Lola's Page
Thursday, February 21, 2008
VIVA LAS VEGAS!! Part 2
I hate jetlag!
Having woken up at midnight, after passing out unceremonously on the bed, I went back to sleep only to wake up at 4am. Wide awake, but so groggy from such a long day before. Knowing that I wouldn't get any sleep, I turned on the tv and lost myself in repeats of Roseanne before America's version of GMTV - Good Morning America and The Today Show. These are followed by Today with Regis and Kelly, Oprah and THE VIEW!!!
This is the show that inspired Loose Women on ITV1 and is superior in every way. With a panel headed by Whoopi Goldberg and Barbara Walters, who is one of the most influential broadcasters in the US, it makes Andrea McClean, Colleen Nolan, Carol McGriffen and Jane MacDonald look like 4 women sat in a doctors waiting room with no idea. It has been running for over 10 years, and has been dogged by controversary with Whoopi's predecessor, Rosie McDonnell being sacked from the show, comedienne Kathy Griffin, upsetting Barbara Walters when she co-hosted for a time, amongst other things. It is pure class though with all 5 presenters being so very knowledgable about the subjects they discuss especially politics, and sad as it sounds, it is a highlight for me when I visit the States.
After feeling that I had conquered my jetlag and showered and had breakfast, I ventured out into the Las Vegas sunshine. I had a trip planned for the afternoon, so I decided to head for The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace. Las Vegas is considered the entertainment capital, as well as the luxury hotel and casino capital and now its the shopping capital of the States. I walked into the forum and my mouth fell open at the sheer grandeur of it all. The roof is painted as sky and gives such an atmosphere about the place, as all the shops are set in a roman style to befit and match Caesars Palace hotel and casino. It holds all the top designer names such as Gucci, Pucci, Valentino, LaCroix etc. The most gorgeous restaurants and cafes and I settled on the Cheesecake Factory for lunch.
The reason I settled there is because, Vegas doesn't have an M&S/Pret A Manger where you can grab a sandwich to keep you going, and I mistakenly thought I could grab a quick bite there. I forgot that the portions are as big as the buildings, and waddled out of there an hour later, as full as a fat girls sock! I stocked up in MAC, and was disappointed in Abercrombie & Fitch as the staff are not the same as in the New York branch. There is another branch in Vegas, so hopefully I'll have better perving there.........
It was back to the hotel, though, as I had a trip to go on. I was off to the Grand Canyon by helicopter!! Vegas is in Nevada and the Canyon is in the neighbouring state of Arizona, and it is simply a must do if you visit. There are s many ways to get there. Car, plane or helicopter, and I chose the helicopter, as I had never been in one before, and the trip was in late afternoon, so you returned to the strip at sunset when the strip is lit up in all its glory!
After being picked up by limo from the hotel along with 2 queens from Cardiff, and a family of 3 from Newcastle, we arrived at McCarrans Airport for check in. Now this is a helicopter ride, and is classed as a light aircraft, so all passengers are weighed before the trip. So if you have a phobia about your weight being disclosed, this trip is not for you!! I was put on a chopper with a group of 4 people all from England and our pilot, Nathan or Nate, as he asked us to call him, and I was slightly nervous as we were strapped in and put our headphones on. All very AirWolf!!
However, I don't know what I was worried about, as it was simply fabulous! I was sat in the front for the outward trip and had a birdseye view of everything as we headed across the desert land, Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam towards the Canyon. Through your headphones, you are played suitable mood music as well as an informative commentary on what you are seeing below you. I noticed that all 4 coptors on our trip were aligning each other as we approached the Canyon, and suddenly as we began our descent, the music switched to the theme tune from Indiana Jones, and one by one the copters landed on a rim of the Canyon.
I've been lucky enough to see many things in my life, but this rates as one of the most majestic, peaceful and fabulous ones. I would say, even better than Table Mountain in South Africa. We had 40 minutes in the Canyon to take photos and drink in the atmosphere of this natural phenomenon. Nate, and the other pilots, unpacked a boxed lunch for us along with some champagne, and the other 4 passengers, Nate and I all chatted. It turned out that the other 4 people were from Brighton! One was a taxi driver for 747474 taxis, and after learnng of my profession, asked me if I knew Brian Ralfe. I thought even halfway round the world there's no escaping sometimes!!
All too soon it was time to reboard the copter and head home, however this wasn't such a bad thing as we headed to the fully lit up Las Vegas strip. I didn't know how close to the buildings we were going to get and we were flown in between the hotels and casinos and down Las Vegas Boulevard back towards the airport. It was just stunning as we saw everything at close quarters and I really felt that was experiencing the true Las Vegas.
It is a costly trip. Over £200, but worth every single penny and I highly recommend it to anyone visiting in the future.
# posted by Lola Lasagne : 6:09 PM
