After having the car repaired in Oakhurst, we left early the next morning, regretfully, after having spent two relaxing nights in a comfortable hotel in a really nice town. Oakhurst is quite high up in the Sierra Mountains and it has that crisp, cold, mountain climate. It happened to be very cold and wet during our stay though, so cold that it was snowing in Yosemite Park, just two days after we had left! The people in Oakhurst were extremely friendly (population 8000) and it felt like a really 'homely' town.

Our route had been slightly modified that day; instead of driving through Death Valley as we had originally planned, we decided to travel directly to Las Vegas via freeways. It was a long drive; we passed through Fresno and Bakersfield and then travelled east through the Mojave Desert. At one point I stopped to get gas, and it was just like the movies: An old ramshackle gas station was in the middle of nowhere, and a Country Sheriff happened to drive by in his patrol car wearing one of those cowboy hats. It was a perfect setting for the "Lone Ranger".

All of a sudden, while driving through the Mojave, it just dumped buckets of rain on us. No warning at all. It went from dry heat to waterfalls of water which lasted for only a few seconds. Then it was back to dry heat. Very strange! We continued through the desert over a few more mountain passes and then hit Interstate 15 north all the way to Vegas.

We could see the Nevada State Line for miles ahead of us; after descending a long hill, far off in the distance could be seen a bunch of buildings and what looked like an amusement park. Ten miles later, we saw a sign saying "Welcome to Primm Nevada!" Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the 'bunch of buildings' were really hotels, casinos, and many amusement park rides. Apparently the Nevada capitalists really want to let the public know that this is the gambling capital of the nation: They bombard the public with entertainment upon crossing the State Line. Hell, I'm all for it!!

It wasn't long until we reached the outskirts of Vegas. Las Vegas is in Southern Nevada close to the borders of California and Arizona, making it easy to reach from other States. We exited the freeway to cruise the famous Las Vegas Strip. Some of the sights we saw on Las Vegas Boulevard were:

• New York, New York!
  This 2,000 room entertainment complex is a remarkable small-scale model of New York city that includes twelve New York-style skyscrapers. It's got lots of 'visual glitz' to it, something which I really like. The replica of the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, and Brooklyn Bridge give it a Big Apple theme. It also has a Coney Island-esque roller coaster surrounding this small city. Each hotel room features one of 63 different decor themes.

• The Luxor
  This 4,400 room hotel is shaped like a pyramid, and the outer glass is mirrored. While driving, the sun reflects off the outer glass of the Luxor, and makes for a surreal look. Inside the hotel, it's just pure luxury! Vast comfort, air conditioning, and more casinos and gambling than you could shake a stick at, make for a very inviting hotel. Price? Way over $100 US per night. We asked the lift attendant if we could take the elevator to the top of the pyramid. He said no. We left.

• Coca-Cola Museum
  This 100 foot glass Coke bottle houses twin elevators, that allow visitors to travel through a four floor museum highlighting the history of Coca-Cola. This is truly a blast from the past which offers a view from the time a Coke was just a nickel. Along one wall of the museum, high-resolution video screens display commercials from the "Always Coca-Cola" campaign. And an 19th century bank vault symbolizes the original secret formula's permanent resting place in Atlanta, Georgia. This place is definitely for all the Coke lovers, it can be found near the MGM Grand on 'the strip'.

• Harley Davidson Cafe
  The billboard for this cafe features a Harley Davidson motorcycle bursting through the wall of the cafe. A very potent image, one that is hard to miss. "The HDC has been created in response to the growing trend in the popularity of motorcycles and their enthusiasts." This unique restaurant showcases Harley Davidson memorabilia, and offers a retail shop that sells everything from boxer-shorts to coffee mugs.

• Circus Circus Hotel & Casino
  This was the hotel we stayed at. It's very upscale, but not as ritzy as the Luxor. The rates are usually very cheap, at $29 per night, but there was a convention happening while we were in town, so we had to pay $79, while getting the last room in the place. The room we were at was very comfortable. It was on the unlucky 13th floor, but that wasn't an issue. You enter the room with a keycard, just like on the movies. Inside there is lushious carpeting, relaxing green wallpaper, comfortable beds, big screen television, and a nice warm shower. Pure comfort. Inside the hotel is a miniature Vegas itself. There is a buffet downstairs, which of course is all-you-can-eat. It's only $3.99 for breakfast and $6.99 for dinner. So cheap! Also there are stores to buy Vegas merchandise at good prices, a full-service restaurant, plenty of casinos and slot machines, as well as amusement park rides. That day was Jamie's birthday, so we celebrated it by gambling our spending money ($10 each) on the slot machines. I wasn't 21 yet (I'm still not) so I gave my money to Jamie and let him spend it. We didn't win anything, unfortunately, but Jamie had the security guards come up to him asking for I.D. It was a razzling experience, as the consequences of gambling as a minor are severe: the slammer. But Jamie was legally 21, so the guards wished him a happy birthday and moved on. And all of this is inside the hotel! You get a taste of Vegas without having to leave the building!

We did leave the building though, and drove down the Strip at night. So many lights!! It's visual glitz taken to the EXTREME. Huge TV screens light up the skies with advertising and there is so much going on, it's amazing how anybody can keep their eye on the road. After cruising the Strip a few times back and forth, we stopped by for an outdoor show called 'Treasure Island'. The show featured two enemy boats across each other in the water, each featuring pirates shooting fiery cannon balls at each other. The explosions from the impacts were of course fake, but the heat was sure real. The crowd could feel blasts of hot air eminate from the boats as they fired cannon balls back and forth. It was a cold night at the time, so the heat blasts warmed us all up a bit.

After all the excitement and long driving we did during that day, we finally packed it in around midnight, enjoying a really satisfying night, essentially doing Vegas in one day. I want to go back!!! The next day, it was out of Vegas, and onto the Hoover Dam and Flagstaff Arizona (The Grand Canyon).
--by Steve Ruelle

Some links...

• USA Vacations - Order FREE Brochure!
• Las Vegas.com
• Circus Circus Hotel, Casino, and Theme Park
• Luxor Hotel and Casino
• Treasure Island Hotel and Casino at The Mirage
• MGM Grand Hotel
• EXCALIBUR - Hotel / Casino
• Caesars Palace
• New York-New York Hotel and Casino
• Harley Davidson Cafe
• More sites...