In the last week I have had a few life-firsts. It was the first time I traveled - on a plane - with a significant other (boyfriend, fianceé etc.). It was the first time I saw something that completely blew my mind and overwhelmed me to the point of being speechless (Cirque De Soleil "O" rocked my world) and it now is the first time in my life that I miss a city. I know, how could you and more over why would you miss a city - especially Las Vegas, the city of sin?
From the time we stepped off the plane, there were two phrases that often left my mouth - "Oh My God" and "Holy Crap". Everything is big, over the top and mind-blowing. True sensory overload. There isn't one place on the strip that you can turn your head to rest your retinas and relieve the continuous electrical current firing urgent messages to your brain. By the time you reach three days of walking a minimum of five miles per day, your head hurts, your limbs shake from exhaustion and yet you forge on looking for the next unbelievable sight. For those of you who have visited, you understand. For those of you who haven't, you need to experience it. I know not everyone loves the Las Vegas Experience, but for me, it was fantastic and awesome.
It just overwhelmed me to wonder and try to speculate how this unbelievable place was built. I don't mean how it was funded - we all know it was built by money poured in to slot machines and bet at green, felt covered tables, but I mean the physicality of it. How did they get cranes to the top of 30 stories? How is a building of glass that looks rounded held together? What about the marble and slate floors and sidewalks? How are they so clean and pristine? Greek columns? 8 story theaters and stages that hold water? Hand painted ceilings and costumes.....aaannd, who thought of all of this and where can I apply to the great Las Vegas Think Tank? How unbelievable would it be to have been to be part of the creation of any one of those beyond-imagination projects with unlimited budgets?
Then there was Cirque de Soleil "O". In my life, I have never ever seen anything so cool. I can't even describe it, you just have to see it. Tickets were not cheap at all (then again nothing in Vegas really is) but it was worth every cent. No one who knows us would ever believe that neither Mikey nor I could ever be speechless, but that is exactly what we were. We didn't talk...we couldn't....for a least 20 minutes and then came the, "OH MY GOD! Did you see the whatever it was?! That was insane!!!! And what about the so and so! HOLY CRAP! How did they do that!". I personally endorse this show as one of the best shows in the world. No, they are not paying me, and I am not an actor, compensated to say this, but it made my soul sing. It made me happy, excited, misty eyed and inspired. What more could you want?! O made me feel like a child reading or watching Alice in Wonderland for the first time. I was absorbed. It was a land that wasn't and couldn't possibly be real, but I wished with all my heart that it was. And, I wished, it would have never ended. Encore!
Yes, all this was stupefying and wonderful, but don't get me wrong, I saw the smutty underbelly. Walk the strip at night and no less than a few hundred workers line the right of the sidewalk snapping business card sized "fliers" at you for women who want to meet you, massage you or "date" you. You know the sort. Everyone there was blond and enhanced in the chestal area. Even the older women were bleached and tanned and enhanced (the likes of the woman from There's Something About Mary). I swear, there must be a group discount for plastic surgery in Nevada. These things paired with the constantly overflowing "Paycheck Cashing Only" line in our hotel casino and the husband and wife entangled in a "where did all our money go?" screaming match in front of a Million Dollar Jackpot machine made it evident why they call it Sin City. It is, without a doubt, a city that could lure you in with its devious charm, chew you up and spit you out on the other side completely exhausted, with no money and something that you may need to "get a cream" for. At any rate, this is the side that I took little to no interest in...apart from a little slot playing and Mikey throwing $20 on black at the roulette table (it came up red and the dealer laughed and wished him better luck next time).
Like I said, I miss the city...maybe The Strip more so. I loved the sun drenched walks that led to 99 cent margaritas, the lights, the architecture, the wedding chapels, the art gallery stores, the hand-painted cloud-filled skies that canopied mall walkways and the utter extravagance of everything. It made me feel young and fun and inspired. I think the best part was, in all of its extravagance, its beauty illuminated by neon and lights and foiled in gold, positioned alone in the middle of red and brown desert, it stood there for everyone and anyone. It was not a castle with forbidden grounds accessible only to the rich and famous. It's not exclusive to the super stars or those blessed with hoards of money. It's there for all and it was mine for three sun soaked fantastic days.
