Tips About Where To Go And What To Do In Las Vegas (Part III)

     Today is Day 2 of our tour of the Las Vegas Strip. As regular tourists, we did not go to Vegas to gamble, nor party, but just to see the fascinating high-tech structures that man’s imagination was able to conjure. I, once again, prepared myself for the many wondrous surprises that Vegas had to offer. Loads of energy were needed to make the rounds of Vegas. So, we started our morning with the complimentary buffet at the Venetian where we were staying (below).  We had toasted bread with butter and jam, omelet, bacon and ham and coffee.

Breakfast buffet at the Venetian, Las Vegas.

     Venetian Hotel and Casino. After breakfast, we started a tour of our hotel. Since, we were at the Venetian, seeing this gondola should not be a surprise. But, recreating a river with real boats, and singing gondoliers was really astonishing. Maybe, the passengers on the gondola (below) wanted to feel the romance of riding the real thing, even if it was only in a contrived setting.

Picture of a singing gondolier @ Venetian Hotel and Casino.

     It was still early morning, but inside, the scenery was a copy of a Venetian side street, complete with cafés and street lights to depict a balmy summer night in Venice. The blue sky and the soft clouds on the ceiling (below) made me think for a while if, indeed, we were outside Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy.

Picture of a Venetian side street in Las Vegas.

      Palazzo Hotel. We continued walking: but, lo and behold, we were in another hotel already, the Palazzo (Palace) Hotel.  You’d know you’re in the Palazzo Hotel when you see these umbrellas hanging from the ceiling (below). From The Venetian, you will pass “through a towering octagonal structure and garden with a 2-story fountain topped by a glass-and-iron dome (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Palazzo)” to reach the Palazzo. They are connected on the north side.

Picture of umbrellas @The Palazzo Hotel.

     The circular walk of the Palazzo makes possible seeing their ubiquitous umbrellas from all angles. (Upper L: On the background are hotel staff wearing European-inspired costumes, probably to emphasize the European atmosphere of the Venetian; Upper R: A view from the second floor of the Palazzo lobby; Below: Nearing the shopping area of the Palazzo, our double images).

Walking around the Venetian and Palazzo Hotel.

     A favorite past-time among women is shopping; and there is so much luxury shopping that you can do at the Palazzo (Below- upper photo). Lan and I went from shop to shop until she found a black and white, vertical-striped polo shirt with long-sleeves that she really wanted (Below- L). I waited patiently for her to make-up her mind, until, she finally, bought it after a long consideration, at a sale price of $100. Good that the shop has this sofa for this tired shopper to rest in ( Below- R).

Shopping in Las Vegas.

     It took us quite a while to browse around the shops, until lunch beckoned. A good place to dine is the Zine restaurant (Photo below – upper L). The restaurant offers traditional dim sum dishes and high-end Chinese cuisine to the Las Vegas crowd. After lunch, dessert was in order as we passed by this yogurt shop (below - upper R). I was quite shocked by the prices but Lan and Kiko bought me one scoop of gelato ($5.50). Lan had 2 scoops ($7.50). I tried to really like my gelato (photo- below R), because it was the cost of almost a gallon of our favorite local ice cream in the Philippines. 

Dining in Las Vegas.

     Wynn Hotel. Another luxury hotel worth seeing at the Las Vegas Strip is Wynn hotel. Kiko drove us to the hotel, as it is quite a distance from the Venetian. It’s good that Wynn has valet parking, so we just left the car at the entrance. Upon entering, one could see the trees adorned by these round-shaped bouquets. The bright red-fuchsia and orange colors are a refreshing sight and which delightfully contrasted with the lush greenery of the foliage and the trees.

Picture of Wynn Hotel lobby.

     What we came for at the Wynn was their main attraction, the large, curtain waterfall behind a mountain that faces the strip. The water falls into a 3-acre (1.2 ha) lake. “The show can be viewed from the Parasol Up (a lounge and viewing area), and can be viewed through a glass window with no audio. Or, the show can be viewed from Parasol Down, with a larger outdoor view. Visitors can go to the platform at the Parasol Down lounge to view the show with full-volume audio. Those dining at SW or the new Lakeside Restaurant by executive chef David Walzog may also have a full view of the show while dining (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wynn_Las_Vegas).”

Picture of Waterfall at the Wynn Hotel, Las Vegas.

     We concluded our tour of Las Vegas with this last stop at the Wynn. There were still a lot of sights to see and fantasies to explore. Hopefully, we can experience them all in this life time. 

Tips About Where To Go And What To Do In Las Vegas

     Las Vegas was our next tourist destination following our Los Angeles visit. After about 4 hours by car from LA, “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” (signage above) greeted us. The sign, like most of the Strip, sits in the town of Paradise and is located roughly 4 miles (6.4 km) south of the actual city limits of Las Vegas. On December 6, 2013 the State Historic Preservation Office for the State of Nevada announced that the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign had been added to the State Register of Historic Places (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welcome_to_Fabulous_Las_Vegas_sign). 

Picture of Las Vegas welcome sign (background).

    The Venetian Hotel. Kiko, our designated driver and photographer, Lan, and I stayed at the Venetian Hotel (below) . It sits on the Las Vegas Strip, where some of the biggest hotels, resorts and casinos in the world are found. The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of South Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada, approximately 4.2 miles (6.8 km) in length, located south of the Las Vegas city limits in the  towns of Paradise and Winchester.

Outside the Venetian Hotel. 

     We were able to pay for only a fraction of the cost of the room because Kiko and Lan, as frequent guests, were entitled to discounted rates at the Venetian. Like most 5-star hotels, opulence can be felt in every corner of the room. This Bella Suite (below) is approximately 700 square feet with two plush queen-sized pillow-top beds with sheets of Egyptian cotton.  Notice that this suite had a sunken living room with L-shaped sofa-sleeper (https://www.venetian.com/bella-suite.html).

Pictures of Bella Suite, Venetian Hotel, Las Vegas. 

      Among the amenities in the suite, the bath room was the first room that I checked. I was not disappointed (photo below). The view from the door of our room did not show the bathroom located left of the door and has the following features: 130-square-foot bathroom; 17 inch flat-screen LCD HD TV; Roman tub with separate glass-enclosed shower; adjacent water closet with telephone; and double-sink vanity.

(Photo: https://www.venetian.com/bella-suite.html)

     Since, it was almost dark, we thought it best to see the strip at night. But first, the essence of the Vegas experience is to try your luck in one of their ‘tables’. So we did try our luck at this slot machine (below, L-Lan; R-me)). We did not stay long, though, because we did not get lucky, and our tummies were almost empty.

L-R: Lan and me, trying our luck at the Venetian Hotel Casino.

     Margaritaville. Walking along the road from the Venetian, we spotted this bar, Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville. “Jimmy Buffett  is an American singer–songwriter, author, actor, and businessman best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Buffett had recorded hit songs including "Margaritaville" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Buffett.) Margaritaville is actually part of the Flamingo Hotel and Casino, but has an entrance right on the Las Vegas Strip. Margaritaville is a tropical hideaway in this concrete jungle. Inside were scenes culled out from an exotic-island-adventure. There were so many things going around that we were not able to finish the Volcano Nachos and drinks that we ordered (below, R). (http://www.margaritavillelasvegas.com/events.html#sthash.Zwiek6Kn.dpuflow).

Pictures while dining in Margaritaville, Las Vegas.

     The sights and sounds inside this paradise were so enthralling. If I remember right, there were great live music, an LA Lakers game going on TV, stilt walkers and balloon artists, but what caught our attention was a “ Las Vegas Cutie” sliding in and out a volcano into a Margarita glass (below).

Las Vegas 'cutie' sliding in and out a Margarita glass.

      On our first night in Vegas, we secured our tummies and our beds. Later, we strolled around the strip and saw what the ‘action’ was. More on this in a separate article.