Sunday, November 11, 2007

Day Tripper - Vegas


Well, during this past week I was pondering a saturday excursion. I had not flown anywhere in a while and was pondering some ponderables. Choices were New York (I wanted to get some photos of the writer's strike), Santa Barbara (to relax at Goleta Beach/Pier) and Las Vegas (just to see what oddities there were to be seen along the Strip). I guess the title of this posting is a pretty blatant spoiler alert. I went to Las Vegas. One reason was basically professional. Working for an airline it helps to have a certain amount of first-hand knowledge of a given airport.
So, what first-hand info did I gain about Las Vegas McCarran Airport? First, I had heard that the airport itself was not that far from the Strip itself. While pulling into our gate I discovered the truth of that statement.


This was taken from my window just after we came to a stop at the gate. There's Mandalay Bay and you can just see the tip of the Luxor.
Second? Well, I already knew that it had slot machines, but was not aware that they can be found in:

The baggage claim area

The food court/shopping area

And the boarding area

I took a Gray Line coach to the Strip and de-coached at the MGM Grand. I had heard that there used to be some pretty neat Hollywood themed attractions there, but I did not see any. I then ventured back out onto the strip, crossing the street to check out New York, New York.


It looks pretty awesome from the outside. I liked the little NYPD fireboats in the "harbor" around Lady Liberty.



It's kind of jarring to see a photo of her with palm leaves in the foreground.

NY NY had a pretzel stand inside which smelled incredible, but I did not end up getting one. For a while I sat in the shade under one of the over the street walkways and people-watched. As one walks down the strip there are many people who accost one with condo-deals, flyers for nightclubs and the like. But, not one of these Vegas hawkers and flim-flammers said a word to me. A couple of these types who had been giving their shpiel to the folks walking in front of me would them clam up like a radio being switched off when I passed them, then snap to life again for the next group after I passed. Maybe I'm shpiel-resistant.

I stepped into the Planet Hollywood hotel/casino to look around.


It is next to The Paris - occupying the spot once taken up by The Aladdin. The casino area has a pretty interesting look to it. They also have a Pink's hotdog stand, which was not yet open for the day.
It was an ok trip, nothing much accomplished except I found a present for me mum. I didn't even get the customary souvenir shot glass for Traci or postcard for Melissa.

Las Vegas. I commented in my posting last summer about our trip there how all the casinos seem to have a labyrinthine quality about them. It's true. Now while there are certainly some fun and worthwhile things to see and do there, Las Vegas also has an element about it which subtly and sometimes not so subtly tries to disorient you. It's obvious that they have taken the art of separating tourists from their money to a new level of perfection. One can sense the extensive research which went into it. The maze-like casino floors, the no clocks on the walls, etc. People when they arrive go into a cycle of being blindfolded, spun around, then let loose. And then repeat. It's like playing pin the tail on the donkey in a sea of jackasses.

The ads one sees on tv promote Las Vegas (totally blatantly) as a place where one can set his or her moral compass aside, and it's ok. You all know the slogan. What audacity. Especially when one thinks of all the deeds people think will really stay in Vegas. They won't. Sooner or later whatever happened in Vegas will get out of Vegas and end up staring you right in the face. I am happy to say that after my trip to Vegas, I was able to look Bishop Hansen in the eye and shake his hand.

One more thing about the place: Dr. Hugh Nibley in one of his books commented that one thing temples have in common (ancient - which ever the culture, or latter-day temples) is that they are places where people go to get their bearings, to orient themselves. To take stock of their situation spiritually, then make whatever course corrections are necessary. To get where you want to go, you first need to know where you are. The aim of the Vegas "element" is to get you onboard a ship in an uncharted sea, take away your instruments, and blank out the stars.

To illustrate, here is a photo I took in the MGM Grand shopping/restaurant area.


We've all seen these types of maps in malls, theme parks, etc. HOWEVER, those maps all have something which this one does not - and believe me I looked. You will not find anywhere on this map that little stick figure or arrow marked with the words "YOU ARE HERE."

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