Great Vegas Weekend

We had a blast this weekend in Las Vegas. Drove north from Phoenix to Las Vegas. We began to see "Hoover Dam Delays" electronic signs over the freeway, and I was all excited to see Hoover Dam. Then the traffic hit. I guess since it was Thanksgiving weekend, there were a bazillion people headed to Vegas as well. Going through the Dam area was high security, with checkpoints on either side. The traffic slowed to almost a standstill, with us going about 1-2 miles an hour. YUCK.

Finally past it, we got to Vegas late Friday afternoon and checked into the hotel. Had some fantastic pho at a restaurant and then began our trek at Mandalay Bay. Saw "Red Square" -- the bar made of ice. Somehow we were expecting more than just a foot wide strip of ice along the bar... I had envisioned a full "ice bar" there with people freezing! So much for that. Headed further down and caught the tram from there to Luxor and Excalibur, and then walked all the way down to the Bellagio that night before hiking back to Excalibur to tram it to Mandalay where we parked.

Saturday - STIFF and SORE were the words for the day after all the walking we did on Friday. But after a fabulous breakfast at Tropicana's buffet, we went to Bellagio, got our tickets for "O", and watched the fountains during the day. The sunshine beamed through the fountains in such a way that it created a beautiful rainbow while the waters danced. Then we headed up the strip to Caesar's Palace and the shops there at the Forum. Beyond that it was Mirage to see the white tigers and Treasure Island to watch a really hoky "pirate show" -- they revamped it (ha ha vamped is a good word) so now it was basically chicks in lingerie with really bad dialogue jumping around on the pirate ship. /yawn.

That night we got to see "O" at Bellagio -- which is a Cirque du Soleil show done in water. The acts were spectacular. Platforms raised and lowered out of the water, there were divers doing incredible flips, there were carousel horses that circled in the air above the water, it was magical to watch. We had great seats -- they were really high up but that ended up being perfect because we could see everything and were centered in the auditorium.

Sunday after an awesome $6.75 prime rib dinner (for breakfast ha ha) at Hooter's Hotel, we got in the car and headed back to Phoenix, this time fighting the Hoover Dam traffic from the opposite side. It wasn't as bad as Friday, so we stopped to take a few pictures and check out the dam. It was a fantastic weekend, but we're pretty worn out. Sitting all day at work today doesn't even sound half bad. And luckily we left plenty to do in Vegas for the next time we decide to do a Vegas weekend. :)