With the end of the convention we bade farewell to the team and ambled off to the Lady Luck in the Fremont district, passing on the way the infamous street of nothing but porno stores alternating with wedding chapels and the odd pawn shop. It was here that we discovered the things Vegas was renowned for – super cheap booze and food. The other end of the strip with the Excalibur was kind of expensive, but considering there was an AM/PM right outside we bought cheap crates of MGD and refurbished our supply by nipping back to our room and then coming back down again.

Because you can walk anywhere with booze, we were fine. Basically the Luxor/Excalibur/New York New York/Mandalay Bay/Tropicana connected ring at one end of the strip is very high tourist and family orientated. Pricey, but worth it for the sheer fun aspect. The old Fremont area is more ‘I am here to win big and I’m staying until I do’/people there at nine a.m. with a cocktail and cigarette feeding the slots.

Here’s me exploiting the all you can eat, and all the booze you can drink for ten bucks buffet with all I can eat ice cream as well. Recollection grows hazy after this point.

But it seems Erin got four Kings on poker!

The Fremont, with me in front of that neon cowboy thing you always see in movies. Also behind me is the Horseshoe, where we played the wheel with psychotic drunkards who blew five hundred dollars and more in five minutes then left to get new reserves of cash to throw away (when the dealer tells you ‘Sir, you’ve placed so many bets on various things that even if you win the jackpot you aren’t going to break even’ I’d think about sobering up a bit before continuing). The same spinner chick told us about a man who came in once with two suitcases. One was full of a million in cash, the other was empty. He instantly puts it all on one roll of craps, doubles his money and leaves without ever even leaving his name. Hence the Horseshoes rep for accepting any bet.

The Fremont Experience is amazing. For six pedestrian only blocks, the massive overhead canopy plays shows every hour on the hour. The first is a cowboy funny one.

Then there’s a rat pack one, but the midnight one is the hi-tech, freak-you-out, full on acid experience with jungles full of bugs and snakes crawling about...

Doors whizzing at you and opening at the last moment, space visions with lightning bolts and explosions type thing.

And thus I broke my brain. A malady treated by buying a six dollar 52oz bottle of beer shaped like a plastic football with a straw in the end.

We took a cab down and saw Skintight at Harrah’s as well to have the Las Vegas Showgirl event. When you get in the cabs get a copy of 24/7 and check the coupons, we got a buy one get one free for the show, money off the Star Trek Experience as well as other freebies. Afterwards we took in Caesar’s Palace with the white tigers and giant aquariums and other excellent sights as well as Treasure Island. However, if you use flash photography, you come out looking like you’ve just been nuked against a nice background, and if you don’t you can’t see shit. Hence no pix.

In conclusion, we thought we’d be bored from six days in Vegas and we didn’t even get to do half of all the shot we wanted to. Viva Las Vegas. Friendly, clean, pretty, entertaining, an all around top ol’ place to vacation.