Day Twelve - Livin' Large in Sin City

What overlanding blog is complete without a whole entry about Las Vegas? It really is an almost other-worldly place. Clearly, the odds are with the house. It is phenomenal to behold the amount of money invested in the grandeur, architecture, details, and just the whole mass of it all.

a fountain outside Caesar's Palace

We've been to Vegas a few times and discovered we don't have much of a taste for gambling. We'll throw a few bucks in some slot machines but that's about it. One thing that is interesting is that it seems like the casinos have all ceased the nonstop jangling on the casino floors. That's a relief. Vegas is a whole lot more about drinking, dining, shopping and shows these days. The hotels are mostly on the inexpensive side (we paid only $29/night for a place on the strip, only a bit north of the main attractions) but the food and drinks are quite expensive, especially if you go to one of the more famous places.

Our usual gig is to meander right to Margaritaville in the Flamingo, park ourselves on the upstairs deck, and people watch. Unfortunately, Vegas was having a fair amount of wind the whole time we were there so the deck never opened. Luckily there is no shortage of places to sip a beer and ogle the crowd.

We had a great time wandering the bigger spots - Cabo Wabo in Planet Hollywood, the waters at Bellagio, and the "streets" of Paris.

a ceiling in Bellagio

We happened upon some amazingly talented street musicians, which was a really cool discovery. We ended the evening sharing a nice steak right in our own hotel, prepared to get back on the road the next morning.