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Vegas…the city that never sleeps! If you want it (and can afford it) in Las Vegas, you can have it. Big, brash and very much over the top, a place that everyone should visit, just once to experience this unique resort.
My hotel for 6 nights was The Aladdin, centrally positioned on ‘The Strip’ however was undergoing change as it was about to become ‘Planet Hollywood’. Bars and casinos are everywhere and with so much choice it’s easy to find somewhere to suit all tastes. My evenings were spent in several bars and restaurants around the ‘New York New York’ area where I spent some time in Coyote Ugly bar, enjoyed the duelling pianos at ‘The Bar in Time Square’ and took a ride on an amazing rollercoaster that even spent some of the time speeding through the casino. At the end of each evening I wandered past many who were looking quite drunk, and noted that the city had a second name given by the locals which was ‘Lost Wages’. Being English and not a gambler, I invested just $10 coming out with $17.25.
My hotel was opposite the famous Bellagio with its spectacular dancing fountains. Every quarter of an hour they would dance to a new song which looked very impressive, even more so at nighttime with all the added lighting effects.
Of course, a trip to Vegas is not complete without seeing one of the seven wonders of the world…The Grand Canyon. My coach left early to head into Arizona, over the Hoover Dam towards Grand Canyon West. On reaching the rim, I boarded a helicopter which took me along the Canyon. From the helicopter it was easy to appreciate the enormous proportions of what we were seeing. When we landed at the bottom we boarded a rather luxurious leather seated cruiser for a ride along The Colorado River. I remember watching the eagles before boarding another helicopter and returning to the rim for lunch and fantastic views of Eagle Point.
My day had a surprise in store…The Grand Canyon Skywalk has taken around 10 years from conception to completion and opened just 10 days ago. I was so pleased to be one of the first to walk on the glass bottomed platform where you hang over the canyon for magnificent views.
Back to Las Vegas, more bars, casinos, restaurants, over the top people and shops that seem to sell everything anyone could ever wish for. In summary I would describe Las Vegas as “AS FAR OVER THE TOP AS ANYWHERE ON EARTH”

I visited Las Vegas as part of my incredible journey around the world in spring 2007 and hope you like the selection of photos I have chosen to publish. Please contact me if you would like to know more about Las Vegas and the surrounding areas including The Grand Canyon. Thank you for reading my journal.