Our First Trip to Vegas - Acitivites

I've been trying to get away from writing mass blogs, but there is so much to do in Vegas that I thought it would be better to list similar aspects of the trip all in one place.  I'll split the blogs into accommodations, food, and activities.  If we go again, I promise not to repeat information so that each Vegas blog will be different.  Also, I'm going to start writing in the first person since, let's be honest, I (Michelle) am the only one that's been writing these things.  Finally, to explain the picture on the left...Nathan is a nerd.  With all that out of the way, onto our trip.

Nathan and I went to Vegas for his 23rd birthday with a couple of friends of ours.  Nathan had never been to Vegas before and I hadn't been in at least 7 years, so we were both a little bit in the dark about what to do when we got there.  In Vegas, though, it's not difficult to find things to do.

Crystals (at the City Center) - You Might Like It

There are a lot of shopping centers in Las Vegas.  The newest one is Crystals, one of the many buildings a part of the City Center known for their unique architecture.  This mall is definitely worth a visit for this very reason (and to get out of the relentless heat).  It is spacious with unique fountains, structures, and art.  The stores are pretty much the same as most malls in Vegas, very high end stores that I can only afford to window shop at.  But if you're walking along the strip, make sure to stop in.

Conservatory and Fountains at Bellagio - You Should Go
I didn't even know Bellagio had a free garden until I found it on Vegas.com, but I'm so glad I did.  Although it is small, the Conservatory is a wonderfully relaxing stop.  The flowers are set amongst large sculptures of common garden items (such as flower-covered bees and a large flower pot).  Hot air balloons draw your eyes up to the glass ceiling, which allows you to enjoy the sun without all the heat.  A small but unique fountain provides intrigue along with the soothing sound of running water.  I only wish they had benches in this area, but then it would probably be even more crowded than it already was.

I did know that Bellagio had a free fountain show, and it was something I really looked forward to seeing again.  It is best to go to the show at night, not only for how much better the fountain looks but also because it's not fun standing in the sun.  The fountains were just as I rememered.  They were beautifully choreographed to music and provided a cooling mist to onlookers.  The fountains usually go off every half hour, but after 8pm there's a show every 15 minutes.  That's when I like to camp out and watch a few, because each one is different and just as beautiful.

Lion Habitat at MGM Grand - You Might Like It

If you like cats both big and small (like I do) you'll want to stop and take a FREE look at the Lion Habitat on the casino floor of the MGM Grand.  They keep the lions out until 7pm, and I even saw a place to take pictures with lion cubs (although I did not see any cubs when we went).  There's a glass hallway that takes you through the middle of the habitat, which is really cool to be under when the lions are on top of it.  You have to keep in mind, however, that these are just big cats.  They sleep a lot.  If you want to catch them in action, you might want to come around feeding time (see website for details).  I like to stop in when I'm in the area and watch them for a bit while resting my feet.


M&M World  - You Should Go
This is another free activity that I always like to stop in and see.  The building is four-stories tall of M&M merchandise and memorabilia.  They have purses made from M&M bags, leather jackets, dispensers, pencils; just about anything you can think of.  We didn't buy anything but it was fun to look around.  This would be a great place to bring kids to escape the heat.


Everything Coca-Cola - You Should Go

This is right next to M&M World, but don't be fooled, you can't get there from the 4th floor walkway like you used to be able to.  Instead, take the elevator down and you'll see the entrance.  This is a free two-story memorabilia and merchandise store for Coca-Cola.  We happen to love Coke brand products, so we bought most of our souvenirs from here.  They have scented T-shirts, purses made from can tabs, glasses shaped like Coke cans (those were our favorite), old looking signs, and a lot more.  My favorite thing to do there, however, is the Tastes around the World.  You pay $7 and get 16 different cups of soda from around the world.  This is especially good to do with four or more people because you'll only want a sip from most cups and there's always plenty left-over.  Some are really good and some I would never drink again, but it's fun to try something new.

Aquarium at Caesar's Palace Forum Shops - You Might Like It
This is yet another free thing to do just to get out of the heat (can you tell we went to Vegas on a tight budget?).  At the far end of the Forum Shops (the end farthest from the Strip entrance) there is large aquarium with salt-water fish.  My favorites were the sting rays that put their mouths right against the glass.  It's nice to sit down in the air-conditioned mall and watch the fish float by.  There's also a Peter Lik art gallery nearby that features his beautiful landscape photography and really comfy seats to admire them from.

Wildlife Habitat at Flamingo Hilton - Don't Go

My family always used to stay at the Flamingo Hilton, and my favorite thing to do was to go down and watch the African penguins.  I really wanted to show them to Nathan, so we walked all the way from Excalibur to visit this wildlife habitat only to discover that the penguins are no longer there.  There are still flamingos and giant koi fish, but no more penguins.  For me, this is a deal breaker, but if you really like flamingos you might want to stop by.  Just go through the hotel towards the pool area (you'll see signs for the wildlife habitat).  Without the penguins, however, it's just not worth seeing.

Fremont Street Experience (downtown Las Vegas) - You Might Like It
The Fremont Street laser light show was another thing I remembered fondly from my family vacations.  Since it was another free thing, we went to see it.  We drove into downtown Las Vegas and parked pretty close (just be careful because some of the parking structures are not free without validation, like the one we chose at the Four Queens).  We walked around the shops until the show started.  They have a rock concert theme going on right now and the show was Kiss themed.  I felt like it was cheesy.  I'm used to the shows made specifically for the giant screen, like fish swimming or cars racing down the length of the street.  This was just the same video repeated over and over down the line.  That was the only show we saw, and I know each one is different, so there may be better ones.  I did like watching the street artists create amazing scenes with spray paint and razor blades, and I liked going to some of the touristy shops.

Bodies Exhibit at Luxor - You Should Go
The Bodies Exhibit was featured in Los Angeles not too long ago, but Nate and I never made it down to see it.  When we saw it had moved to Vegas we decided not to let the chance pass us by again.  We got tickets for $10 less than box office per person by buying them from one of those half-price ticket booths you can find along the strip (which you should really look into if you haven't before).  It came to $25 a person after tax and fees.  This time we didn't take pictures because we weren't allowed to and we didn't want to buy the one they had taken of us (which was only $10, but we had to stick to our budget).  It was really cool to see.  It covers every part of the body using real bodies to demonstrate.  I learned a lot about our bodies.  They even have section showing fetus development that says that all specimens died of natural causes, but still gives you the option to take another path and skip around it.

I appreciated the way they posed some bodies to accentuate how our muscles work in different ways and there was even someone there to answer questions.  It was also cool but kind of strange that many of the bodies are just out in the open and it is only your will-power that stops you from touching them (which you might want to keep in mind if you're thinking of taking children).  At the end we did get to hold a liver and a piece of brain.  I really wanted to buy the catalogue that shows everything in the exhibit, but it was $20 (which I felt was too much to ask for after charging a $34 admission).  I would definitely recommend you see this exhibit at least once, though.