Tell me a Story: March 2014:

Tell me a Story is a group of photographers who blog about a single day in the month.  This month I have chose to do my post on the first day of our arrival in Las Vegas.

Having never been to Las Vegas this was a novel experience.  But added to that I got to meet up with my brother whom I have not seen in a year.  Family time is good, since we are all scattered across the continents.  We are in the US, my brother and his family in South Africa, Richard's family in Australia. Having quality time together is limited and far between.  So when he said he was going to be in Las Vegas for a week we decided to fly there.

We arrived at about 1pm and once we connected up with my brother and dumped our bags we hit the streets of Las Vegas.  It felt like I was back in Disneyland - one new building after another.  So walk with me down Las Vegas strip for a short while.

While I am not an M&M chocolate fan, I do love their colorful characters  

On researching the strip New York New York was one of the places to go to and see and to photograph.  Why because of this amazing roller coaster that goes right through the building. And it does do that, but I could barely get a glimpse of it going through let alone take a photograph of it.  That aside New York, New York was one of my favorite places to go into.  It had character, and the eatery area was fun.  Little shops with indoor "outdoor" seating where you could sit and watch the hustle and bustle of life.  And life was abundant.  

No surprise, strange characters and  less than dressed folk.  The sign "Dress for Less" in the background seems aptly suited for this pic.  I went with the expectation that I might see these kind of sights, but more at night.  I was surprised how much I saw in the day time.  It was disturbing to be harassed every 15 steps by someone handing out a "girlie club" cards, and to see the street littered with dropped cards.  Something very sad about the whole scenario.  

Paris was another of my favorite places.  I have been to France and stared at the Eiffel Tower and this is a pretty good replica.  At night this was also a sight to see - all lit up on the strip. The hotel itself have very similar walkways to New York New York, with the Parisian feel of narrow streets, and bakeries and fresh smells.  I loved meandering down the "streets" inside Paris.  

I have stood and looked at the Arc de Triumph in Paris, and watched many Tour de France cycle races where the final stopping point is just beyond the Arc.  Interestingly I have never seen Gordon Ramsay's picture on it.  However, one thing that was very familiar was the traffic situation.  The Arc was chaotic and Vegas streets were as well. I also noticed I got photo bombed by a minion.  

This sight fascinated me.  This person kind of stood/crouched in this strange position for an endless amount of time.  I kept looking for the see through seating.  Not sure how it was done but it was pretty darn good.  

The building in the background was fascinating.  It is deliberately built leaning in different directions.  It messes with you mind a little.  Pretty cool to look at though.

And of course, for all the Harley Davidson fans there is a bike exploding out the wall.  Bikes are displayed outside and occasionally you will hear the deep roar of an engine starting.

We were outside New York New York as the sun began to set and what a great place to be in front of the Statue of Liberty.  

My favorite time of the day is when the sun is starting to set and the colors streak across the sky, making interesting patterns.

Soon the sun has set and the lights are on and there is a whole new look and new vibe to the Las Vegas Strip.  Bright, colorful, glitzy and worth stopping and taking a photograph.

The roller coaster still ran and looped through the curves and people screamed and Richard offered me money to go on there with him.  No way am I going on that thing.  Once on a roller coaster was enough. I loved the sight of all the hotels standing out, brightly lit.  It made me want to walk all the way back down the street again.  But the feet are weary and the day has been long and I am ready to head back to the hotel.

By passing Excalibur and promising myself that I would walk through the hotel the next morning, we headed back across the bridge, to the MGM Grand where we were staying. 

This is just a small view of the many many photo's I took.  Perhaps I will do another blog to cover a few more photo's of the Bellagio, Venetian, Mirage and a few others.

My mother always said to me

Just remember not everything that glitters is gold.

Vegas felt a little like that.  

I hope you have enjoyed the one day from the Tell me a Story photo group. Don't forget to take a look at what Renee / Everyday Beautiful Photography  has for you this month.

If you did not see the blog on the Valley of Fire which is 40 minutes out of Vegas click here

If you are interested in seeing more of my photography take a look at my facebook page or my Flickr Page