And of course. Julius had his 50th anniversary sash on :
After lunch with my sweetie, Doc headed to his Dermascopy class, and I went off to try and crash the debate.
As you may know, it was held at the Thomas and Mack Center at UNLV - the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. I couldn't get very close - there were police and Secret Service everywhere.
The first picture was enlarged - this is actually how close I got - meaning NOT CLOSE AT ALL.
Police were out in full force. In the morning, they disclosed that there were NO arrests due to the debate - amazing. The most exciting part was when I entered the press area for one hot minute.
After trying to get closer in vain, I went to the Public Expression Area. There was quite the security at the entrance.
Since the PEA was in the middle of the Nevada desert in an unshaded vacant parking lot, I was satisfied with getting my picture taken at the entrance.
Then I took a shot looking back towards the Strip, to give you an idea of how far away it was. I walked over from Caesar's, and it was 3 miles away.
As I returned to the Palace, the intersection immediately outside was "seized". It is the corner of Las Vegas Blvd (the Strip) and E Flamingo Road.
One of the nice officers explained that the publicized route of the motorcades had changed. It was a double cross - the morning news said that both candidates would be going down Paradise Blvd.
In the morning, the truth came out. The I-15 and the I-215 (major freeways) were closed down to allow the motorcades to reach UNLV.
Here's the last picture I took, on a bridge over E Flamingo, waiting for the motorcade like all the other Dodos. We were all looking for an army of black Cadillac Escalades, but they were on the freeways, not the streets.
So we watched it with 50 million others on TV. This was the beautiful view from our window.
This morning, I decided to go down to Downtown Las Vegas, the old part of town where we used to stay at the Silver Slipper with my parents in the 60s.
I was a bit early for any action - this is usual, because I am an early riser and early sleeper.
Anyway, I was able to see the giant praying mantis statue at Container Park - all the attractions are made of discarded scrap metal.
He is 1500 times normal size and very cool. Then I walked down Fremont Street East - all the old neon signs have been made into displays.
Here is the entrance to the Fremont Street Experience. This is where you can still get 99 cent shrimp cocktails and $3.00 breakfasts, but it is very run down.
I ate lunch there - I had absolutely delicious lamb schawarma for $6.95. I think this was the best food I have had here this time.
This is Slotzilla - it's a GIANT attraction, from which you can zip line or bungee jump. No thanks.
After my scrumptious lunch, I took the Deuce to the Stratosphere. Nothing going on, and I have been up top before, so I didn't feel like paying $20 to go up again.
Then I walked over to Circus Circus, stopping at Bonanza Souvenirs first - I LOVE the corny gifts there, and always get a couple of things.
I got there in time to see the Flying Angels, a trapeze troup from Argentina. They were wonderful.
Then I Deuced up to Paris Las Vegas. Actually, I wanted to go to the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood.
I bought a couple of things - two bath bombs from Lush Cosmetics, and a belt at White House Black Market.
Then I stopped at CVS to get snacks for the evening - Doc and I are used to grazing freely at night. So I got popcorn, almonds, chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter pretzels. Everything inside Caesar's Palace is very expensive.
On the way in, I took a picture of the lovely Indian Shrine:
Between the two yellow towers are numerous elephant carvings:
Tomorrow: Bellagio, MGM Grand, Luxor, Mirage, Treasure Island, and other sights. Stay tuned!!
Links: www.fashionshouldbefun.com, www.highlatitudestyle.com, www.eleganceandmommyhood.blogspot.com, www.mynewhappy.com, and www.shelbeeontheedge.com
