Day 9, Rest day in Sin City

Lay in a bit this morning. Well, nothing to rush for. Eventually popped down for brekkie, yet another McDs egg and sausage muffin. Met Graham and Jan down there and hat a chat with them before we hit The Strip. In 2010, after R66, Cath and I had stayed at the Mirage, up the other end. We never got past the MGM Grand. So, as the Monte Carlo (did I mention that's where we are staying?) is practically opposite the Grand, it gave me the opportunity the look at the other way to, The Excalibur, Luxor and Mandalay Bay. Firstly I took Bill into The New York, then we did the other three, as I mentioned above, jumping on a little train to get us between them without too much effort in the heat. The Luxor is the best of the three I would say, just for the architecture. The hotel is a giant pyramid, the inside though, a giant atrium, with the rooms all built into the four sloping sides. Very impressive.

Next up was the MGM Grand. Disappointment here, as the lion enclosure is all boarded up. Maybe just for a refurb, not sure. Still, Dud was impressed with the bronze lion outside. Made from 100,000lbs of bronze and 45 feet tall, it is the largest bronze statue in the western hemisphere.

The MGM Lion

We made our way down The Strip and into the Harley Davidson cafe, just to check it out. Graham, Jan, Sally and Alec were in there having lunch. Also, we bumped into Barbara and Tony in the queue, who were also going for lunch. We weren't hungry so we left them to it and continued. Next stop The Flamingo and a walk in their garden, complete with flamingoes, pelicans and huge Koi carp.

Next up, Paris and a stroll through the mock Paris streets, strangely featuring lots of Italian restaurants. They also have Gordon Ramsey's steak restaurant, where the winner of Hell's Kitchen 10 was given a job as her prize. A quick check on the menu showed it was out of our league. It was time for us to have lunch though and we found a little place in Bally's where I had a chilli dog. I was determined to have one before going home. Dud had a plain hotdog.

Back out into the heat we hit The Venetian. This place blows your socks off, from the moment you step through the doors. The lobby area ceiling is painted, as if by Micky Angel himself. Then,as you walk further inside, under the blue 'sky', you reach the canal and the gondolas. A bit further and you exit into St Mark's square, where two couples are singing operatic songs, to entertain the crowds. Dud, was suitably impressed.

Some sucker just got hitched!

Finally, we crossed back to Ceasar's Palace and the forum, another spectacular building with huge statues and fountains, though I don't remember the Trevi Fountain looking quite like this one. These hotels are a rich girl's paradise. All the big names are here, Prada, Jimmy Choo, Gucci, etc, etc. Not a place for a couple of biker guys though, so we hurried on past. And with that, we were back at the Monte C. We nipped round to The Bar, for a quick pint of Blue Moon, hoping to catch happy hour. We got there in time but Blue Moon isn't a happy hour beer. Bummer!

Now back in the room writing this, Dud is having forty winks, driving each one of the forty, home with gusto ;-)

FYI, I know I make fun of Dud a lot but he has read the blog and despite calling me a cheeky sod several times, he's laughed out loud and said it is very good, so clearly no hard feelings. As for me, I think he is, besides a brilliant subject to write about in a blog, a thoroughly top guy, a genuinely nice old bloke and a thorough gentleman. Anyone who knows him will surely agree.

As we are off tomorrow, I may have a little flutter on the slots. Who knows, I may win a fortune or maybe just blow twenty bucks!

Oops, nearly forgot the mileage. Maybe about 3-4 indoors and out.