Twenty Hours in Las Vegas

Its been said before, and said often, but Las Vegas is a city of excess. On a recent trip for business, I had a chance to give a bit of it a try.

I was already late in the day when he plane landed, so my coworker and I headed straight to the hotel at Ceaser's Palace. We dropped off our gear, re-gathered ourselves from the flight, then wandered about the casino looking for bit of food to reset our clocks. We were tempted by the Pub, but decided that the club-like music was a bit too much. Instead we decided that the expense account could cover a bit of meat from Mesa Grill. Some rabbit and wine for me, pork loins and beer for my coworker, with some roasted brussel sprouts to round out the meal, we dug with abandon to combat the jet lag. It was a great meal, but extra special for my coworker, who doesn't get as many opportunities to enjoy a nice meal out. It's good to be reminded from time to time how lucky I am, to experience so many amazing meals.

After dinner, we wandered the mall, marveling at the high end retailers gathered in one place. Interesting, for architects like ourselves, as each retailer is careful to construct their jewel box like shops to maintain their carefully crafted brand image, even in the unique, carnival-like atmosphere of the casinos. And like the restaurants, casinos, and entertainment, its part of the sensory overload of exceptional experiences.

Breakfast was our greatest encounter in excess though. Still on New York time, we were up early, with only the most hardcore and elderly of gamblers. With a couple of hours to kill before we could get to work, we decided to find a breakfast worthy of the city. By design, we didn't have to venture far: we found ourselves at Serendipity3 just outside the casino. Spoiled for choice, we went with Fried Chicken & Waffles, and the aptly named "French Toast Log." After what seemed an eternity, a pair of heaping platters were delivered, each containing more food than a human should consume in a day, let alone a single meal. We struggled to rise to the task in front of us, but in the end we had to admit defeat. The plates returned to the kitchen, half full, but in the end, there were no real losers, as we relished every moment of the ordeal.

My only regret was that it was a quick trip, and only were in town for one day. A city dedicated to tourists presents a lot of opportunities for memorable experiences, and I feel bad I didn't have time to fit a few more in.