Day 1 in Las Vegas

Last day in L.A: quick breakfast at Venice beach and then off to Vegas!! We had calculated around 5 hours, so we left at 11a.m. We had to fill gas and stop for a IN n'OUT burger on the way and return the car by 5p.m, so we didn't have much of a margin should anything go wrong. But luckily, since it was Sunday, the traffic went in the other direction and they had huge jams!!!
The road to Vegas is mostly mountains and desert, but it's the image that we have of driving in the US, so it was fun!! It was freezing, though... I was wearing gloves in the end!! We found an In n'Out burger joint in the middle of the desert and it's true: they really are something!!! I think they might be putting spices like ginger and stuff in the never-frozen meat – yummy!

We arrived in Vegas at 4p.m and went to return the car, but the office was closed!!! We could have kept the car overnight!!! They closed at 5p.m and I was there 2min early!!!But then we were checking-in and everything, so we just as well keep the free parking space and left it at the Bellagio and walked over to Caesar's Palace. These hotels are soooo over the top here it's not even funny!! And I got up-graded without even asking, so we have the jacuzzi and view over the Strip, thanks to Jonathan from San Francisco! I guess me saying I preferred San Francisco of all the cities we've visited might have had something to do with that... ;o)

And the room was great – until you start looking at the finish, that is: wallpaper not perfectly aligned, marks from luggage on the walls... and then there was the leak! I took a shower and noticed afterwards that water had started leaking and I almost fell on my ass when I slipped leaving the bathroom!! I called maintenance and they sent a guy, but apparently the carpenter (!) takes care of leaking shower doors!! Whatever- they'd stop by the next day... we would have to get up early anyways to return the car keys between 7.30 and 8.. yuch!!! There's not much to do in Vegas during the day that you can't do at night, so we had hoped to sleep in, but nooooo...

We went out around 10.30p.m to grab a meal, but everything was closed!!! I thought Vegas was on 24/7!!! So we walked around a bit, watched the musical fountains at the Bellagio a couple of times – amazing, BTW!!! - and ended up at the all-nite joint at Caesar's. I swear to God, it's the last time I'll eat a burger in at least a couple of days... and I had burned my sunburned lips raw with the spicy chicken wings for appetizer...

We had a few spins on the one-armed bandit before going to bed... and boy: the view from the bed!!!!