're booking - a number of the hotels have several grades of room,
including some terrible rooms at the back with no view which may seem a
bargain until you see them! Bally's only has two grades - deluxe and suites.
Having said that though, try to ensure you are in the front of the two
blocks.
There really is little to do in Vegas other than gamble, and be amazed by the scale of the hotels. Where else could you visit Paris and swim under the Eiffel Tower, see the treasures of Ancient Egypt, watch a volcano erupt, and take a gondola ride down the Grand Canal in Venice, and all in one afternoon!
One of the most impressive sights though are the fountains outside the Bellagio Hotel. Every 15 minutes or so from late afternoon onwards they dance in time to anything from Frank Sinatra to Lord of the Dance and Celine Dion.
On our final day in Vegas, we escaped the heat and drove to the Hoover Dam, only 30 minutes or so away. What an impressive sight and an amazing feat of engineering. The tour of the dam was well worth taking, but we couldn't really understand the tour guide at times!
After a few amazing days, it was back across the desert to Palm Springs.