November 9, Las Vegas

4.45 PM, the sun is setting in Las Vegas and I just woke up. I got a hotel room for 2 nights: $49.50 for the first night because I checked in early and, $ 39.50 for the second night. Soon I will find out that people come to Las Vegas because it's cheap due to the latest recession, and not because they want to gamble all night long. That's great: the only time I played at a casino I lost my $ 10.- and I don't intend to play though I want to "do" Vegas somehow. I look at the coupons I received with my room key: there is one for a hair cut or mani cure, pedi cure, one for poker chips at the poker room of the hotel and one for Tinoco's restaurant. I hope Tinoco's is not Mexican food, my stomach still hasn't recovered from the meal the previuos night at the bus station in Los Angels, but on the same time it calls for food. On my night table I also have the information for my trip to the Grand Canyon the next day, departure at 6.00 AM, return, 8.00 PM. That was a bit disappointing to find out that I was 300 miles from the Grand Canyon: some one in Toronto had said to me that Las Vegas is the point of departure for the Grand Canyon. I guess it can be but I wished I had checked my map instead of listening to friends! No matter what, I want to see the Grand Canyon and I have booked a delux tour in a mini van that gives the passengers the time to walk the 2,5 miles rim at the canyon, plus the ride through the desert should be awesome!

At Tinoco's I get some Italian food with a glass of wine and my stomach is happy again. Then I stroll around with the crowd, loud music blanding in with the ping sounds of the millions of slots machine. The doors to the many casinos are wide open and there are huge crowds near the casino-hotel where in the morning I had seen only 2 paramedics carrying out a woman on stretcher and into the ambulance. Soon I realize that my part of the city is not the real Vegas. I look for the bus that takes people to the Strip so that I can see Venice, Paris, New York, Bellagio, Monte Carlo, The Mandalay Palace, the Luxor and so on. As the bus drives through the Strip I get distracted and forget to get off. Suddenly all the lights of Vegas are gone, puzzled I have to ask the driver to let me off so that I can walk back, but he promptly refuses. "Can't do that", he says, "too dangerous". His name is Martin and he is from Mexico; I'm the only one left on the bus. He suggests that I stay on to the last stop and then go back with him to "Paris" at no extra cost. That was nice, although it takes a while. Martin has to have a smoke and a chat with some collegues, plus he has to keep his schedule. Finally I get back to the lights of the city. I step off near the statue of Liberty and start walking and admiring. I'm not too inclined to go into the various palaces, it's such a mild evening and I love to watch the crowd though I wonder where the fun is for little kids and babies in Las Vegas. I hope they'll grow up to refuse to go to Vegas with mom and dad. After New York I walk pass the Sahara desert and then I'm watching the "gondolieri" in Venice. That looks so real: a couple is having a picture taken infront of one of the "palazzo". I'm sure you can fool people at home and tell them you were in Venice or Paris or Milano. Milano looks elegant and then there is the Eiffel tower and Arc de Triumphe, across, is marvellous Bellagio where I watch a "water performance": the water of the fountain spurting and dancing to the sound of classical music. That is actually kind of nice! All other performances don't interest me: they are either starting in half an hour or they are just finished. As I take a last look at the hotels-casinos-convention-centers I wonder about 2 things: where did Celine Dion performe all these years and who are the people booking their conventions in Las Vegas? Around 11.00 PM I hop on the bus that takes me back to my hotel near the Greyhound station. I feel I've done my Vegas!