Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Random Vegas Observations

--We found out pretty quickly: as far as casinos go, seen one, seen them all. Other than the layout and decorating, all of the casinos are the same--the same games, the same people, the same, the same, the same. Now when we go back, we will know that there is no reason to 'casino hop.'

--A LOT of people bring their very young children to Vegas. We saw so many infant to toddler age children that it was unbelievable! I don't have a clue as to what these people DID with their children, because there really is not much that kids would enjoy.

--The Casino Royale was PACKED with people. And other than one small section, all of the slot machines that I saw were very low denomination ones. We are talking one cent to quarter machines! The funny thing is, this is the place where I saw the $500 slot machine!

--Older people REALLY like the penny and nickel machines.

--Twenty-somethings seem to like craps.

--Not many people play roulette.

--Vegas sucks money out of you like a vampire sucks blood. However, the resorts/hotels/casinos also hemorrhage money like no one's business. The amount of their water bills for the landscaping must be astronomical--as well as the cost of ground's keepers, etc.

--I was surprised at the few people who were begging--I actually thought I would see more. One memorable 'beggar' had a sign saying, 'Need money for beer.' At least he was honest.

--While I wanted to see the Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage, I wasn't about to pay $15 for the 'privilege.' We DID see one white tiger, but all it did was pace from one end of the enclosure to the other. I thought it was a bit sad.

--I loved the flamingos at--where else--The Flamingo. I also got to see a whole bunch of mallards--made me feel at home.

--Unless it is their job to know, people who live and work in Vegas don't necessarily know what is going on there. We were talking with the 'soda jerk' at the FAO Schwarz soda fountain--which is located in The Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace--and he had no idea that Celine was NOT performing and that Elton WAS.

--A lot of Asian people go to Las Vegas. A good many of them are very young--20-somethings. All of the girls weigh about thirteen pounds and are dressed--at all times--in clothes that will guarantee admittance to the nightclubs. Most of the people who I saw carrying the high-end brand shopping bags were young Asians.

--When we go back, we will NOT wait until the last few hours of our stay to use our player's club points. Because we had pre-paid our stay, they couldn't comp us for a night. Also, we paid for our meals instead of charging them to our room, so they couldn't comp us any meals. Luckily, I upgraded our room when we checked in, so we got the upgrade comped. At least it was something! I STILL don't know if we used all of our points or not.

--I don't think I could ever prepare myself for the amount of walking you do in Vegas. It is unbelievable, but at the same time you don't notice it until you are at the point of exhaustion! I was very surprised that I did as well as I did.

--Walking all day does NOT make you want to stay up till all hours of the night. K and I were in our room by 10:00 PM the first two nights. We were out and about a couple of hours later the last night we were there, simply because the show lasted till 10:00. And I am the queen of late-night! Very surprising to me.

--I think the favorite thing I saw in Vegas--other than Elton John, that is--was the water show outside of the Bellagio. There just is no adequate way to describe this--it is water, choreographed to move in time to music. That's as close to a description as I can come. It was simply one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. The music used for the show we saw was 'All That Jazz.' When the show was over, I wanted to jump up and down and scream. I enjoyed it. :)

As luck would have it, I found a video on YouTube showing the water show. It in no way comes close to seeing this in person, but... Hope you enjoy.




10 comments:

  1. I loved the water show too. Did you go to the Venician (sp)? Inside the shopping area they had Gondola boat rides. It was AWESOME!!!

    I wanna go back too but on someone elses dime. lol

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  2. Sounds like lots of fun. We went one time but it was years ago and only were passing through - stayed one night and played the quarter slots because the dollar slots made us lose the money faster. :)

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  3. Dazd: Yes, we went through the Venetian--I think I have some pictures, even. The canal rides looked fun, but for the amount they cost, it didn't seem worth it. I enjoyed watching just as much as actually participating.

    Sue: I agree with how fast the money goes while playing the dollar slots--that's why I'm not much of a gambler. On the other hand, K says you have to spend money to make money. Thank goodness I can rein him in to a certain extent--he ONLY put $20 in the $10 slot machine. That was a short-lived game! :)

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  4. Burg: I'm really NOT a big fan of Celine, but that said...Elton fills in for her when she is not performing. I'm not sure how long this has been going on, maybe for the entire run of her show. Anyway, she is done with her Vegas show the middle of December and Elton is done with his sometime in November. I guess Caesar's Palace hasn't yet announced just exactly WHAT they are doing with the Coliseum--and there are no announcements as to who will appear there next year.

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  5. Maybe they'll get Sigmund and Somebody Else.

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  6. That would be the generic form of the other guys, by the way.

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  7. Sigmund and Roy used to be at the Mirage--there is a bronze statue of them in front--and they still have their tiger habitat there. I really have a feeling the Mirage took quite a beating when they quit performing--I'm sure they were a really big draw for the place. Maybe a new generic pair will take their place--at Caesars OR the Mirage! :)

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  8. I'm a nickel slot girl myself. Sometimes I'll get crazy and play blackjack.
    OH I'm gonna need to get myself back to Vegas one day soon....I miss it!!

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  9. Annie: When we wanted to waste some time, like before the concert, we played nickel machines. The money doesn't go away NEARLY as fast as it does when you're playing $1 machines! ;)

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