Las Vegas - Introduction

Well, I'm here in Las Vegas and I can say that, so far, I'm impressed. When I was coming in to land, it seemed small, just a single street of high rises. That's very deceptive though. Doctor Who could learn a thing or two about buildings that are bigger on the inside than the ouside...


The first thing to note, is that the casinos are big. Real big. Each one is a small city in itself. Self contained and jammed full of poker machines. They're also amazingly well done. I'm staying at the Venetian and it actually looks like Venice. Well, Venice without all the centuries of accumulated grime. It's actually very well crafted and well done. I was quite surprised. I was expecting something very tacky and lacking in any merit. No, it's good!

One interesting thing I have noticed, is that all the casinos seem to want you to gamble. A lot. To get between any two points in a casino, you inevitably have to walk across the gaming floor. Checking in, I was directed to walk across the entire length of the gaming floor. The shops are on the opposite side to the hotel rooms, as is the pool. It's all a bit of a conspiracy!

Not being a gambler, I've decided on an approach. At each casino, I've been betting $1 in the poker/slot machines. I think I've been trying broken machines. They never seem to give me any money back. I'm sure as long as I keep trying, I'll eventually win! :-)

The plan is to go to the Grand Canyon tomorrow for a quick visit. It's a 5 hour drive in each direction, so that's a road trip and a half. Can't wait!