|
|
|
|
 |
Our
vacation started around
4:30 AM when our cousin drove us to the Jacksonville airport for a 6:00
AM flight to Atlanta.
Here is the Delta Air Lines Boeing 767 in Atlanta, ready to transport us to Las Vegas Nevada, 1,800 miles West. We left Atlanta about 8:30 AM and arrived at 9:30 Las Vegas time, which is 12:30 PM Jacksonville time. |
| The planes were full. Apparently reduced fares and increased security have encouraged people to fly again. |  |
 |
Lisa settled down with a good book during the four hour flight from Atlanta to Las Vegas. Delta Air Lines served breakfast and showed a movie during the flight. |
| This is our hotel, The Luxor, based on an Egyptian theme. The main building is 350 feet tall. There are two other conventional towers providing a total hotel capacity of 4,407 rooms. A ten storey Sphinx stands above the hotel main entrance. |  |
 |
The Egyptian theme is evident inside the huge atrium of the Luxor Pyramid. Guest rooms are located on the outer edges of the pyramid, accessible by walkways overlooking the lobby below. |
| This is a view of the lobby below as seen from the 21st floor, the location of our room. Guests reach the upper floors by riding inclinators, special elevators which travel diagonally inside the beams in the pyramid corners. Other than an odd feeling when the inclinator starts and stops, it feels like any other ordinary elevator. |  |
 |
After checking in at The Luxor, we headed to the Mandalay Bay Hotel, adjacent to The Luxor and connected via a short monorail. There is a self guided tour through a shark reef habitat. |
| At Mandalay Bay, we had dinner at the Bayside Buffet. The food was good. We ate too much and decided to avoid too many buffets in the future. Our waiter offered us complimentary champagne and took this photo of us. |
 |
| The Luxor Hotel is barely visible at night, except for a very bright beam of light which shines straight up into the sky from the top of the pyramid. | ||
|
| The MGM Grand Hotel is the largest hotel in the world with more than 5,000 guest rooms. |
 |
| Across Las Vegas Boulevard from the MGM Grand is New York, New York Hotel, with a replica of the New York City skyline, the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge and a Coney Island roller coaster on the roof. Lisa rode the roller coaster and said it was very rough. It gave her bruised shoulders and a sore neck. |
 |
 |
Our second day in Las Vegas, we settled for a light breakfast in the Luxor food court before hitting the streets. |
| On Las Vegas Boulevard, heading for a long day of walking. |  |
 |
A good view of New York, New York in the bright morning sun. |
| Just like all of the big Las Vegas hotels, New York, New York has a large casino with hundreds, maybe thousands of flashy, noisy slot machines. |  |
 |
Lisa and I confined ourselves mostly to nickle slot machines, occasionally risking a few quarters. We sometimes won small rewards, but eventually lost any winnings back to the machines. |
| Me with Lady Liberty, stirring up business in the New York, New York casino. |  |
 |
 |
The
Bellagio
Hotel features a beautiful botanical garden, which changes with the
seasons.
The Bellagio is home to the Cirque du Soleil production of "O". It's impossible to explain, but probably the best show I have ever seen. |
 |
| Across the street from Bellagio, a half scale replica of the Eiffel tower stands in front of the Paris Las Vegas Hotel. |  |
 |
| An elevator ride to the top of the Eiffel Tower, about 500 feet above street level, reveals a stunning view of the Las Vegas strip below. The powerful beam from the Luxor hotel is visible in the center. |  |
 |
A great view of the Bellagio hotel from atop the Eiffel Tower. |
 |
|
|
