LAS VEGAS

The Hitching Post motel and rv park, where we are staying, had one bad quality. It is directly under the flight path of jet practice coming out of Nellis AFB, just north east of here. Therefore, during certain times of the day, it is, let us say, not quiet. However, the noise does not last long, and there are long intervals of quiet. The park has one really good quality if you want to visit The Strip and don't want to drive: the bus to town stops just across the street and the bus from town stops in front of the motel. This was to our liking as we decided to see The Strip on the cheap via the ped express. For $2 each, we got our 24 hour go anywhere pass, hopped on the double-decker bus and rode the 8 miles from the park to Fremont St. in airconditioned comfort. Our fellow passengers were a mixed lot of locals, tourists, and one guy who was nuts. Duane thought he was talking on a hands free phone, but I looked hard and didn't see one. He was talking to someone he hated and was threatening mass bodily harm amid the numerous swear words. After a few stops someone sat down behind him and he went downstairs where we could hear him shouting and swearing. About two stops later we saw him on the street giving us all the bird. Presumably he got put off. Other than that, our trip was unnoteworthy. We arrived at Fremong St. in due time and got off to stretch our legs and see what had changed since we were there last. Fremont St. and the surrounding area is the original Downtown area, and when people/bus drivers speak of Downtown, here is where they mean. We discovered that the Fitzgerald, where we stayed before had been throughly renovated and updated and that Fremont St. had been extended another block to cover it. There were a lot more shops and an overhead zip line ride. The area now seemed to attract a younger crowd.


Spongebob, for granddaughter Maddy.

There are several opportunities for you to spend your money besides gambling and eating. You can get your pic taken with your favorite costumed chacter, donate to street art like living statues or sidewalk musicians, or give it to beggars.

Fremont St. Experience (for those who don't know) is the arched cover you see below. At night it comes alive with 12.5 million lights and550,000 wats of sound.

Tribute to Siegfried and Roy and their tigers.

The Eiffel Tower and Paris

Our goal was cheap entertainment. Our choices consisted of MGM Grand Lion Habitat, where twice a day you can watch the lions be fed, or just watch the lions and cubs. the flamingo habitat at the Flamingo, several fountain shows, and some indoor displays in some of the hotels. We didn't see the Grand until we were going back to Fremont St. so we skipped that one, and I missed the flamingos in my research, (I used mainly the Nevada travel guide we got at a welcome center and googled the places for more info) so that one got a miss also. Our first stop was Caesars Palace for the favous moving statues. After wandering past shop after shop (its really a huge high-end shopping mall), we finally found the famous fountain, but the figures were still--the exhibit was under renovation. Disappointed, we walked the maze down, up, down and eventually wound our way outside and next-door (two blocks down, since the Palace takes up two city blocks) to the Bellagio. Here, in front of the hotel complex, more than 1,000 fountains dance to music ranging from Pavarotti to Sinatra. (Note--all of these shows are loud, so beware those with infants.) They do so every 15 minutes all the time. You just stop along the huge pond, and wait. While we waited someone got married just before the show started--black tux, white formal dress and all!

After the show we walked inside the lobby of the Bellagio to view the Conservatory and botanical gardens. This consisted of several flower gardens, whimsical small-scale rides like a carrousel and Ferris wheel, several fountains, some of which span the paths, and a glass in aviary, where we viewed these colorful birds.

Coming in we noticed this lobby ceiling was covered with paper parasols. On the way out we discovered that each one of these is actually blown glass and carefully placed!

From the Bellagio we decided to find cheap food. (We boarded the bus at 3 pm. it was now 7) We discovered a Denneys but opted to let McDonald's feed us. Then we walked up the street to the Mirage and took our place along the sidewalk for the Volcano show at 8. (You need to get to these shows about 20 min. early to get a good spot.) The volcano at The Mirage erupts at the top of each hour after dark until midnight, spewing smoke and fire 100 ft. above the water.

An array of lights on the left dance and spew fire in time to the beating drums and "savage" music. This was awesome! When the fire erupted it was actually hot! Between eruptions red water fountained up and looked just like spewing lava.

From here our whole crowd moved next door (each attraction takes up one city block) to Treasure Island for the Sirens of TI show. When we were here last it was a battle of pirates. Now it is a battle between the Sirens and the pirates. The pirates lose their ship--it still sinks--but win happiness with the sirens. The Sirens dance three semi-pole dances. The pirates resist until the girls sink the pirate ship. There are loud noises from the cannons, loud music, and lots of sexual overtones and innuendos, so we recommend that if you have kids or grandkids, skip it. Duane liked it. I thought it was boring.

Our last stop of the night was Fremont St. again. This is the original downtown, so some of the original outdoor fixtures remain.

Every hour on the hour from dark to midnight the show erupts above the street for about 4 blocks. (Each of these free shows lasts from 5 to 10 min.) This time is was a tribute to the Doors. Lights flashed while they sang three of their songs. Pretty awsome!

Tired and out of free shows, we boarded our bus at 10:30 for an uneventful ride home. The buses that run the strip are all very clean, relatively comfortable, nice and cool and well-lit. We were very safe on our trip. We recommend the bus to tour The Strip. You can board after seing one casino and ride two blocks up to the next with your pass. We opted to walk so we could see more. The Strip had changed a lot since our visit in the late 90's. The paper kiosks advertising the sex trade (girls, girls, girls, but no touching) were gone except in one place. In their stead were groups of people handing out cards with phone numbers. They also advertised on small billboards mounted on small trucks which cruised the street 27/7. The Strip has been cleaned up a bit also in new hotes complexes on the south end, and upgrades and renovations on existing complexes so it is a much nicer place to visit, especially for families. All in all things went well and we enjoyed our visit to The Strip and Downtown.

Resting on Monday,

Louise and Duane