LoVing LV!

Please excuse me as I will want to indulge in some interesting aspects of what Las Vegas has to offer.  You can take the girl out of the strip, but the strip does certainly stay with you!

When we strolled into the lobby of the famous Bellagio Hotel, it's ceiling design took my breath away.

The artist is Dale Chihuly.  He created this amazing sculpture in 1998 for the hotel's previous owner Steve Wynn.  Its design was in the works way before the building's completion.  Called "Fiori Di Como", this incredible ceiling of flowers was installed with over 2,000 hand blown glass elements.  This spectacular lobby is the perfect prelude to the fresh and beautiful flower motifs throughout the Bellagio.

After studying interior design from the University of Washington in 1965, Chihuly enrolled in the first glass program at the University of Wisconsin.  It was during this time that Chihuly led the avant-garde in the development of glass as a fine art and a legitimate artist's medium. He then went to work at the Venini glass factory in Venice.  There he learned the art of a team's approach to blowing glass.  It was this personal discovery that led to the more than 200 incredible displayed works today. 

The Gallery, CityCenter, Las Vegas
mymodernmet.com

Chihuly has 4 major works in Las Vegas alone:
-Bellagio lobby ceiling
-CityCenter (the Gallery, Crystals Place)
-Mirage Hotel
-Nevada Cancer Institute

Las Vegas is known for its sights and sounds in hedonistic pursuits.  But it's nice to see that art and culture are alive and well, proudly posing in plain sight for all to enjoy.

Carol

Holiday in Vegas

Hi all!

We're off to vegas for a bit of R&R, gambling, touring and to celebrate Carol and Jamie's wedding vow renewals with Elvis.

Because as we all know, Elvis is still alive.

Thank you....thank you very much. (Insert Elvis voice here.)

VEGAS OR BUST!

americansky.co.uk

We've finally booked it!  We're on our way to Las Vegas for some fun in Sin City.  We're also planning to renew our vows by Elvis.  We're doubly happy that Veronica and her boyfriend, along with a girlfriend of mine, will be joining us on this fun and retro journey.  Veronica and I are planning on having a girly afternoon for me to try on some of her dresses for "the big day"!  Stay tuned for future blogs with pictures!  After talking about it for so many years, I can't believe that we're actually doing it.

Husband has resigned himself to the fact that this potentially tacky journey will happen, so he's getting into the spirit of things.  Poor guy.  Many have suggested he go retro by donning a cool outfit - a la Grease or similar for the ceremony.  But a leather jacket in the heat of the desert seems like cruel and unusual punishment!  Besides, it's not really about that.  The surroundings will be distraction enough.  After all, the core of what we want to do is about being grateful to have each other and to celebrate 16 years of wonderful marriage.

We're now in the process of creating an agenda.  I'm sure there will be plenty of eating, drinking and laying around by the pool.  In the evenings, we are mulling over a show that features crooners, a traditional ventriloquist act or the Vegas hit - Cirque du Soleil's "O". 

A ceremony at Viva Las Vegas Chapel
It looks dreamy and tacky!
hollymatrimony.ca

We still haven't finalized the location for the vow renewal.  I had originally wanted 'Graceland Chapel'.  Hey, if Jon Bon Jovi got hitched there, that's good enough for me!  But after doing a bit of research, 'Viva Las Vegas Chapel' looks good as well.  I'd love any recommendations you might have!  We're counting the days...

Carol

Dankeschön Wayne, Dankeschön!

My mum just got back from a whirlwind trip to the western United States. One of her favourite destinations was Las Vegas. OK, hang on here. My 70 something mother got to experience the city of sin before me! I'm so jealous!

Call me cheesy, but next to 'Ol Blue Eyes and the King of Rock-n-Roll, I associate Vegas with the eternally young, or shall I describe his as looking now like "the living embalmed" crooner Wayne Newton.   

Husband lives in fear of having to endure one of Newton's concerts if we do make it to Las Vegas.  I love the idea of someone who has been a fixture of a town that is constantly trying to outdo itself with flashier lights, bigger casinos, fattier buffets and more grandiose hotels. 



waynenewton.com

By the time Wayne Newton was 6 years old, he had sung for a President, toured with the Grand Ole Opry and recorded his first album.  Amazing for a pint sized kid with big dreams.

Fast forward many decades and he is still thrilling audiences old and young around the world.  With a big boost from Jack Benny, Newton became the mega Vegas star he is today. He has also acted in many Hollywood films and television shows. 

Most of his contemporaries have come and gone.  So I"m glad that the ever tanned looking Newton is still going strong.  Admittedly I wouldn't buy a CD of his unless it was his old material.  And there was something magical about Ferris Bueller lip syncing to "Dankeschön" on that parade float. 

VIVA, LAS VEGAS!

Next year my other half and I will hit a milestone wedding anniversary. For years I’ve wanted to celebrate this one in Las Vegas where we can renew our vows by an Elvis impersonator “man of the cloth” at the Graceland Chapel. Honestly, this exists and awaits you in the city of sin!

It’s funny that when I think of Elvis Presley, I instantly visualize the persona rather than his music.  I personally prefer “thin Elvis” when he did the beach movies with Ann Margret.  But nobody does “thin Elvis”.  Most impersonators prefer the flashy and hefty one with the sparkly costumes, big hair and sideburns. Some might say that he is bigger now than when he was alive. Graceland has become a sort of mecca for the devoted. People want to curl their lips, eat peanut butter and banana sandwiches and swing their hips in that signature way.

What is it about this southern man whose light continues to burn so bright even today? I think that in the years to come, the only other performer who could hold a candle to his fame posthumously is Michael Jackson. I can already see it happening. I don’t think I’ll ever fully understand the unstoppable mania in the same way I shake my head at women my mother’s age who still swoon over Tom Jones, Wayne Newton and the late Liberace.

Don’t get me wrong! The minute I enter Vegas, I’ll be heading straight for the box office to order my Wayne Newton tickets along with any featuring Cirque du Soleil. What can I say? I’m cheesy that way.

Thank you, thank you very much!

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