From Vegas to Death Valley

Having left Las Vegas I have now decided I possibly would return as follows:
1. I would stay again in a lovely room like we had at the MGM Grand - you pay so little for so much
2. I would stay for at least 5 days so that there would be plenty of time for lazing around the pool as well as seeing the theme hotels, shopping,etc
3. I would come with lots of money so I could see a different top-billed show each night, including 2 Cirque du Soleil shows
4. I would also take in midday shows like the Mac King magician we saw - an excellent show and only $15 at Half Price Tix.  A nice way to cool down and rest in the middle of the day.
5.  I would continue to avoid the casinos until LV catches up with the 21st century and bans smoking in them
6. I would try to come in winter as it´s so hot even in September (around 40C)

Yesterday and today we went through Death Valley and the lowest place in the USA -  tonight we are less than 100 miles away from there and not far from Mt Whitney the highest mountain in the USA (excluding Alaska)

 the view from Zabriskie Point (Death Valley)

nearby Golden Canyon 

l

the lowest point in the USA (85 m below sea level)

I have also been to the lowest point in the world at the Dead Sea in Israel/Jordan 

(about 400m below sea level) 

Graeme´s comments:
PS - Kitty has left out the most important issues


1.  Make sure you are in LV when David Copperfield is appearing.  He is here ALL September - except for the week we were there. Forget the cost.

2.  Limit your drinks to no more than 5 small cocktails per day.  The small cocktails (for wimps) cost $8 - $10 and are a mere 16 oz.   The large cocktails can be 110 oz and come in yard glasses; then there are the buckets.
3.  Do not show your wife the cards with gorgeous naked women and their phone numbers on them.  You may have 50 of these thrust in your hand in a 100 yard walk on the Strip !
4.  Even though the strip is huge (4-5 miles long) make sure you go to downtown LV (5 miles from our hotel).  Fremont Street Experience is located in the heart of downtown Las Vegas and is home to Viva Vision, the biggest big screen on the planet. Towering 90-feet above a pedestrian mall with more than 12 million lights in its four-block long canopy, 550,000 watts of concert quality sound pumps to speakers throughout the venue. Eat your heart out Michael S.  - this is the Vegas you would love.  There are also street performers galore there.

5.  Pay for good seats at the big shows - the theatres can be huge.  The KA  (Circus du Soleil) show we saw probably took in close to a million dollars a day (2 performances).  One issue was an incredible number of the performers who fell completely off the stage and disappeared.  Actually the theatre had no fixed stage - just a ¨bottomless pit¨.  Most of the action took place on a platform that slid out from the back of the stage .   The platform (maybe 80 x 40 x  2 feet)  could be rotated to almost any angle.    One battle between 8 actors took place with this ¨stage¨  completely vertical - so it appeared you were looking down on the scene.   It totally changed what actors could do ¨on stage¨ - a new dimension. Again Michael S. - eat your heart out.

6.  Don´t treat people in LV as strangers - they don´t understand it.  As Barry Humphries´ mother used to say ¨There is no such thing as a stranger - just friends you have not met !  (She is now in a high security detention home for the aged).