Only in Vegas...

Today I was treated to a taste of Vegas I'm actually going to miss.

I got a really good discount on some show tickets to take my stepdad to a show for Father's Day (pays to be a local with connections), so I made the necessary calls. I waited until the sun had begun to go down to actually make the drive down (we've been having weird heat here lately. It has actually been hottest at 5PM, no at 1 or 2 like it usually is).

Traffic on the I-15 is one of my biggest gripes, but tonight it wasn't that bad. This may have been because of the hour, or because I got off at the Spring Mountain exit before it got the chance to slow down, but it definitely added to my mood. I started to take in the Strip, realizing that there really is nowhere in the world quite like it and on some level I will someday miss being able to see the colorful neon buildings from anywhere in the city.

I pulled into the Mirage, continuing to wax nostalgic about the memories I've had and the new buildings that have gone up in the past few years (and sadly noting the number of abandoned projects that stand with unmoving cranes as a silent witness to what the Vegas economy has become in the last 18 months). I headed down to the casino floor to get to the ticket box office. On the way through I took special notice of the people around me.

I passed a woman in a white sundress and a big sash across her chest that read "Bride-To-Be" with a half dozen women in purple sundresses following her around in a fit of giggles. They looked like they were having a lot of fun.

Then I saw the group of guys making bets over who was going to be able to drink more tonight without getting sick. I rolled my eyes. The night was young, and these guys were still sober, but I could imagine what they'd be like as they stumbled across the Strip with the giant 3 ft tall plastic glasses filled with alcoholic concoctions. Then I imagined them waking up tomorrow not entirely sure what they'd done the night before but knowing they'd had one helluva time.

I got to the ticket counter and noticed that there were a whole range of people in line. People dressed like they were going to the opera. People dressed like they were going to the beach. People dressed like they were going to a nightclub. And me....dressed like I'd spent my day in a UNLV dorm (UNLV flipflops, UNLV shorts, UNLV t-shirt...I was a walking billboard for my alma mater).

Then, I headed back to my car. I passed through the giant atrium with the huge skylight that had the coolest (and tallest) palm trees I've ever seen. The atrium is inside the casino (which is filled with smoke) so you can't smell any of the gorgeous flowers...but I'm sure the flowers would smell lovely otherwise. I crossed the bridge and was passed by a group of girls. One was playing a eukelele and singing.

On the way out, I passed several international visitors in clothing that seemed to say they were from India talking to a man in a Yamulke about the best places to eat in this particular casino.

I took a moment at the top of the parking garage to take some pictures of the buildings around me and consider exactly what I'm about to be leaving.

Don't get me wrong. There are some quirks and some weird things about Vegas that make it interesting...that really set it apart from other cities. These are things you'll never find anywhere else. But this is a place I'd like to visit...not a place I'd ever want to live permanently.

But...I will miss it.