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Las Vegas - Part 2
Written by: Dominick A. Miserandino
Photography by: Margherita Miserandino
Sigfried and Roy's Secret Garden, Aladdin Spa Tour, Mystere at Cirque du Soleil, Catch a Rising Star at the Excalibur Hotel
Day 2
We woke up a little later than we normally would have since we got in a bit late, then grabbed a complimentary juice and danish from Viva Las Vegas and started walking down to the Stratosphere. I’m a bit of a walker and after flying five hours the night before, I thought walking would be the best way to stretch my legs. After about twenty minutes of walking, we made it to the Stratosphere, the hotel that the taxi drivers consider, "The top of the strip."
From there, it was a ten-minute walk south to the Circus Circus hotel.
This was odd. It was definitely an odd feeling. The hotel is, as the name suggests, circus- themed, but the first things you see and hear are the slot machines. No big goofy clown, no elephants, no peanuts or popcorn. It’s a bit jarring at first, but after making your way through the slots, you see more games than your average kid would have the patience to even cover. At every hour on the hour is a clown or trapeze or some show for free, so that’s certainly worth watching.
We grabbed the buffet, which wasn’t worth eating (based on the price), and started heading further south.
I recommend walking the entire strip at least once in your trip. It’s a good way to burn off a buffet and a good way to see everything. Margherita recommends bringing your sunglasses as the desert sun can get a bit blinding at certain times, and in the winter (when we were there) the temperatures can be extreme.
I, on the other hand, didn’t. Fortunately, there are 99-cent sunglasses stores interspersed everywhere... so for a buck, I was back on track.
After about 30 minutes of walking, we arrived at La Mirage Hotel for Siegfried and Roy’s "Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat." Otherwise known as, "The place created by two men who love animals and have lots of money to take take of them." The descriptions of the habitat don’t really do the place justice as it comes across as either a zoo or a place where they keep their famous white tigers.
The Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat is actually more than what most people would think. It isn't a zoo, but a fantastic animal sanctuary-- an area created more for the animals than for the people. It’s a place for the animals to grow, live, and be happy. You get to walk through a fantasy reflecting Siegfried and Roy’s love for their animals.
We left the Secret Garden a bit weary from the walking and headed down further to the Aladdin hotel to go to the Elemis Spa. I was calling it Elements and constantly getting corrected by Margherita.
Well, we walked in and had to fill out our medical paperwork; I was getting a massage and Margherita was getting a facial. I also got yelled at because Margherita found it a bit unnecessary to explain to the receptionist that I don’t normally do "such a thing" and requesting not to "freak me out."
The first thing you do when entering the male section of the spa for the massage is change into a robe to relax. They have a men’s waiting room with a Sauna, steam room, whirlpool, and drinks. This was a bit alarming for everyone is sitting around naked in a robe. Now, to the average spa fiend this might seem perfectly normal, but there is no way of knowing what everybody is wearing under their robes, and what is the socially appropriate thing for you to do. Was I supposed to be wearing a bathing suit? Was I supposed to go in my underwear? This was trauma in the making.
After seeing varying degrees of "modesty," I quickly switched into my robe, grabbed a cranberry juice, and waited to be called.
At the same time, Margherita was on the women’s side filling out some more paperwork and answering questions about her face. This facial seemed to be a bit detail oriented, and their investigation into the minutia of her face would have made even the most anal-retentative ODD patient proud.
I was called and went in for the massage, which was relaxing as is common with such things. Their "signature massage" uses aspects of various methods of massage and had nuances that were really lost on me. I mean, honestly, who has preferences of Swedish massage over Japanese over Russian? I mean, I’m so thrilled if somebody massages my shoulder blades, I don’t ask their citizenship over the matter.
Then, after the massage was finished, she rang a bell to "balance my aura," and it was done. I took it as more of a signal that class was over and was ready to move on.
That’s where I messed up. See, Margherita was waiting outside, and after her facial she looked pretty. I said so—and that was a mistake. Maybe the mistake was in my presentation, but it’s not my fault.
I said, "Wow, this facial made you look better than you ever had—not like those ones you do locally that leave you looking like you were beaten with a stick."
She really missed the meaning that I thought she looked pretty. For some reason, she was focused on the lack of effectiveness of her local beautician, and she rattled on about their many good points, and "Why do I say this is the most pretty she’s ever looked. Isn’t she always pretty?"
I interrupted her rampage to remind her that it was time to eat, and we ran downstairs to the Spice Bazaar Buffet to try out Aladdin’s buffet. This was the best buffet I’ve eaten at in my life. It had foods from practically every continent. But wait! There’s more. The food was top of the line. I’ve found that most times at buffets the food is not so great. It’s OK, and there’s a lot of it, but it’s just filling and not necessarily the best, of the best. Here you had the best of the best. You had the crab legs, the steak, the well, and the best of the best.
My wife, however, disappointed me by eating like an amateur. I mean, she ate potatoes! They might have tasted good, but they’re too filling. I tried to explain that she needed to avoid all filling foods as to have more room for the good stuff.
She asked, "As a professional Buffet Man, is the salad acceptable to eat?"
"Salad?" I said shocked and dismayed, jumping two steps back to further emphasize my shock.
"Why waste all-important stomach room on simply leaves?" I waved my hands in a dismissing and yet shocked matter until I felt the message was properly relayed.
Well, it was coming close to show time and the tension grew. We had tickets to the show, but there was still room in my ever-expanding stomach. I cringed, grabbed my last dessert, and then we ate while running back up north towards Treasure Island to catch Mystere.
Mystere was simply one of the best shows we saw in Vegas. How does one explain Cirque du Soleil? Every Cirque show has a common thread of similarity, but each show is different. Every show has live music, new-age/dance, moving music, with vocals sang in a language that is probably French, but performed in such an ethereal way, you can’t really place it. The costumes are always elaborate, intricate, and well, amazing. Visually it’s a constant barrage of information, leaving even the most A.D.D. of patrons quite relaxed and satisfied.
Mystere focuses on the mystery of youth (or so it seemed to me), and as with any art form, it’s completely in the eyes of the beholder. Of our entire experience in Vegas, this was one of the best shows we’ve ever seen. We’ve never been disappointed by a Cirque Du Soleil show, and this was no exception. It’s a constant barrage of entertainment, leaving you completely mesmerized.
It was an odd juxtaposition to go from highbrow art/entertainment to run to "Catch a Rising Star", but we did just that.
A quick run, hop, skip and jump—and we were at the Excalibur to catch err ummm, Catch a Rising Star. It is an intimate venue, and the comedians were hysterical. Every night, they feature two to three comedians, who range from up-and-coming acts to well-known performers who have written for television shows, etc.
Anyway, I admit, we were getting a bit tired at this point, so things were getting a bit blurry. Also, the Excalibur is not the place for things to get blurry with all of the medieval decorations and knights paraphernalia; it can be a bit disorienting.
Read Part 1 | Read Part 2 | Read Part 3 | Read Part 4 | Read Part 5 | Read Part 6
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