Las Vegas '05

Our postponed 25th Anniversary Trip

When I went to Las Vegas two years ago I stumbled into the Bellagio, and realized that Kathy had to visit. So our plans for our 25th wedding anniversary were set. Unfortunately Kathy's eye surgery delayed the trip, but after recovery, replaning and rescheduling we finally went.

Here's a spot in the Bellagio's conservatory:

Besides the fragrance of flowers throughout, you can see that not only were there lots of flowers, but a fountain display that was timed to the music that played in the background.

Also in the same conservatory there's a walkway where you stroll through not only various greenery, but also more of the amazingly coherent streams of water:

The flower & fountain theme carries throughout the hotel. Here's a fountain in the main lobby:

We were a little concerned when they put us in "the new tower", but we needn't have worried. Not only was the room fantastic, so was the view. Here's a shot out the window in the evening when the Bellagio's outdoor fountain show was taking place:

Across the street, as that photo shows, was the Paris hotel... here's a better shot showing both it and the Aladdin, next door to it:

On another night we went down to the outdoor fountains. Photos simply don't do it justice as the fountain changes, moves and flows in time to the music, but here's an obligatory photo anyway:

With the top down on our rental car (no small feat, by the way, since it was around 105F), we went out to Hoover Dam. Here's our official "been there" and delayed "25th Anniversary" photo:

We took a few photos for the Life of Riley blog. There you may see photos that are a little more closely cropped, but here's Riley's dirty little secret: she has a hard time standing on her own:

Siegfried and Roy are, of course, no longer performing (we're glad to have seen them roughly 10 years ago, though, on a previous visit. However we did go visit "Siegfried and Roy's Secret Garden" at the Mirage, where a few of the animals live. Sadly, the fencing they used interfered with taking good photos.

However they also have a very nice Dolphin setup, and while they were "interacting", as they called it, I was able to get a few photos:

Obviously the trip was about a lot more than fountains, dams and dolphins ... there was Star Trek too. But these are some representative photos.

Naturally as we left the heat wave in Las Vegas, we returned to unseasonably high temperatures at home as well. And yes, there is a difference between "dry" heat, and the humidity at home.