VEGAS BABY!

After many, many days on the open road, my urban thirst was finally quenched through the city of Las Vegas, Nevada. It may surprise you that I am not going to take the clique and probably expected route and write with disgust of the blatant sinfulness of this modern day Nineveh. Yes Las Vegas is sinful, just like every other city. And yes the people here are sinful, just like you and I. Here I am going to take a different route in my meditations on Sin City. Of course there is a debate as to whether Las Vegas is a real city or not. Maybe you have never doubted the city-status of Las Vegas, but I would consider myself an urban connoisseur of sorts, and I have wrestled with this question for quite some time. Some would point to the mere population of Las Vegas and say “Matthew, of course it’s a city!” To me, however, a city is more than just a large group of people living close to each other; a city is a living organism far greater than the sum of its parts. These living creatures must be studied, experienced, and understood with all the scrutiny required of natural wildlife. It may already be clear why there has been some doubt in my mind of the true “citiness” of Las Vegas. Built completely around tourism and gambling you can tell this place is not like most American cities. One word that adequately describes Las Vegas is stimulating. Here, all senses are constantly catered to in a physically exhausting way. This place is a complete nightmare for epileptic suffering from ADD! The strip is full of dazzling lights, sounds, and miniature replicas of the world’s greatest attractions: The Empire State Building, Paris, the Egyptian pyramids… One word that word adequately describes Las Vegas is artificial…

At first glance, there is absolutely no reason for Las Vegas to be where it is. There are no harbors, no rivers, no lakes, no mountains, and no natural resources of any kind. In real cities, there is usually a natural reason to spring up where they do. The only difference between the Las Vegas streets and the lonely New Mexican highways are the mass produced casino sights and sounds lighting up the desert night. So is Las Vegas even a city? Upon further reflection and a little Nevada state history, I answer with a resounding YES.

As we entered Vegas, the buildings, stores, and people all around flipped a switch inside of me. I am more than just a man who loves cities; I believe that people were meant to live close to each other. Nature and solitude are desirable and inevitable (see last post), but life should be lived in community. The feelings that Vegas evoked in me after so much time in the desert is the very reason that this city exists. Follow my logic here…the very location nature and location of Las Vegas exhibits man’s powerful need and universal ability to congregate. I learned from Michael Myers, Luke’s uncle we stayed with downtown, (his real name) that contrary to popular belief Las Vegas was not formed aimlessly in the desert. Vegas was started as a small railroad town centered completely around the economy of the railroad. This was one of a few stops on a long desolate trip where people could stop, eat, drink, and just be together. When the railroad left, the residents of this small town were left with no means of employment. Gambling was legalized as a last-ditch effort to revitalize the economy, and the rest is history. Although this place was not formed around the more “traditional” city landmarks, to me this story exhibits the purest of urban desires—the need just to be together. On our local tour given by Mike, he told us that Las Vegas is one of the nation’s fastest growing cities, there are apartment complexes going up all over the city to fit them all. This urban oasis in the land of deserts continues to draw people in…

One reason for my overall optimism about Las Vegas would be the incredible luck we experienced at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino. We originally had a regular suite reserved for the night (one of our few splurges), but when Myles went to check in, the concierge upgraded us to the highly coveted Celebrity Skyloft Suites. Listed on the 2008 Best Hotels in the world, the skylofts are on the top floor of the hotel overlooking Vegas. We had our own elevator, with a special key card to even get to this private floor! Our room was two stories and 1,400 square feet. There were 5 plasma screens in the suite, including two in the bathroom. We had a huge walk-in shower/sauna, overflow Jacuzzi bathtub, and walk in closet. Our personal butler brought us what we needed and refilled all the complimentary drinks we consumed. The coolest thing about the room was the “smart remote” that controlled absolutely everything in the room. From this one remote I could control the free on-demand movies, the drapes, the air conditioner, the lighting in all the rooms, and my i-pod on the surround sound speakers. It was honestly the best hotel I have ever seen and probably will ever see. I was very glad for this little bit of luck that probably enabled me to see Vegas through more rose-colored glasses than usual.

More pictures will come later... we have to check out of the hotel