For those of you who love to dream, Las Vegas is the only place that can make dreams come true. Enter Vegas and the first thing you experience is a larger-than-life feeling. The never-ending swanky casinos, the glitzy clubs, the large artistic museums, the extravagant shopping malls, and the life-changing performances — all of these make this city in Nevada a place where dreams come alive.
I am a dreamer by nature. As a child, I used to dream of mermaids, flying horses, fountains, oceans, blue skies, and the mountains. And when I watched “O”, a spectacular water-themed show produced by Cirque du Soleil at the Bellagio, I got to live my sweet dreams of childhood (check out show details here). I can say without the slightest exaggeration that “O” was a life-changing experience for me. As I watched the performance, tears of joy and nostalgia began trickling down my cheeks. Indeed, it appeared that I had been transported to another world, even, perhaps, to heaven. This is one experience whose full potential I will not be able to describe in words, no matter how hard I try. You really need to see it to believe it.
Las Vegas is often referred to as Sin City or as a Disneyland for adults. With so many legal casinos and strip clubs all over the place, it certainly lives up to its name. In fact, you don’t have to make any kind of effort to enter a casino because every path seems to lead to one: almost all hotels, restaurants, and shopping malls have cleverly installed a casino at the entrance. You are sure to be tempted to try your hand at a game of poker or blackjack, or go one-on-one with… er… a one-armed bandit, even though there’s no guarantee that Lady Luck will bestow her favours on you. As for the strip clubs, most of them are located slightly off the Strip, the most happening stretch of land, but you might or might not want to drop in depending on your mood and taste.
Las Vegas is also known as the wedding capital of the world and I did experience what that means. Hold your horses! I didn’t get married there… not yet anyway. What happened was that when I was walking around the Strip with a female colleague of mine, there were people coming up to us to ask if we are unmarried and if we would like them to arrange a famous Vegas wedding. I can tell you, we were surprised! As one of the most popular destinations to say “I do,” Las Vegas is known for the crazy and impulsive weddings conducted there. In fact, according to Wikipedia, the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas has been the venue of about eight lakh weddings.
Of course, there’s much to see and much more to do in this neon-lit city of dreams. The spectacular musical fountains at the Bellagio, the architectural wonders at Caesar’s Palace, and everything else on the Strip — it is enough to drive you crazy. In Las Vegas, the reasons to spend money will always outnumber the dollars you have in your wallet.
I have to say, though, that because Las Vegas appears to be a make-believe world where everything is glittery and massive, and everyone is happy and in high spirits, I can’t help wondering if this is for real and if all of these can exist in this world. But, like many others, I, too, hope that what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. O Las Vegas, you are truly out of this world!
(This travelogue has been reproduced in the Commits Chronicle No. 91)
