Well, this past weekend saw me trade hot, humid weather in Phoenix for even hotter, arid weather in Las Vegas. It was in celebration of my friend Rob's 50th birthday bash. (man, there are a lot of those starting to happen now - I really am getting old) Anyway, as I am not that much of a gambler, Caryl and I just saw to checking out the Strip and doing a little partying with friends. On the drive up, we took the scenic route and went over Hoover Dam for some cool pictures. Friday night was happy hour after we arrived and got checked in, starting at the Harley Davidson Cafe. A great place to check out bikes and pictures of some famous people seated on them. Then it was off to meet at the the new Planet Hollywood Casino & the Hawaiian Tropic Zone Bar. Good thing there was lots of TVs to watch sports, as then Caryl didn't mind me watching the help walk by !!
Saturday entailed just walking the Strip and checking out the interior of several casinos. As the high was 109 that day, it was perfect to be able to dive into a casino and cool off every little while. We soon discovered that a few of the casinos had way more to offer than just gambling, such as the Secret Garden at the Flamingo. Yes, it even had live flamingos in this area, along with a fabulous koi pond and lush vegetation. Saturday night was dinner and fun with the birthday boy, and then we all went downtown to the Fremont Street Experience. Some gambled, and some (like us) watched the video show there and then caught a couple of different bands. That kept us going until about 1 am!
Sunday I had plans to go the NASCAR Cafe and watch the race, but in advance of that, we had a little fun. My Vegas buddy Brian hooked us up with a free pass to the top of the Stratoshpere and a seat on their rides. I had previously done the roller coaster at the top, but they had since deleted this ride as they deemed it too tame ??? Sooooo, that left us with doing the next less wild ride - the Hot Shot. Basically, you strap in and this thing shoots you straight up for about 100 ft (with 4 Gs of take-off). Then, at the top you start a free fall until the hydraulics kick in and ease you back to the base. I talked my buddy Brian into doing it with me - Caryl would have none of it. Lift-off is the only way to describe the sensation, and you forget everything except to hold on for dear life! The free fall is equally stomach-churning until the hydraulics kick in to ease you back down. After that, no one dared do the other 2 - named, appropriately, the X-Scream and the Insanity. Perhaps some other time on my "bucket list" :)
