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Vegas, Baby
Mar. 4th, 2007 10:04 pmApparently, there's no one over the age of nine who lives in California that has never been to Las Vegas. At least, that was the impression I got from talking to the people at my office.
And now, I can be included in the "everybody" who's been to Vegas.
I'm not certain how I feel about it.
For one thing, I've gotten used to Los Angeles (and before that Boston) with its no smoking rules. I nearly passed out walking in the door to Caesar's Palace (where they give you little potted histories of Rome on the elevator doors. I'd never known about the Vestral [sic] Virgins.) The smoke was thick and the alcohol scent was nearly as strong.
All I saw was the Strip. There was Caesar's where we were staying, the Bellagio which was next door and had the show the four of us went to see (Sis and our mother's cousins who are sisters made up the group), and, for me, New York, New York where I saw Zumanity.
I can't complain that almost everything felt artificial, because, hey! it IS artificial. From the trompe l'oeil marble to the painted "tapestries," Caesar's Palace is opulent (and smoky) fakery. Which is fine. I generally like good kitsch -- and frankly, as kitsch goes this was outstanding. But something about the experience felt ugly.
It wasn't the women in their cocktail waitress togas. they ranged in type from great broad to little pixie, but they all seemed to be hard working women who had a difficult (if occasionally lucrative) job.
There was just something about all the noise -- slot machines, canned music, and raucousness were everywhere -- and the flashing lights that made me want to pick-up a megaphone and shout for peace. (oddly contradictory, no?)
I'll write more about Zumanity later. It was definitely my high point, at least partially because it all seemed so playful and innocent.
I've never thought of myself as a prude, though I acknowledge my Scots Presbyterian upbringing. I don't think it was the gambling that got to me; I played blackjack and enjoyed it. I only lost what I had set aside for gambling with. I drink, and I had a cocktail a day while I was there which means my yearly total my reach double digits.
I had a good time. I got away from my parents and the dogs for a weekend. I had a massage at the spa and bought some exotic chocolates for when Lent is over.
Something just felt off.
And now, I can be included in the "everybody" who's been to Vegas.
I'm not certain how I feel about it.
For one thing, I've gotten used to Los Angeles (and before that Boston) with its no smoking rules. I nearly passed out walking in the door to Caesar's Palace (where they give you little potted histories of Rome on the elevator doors. I'd never known about the Vestral [sic] Virgins.) The smoke was thick and the alcohol scent was nearly as strong.
All I saw was the Strip. There was Caesar's where we were staying, the Bellagio which was next door and had the show the four of us went to see (Sis and our mother's cousins who are sisters made up the group), and, for me, New York, New York where I saw Zumanity.
I can't complain that almost everything felt artificial, because, hey! it IS artificial. From the trompe l'oeil marble to the painted "tapestries," Caesar's Palace is opulent (and smoky) fakery. Which is fine. I generally like good kitsch -- and frankly, as kitsch goes this was outstanding. But something about the experience felt ugly.
It wasn't the women in their cocktail waitress togas. they ranged in type from great broad to little pixie, but they all seemed to be hard working women who had a difficult (if occasionally lucrative) job.
There was just something about all the noise -- slot machines, canned music, and raucousness were everywhere -- and the flashing lights that made me want to pick-up a megaphone and shout for peace. (oddly contradictory, no?)
I'll write more about Zumanity later. It was definitely my high point, at least partially because it all seemed so playful and innocent.
I've never thought of myself as a prude, though I acknowledge my Scots Presbyterian upbringing. I don't think it was the gambling that got to me; I played blackjack and enjoyed it. I only lost what I had set aside for gambling with. I drink, and I had a cocktail a day while I was there which means my yearly total my reach double digits.
I had a good time. I got away from my parents and the dogs for a weekend. I had a massage at the spa and bought some exotic chocolates for when Lent is over.
Something just felt off.
