A Couple of Vegas Notes
Was in Vegas last week for a conference at the Cosmopolitan. A couple of notes:
- IMO the best bar in Vegas is the bar in the sky lobby of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Quiet, intimate, and with a drop-dead gorgeous view of the strip. Honestly, the picture in the link understates how dramatic the view is. Expensive drinks, of course, but the sliders they sell at the bar are excellent.
- Vegas is preparing itself for the sorts of terrorist attacks where trucks drive through crowded streets and sidewalks (the posts in the shrink-wrapping are all new). Seems like a reasonable precaution given the pedestrian numbers and their likely terrorist target ranking
- First time I have ever had a business meeting in a room with strippers on the carpet. Stay classy, Las Vegas. One attendee said "I am glad my HR director is not attending, she would probably call an alert and order an evacuation."
- Hey - a cigarette machine re-purposed to vend little bits of art.
Brad Warbiany:
I was in that exact bar last weekend (Sat Dec 9) before the George Strait concert... It was a pretty cool little spot. I liked that the Mandarin is a hotel and doesn't have a casino inside, which made the whole place a lot more low-key.
We stayed at the Vdara, another hotel that doesn't have a casino. It's on the same property as Bellagio I believe. It's a non-smoking property, which was nice, and it was very quiet. Given that my girlfriend and I aren't exactly "Vegas" people, having a bit of a respite from the craziness was helpful. I'd recommend it.
December 18, 2017, 5:00 pmkidmugsy:
"my HR director ... would probably ... order an evactuation." How pervy of her.
December 19, 2017, 8:49 amherdgadfly:
The shrink-wrapped posts are called "bollards." They are the cheapest, simplest way to prevent terrorists from using vehicles as lethal weapons - but someone needs to tell Homeland Security that the short, sturdy, barriers obviously do little to disperse automatic gunfire.
December 19, 2017, 5:36 pmMatthew Slyfield:
I rather doubt Homeland Security had anything to do with the installation of the bollards.
December 20, 2017, 3:33 pmherdgadfly:
The bollards appear to line the street curb and all cities the size of Las Vegas have a Homeland Security function that the Feds sponsor, so at least some of the costs are covered by the Feds, with state and local taxes paying the rest.
December 21, 2017, 5:47 pm