Bright light city gonna set my soul, gonna set my soul on fire

We were having such a nice day until 3 o'clock........

We drove through more desert this morning and ended up at the Hoover Dam. I shan't bother showing you a picture of it as they don't really do it justice. However make do with a picture of one of the pair of lovely Art Deco statues

and the "we haven't got room to put this pylon in straight up so lets do it at an angle" pylon - this one is especially for you lovers of a good bit of civil engineering - I know you are reading this (no really, they are)

It was then on to probably the least visited of all of Vegas' attractions - the Clark County Museum in Henderson (on the outskirts of Vegas). Its perhaps two of the best bucks that you will ever spend in Vegas. 

Then on to Vegas. What can I say about Vegas? Two words spring to mind - Sodom and Gomorrah. Its, urm, well, mental. It makes Atlantic City look like Nashua. We are staying in the Mirage on the Strip which has its own Volcano which goes off on the hour every hour and they beat the Bellagio's fountains into a cocked hat. I think my main problem with the city (or the Strip I suppose to be more accurate) is the noise. Everywhere you walk there is music, interminable music which wouldn't be too bad if it was the same music everywhere but no, you start with U2 then 50 yards later its Phil Collins then its Duran Duran. Just stop the noise. And the neon, the neon. I am a great lover of twinkly things but there is just too much of it and its all too random. My eyes hurt.

Gambling is fun, if a very easy way to lose your money. We only actually spent $45 and then got bored of that. (UPDATE I won most of that back after playing $2 I found in my pocket on a fruit machine when I went out for a fag before breakfast - leaving Vegas even). I actually made more money from watching a blokes machine while he went and got more cash from the cash machine. He gave me $5 for doing it, I did try and tell him that he was well, giving his money away for nothing but how do you tell someone that who is pumping dollars into a computer with random pixels coming up when you press the buttons. Maybe there is a career to be had from keeping peoples seats in casinos?

I am only disappointed that I haven't managed to win enough money to buy Tony Soprano's vest and pants from the memorabilia shop in the hotel.