Back from the West: The final Chapter

After the fun of camping and being in nature, the Self Evolved and I found our way into more sensory attacks than one could imagine without the aid of television and glossy magazines. Vegas seemed to seep into us through the air as though we were soaking in a rainbow covered acid rain filled pond. The smell, although it's not as bad as that from Bourbon Street (pre-Katrina) on any given night, was quite bothersome, which was only one of the many strange things about the place.

As this was our first venture into the blinding lights, we planned on taking in as much of the so-called attractions as possible. Some of the free sights are the surprisingly amazing and graceful dancing fountains of the Belagio, as well as the soothing canal under the blue sky of the Venetian, which had a wonderful three-piece band providing even more atmosphere. Despite all of this great design and nuance, I could never shake the feeling that I was two words away from all of my money disappear.

This feeling was especially true when approached with really cheap tickets to Zoomanity, a fittingly named show for this blog. Why would someone or a company sell me tickets to this show for $20 each when they are usually $85 or more? Well, because they pegged me for a sucker. We had to sit through this 2.5 hour presentation for a time-share. Once I figured out what they had in store for us, I developed a very toady strategy; I displayed such an air of disinterest that I only had to tell them "no" twice. Other couples apparently had to say no to extremely high pressure repeatedly.

I did at least allow myself to lose some money in a couple of poker tournaments. I played at the MGM Grand in the morning tournaments, hoping that every other person in the tournament would be a hung over tourist too. But, alas, there were a few players who had actually planned on being mentally present. I lost out in both tournaments without winning any of my money back. However, the time at the tables was just about the most fun I had in the town.

Well, this will be the last posting of the "Back from the West" series, so you can finally read about something new next time. That is, if you come back to see how this tadpole site morphs into something worth reading on a regular basis.