Day three.
On the third day, I headed to the Mandalay Bay hotel, which houses the Shark Reef aquarium and was also hosting the Sea Monsters Revealed exhibition of various underwater creatures. As I mentioned before, all hotels are unique in their own way, specifically in their styles, but beyond that, they try to stand out with things like exhibitions, performances, bonuses, etc., because they need to attract as many people as possible, and maybe even get them into the casino.
Admission to the aquarium cost $20 + $5 for the exhibition ticket. The aquarium featured various animals of the underwater world: an octopus, crocodiles, fish, rays, and the main highlight was a huge hall designed like a sunken ship, surrounded by sharks of different species. The exhibition consists of several halls with exhibits in the form of remains of ancient underwater monsters. To be honest, it's actually quite creepy. Just imagining all these... little fish... in real life...
I love large aquariums and oceanariums, so I recommend that you all visit this one too if you are in Vegas. I'm sure you won't regret it.
By the way, I didn't mention that even before the trip here, I realized I got a bit lucky; specifically, I saw a post on Facebook that Kelsey and Matt—the very people whose wedding I attended last year—were also going to Vegas on the same day as me.
Let me remind you that after the wedding, they left for Australia on a one-year trainee program. In the spring of 2016, they started having some problems; specifically, if I'm not mistaken, Kelsey lost her passport and they couldn't get it replaced for a long time. Eventually, they had to return to their homeland. And they went straight from Australia to Vegas, where we were supposed to meet up. "It's a small world," as Marta, the HR of our company who I mentioned hosted their wedding, accurately noted in the comments on one of my posts about Vegas.
After discussing plans for the coming days, we decided that we could go to Cirque du Soleil together. Yes, imagine that! I've dreamed of going there since I was a child, and they were just planning to go to one of the shows, or rather, they had already bought tickets. If I'm not mistaken, there are 10 or 12 different shows presented by the Circus here, each in a different hotel. That is, there is already a ready-made venue with all the installations specifically for that show. And they are all different: Michael Jackson themed, Beatles, Mystere, etc. You can check tickets for any show here: Vegas Shows. My ticket for section B (which is quite close to the stage) cost about 140 dollars, but for some reason, there was a $41.50 discount for our Mystere show, so it cost $100.18.
On the day before the show (or rather, on my second day in Vegas), we met with Kelsey and Matt to pick up the tickets for one of the shows they were attending together, and then to pick up our tickets. Unfortunately, we couldn't sit together, but because of that, I ended up sitting even closer :)
On the day after the aquarium, I headed straight to them. They showed me a very interesting place that, I must admit, I didn't know about before. Well, generally, I think many have heard of Ghirardelli chocolate, and there are shops there packed with all kinds of chocolates of this brand, as well as shakes, ice cream, etc.: Ghirardelli Las Vegas. An amazing place, considering it's quite hot in Vegas. Just right for this weather.
By the way, there are other interesting hotels nearby. For example, here is the Venetian:
From there, we headed to the Treasure Island hotel, where the Mystere performance was taking place. This, by the way, is one of the most popular Cirque shows, and it was directed by Franco Dragone, who might be known in the CIS now for having recently directed Philip Kirkorov's show "Ya". (I also saw this show, by the way. And it is also gorgeous. You can see that Dragone is a genius.)
If we talk directly about the show: Enchantment, magic, emotions! It's just impossible to describe in words everything I saw that day. The thing is, I had dreamed of getting into Cirque du Soleil since I was a child, and here it was... When a kind of master of ceremonies came out, I froze in anticipation like a child who had been brought to the circus for the first time.
This is not just a circus, it's a show, a 1.5-hour performance with a giant scale, talented artists, incredible costumes, live vocals, and just an interesting, and sometimes funny, execution of the whole show.
One can talk about the stage endlessly. It changed in seconds: it turned into a staircase, then a pit, then a sphere. And you watch every one of these movements with bated breath and genuine intrigue.
Is it even worth saying that you don't regret either the time or the money for the ticket here?
I already mentioned a few pages back that it's quite easy to make friends in the USA (as well as problems :), and in Vegas, it seems to me, even more so. Most people come here for adventures and, most often, for new acquaintances, as well as to find something new for themselves. So, I was just standing near one of the shops on the Strip and admiring the passersby, when an American woman next to me started complaining out loud about various problems. Of course, we started a conversation. About everything at once. About politics, the economy, jobs. And then we went for a walk, she took me to one of the hotels where it turns out she plays pinball. Imagine, there are still people who play pinball. Remember the game on Windows XP? Something like that, only the machine is 2 meters tall, and it's themed. That is, they are all made differently. And you can even win money there and participate in championships. So she participates.
We spent the evening with her, parted ways, and agreed to meet the next day.
Day Four.
This promised to be the most exhausting day, as I was planning to go all the way to Arizona to see the famous Grand Canyon.
How?
Here again, advance booking is important. I used the services of the Papillon company, which provided me with a 12-hour tour for $149, picking me up by bus from the nearest large hotel, a tour of the west side, and the so-called skywalk - a bridge with a glass floor over the Canyon. They took us to some office, gave us a bracelet with the "needed tour," from there we got on other buses and set off. The road is about 3 hours, 4 hours in the Canyon at different locations, and even food is included. They will bring you back by 5-6 PM.
There is nothing to say here, really. You need to go here and see everything with your own eyes: the entire scale of this wonder of the world. It is worth noting that it is one of the few (or the only?) places that is still under the control of the indigenous people of America. In the case of the Grand Canyon, these are the Hualapai tribes. During the trip, you can learn more about them. On the way back, we also stopped at some shop in the middle of the Arizona desert, where you could grab a quick bite, as well as buy all sorts of junk made of wool or souvenirs related to Area 51 (yes, it's popular here).
Well, and then we headed home. 12 hours here will fly by fantastically fast.
In the evening, by the way, I tried to contact that Nicole I met yesterday, but something strange happened with her. Or rather, she just disappeared. She didn't answer messages, and she checked out of the hotel. So, you always have to be prepared for the fact that such meetings might be for one evening. Especially with such strange girls who play pinball :)
In principle, everything in Vegas is very strange. Especially a lot of unusual passersby. Significantly more than in other cities. More alcohol on the streets, and more freakiness, so to speak. And also, if in other cities it's popular to take pictures with the Statue of Liberty or superheroes, here there are a lot of girls in lingerie, a la bad cops with whips and caps. I met a lot of them.
There are also quite a few bars where you can just sit and relax, by the way, but I singled out one very good one for myself. The prices are normal and overall everything is acceptable: Heart Bar. If you are in Vegas, try it :) A good place.
Yes, by the way, I completely forgot to say that, of course, I couldn't miss the famous fountains at the Bellagio hotel. The spectacle is stunning and breathtaking. Words cannot describe it. Sorry :) Again, on the topic of how many cheap and free entertainments there are in Vegas to attract you to their hotel as much as possible, right?
With that, in principle, I finished traveling around Vegas. Although I didn't see a lot of things that I could have seen, and I didn't tell a lot of things that I could have told. But these are trifles. I can only give advice that you need to go to Vegas with a good company so that it's fun, and then maybe even shameful.
On the day after the Canyon, I headed to the airport. It is worth noting that the shuttle I mentioned arrived very much on time and did not let me down. Besides me, there was, I think, only one other passenger, so we arrived even a little earlier. And after Vegas, I was supposed to fly to Seattle. Closer and closer to my native Montana.
http://www.papillon.com/las-vegas-tours/bus-tours/grand-canyon-west-rim-bus-tour-with-skywalk
