The American voyage – Part III

The American voyage – Part III, Amidst sinners and gamblers

Sin city. Slot machines. Neon signs. Dancing fountains. Dodgy nightclubs. Luxurious hotels. What city comes to mind? Could it be...Las Vegas? If so, that's a bingo! When you do a trip to the US, you have to make it a proper one and what better way to accomplish that than by going to Vegas? Just rolling into Vegas in our Cadillac felt unreal. There's so much to process: all the stunning hotels, all the people, all the signs, all the noise and all the action. After a while, you simply come to view Vegas as nothing but an amusement park for adults in the middle of the desert. It's crazy, stressful and spectacular all at the same time. I still find it hard to believe that I've actually been there. And I want to go there again!

Now, some people seem to hate Vegas, but my friend and I found it to be one of the highlights of our trip. In fact, there were only two minor problems with the place: 1)The heat was....unusual, to say the least. At 43c, it felt like what I imagine it feels like to live in close proximity to the sun. However, that being said, it was also strangely enjoyable at the same time. As long as a bottle of sweet H2O was nearby. Having access to a pool doesn't hurt either. 2) There are plenty of people handing out flyers along certain parts of the strip. These people don't always take "no" for an answer and continually try to force you to accept their flyers. "What magnificent products do they advertise?", you may ask and rightfully so. Oh, what else but hot and steamy action with wild college girls. These girls are even willing to come to your hotel room and party with you! Only a phone call away! I suppose this kind of thing is part of of the whole Sin City package, but I still found it odd that they had no issue handing these flyers out to families either. 

So what about all those shiny hotels, you ask? If you've seen any movies filmed in Vegas, you'll have an idea of what they look like. But even then, you won't really be able to experience the sensation that comes with being in Vegas in person. Now, these hotels, especially the ones along the strip, are so extravagant and over the top, I doubt I will ever see or visit such ludicrous places ever again. Unless I visit Vegas again, of course. It seems all the hotels are trying to outperform each other, with the newest ones often being the most glamorous of them all. Just stopping by these hotels is an experience in itself as it gives you a chance to marvel at the madness inside. Truly, Las Vegas is like visiting another planet. The Vegas atmosphere is best experienced by simply walking up and down the strip in the evening, taking in all the sights, sounds and smells. It's a place hard to describe properly in words. You just have to be there. Vegas is so unique, it's worth the trip in itself. And if you don't fancy it, you can always just fuck off.

That shiny hotel was our home in Las Vegas.

You get to see and experience a lot of things just by walking along the strip, but if you are willing to depart with some money, you can take it to the next level. We decided to do just that. One day, we drove to the outskirts of Vegas to see and try some of the fastest cars on the planet. There's a great place called Exotics Racing where they let car enthusiasts realize their wet dreams. Of course, sitting behind the wheel of cars like Ferrari and Lamborghini don't come for free. My friend, however, having the money and being a huge car maniac, decided to spend some cheddar on this particular activity. And he did seem to have a lot of fun burning rubber on the track. While I didn't drive any cars myself, I had fun filming the event and participating in a drive along with one of the professional drivers working at Exotics Racing, which was an adrenaline inducing experience in itself. Fun, fun, fun! A place well worth visiting if you're a car man (or woman). 

What is a Vegas trip without a show? No Vegas trip at all. There being so many shows made it hard to pick one, but we eventually decided on going to see Rock of Ages at the Venetian. It had received plenty of good reviews and we both like rock music. The price wasn't too bad either as we bought them from a ticket office with discounted prices. Don't worry, they are easy to find. Like most humans, we enjoy food, so we decided we might as well try Gordon Ramsay's BurGR restaurant prior to the show. Queing took us about 20 minutes, but we waited even longer than that for the food itself. A shame and an obvious screw-up from the staff whose worried looks were a tell-tale sign. And the fact that our ever so pleasant waitress said we need not tip. The wait was indeed horrific, so we left no tip (I think this was the only time we didn't leave a restaurant tip on the whole trip). The burger in itself was magnificent, though. Unfortunately, after waiting so long for the meal, we were forced to sprint to the Venetian to make it to Rock of Ages in time. Needless to say, it's not an easy task when you've just digested a burger, some filthy fries and a huge milkshake. We did, however, make it there in time. 

A filthy burger at Ramsay's BurGR restaurant.

The show itself was even better than I anticipated. It contained plenty of humour, unique characters and loads of catchy rock songs. The audience seemed very much into the whole thing (especially the drunk ones), which made it all better. Plot-wise, it's not a mindblowing story, but my guess is that most people watch it for the music anyway. It was a fun two hours or so and definitely one of the highlights of the trip. Afterward, we decided to check out the strip again and ended up visiting the Bellagio fountains. A great way to end our last night in Vegas.  

One of Vegas' landmarks, the Bellagio fountains.