Vegas, Baby!

What trip to Vegas would be complete without a side-journey to the Hoover Dam... in a helicopter!

The second part of the helicopter tour went the other direction out to the Parhrump Winery. There we had a short wine-tasting lesson followed by dinner. I ordered the steak, medium rare, and they brought it pretty much still mooing. I sent it back, and 10 minutes later it came back still way blue. Sent it back again, this time it came back a couple of minutes later, quite well done, tough and obviously microwaved. By this time most of the other people in our group were finishing their meals, and I wasn't paying for it, so I didn't bother complaining, although I should have.

The flight back was interesting - helicopter rides through the mountains in the dark are kind of scary. Flying down the Las Vegas strip at night was pretty cool though.

Really, it's the only way to do the Grand Canyon out of Las Vegas without taking days. The map location I set for this entry is very approximate, because, well, I really had no idea where the hell we were.

Las Vegas on New Year's Eve is a sight to behold. The crowd was so thick we couldn't even cross the street. At midnight all the big hotels launched a simultaneous fireworks display from their roofs.

Is this the tiger that got Roy? Could be...

These fountains are, in a word, spectaculicious. Huuuuge jets of water squirting in time to music.

They've pretty much perfected putting the look of the outside, inside.

What can I say. A look only a huge frickin' margarita can create. A tip: when going to the Rio for the buffet, don't order the 52oz margarita. You won't be able to drink a quarter of it you'll be so full.

For some reason I really liked this wall-sculpture in front of Schraffts Ice Cream. I can't quite remember, but I believe it's located in New York New York.

Valley of Fire is just outside of Las Vegas, about a half hour by car. It features spectacular rock formations and colors. These photos are a bit grainy because they were taken with my old film camera using film that was too high-speed for the bright desert light. The deep blue sky in the first photo is courtesy of a polarizing filter.