Las Vegas: Nothing More To Say

Back home after a very, very long night of travel.

Every trip I've ever taken to Las Vegas has been just one day too long. Once you've seen what you came to see here, unless you have some sort of business, gambling, or porn agenda, then there's no need to linger.

The big hotels (sorry--"Resorts"), because of high occupancy rates, have been able to eliminate what made Vegas great for travelers on a budget who could resist the gambling jones: the cheap food, drink, and room rates they dangled to get you to walk through the casinos. Now, they'll nickel-and-dime you as bad as any cheap hotel in the boonies USED to: one thing we noticed during our November Midwest roadtrip is that almost everyplace off the interstates offering you a $45-$75 room rate throws in wireless internet service, a newspaper, HBO, and a hot breakfast to get you to come in. Here in this world-class resort (the Riviera), it's 75 cents for a USA Today, $6 to fax two pages, $10 per day for (spotty) internet service, a per-minute service charge for phone calls. The coffee shop doesn't have a single sandwich under $7 (most are $8.50 and up) and coffee itself is $3.00 a cup. There's a $3.50 service charge on ATM withdrawals. You have to tip to get a decent room or a seat at a show or a restaurant. It's just amazing, what these folks get away with now.

The Strip is a nonstop construction zone. They're building a huge add-on to the Venetian over a strip mall that you could watch the Treasure Island pirate show from. The Wynn is done now, another monument to big money and even bigger ego. Hooters has opened a "resort", off the Strip, across from the Hard Rock where the San Remo used to be (no, I didn't go in. I wanted to, but was overruled). The Stardust is closed and will probably be blown up live on pay-per-view next month. I'll be interested to see when--or if--enough is ever enough out there.

But my fascination with the place, while long-standing and oft-indulged, is winding down some. My gambling jones is really nowadays only piqued by picking pro football (damn Seahawks--ONE MORE POINT and they'd have covered to make my six-way super teaser), which is fun but certainly not required to make my life complete. Getting there and back is more of a pain than ever, and there are a whole lot of places I haven't already been to seven or eight times. Thanks, Vegas. It's been fun.

If you haven't been, though, you should still go. Everybody needs to at least see the place at least once. It really is visually impressive.

Anyway, Drinking Liberally is tonight at EGL on Eagle Street in North Adams. Tara and I have now been there like four times. The food is terrific, the service is great, Vaal knows what she's doing. A wonderful addition to downtown. Mark my words--after the 7:30 or 8:00 movies let out from the new movie theater there'll be a line to get in the place. Go now while you still have elbow room. Go tonight and we can discuss the Administration's complete inability to deal with the reality of the situation in the Persian Gulf: all you folks who defend our continued presence there--how does your life change if your country "loses" a war 6500 miles away? Is establishing democracy and freedom (as we know it) even a valid concept there? Why the resistance to dealing with Iran and Syria? We have to buy our oil from someone, you know. You gotta pay for the bread whether you like the baker or not...