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Leaving San Francisco, but first coffee and a bagel at my breakfast-place round the corner.

Check-out, and an airport-shuttle to San Francisco Airport. Check-in at AmericaWest, that for 70$ will take me to Las Vegas. Tickets has been bought by internet from back home.

In Las Vegas you don't need much time to find out where you are. The arrival-hall is full of slot-machines. I take a taxi to my hotel Luxor, chosen because they had a good offer - 60$ a night - and this places is way above my usual standard. Always remember - hotels in Vegas are cheap between mondays and thursdays.
 

Check-in at the pyramide-shaped Luxor. A nice view over the Strip and the airport. Luxor is much more than a hotel - more like an entertainment-palace. Actually you could stay here - not going out - and have a good time anyway.

It's time for my first walk down "The Strip", where most of the hotels and casinos are placed. Back to Luxor for the evening, and my first visit to a casino. I win a little on the slots, and dine at Pharaos Feast, with an all-you-can-eat buffet for 15$.

Get up late before going to the casino. I winn a little again, before heading for the "city" - or should I say "The Strip" - walking up and down this weird place. You will always find some kind of excitement around here. For instance the very nice fountain in front of the expensive casino-hotel Bellagio. Or what about watching a 10 year old japanese-girl climbing a 30-meter high climbing-wall in another casino.

Back to Luxur. Buffet-lunch at Pharaos Feast (10$] before a little relaxation at my room. In the evening im going to Downtown Las Vegas - or should I say Freemont Street, where there is a huge lightshow called The Freemont Experience. Back with the bus to "The Strip", where I jump off the bus a few km. before reaching Luxor. I would like to take the rest on foot, to take some pictures in the dark of all this neon and artificial light

Back at Luxor at 10 - just time for another visit to the casino. This time I loose.

Thursday, february 13'th

Sightseeing today. Leaving at 6 am and going by bus through the desert of Nevada and Arizona to Grand Canyon

We pass Hoover Dam, where security-guys stop the bus, and checks everything. This is also because of the fear for terrorists.

Finally we reach Grand Canyon. This is a second-time for me. I was her in 1987 as well.

Unfortunately Grand Canyon is not presenting it-self today. Clouds are hanging low down the valley, and take most of the spectacular views I know is here. So you don't really get to see, what for me still is the most spectacalur place I have ever seen on earth. When we are heading home, there are so many clouds, that you can see absolutely nothing down the canyon.

Back at Luxor at 9. Just enough time for another visit to the casino before bed-time. I win a lot this night. So much the coin-changer goes berserk, when I throw all my quarters down the drain (600 pieces - or a little more). So they have to call for an "assistent", before I can have my money changed for some decent notes.

From Stratosphere it's a 5 km long walk to the other end of "The Strip". You pass a lot of hotels and casinos - for instance Circus Circus - where acrobats are hanging above the gamling-tables. I also take a look inside New Frontier and Ceasars Palace, and throw a few coins into their slot-machines. Ceasers are known for fancy shopping and big boxing-fights, while New Frontiers try to make a living out of cheap margaritas and bikini bull riding every friday evening. I think this is what is called segregation

I also have time for a little final shopping. T-shirts, and some of these great american cookies you can't find anywhere else. And something for my bad throat as well.

Because of my bad throat I spend the evening at Luxor. I loose a little on the slots again. That's all that I have dared to try. But the slots are "idiot-proof" - no "holding" og "nudging" - not a chance to think and make mistakes. And another great advantage here, are the cocktail-waitresses walking around offering cocktails. You don't see that in Denmark. Free drinks is part of the fun going to a Vegas-casino.

I don't really know what else to say about Vegas. Pretty funny - and extremely tasteless at the same time. And I can't seem to find anywhere else in the world where the section "adult entertainment" is 94 pages in the yellow pages. But the casinos are fun - I better admit that.