Welcome to Las Vegas 2009!

Hi everyone, I’m back and here with me are a few scenes from Vegas.

Convention venue + our home.

A picture next to the desk in the room.

The “Lion Habitat” in MGM. A state-of-the-art resort, costing 9 million dollars to build. Totally sound-proof and scent-proof against we the fearful human spectators.

Hub’s kid-at-heart at work here, in a trolley at Target.

Exhibits from the Howard W. Cannon Aviation Museum, within the McCarran International Airport.

“Women’s interest in aviation was reflected in these children’s books of the 1930s.”
Jane, Stewardess of the Airlines by Ruthe S. Wheeler (1934) and Linda Carlton Air Pilot by Edith Lavell (1931)

Some zakka buys: Orla Kiely’s reusable shopping bag, unbleached cheesecloth and a Pyrex measuring cup with that all-important lid.

Random jots:

• Exchange rate from the money changer:
  SGD 1.532 = USD 1.00

• Visas are waived for Singaporeans but it’s imperative to fill up a travel authorization form online. Print a copy, just in case. Have to fill up a waiver card (similar to the form) before the plane touchdown.
• MGM Grand
  • Arrived in Vegas past midnight and checked into MGM. There wasn’t a fridge or kettle in the room. Paid $10 for an air pot and $2.50 to have it delivered to the room. No self collection, pay $2.50 or live without boiling water. A friend had to pay $135 for a fridge! We also requested for 2 pairs of slippers but they were delivered free of charge. What a relief…
  • There are 2 connecting doors, on opposite sides in our room that can link up to 2 adjoining rooms.
  • Free ice from an ice-making machine near the lift lobby, on every floor.
  • LAN connection charge = $15/day.
  • The staff at the concierge was super helpful! They will print out Google road maps/bus routes to help you get to any part of the city.
  • There is always someone smoking somewhere in the hotel, except maybe within the conference centre. Even the non-smoking floors have lingering traces of smoke.
• The Deuce
  • The Deuce bus which travels along the Strip charges $3 for a single trip or $7 for a whole day pass. Announcements of places of interest, hotels and change to other bus routes are made before each stop and they are also shown on the monitor screen. We had to ride on the Deuce then switch to other buses ($1.75/single ticket) to reach K-mart and Target.
  • In the direction towards the McCarran Airport, The Deuce stops at Town Square which has restaurants, and also Borders, Whole Foods, H & M, Banana Republic, just to name a few.
  • On a particular leg of our journey, when we boarded the Deuce and was about to pay the fare, the driver said to us and to the rest of boarding passengers that we don’t have to! Free ride! And we don’t know why!
• It was good to catch the Bonnie Hunt Show, Regis and Kelly (with Anderson Cooper) and reruns of Home Improvement and Still Standing. Then almost every TV channel was reporting on Nadya and her 14 kids!
• The weather was cold + dry, causing some minor bleeding when we blew our noses.

(Prices in USD)

Scenes from Tokyo will be up next Monday.