Trek America - Las Vegas

Fortunately it was not 'The Hangover' for either of us when we stirred in our hotel room - no tigers, Mike Tyson or a fat Jesus. Alex was bouncing and ready to go by 7:00am whilst it took Kim a little longer but soon enough we were on The Strip under the blistering Nevada heat. We can't quite get over the contrast with our surroundings and climate from a week or so ago.

We took a bus down to one end of The Strip and began to walk back North through a variety of hotels/casinos, each with their own themes. Through the jungle of Mandalay Bay, the towering pyramid of the Luxor, the ramparts of The Excalibur, the golden lion of the MGM Grand as well as the facades of New York New York, Paris and the Venetian. We managed to win $4 playing slots along the way only to lose it again. We watched as all walks of life flowed through the flashing and ringing floors of the casinos, seemingly gravitated like moths to a flame. Street hawkers to giant LED signs were advertising what appeared to be the sale of the century. Show tickets, night club entry, food, photographs and an assortment of tat. You name it, you could buy it for a price.

By mid-afternoon we had retreated back to our hotel pool for a few hours, cooling off in the pool and riding the shark tank flume. We all met in the lobby for dinner but not before the safe in our room stopped working with all our money, passports and Alex's cards in it. A tense 45 minute wait saw security and maintenance reopen it for us and then we were on our way. We went to Rollin' Smoke Barbecue where we ate giant plates of barbecued and fried goodness before Kim ate an enormous slice of cake from the Cheesecake Factory in Caesar's Palace. As we made our way back to the hotel, a LED clock told us that it was still 32C at 10:00pm. Heat and food exhaustion took us to sleep.Read more