Viva Las Vegas!

Vegas is the start of my tour in the US. Of course this place is unlike anywhere else. An Adult Disneyland. People are amazed when I tell them I lasted 2 weeks in Vegas but there is a lot to do and see and I don't remember ever being bored.

I arrived on the 29th Dec and met my friend, Anna. We pretty much made the most of our 8 days together by exploring all the hotels and casinos. Then eating at some of the excellent restaurants and buffets. We saw many shows, the best being 'O' and 'Zumanity' by Cirque Du Soleil and the worst being the magician, Chris Angel. 'Don't Believe the Hype' is what it should have been called!

We spent New Year having a few drinks in our luxury condo at MGM Grand Signature towers before heading to the casino to win a bit of money on roulette and then onto the streets to join all the other revellers for the countdown. You can actually take drinks onto the street in plastic containers. The countdown was a bit of a disappointment and the fireworks also were nothing special. Apparently this year they had to fire them from street level and not from the top of the casinos. By all accounts it wasn't worth the $200 to pay to go into one of the jam packed clubs either so I'm glad we didn't bother.

On New Years Day we took a helicopter flight over the Hoover Dam and into the Grand Canyon. It truly is a beautiful sight but the flight was over too quickly and there were not enough good photo opportunities. It would have been great to spend a night there instead in my opinion.
Of course the New Year brought many good sales and so we must have spent a few days alone shopping. I decided now I was mainly visiting cities to change half my wardrobe for the trip. Most of the designer labels here are quite a bit cheaper than Australia although with the bad exchange rate it probably worked out similar.

After Anna had left I had about another 6 days to myself of which the first 2 I did pretty much nothing but relax. The last 4 days I went to the Consumer Electronics and Adult shows. The CES is a huge event every year showcasing all the new electronic equipment coming out as well as prototypes. It was interesting to see that 3D TV is not far away and what an impact this will have on your viewing experience and perhaps, photography. The Adult show is pretty much in the same building and is purposely scheduled at the same time to take advantage of the high number of men that attend CES.
It was a huge show with all the major porn companies showcasing their latest releases as well as getting up close and personal with all the pornstars. You can have your photo taken with them in saucy poses although nudity is not allowed, even though they can show it on the big LCD screens.
There are the usual array of businesses selling their porn merchandise and sometimes bizarre sex toys. Ever heard of the Snatch Snorkel or the charity Clitoraid?

Also during the last few nights I checked out the various clubs around town. On the Friday night I bought a VIP pass so I could check out the 3 clubs and bars at the Playboy Palms hotel. Then on the Saturday I went to club LAX to the Porn show after party. On the Sunday I headed to a new club that had just opened in the new Encore hotel. This hotel and club was perhaps the most luxurious of the places to visit in Vegas. Most of the other hotels are looking a bit outdated if you ask me but the new Encore is probably the place I would stay if I ever went back.

On my last day in Vegas I went to see a final show at the Wynn called 'Le Reve'. This is also, along with 'O', the best of the shows in Vegas. It is done on a stage which can submerge itself in water leading to high diving tricks and synchronised swimmers. The effects, costumes and choreography are truly amazing. It boggles the mind who thought up this whole concept but these shows are must sees.

After so many nights of partying I decided on taking a nice relaxing vacation in Jamaica for 1 week and booked into an all inclusive 5 star hotel near Montego Bay.