Yesterday morning we were up nice and early to throw the last couple of things together then head out to Gatwick in good time for our flight out to the US of A. After a rather busy week we were both pretty darn tired so were hoping to get a bit of sleep on the flight. When checking in, we were allocated seats in current rows so decided to upgrade to exit row seats to make the journey over there that bit more enjoyable. Plus we got to sit upstairs on the upper deck :)

The flight over was alright, even though after 11 hours of traveling we never hit darkness and basically arrived a couple of hours later than the time when we took off. And never quite got the sleep we'd hoped for. But once though McCarran International Airport which was surprisingly easy on a British passport, we grabbed a taxi to the Flamingo Hotel and landed up sitting in traffic - the last thing we wanted after sitting on a plane for hours and in that Nevada desert heat. Then once at the hotel, we landed up bumping into Si and Suzie in the lobby, who had the energy levels opposite to ours but figured we'd properly catch up with them later, so after a fairly quick check in, we made our way up to the room and grabbed an hour and half sleep to try aid the jetlag.

After a bit of a power nap and shower, we met up with Si and Suzie, Duncs and Laurie as well as Claire and Jamie down in the lobby then headed outside the Flamingo to Corner Bar just on the corner (surprisingly enough). We stayed there for a couple but decided the warm evening Vegas air would put us straight to sleep, so headed over the road to Serendipity 3 for something to eat and drink there.

After dinner we figured we'd take a walk around the casino inside Caesar's Palace, which was ridiculous in size! I imagined it to be large, but didn't quite realise just how massive the casino would be. And that's just one casino of don't know how many in Vegas! Didn't throw any money down on the tables, figured I'd save that for the Saturday night. After sometime walking through the casino, we decided to call it a night and all head back to the hotel. By then Uns and I were back on UK time so were awake and decided to grab a beer (the largest can of Heineken you've ever seen) and head out to the gardens outside the Flamingo, followed by another one up in the room watching the night lights of Vegas. We had an awesome room overlooking Caesar's Palace and The Bellagio just off to the left, so landed up sitting staring out into the lights of Vegas for sometime before finally calling it a night and getting some shut eye.

Saturday morning we (Una) woke early and figured we'd get up and watch the sunrise from our room, plus get a head start on the day. After sunrise, showers and a coffee we made our way down the Strip towards the Wynn for their breakfast buffet which was recommended to us. On our way there we happened to stop and chat to a tour operator about a Grand Canyon Helicopter Trip which we were originally going to do this afternoon but had it cancelled unfortunately due to them over-booking it. But luckily they had an opening this afternoon, so without hesitating we booked that in! From there it was over to the Wynn for their, in true Vegas style, the 'all you can eat and drink' buffet breakfast and brunch.

After a good feed at the Wynn, we figured we could do with a walk so headed back down the Strip and popped into The Mirage Casino for a walk around there, which looked fairly much like the rest of them inside, except they had a Dolphin Habitat & Secret Garden out the back, so thought we'd spend the afternoon walking around that. After sitting watching a bit of the dolphin show, we headed out back to Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden which was basically a "tropical paradise" with six different showcases of lions, tigers and leopards. I wasn't a big fan of seeing them in cages to be honest, I know they're keeping them there in an effort to protect them or something, but much prefer seeing them in their natural habitat.

After the Dolphin Habitat, the Secret Garden and another walk through the Mirage, we headed back to the hotel for a quick power nap, shower and just in time before Si and Suzie came over for a pre-drink at ours. We figured since we had a decent view of the Strip we'd enjoy it as much as we could, before heading over the road to meet Claire and Jamie at The Bellagio where they were staying. We had a quick drink up there then met up with Duncs and Laurie in the lobby, ready to get a taxi down to the Fremont Street Experience, and dropped off outside the Golden Nugget. I was initially thinking it would be a slightly older version of the Vegas Strip or something similar, but after getting out the taxi we were hit with flashing lights, sounds, crowds of people, street performers, street vendors, neon signs and the most amazing atmosphere which I certainly wasn't expecting. But it was incredible! Fremont Street is part of old 'downtown' Las Vegas and is actually much richer in history than the modern-day Strip. Fremont Street was home to the first Vegas hotel, the first Nevada gaming license, the first high-rise, the first purpose-built casino as well as the famous 50-foot tall winking cowboy neon sign.

The rest of the night was spent down Fremont Street which really exceeded all my expectations, by a long way! The Fremont Street Experience is a pedestrian mall and the main attraction of downtown Las Vegas. The attraction is a barrel vault canopy, 27m high at the peak and approximately 460m in length, which is massive! While Las Vegas is known for never turning the outside casino lights off, each show begins by turning off the lights on all of the buildings, including the casinos, under the canopy. The nightly show turns the massive canopy roof into the world's largest screen and features 12.5 million lights and 550,000 watts of amazing sound. It really was impressive - in a typical over-the-top Vegas style. But we all loved it! After a good bit of time (and beers) in Fremont Street we made our way over to El Cortez Casino which certainly had a seedy, downtown feel to it. Plus it had $5 blackjack tables - more appealing than the $15 tables along the Strip. After a good length of time playing the slots, roulette and blackjack we landed up coming out even, with a late lucky spin on Black 13. Plus with a few complimentary beers at the table, we did alright for ourselves! By then we were all much worse for wear and decided to find a taxi and head back to The Flamingo and over to Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville next door. It probably wasn't all that necessary to stop in there, but hey, it's Vegas, and landed up staying there sometime with Duncs and Laurie before heading up to the room and passing out getting some sleep.

This morning was a bit of a rough start, but after a quick swim downstairs in the pool, we checked out of the hotel and dropped our bags in Si and Suzie's car who had offered to take them down to L.A. so we'd only need a backpack for our overnight bus. We then headed to Paris Casino via Bally's to take a quick look, and then met up with Claire and Jamie for lunch outside at Mon Ami Gabi, under the Eiffel Tower, which is part of Paris.

After a decent lunch and a bit of sun and fresh air, I think we all felt a whole lot better than earlier on in the day, so after a quick farewell to Claire and Jamie, Uns and I are now off back to the hotel in time for our Grand Canyon tour later on this afternoon. Certainly looking forward to that...