Lewis the Lion loves Las Vegas lit up at night
As Lewis the Lion cast a lazy eye through the window of the plane as it came into land, he woke up very suddenly as he was mesmerised by the glittering lights below that lit up the night sky. It seemed like a giant theme park, flashing and sparkling away.
The famous, glittering Las Vegas sign
It was unbelievable to think that this place in Nevada even existed: after all it was in the middle of the the Mojave Desert but, exist it did and Las Vegas had been drawing the crowds and celebrities here for many years. In fact, this fantasyland drew in more than 39 million tourists a year and many celebrities has chosen to make it their home too, like Celine Dion, Tom Selleck, Mike Tyson and Nicole Kidman. Lewis the Lion was keen to understand what made this city such a popular destination?
A city built up in the middle of the desert!
As Lewis the Lion stepped off the plane, he was met with a wall of heat for although it was evening time, nonetheless he was in the desert and he was glad to reach the air-conditioning of the terminal building.
Lewis the Lion arrives at Las Vegas airport
The first thing that struck Lewis the Lion as he entered the terminal building, were all of the slot machines. He discovered that the airport was also a casino and that Las Vegas had over five thousand casinos! He could see why Las Vegas was famous for gambling or why some people preferred to call it ‘Sin City!’
Las Vegas airport even has a casino!
However, Las Vegas prefers to call itself, ‘The Entertainment Capital of the World,’ as it is not only known for its gambling halls but its shopping, fine dining and big shows too: some of the biggest celebrities and sports stars (especially boxers) from around the globe come and perform here. In the 60s the Rat Pack performed here: old time crooners like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Junior.
Stars of fame in Las Vegas of two of their most famous celebrities: Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin
However, Las Vegas is also synonymous with the ‘King of Rock and Roll’ who even wrote a song entitled “Viva Las Vegas!”
Lewis the Lion meets an Elvis Presley!
As a result, Las Vegas is full of Elvis Presley impersonators.
Many people dress up as their hero, Elvis Presley
At the airport, there were many adverts for various shows, shops and restaurants.
Adverts for a famous magicians’ show and for shopping
Famous chefs cook in one of the big hotels
Lewis the Lion wondered if he might be able to catch a world famous show when he was in town too? You’ll have to look out for his following blogs to see if his wish came true!
Outside the airport terminal, Lewis the Lion saw stretch limousines and some of the biggest looking cars he had ever seen in his life. For the moment though he would be catching a local bus to his hotel but maybe he might get to ride in one of those big cars over the coming days? While he changed buses, he realised that sadly everything did not quite glitter in Las Vegas as away from the bright lights of the centre he could see some dishevelled, homeless people living on the street. He wondered how they had come to be in Las Vegas? Had they lost their fortune in one of the city’s many casinos? Their presence reminded Lewis how easy it is to get sucked into the world of gambling with the allure of riches but thankfully, he didn’t have to worry too much for now as he was too young to gamble. (You have to be at least 21 years old to gamble and drink in Las Vegas. However, his old friend Helen was very happy to have to have her passport checked to see if she was old enough the couple of times she did decide to drink or place a bet!). Helen told him, ‘If you are going to gamble you should limit yourself so that you only gamble what you can afford to lose.’ That seemed like wise advice to Lewis the Lion.
Stretch-limousines are popular in Las Vegas
Lewis the Lion’s bus was headed in the direction of some dazzling lights, the main centre of Las Vegas which is one main road called ‘The Strip.’ Along it run themed 5-star hotel-casinos which also have huge shopping malls. Many of the hotels have replicas of some of the great sights and landmarks from around the world, (although not to scale) e.g. The Eiffel Tower outside the Paris, the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge outside New York, New York and the Trevi Fountain outside Caesar’s Palace. There’s even a replica of the Grand Canal with gondolas and gondoliers outside the Venetian! Lewis the Lion will tell you more about these in some of his next blogs.
Other famous hotels include the Bellagio with its dancing fountains, the Luxor with its giant pyramid and the Stratosphere with its tall, observational tower looking down on the Strip.
A view on ‘The Strip’ from the Stratosphere Tower
Lewis the Lion was lucky enough one evening to see some of the famous, dancing fountains outside the Bellagio. Click here to see a short clip. (In the video you can also see the Paris hotel across the road).
All of these grand hotels have enormous gambling halls when you go inside with areas dedicated to roulette, poker and blackjack, as well as row upon row of slot machines.
A typical gambling hall with slot machines and roulette tables
Everything seems to flash and there’s a multitude of sounds to draw you in. Lewis the Lion again was reminded that whilst it’s OK to have fun, it is important to be cautious, as Helen told him that ultimately, the ‘House’ (another word for the casino) always won!
Some slot machines in the Venetian hotel
The next day, Lewis the Lion took a stroll down the ‘The Strip.’ However, it was very hot indeed and you needed to seek shade in some of the hotel shopping malls to cool down from time to time, as well as making sure you were drinking plenty of water. The average temperature in Las Vegas in August is over 39 degrees which is why all the hotels are fully air-conditioned and most of them have swimming pools in which you can cool off. The need for people to cool down definitely works in favour of all those shopping malls, as high-end brands and designer labels for clothes and jewellery are strategically placed here, for instance Lewis the Lion could see Gucci, Chanel and Tiffany’s to name but a few. Again, Helen told Lewis the Lion that one day she would come back here but not as a backpacker!
As Lewis the Lion strolled along, he grinned to see so many celebrity impersonators or characters from films.
Lewis sees many characters lining The Strip
Lewis the Lion sees Mickey and Minnie Mouse!
A transformer – a robot in disguise?
Towards the bottom of ‘The Strip,’ Lewis the Lion discovered another reason why some people go to Las Vegas. They go there to get married or renew their wedding vows. Las Vegas in particular is famous for allowing you to get married ‘quickly’
Lewis the Lion sees a wedding taking place in the chapel opposite his hostel
or you can even have a themed wedding. Lewis the Lion saw that somebody dressed up as Elvis Presley was the celebrant at one of the weddings across the road from his hostel and he smiled to himself when their flashing lights suggested a Star-Wars themed wedding. ‘That would be great fun!’ he thought to himself, ‘even if it does sound a bit whacky!’
Las Vegas is famous for its themed weddings
Lewis the Lion thought that Las Vegas was a lot of fun: there was just so much to see and do (and some stuff was even free like the Bellagio fountain display!). Each hotel seemed to have it’s own special attraction as well as hosting a theatre for their star performers or show. Look out for Lewis the Lion’s next blog where he talks about some of these hotels.
Lewis the Lion and Helen meet a bronzed lion!
For now, Lewis the Lion was happy to be here and soak up the fun, party atmosphere of Las Vegas!
Like Lewis the Lion, do you think you would like to visit the city of Las Vegas?
Why or why not?
